MMA Fighting - HOAM | What Is Going On With Conor McGregor? Plus, Fury vs. Usyk Reaction

Episode Date: September 29, 2023

Conor McGregor is the biggest star in the history of the sport, and is part of the most meteoric rises we've seen in the UFC. But lately, the feelings of greatness that have surrounded "The Notorious"... has shifted to frustration among MMA fans, and have left them wondering: How have we gotten to this point? On an all-new edition of Heck of a Morning, MMA Fighting's Mike Heck takes listener questions about the reactions towards McGregor these days, why they may feel this way, his impact on the sport, and how McGregor was part of one of the all-time great octagon performances. Additionally, listener questions include Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington, what the division would look like if Covington were to capture the welterweight title, if 2023 is the most chaotic year in UFC history, the PFL not airing Saturday's card in the U.S., and more. Also, an instant reaction to the reports of Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk. You can listen live to Heck of a Morning Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 10 a.m. ET on the MMA Fighting Twitter Spaces. Follow Mike Heck: @MikeHeck_JR Subscribe to MMA Fighting Check out our full video catalog Like MMA Fighting on Facebook Follow on Twitter Read More: http://www.mmafighting.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Support for this show comes from the Audible Original, the downloaded two. Ghosts in the Machine. The Earth only has a few days left. Rosco Cudulian and the rest of the Phoenix colony have to re-upload their minds into the quantum computer, but a new threat has arisen that could destroy their stored consciousness forever. Listen to Oscar winner Brendan Fraser reprised his role as Rosco Cudulian in this follow-up to the Audible original Blockbuster. The Downloaded, it's a thought-provoking sci-fi journey where identity, memory, and morality collide. Robert J. Sawyer does it again with this much-anticipated sequel that leaves you asking,
Starting point is 00:00:42 What are you willing to lose to save the ones you love? The Downloaded 2. Ghosts in the Machine. Available now, only from Audible. Support for this show comes from Volkswagen. As the U.S. gets ready to host soccer's biggest moment on a worldwide stage, Volkswagen is helping. people discover new turfs and new ways to play the beautiful game right here in the U.S. From deaf and power wheelchair soccer to beach and futsal, Volkswagen is actively supporting
Starting point is 00:01:16 all the communities and teams within the U.S. soccer ecosystem. They're supporting talent from across the U.S. soccer extended national teams and are focused on helping to give these less widely known forms of soccer a platform moving forward. From the pitch to the sand and everything in between, welcome to our turf. to the Vox Media Podcast Network. Friday, September 29th, 2023, and it is indeed a heck of a morning. We are live on the NBA Fighting Twitter space
Starting point is 00:02:12 and we hear the show in its entirety. Shortly thereafter on the M.A. Fighting Podcasting Network. What is going on? Ladies and gentlemen, I am Mike Heck. Hope everyone's having an incredible week. Hope everyone's gearing up for a great weekend. There are combat sports going,
Starting point is 00:02:31 on. We got one championship. We got Canelo versus Charlo. Some other things, I'm sure, if you follow the great Caposa, you will find no UFC this weekend. And I got to say I'm
Starting point is 00:02:48 kind of okay with that. As someone who I mean, we've had to cover 17 straight UFC cards, which I'm not complaining about it all, but sometimes you just, you need a weekend. You need a Saturday. And, I have the whole weekend off.
Starting point is 00:03:03 I'm very, very excited about that. Hang out with the fam. Get out of town for a day or two and just have a good time and just kind of take a breather. And then we're just going to be off and running with UFC Vegas 80, UFC Vegas 81, and then it's UFC 294,
Starting point is 00:03:20 and then we are just cooking with gas from there because then it's off to South Paulo and then it is off to Madison Square Garden and there's just going to be so much going on. So enjoy the weekend, everybody. Enjoy the weekend because the rest of 2023 is going to be absolutely insane. So for those who are familiar with the Friday show, you know what we do here. We ask anything.
Starting point is 00:03:44 You can talk, ask me whatever the hell you want. We can talk about whatever you guys want to talk about. We can talk about other sports. We could talk about the MMA reporting world and the MMA media space. We can talk about whatever the hell you want to talk about. For those listening live, we did start a little bit later. Appreciate the patience. I literally two minutes before we went live here,
Starting point is 00:04:09 wrapped up with the former UFC heavyweight champion of the world, one half of the main event for UFC 295, won Stepe Meochich, who will be fighting John Jones, November 11th. I think everybody in the space knows that by now. So stay tuned for that. Fun little chat with Stepe, and he's teaming up with Buffalo Wild Wings. There's going to be a pretty damn cool giveaway chance for you and a guest to get the whole VIP treatment to attend UFC 295. So if you're like, oh, I want to go to this car, but I don't want to spend $57,000 to go sit up in the nosebleeds,
Starting point is 00:04:46 well, you'll have your chance to possibly get in there for free and have everything covered. So stay tuned for that. And let's go to you. This is your show today. So let's party. And let's ask some questions. Sturdischlager is going to kick us off on this Friday. Hello, sir.
Starting point is 00:05:09 Oh, hello. I'm telling a quick question. Who do you think will be the backup fighter for Olivera versus Islam? And who do you think is the title show after they are done fighting? Who will be the backup? That's a really good question, actually. I mean, you would think maybe Volk will do it again, but I'm not sure because I know he had surgery, but he's potentially
Starting point is 00:05:41 getting another fight lined up. So maybe him. Maybe they go Benny Daryush? I don't know. That's a really good question. I don't think they would say Gaichi over there. I mean, maybe they would. Gachy is probably the next
Starting point is 00:05:58 in line. That's going to answer your other question. I mean, it really depends. Because I feel like if, I don't know, I feel like Gaichie's going to get her no matter what. Like I know some people will say if Charles wins, well, you have to run it back because Islam just murked him the first. time. But he's only had one title defense. And yeah, there's a story there, but you can go back
Starting point is 00:06:18 to that. You can go back to that. I think at the end of the day, Gachi kind of has done enough to earn that shot. Gachey and Mockachev is a fresh matchup. And Gachey and Oliver is not. But if you want to go back and watch one of the greatest rounds in the history of the UFC, that's what you got with Charles Oliver versus Justin Gachie when Gachie got him out of there in round one. But I don't know, and I know there's a big part of Justin Gache that would love to get that one back. He's talked immensely about the power Charles Oliver Brings says he's the hardest hitter, the guy who's packed the most punch of anybody he's fought in his entire career. So I do feel like Gachie will be next.
Starting point is 00:06:59 If Oliver wins, I don't think they're going to wait a ton of time to keep that belt moving. And Islam isn't, I mean, Islam came back around in February, but typically he's not like the most active guy in the world. so it's got to be interesting. My guess would be Gachy gets the winner no matter what, and then Islam, maybe, I don't know, it could go a number of different ways, but I do feel like Gachi will get the next shot.
Starting point is 00:07:25 Go ahead, Four Corner Sports. Hey, Mike, so this morning I was at work and I wanted to listen to the damn episode that I get a chance to listen to of YWani and J-Sach. Great job, by the way. And I was thinking, like, I didn't know that Yowana had, I think you guys said five title defenses.
Starting point is 00:07:46 So my question is this, who in Strawway do you believe is going to be able to match that? Because I only have two that comes up to mind, and that would be Zhang Wei Li or when Tatiana does get the belt. But I just feel like it's very remarkable, and I didn't know the stat that whoever was champion, I was only been able to defend the belt once, and Yonah has been the anomaly
Starting point is 00:08:11 and has been able to defend it multiple. several times. And then lastly, I have a question regarding I saw Casey O'Neill is going to be fighting on USC 296. I believe it was what's up?
Starting point is 00:08:27 Yeah, how do you feel like that fight's going to go about just because I feel like it's a huge step up for Arianna Lipski but is this kind of like a squash match to see how she's in a do coming off of injury? That's all I got to say. Thanks, Mike. I mean, a squash match, I wouldn't go that far. I mean, Lipski's looked pretty good recently.
Starting point is 00:08:54 B. JJ Aldrich, that's not an easy fight. Melissa Gatto, also not an easy fight. She's won three out of four. She's one that, I mean, clearly she's a fighter that we've been waiting to see, like, if she can break through. And I think winning two in a row at this point and getting a fight with Casey O'Neill, especially in a division like this, which is just deep. and loaded up. I think it's a good fight.
Starting point is 00:09:18 I think it's a good fight. And honestly, like, who else is really available? I think Lipski's probably... Where would I put her? Where did I rank Ariene Lipski in my women's flyway ranking? Well, it's up real quick. I would assume I have her in the top 20.
Starting point is 00:09:42 I have her 21. So, yeah, I think it's a good fight. Let's see if she can get there. let's see if she can get there. It's a fight Casey O'Neill could win. It's going to be an interesting fight. I think it's a good matchmaking. I actually think it's really good matchmaking.
Starting point is 00:10:01 I mean, Casey O'Neill got pieced up by Jennifer Maya. That fight did not go well for her. She was supposed to fight Viviani Aurojo. That was an interesting fight, considering where Aurozo has been, losing to Grasso and then losing to Hebas. But I think as far as bouncing back from an injury, this is a better matchup for her. So, yeah, I like the fight. Good addition to the card and big fan of it.
Starting point is 00:10:28 And then, yeah, if you guys haven't listened to that episode of Dam, and I know we put out so much freaking content that the podcast feed can seem a little overwhelming. But that is a great episode. I've been at a part of a few dams. We're actually in the middle of recording one this week. We're going to finish this up as pretty much as soon as I've done here. but it was me, Jed, and Brian Campbell for Morning Combat doing the damn they were good about Yuanian Jacek,
Starting point is 00:10:56 and it is great. It's great. So check that out. As far as there, like, who could be, who could match that, that record? I'm going with Zhang. I'm going on John. As of right now,
Starting point is 00:11:11 I am picking Zhang Wei to beat Janjohn. And right now I'm actually picking her to beat Tatyana Suarez. That might be crazy to say, but I just feel like Zhang is on one right now. And, you know, typically we say about some of these fighters, you know, get them now. Get them now before they get really good. I kind of don't think you want to fight Zhang Wei Li right now. She's just, she's so damn good.
Starting point is 00:11:36 She's so damn good. And I know Tatiana Suarez is a problem. But I just think Zhang is just, she's the one right now. Five is a lot, though, especially in this time. So 5's a lot of title defenses, but I do feel like John can get there. And if she beats Tatea Svarez, I mean, there's no doubt about it. But who knows? Like she might even, if she goes out and beats Janjonan and then goes in beats Tatyana Suarez,
Starting point is 00:12:02 I mean, what else is really there for her at this point? Maybe just try to get the Rose one back, just try to get a legacy win. Maybe she goes up to 25. I don't know. But the next 18 months of Zhang Wei's career is going to be very, Really, really interesting. Really, really interesting. Mikey, go ahead.
Starting point is 00:12:28 Yeah, the, I don't know, I just jumped to the conversation. I have no idea what you guys are saying, but if you're saying that Zhang, Zhang has an opportunity to surpass, people forget that Valentina set the bar. You know, like she, I was actually having this conversation the other day about, like, the lineage of those title defenses, right?
Starting point is 00:12:46 Because people forget that Ron the Rousey has six title defenses, primarily because her first fight, was a title defense. She never actually won the UFC Bannonweight title. She was awarded it. And then her first fight against Liz Karmouche counted as a title defense.
Starting point is 00:13:03 And, you know, she defended five times more after that. So she was at six, I think five or six. And then Yawanna matched her and then Valentina got seven. So, Yang, you know, I think she has an opportunity to, you know, get to the rush more of strawweight at minimum because I think that Rushmore list is, what, Yohanna, her already?
Starting point is 00:13:28 At least in the UFC. I mean, she's already up there, right? It's Yona, her, Rose. Rose. And who would be the four? I put Carla there because, you know, Carla was the first champ and won it twice. Listen, sometimes I understand the fights weren't the best except the first Rose fight, but, you know, kind of has to count for something, you know what I mean?
Starting point is 00:13:46 But Zhang, what, she's already a two-time champ, already has a title defense, and she's probably going to get another one depending on who she fights. I don't know. We'll see. Because I will say this, though, I still think people are so easy. I mean, maybe this is just me, but I feel like everyone wants to rush
Starting point is 00:14:01 Yawanna off the pedestal so quickly. She's still the greatest straw at all time. Yeah, okay, she's lost twice to Rose, but I still have her higher up on Rose. You know, sometimes you lose matchups that, you know what I mean? Like, it's like, are you going to... People forget Magic.
Starting point is 00:14:17 You know, Magic Johnson is still considered, arguably the greatest point. point guard of all time, but he'd never had, you know, he's gotten swept out of the NBA finals, but people still consider him the best point card of all time and at least top 10 go, you know what I mean? So it's kind of interesting conversation, but, um, anyways, if you can give me your takes about, uh, tonight's one card, particularly stamp and CO, uh, yeah, anyways, I have a good weekend, guys. We kind of want to talk to there. The Straway at Rushmore. Yeah, Yon is number one.
Starting point is 00:14:52 won for me still, even though Rosa's two wins. Again, it is so hard to defend that title over and over again, especially when it's just so difficult to do it. And she's the only one to do it more than once.
Starting point is 00:15:07 So she gets the nod. She gets the nod, at least in my opinion. Rose is up there. Zhang, I think, is up there now. I don't know if I put Carla there. She's close.
Starting point is 00:15:28 It's between her and Jessica Androge. It's between the two of them. But I would probably lean on Drudge slightly, but not by much. I don't know. It's close. But I think Yohan is number one with the bullet and
Starting point is 00:15:48 just because it's just been so tough, man. It's so tough to defend that title so many times. The one-fighter Stimp and Sioi Ham Man, it's tough to call I lean
Starting point is 00:16:05 the more experienced fighter here. Like I know Stamp has looked really good. The Elise Anderson finished that liver kick was fucking nasty, man. So nasty. She's looked really good.
Starting point is 00:16:22 But I think C.O.e Ham might be the most underrated. She might be the most underrated female fighter in the sports history. Like, honestly, I know we look at her UFC run and she went one in three and it was kind of forgettable. It was just one of those runs like we'd love to have back. Like, we'd love to see what she could do in the UFC now if we could get her there.
Starting point is 00:16:50 But, man, she's just, she's so good. She's so good. does not get enough credit for what she has done in her career. I was looking at this up the other day. I forget the number. I'm pull it up again. One, two, three, four, five, six,
Starting point is 00:17:11 seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, fifteen. So outside of her UFC fights, she has won fifteen in a row. Sometimes the UFC is just saying for everybody. But she's so good, man. She's so good. her. Stamp has
Starting point is 00:17:30 become a much better fighter over the years. The last two specifically. I just think so, Sioi Ham is just a problem. She's a problem. She's still really good and she's still getting better,
Starting point is 00:17:47 which is kind of scary. It's going to be a good fight. It's going to be a real good fight. Joe, go ahead. Hey, Mike, I'm at the gym right now. Can you hear me well or is there too much background noise? No, I got you. You're good. All right, cool.
Starting point is 00:18:01 So it was just announced that Colby Covington and Leon Edwards were going to fight. And then during Dana White Contender Series post-fight, somebody asked about Belaw's next fight, and Dana says he's got another fight for him. So I wanted to ask you, do you have any insight? Is it looking like it's Camaro? And if not, who do you think it is? and I also
Starting point is 00:18:28 So Oh, go ahead You guys I wanted to get I don't think I've ever heard your Wellterweight Mount Rushmore So if you can throw that in at the end That'd be cool
Starting point is 00:18:38 Thanks bro Oh man Wultow way Mount Rushmore I'll get to that in a minute I have no real insight But you kind of feel like it's got to be Kamar Usman
Starting point is 00:18:55 Because who else is it Honestly Who else is it It has to be him there's just nobody else that makes any sense. Bilal should be fighting for the belt right now in a lot of people's eyes. There's just nobody else.
Starting point is 00:19:17 Is he going to fight JDM? It's got to be Usman. It's got to be Usman. As I said on the show, because I kind of predicted this is going to happen. And this is, if you listen to Tuesday show, that obviously happened before the contender series, we talked about this a lot.
Starting point is 00:19:34 Like, where does Bilal go from December 16th? And I said he should fight Kamar Usman. That should be the fight. That should be the main event December 2nd. Wherever that card takes place, that fight should be the main event. Five rounds. Let's do it. If Balal beats Kamar Usman, doesn't matter, he's next.
Starting point is 00:19:55 That's it. Although, if Colby wins, it could create a little bit of trouble. Because if he waits and doesn't fight, he's effed. He's not fighting for the belt. He's not fighting for the belt. The Shafcott Wonderboy winner is going to have a, not a better case, but at least it's so recent that people be like,
Starting point is 00:20:16 oh, man, Shafcott might just kill whoever the champion is. Or you look at it as Wonderboy, a well-liked figure in the space, who is 40, about to turn 41, working his way back up and getting one last shot at the title. The UFC loves telling those stories. and Leon and Wonderboy have never fought each other. So there's something there.
Starting point is 00:20:40 Colby, all bets are kind of off because he could just say, no, I'm going to fight Connor. He's already talked about going down to 55 and fighting Islam. I feel like Belal's chances decrease. It's none. He has zero. If he doesn't fight Usman or anybody else and Colby beats Leon, he's never fighting for the title,
Starting point is 00:20:59 at least not as long as Colby's the champion. So this is very, very smart on his part. if it is Usman, because honestly, I don't see who else it could be. This is very, very smart. Get in there, get that fight, and I think Belal probably realized something that I have been saying since May. The fight with Gilbert Burns at UFC 288 was one of the dumbest pieces of matchmaking we have seen all year. It made the fight itself made all the sense in the world,
Starting point is 00:21:28 but to rush it on that card made no sense. Absolutely no sense. because it meant nothing. It literally means nothing now. That win just means he had to win again in the end. And Gilbert Burn gets hurt because he rushed into a fight like less than a month after preparing for another fight. And what did Bilal actually gain from that win?
Starting point is 00:21:57 Nothing. What did the UFC gain putting that fight on that card? They gain nothing. How many? pay, like that, that fight didn't put any extra butts in the seats. Not that they needed it anyways, because they sell out most events. How did it do any extra pay-per-views? No.
Starting point is 00:22:16 So, like, the whole thing, like, all of it just made no sense to me. And the winner of that fight was just going to sit there and just wait for Colby to fight fight, whenever that fight happens. And Leon had already said, like, nah, I'm probably ain't fight until September, October, November anyway. So it was just a waste of time. It was just a waste of time. But if it is Belal Usman, yeah, do it December 2nd.
Starting point is 00:22:40 That's the main event. Wherever this card ends up, that card's looking pretty juicy as it is. And you throw that in as the main event, it's a damn good fight night card. That's a really good one. Support for this show comes from the Audible Original, the Downloaded 2, Ghosts in the Machine. The Earth only has a few days long. left. Rosco Cudulian and the rest of the Phoenix colony have to re-upload their minds into the quantum computer, but a new threat has arisen that could destroy their stored consciousness
Starting point is 00:23:14 forever. Listen to Oscar winner Brendan Fraser reprise his role as Rosco Cudulian in this follow-up to the audible original blockbuster, the downloaded. It's a thought-provoking sci-fi journey where identity, memory, and morality collide. Robert J. Sawyer does it again with this much-anticipated sequel that leaves you asking, what are you willing to lose to save the ones you love? The downloaded two, ghosts in the machine. Available now, only from Audible. It's hockey season, and you can get anything you need delivered with Uber Eats. Well, almost, almost anything. So no, you can't get a nice rink on Uber Eats. But iced tea, ice cream, or just plain old ice, yes, we deliver those. Goaltenders, no, but chicken tenders, yes. Because those are groceries,
Starting point is 00:24:08 and we deliver those too, along with your favorite restaurant food, alcohol and other everyday essentials. Order Uber Eats now. For alcohol, you must be legal drinking age. Please enjoy responsibly. Product availability varies by region. See app for details.
Starting point is 00:24:22 Panda, no way. This can't be real. First time? Nope. Womp-womp. I try to put positive juju out into the universe. It didn't work. It backfired.
Starting point is 00:24:34 As well, yeah. Good. Yeah, so I just got two things. One, M.M.A. and won something about the NBA. I start with the MMA. Just want to talk about Justin Gaichi. I really like his legacy.
Starting point is 00:24:50 He's carved out for himself, especially the comeback he's made after the Charles Olivera loss, where a lot of fans were counting him out and thinking he was on his way out and, you know, like how Tony Ferguson has been the last few years. But I'm glad to see that he's made a comeback. If he were, like, to win the title, presumably against the win of Charles of Islam,
Starting point is 00:25:10 how many title defenses could you, do you see him possibly having? And I also want to just add on to that perspective, like if he were to win the title and assuming who he fights for his title defenses, would he probably surpass someone like Dustin Porrier or, you know, maybe a Benson Henderson or BJ Penn in the all-time list? because if you look at some of his wins he's had some of the biggest wins against the best in the division but he's also lost to important fighters like
Starting point is 00:25:46 Eddie Alvarez he's lost to Charles Oliver obviously and he's lost to Habib who never ever had a ventures lost but I'm just I'm curious on your thoughts about that question and just the NBA thing
Starting point is 00:26:01 I'm sure you saw the Dame trade already and I'm not really going to ask you your thoughts on that because it's quite clear obvious they're going to be favorites for the finals. But between like the situation with Miami and, you know, a situation like six is, which team do you think has more to lose probably within this coming season in terms of roster and, you know, overall time limit in winning a championship? That's all I have, man.
Starting point is 00:26:31 Have a great day. Probably the Sixers. Probably the Sixers. I think there's a different kind of pressure on Miami this year because you can make a strong case that the local media actually screwed this whole thing up for Miami with this whole Dame Miller thing and they thought they would get them
Starting point is 00:26:54 and they put out these narratives and all the stuff. Trista Crick, who I really like, she works for BetMGM. Now, she used to work at Barstool. We used to work for USA Today. I have followed her for a while. She's, she's really good.
Starting point is 00:27:11 She has just been ripping on the Miami local media when it comes to this. And you know what? She ain't totally wrong. She ain't totally wrong. So I think Miami, because of how this is all done, I think the Miami heat fan base is going to be like, they're going to be calm for people's heads if they don't make a run
Starting point is 00:27:32 because that trade didn't go through. And it's almost unfair pressure. But that's just how, all went down. So it's got to be the Sixers. But we already know, look, man, we already know what the Sixers going to do. They're going to kick ass in the regular season. They're going to go into the playoffs. They're going to be like, oh, maybe the Sixers are going to do it. And then they're going to go play the Celtics. And the Celtics are going to run them off the floor like they always do. It's just what's going to happen. They are not built to win a championship. They're just not.
Starting point is 00:28:02 They don't have, they have really good players, but they don't have guys. They're just like, listen, We're in this thing to win it. And I knew the Soutics were just going to smash them in game seven because they just ain't it. They ain't it. So, yeah, this is kind of do or die for the Sixers, in my opinion. Miami's going to be okay, but I don't know. They're going to be okay.
Starting point is 00:28:27 As far as where Gage can go in the greatest lightweight conversation, I'll answer the other question as well about the Welterweight Rushmore list in a moment. I don't think Gage you can get above BJ Penn and Habib. I think those are one and two. And I don't know if Gachie can get above those two guys. Benson Henderson is up there, in my opinion. There's others. He can maybe get to top five.
Starting point is 00:28:58 He can maybe get to the top five. But I don't know if he gets, he's certainly not getting one or two. He ain't beaten BJ and he ain't beaten Habib. Because during those times when they were running shit, I mean, BJ Penn at one point when he was in the middle of that run at 155, he wasn't just the best lightweight in the world. He was the best fighter in the world. Like, and everybody knew it.
Starting point is 00:29:25 Everybody knew he's the best fighter in the world. There was no discussion. There was no conversation to be had. BJ Penn was the guy. And when Habib left, you can make a strong case. When Habib retired, he was the best guy. He was the best pound fighter in the UFC. He was the guy.
Starting point is 00:29:46 I don't know if we'll be able to say. say that about Gachie. Maybe he will. If he goes out there and like, let's just say Islam beats Charles again and Gachie goes out there and just melts him and then does it again and then beats Olivera and can get some of those wins back. Maybe, but it's a long road and Gachie's been pretty open and honest. I don't think he's got five, six fights left in him. I don't know. Maybe he does. So I don't really see that happening. But Walterway Rush War, I think it's pretty clear. Boy, is there part of me that wants to put Robbie Loller in there. I want to put Robbie Loller in there so bad.
Starting point is 00:30:22 But I just can't. It's GSP Matt Hughes-Kamara Usman-Tired Woodley. Those are the top four. I would love to put Robbie in there, but it hurts my soul that I can't. But those are the top four. Panda, do we have you? Oh, for two? What the frig? Let's go to Daniel. Okay. How about Cole? Oh, hello. Good morning, Mike. Looks like since no one else is, I got to hold down the free-for-all theme of today,
Starting point is 00:31:12 when you're not holding down on the popular fight weekend, and you get to throw down the bangers on the turntables, what's like the farthest you've ever trialled for a jang gig, or is that all, like, most local work? And the other question I got is, are you finally, going to be able to like relax on a Saturday and Sunday this weekend with the off week of the UFC or you still just have shit going on no matter what I hope you get a chance to sit down and relax this weekend since you deserve it man thank you well I appreciate that um for this I've
Starting point is 00:31:59 gone for a DJing gig um I mean when I was living in the Berkshires I drove to like, Rhode Island a bunch. I've driven to the Cape a bunch. Like, I've never, like, been flown out to DJ anything. So, mostly in New England.
Starting point is 00:32:24 I didn't really have to go, like, much further than that. But, my, I retired from DJing. Like, I do it once in a while. Like, last Friday, we didn't have a show
Starting point is 00:32:34 because I had an emcee and DJ this, like, thing in my kids' school all day. It was this outdoor luow. So I had to, like, emce. and play all the games and play a bunch of tunes that a bunch of elementary school kids are going to like. So I'm still basically, I'm like my kid's school, like personal DJ.
Starting point is 00:32:54 So when they have events like in October, they'll do like their trunk or treat thing. So I'll have to go and like emcee that the whole night and stuff like that. So I like doing that. DJ and weddings, like I've DJed so many weddings and like they're fun. But like when you get booked for wedding, like you don't get booked. booked for one wedding. You get booked at least when I was doing it. I mean, you were getting booked. I was getting booked for like
Starting point is 00:33:19 from basically April through October. I was doing at least one wedding a weekend. Sometimes two. Sometimes three. Depending on how things played out. Especially in the fall. In the Berkshires where like everyone goes to look at the leaves and
Starting point is 00:33:37 shit and the mountains and stuff. Like people were getting married on Friday, Saturday, Sunday. It was crazy, man. it just got to be too much. It just got to be too much. Like the travel, loading up the gear, pulling it up. And like a lot of these weddings now, like, it's not just one space. You have to DJ.
Starting point is 00:33:54 It's like three spaces where like the ceremony is out here, but the cocktail hours in this room, but the ceremony is in this room. So you have to like bring three systems and set up in three different rooms. And it's just like, it's just crazy. And I was just done with it. I just did it for so long. and I'm happy that part of my life is behind me. I'll do it.
Starting point is 00:34:16 You know, if there's a family member, like my family member gets married and doesn't want to pay for a DJ or something, like, I'll do it. But other than that, not my thing anymore. Not my thing. What am I going to do this weekend?
Starting point is 00:34:30 I don't know. I don't know. Unfortunately, I got injured last night. I mean, I've been going, like, super hard at the gym and, like, doing all the CrossFit stuff and the lifting and everything. And then, like, some of the stuff I've been doing
Starting point is 00:34:46 has been crazy. And then last night at old man fucking softball, I rip a ball down the right field line and I'm going to turn a single into a double. And as I'm rounding first, like, I just feel,
Starting point is 00:35:04 I felt the muscle just pull right at my ribs, like right at the rib cage. Like, I just felt it. And I'm like, ooh, that's not good. And like, I came up a little bit lame by the time I got the second. I'm like, this sucks, man. And at first I was like, maybe it was just like I didn't drink enough water.
Starting point is 00:35:22 But I haven't had like one of those like soccer cramps at a while. But and then I knew. And I was like, all right, maybe I'm okay. And then like the next time I got up, I hit a rocket to the third baseman. And he almost, it was a first and second almost doubled me up. But I felt myself running on the first baseline. I'm like, ooh, this is not like a dehydration cramp. This is something bad.
Starting point is 00:35:46 Sleeping sucked. Like if I sneeze or cough, like it hurts, man. It hurts. So I've been like doing some research and stuff like this ain't good. So I will be relaxing this weekend. We're hoping to get out of town. I've lived in South Carolina for over two years. And I have not been outside really of the Hilton Head area and Savannah.
Starting point is 00:36:10 like I haven't been to Charleston yet. Like, how is that possible? So we're going to try to go up there. We're actually going to try to go to New York this weekend. Because I go there, I mean, I go there once a month anyways for the watch parties. But my kid is like really into R.L. Stein and like the goosebumps books. And R.L. Stein was going to do an appearance with somebody else this weekend. I think on Sunday.
Starting point is 00:36:35 So we're going to try to fly out maybe tomorrow morning and like just spend the day in New York and like do all the sites and stuff. because when I go for the watch party, it's like, I go for the watch party, and then I'm done so. Like, I go there, I work, and then I go home. So I don't really get to, like, explore too much and, like, check out the city and all that stuff. But I thought, like, you know, let's try to go there this weekend. And then we were going to go buy the tickets and go, and it sold out. So we couldn't really get there, unfortunately. And then I just saw a bunch of videos, like New York City is, like, flooded.
Starting point is 00:37:05 So I'm like, well, maybe it's a good thing we didn't go, but obviously feel bad for those folks. and hope everyone's all right. But I think we're going to try to get out to Charleston and do some cool stuff, but I just want to get out of the house and get out of this area, at least for a day, and just do some fun stuff
Starting point is 00:37:22 and not focus on MMA and put my phone away and just worry about doing stuff, you know? Bray, go ahead. Hi, guys. Yeah, thank you for letting me speak. Bye, guys. I'm totally new to this,
Starting point is 00:37:42 So, yeah, nice to meet other guys who like MMA too. So what is this about? Are you a DJ or is this about MMA? What's going on? Well, it's always MMA, but on Fridays we throw the rulebook out the window. We talk about whatever we want. Okay, okay. Would you agree that Sean Strickland is the best champion ever?
Starting point is 00:38:06 I mean, it's a little early to say that, right? He hasn't even had a title defense yet. But have you seen him before? like he was like a princess uh like a disney prince did you see him i did not see that um look man sean strickland winning the middleweight title is still going to be like one of the best things ever one of the funniest things in the history of the sport and again i don't mean this like disrespectably i mean this because of what he did to the ufc's plans like he ruined him absolutely ruined him. It's the best. Just the best, man. And I don't think he's, honestly, and I, and
Starting point is 00:38:49 look, imagine if Sean Strickland defended the title like 10 times. Can you imagine that? Like, he's the guy that matches Anderson Silvest record? Like, that would be incredible. What a friggin story that would be. Unfortunately, I don't think that's going to happen. I think DDP's a really tough fight for him. Hey, Hamzad is, I mean, Hamzot, it's a night for anybody. I don't know, but boy, I already enjoy living in this world where the
Starting point is 00:39:19 near impossible happens and I feel like we've seen that all the time. This is one of those years where weird vibes kick in and then they come through. But it's going to be really interesting to see who Sean fights next honestly and when that happens.
Starting point is 00:39:35 Panda, please for the love of God. Do we have you? Nope. I might have to ban Panda for the day. Dominic, go ahead. How about DC Betts? Hey, Mike, you got me? Yes, I got you.
Starting point is 00:40:07 All right, brother. So I wanted to ask, oh, yeah, so you're talking about softball earlier. So I was wondering, do you, are you a lefty, are you righty, you switch hit? Are you going righty and you hit an off-boat down the right side line? That's good if you are. But, yeah, I only ask, because my dad can switch hit. So I try to switch hit sometimes. and it's hard.
Starting point is 00:40:29 You know, I can get a little bit, but it's hard. But MMA related, I want to ask, is there any news with Buenos Silva? And if she was able to get the whole drug suspension off because it was her, what was her ADHD stuff? And then also, Manel Kopp, who would you rather see him fight? Kai Kerr-France or Brandon Moreno,
Starting point is 00:40:54 since he was saying that if Kai doesn't want it, that he'll take Brandon and Morano? on. Thanks, Mike. Have a good day. Thanks, man. I mean, it's the Kai fight. That's the one.
Starting point is 00:41:09 That's the one. I just don't know if Moreno's like into it. Moreno could just walk his way back into a title fight probably if he wants to. And I don't feel like, I don't feel like mental cop does much for him at this point. So I would like see the Kai Kar-Fran's fight. That's the one we were supposed to get anyways. That's the one I want to see. So Appel-O-Mariety.
Starting point is 00:41:28 I'm going off a lot because I we need a lead off hitter and I was like you know what I'll be the lead off hitter like I'll just get I'll get on base and then you guys do whatever and if I get up and there's two on then I'm trying to hit the ball 400 feet but if not I'm just going to try to get base it
Starting point is 00:41:47 so yes I am right-hander I play shortstop my knees and my elbows are just wrecked from diving all over the field last night on that guy who takes Ben's League softball way too seriously. Yes. So that's what I do.
Starting point is 00:42:07 Dominic, do we have you? I know you came through, so just go ahead and unmute yourself. Yeah, yeah, you guys have me. I think it might have been my Bluetooth or something. I apologize. Anyway, I just wanted to say that I think it would be crazy if Sean Strickland defended
Starting point is 00:42:25 the title as many times as Anderson Silva. I don't see that happening, but then again, he surprised me. me, you know, and I do think it also was funny that he did mess up their plans there. But I had two things I wanted to throw out there and ask just beans that I'm an Ohio guy. So I am obviously a huge Stipe Miosich fan and also been a fan of MMA since it started really and got big. So I obviously love John Jones. Do you think Stipe has any chance of beating Jones?
Starting point is 00:42:59 and then I guess my second thing to throw out there, do you really think Damien Lillard going to the Bucks with Yonis is going to put them over to top here? That's all I got. Thanks, man. No? I don't know. I mean, how many times have we seen moves like this
Starting point is 00:43:21 and we're just immediately like, oh, the Bucks are going to win the championship, we'll go to the finals, and then they get ousted in the first round. So remains to be seen. I actually, Portland got a little. little, I'm not going to say they got better, but I actually think the continuity with the Blazers now, I think has improved. I actually think they're going to be better than people
Starting point is 00:43:40 think. So we'll see. We'll see. I don't know if it puts them over the top. I still think the Celtics are going to beat, would beat them in a, in his, in his playoff series right now. Now we get a full year under the coach and Joe's got, like Joe's got an off season to prepare to be the head coach of this basketball team. And what's he doing? He's spending that time picking the brains of the best coaches in sports. You've seen him all over the place. You've seen him with Tyson Chartier.
Starting point is 00:44:15 I've seen him with Eric Nixik. You've seen him go out to Vegas at Extreme Couture. Like, you've seen him all over the place. Just trying to get a better sense of what being a championship coach is like. And as a Southwix fan, boy, do I love to see this. absolutely love to see it for sure does stepe have a chance i mean look stepe has stepe has a chance on his best night to beat anybody and matter of fact to talk to stepe less than an hour ago uh it seems in great spirits the man laughed a couple of times
Starting point is 00:44:51 yeah stepe laughed a couple of times in this conversation uh he says he's put on some weight you can tell like just by looking at him even on a zoom chat and he's sitting down You can tell like Steepay looks Stebe looks ready to go Looks a little bit bigger A little bit stronger Says it'll probably be about 250 By the time the fight happens
Starting point is 00:45:14 Dude's ready to go man I'm I'm picking John to win But look this is 2023 We are living in a world Where Sean Strickland is the middleweight champion of the world And he thumped Israel Out of Sanya over 25 minutes
Starting point is 00:45:30 At this point anything is possible. Anything is possible. I don't think this is possible, but anything is possible. Alexa Grasso thumped Valentina Shavchenko in a fight that most people
Starting point is 00:45:49 thought like Alexa had no chance of winning. And Alex Grasso won the title. Everyone thought Al Jambay and Stirling is going to thump on Sean O'Malley. Sean O'Malley knocks out Al Jambay and Sterling. This has been a vibee year where it just feels that way. It just feels like weird shit can happen left it right.
Starting point is 00:46:09 So, I don't know. I'm picking John, obviously, but I mean... Boating for flight 246 to Toronto is delayed 50 minutes. Ugh, what? Sounds like Ojo time. Play Ojo, great idea. Feel the fun with all the latest slots in live casino games and with no wagering requirements.
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Starting point is 00:47:05 poking the record. Panda. This is bad, man. This is bad. Can you hear me, Mike? No. I can hear you, but I'm still... I'm not mad.
Starting point is 00:47:15 No, I would be mad. I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed. I agree. You know what I'm going to sit down and take this flashing. What's up, man? At this point, I got to let out a banger here. I'm just going to go on and shoot me off when I've done enough. What in the world is the PFL doing this weekend?
Starting point is 00:47:35 Do they have a fight card that we can't watch while the UFC has their first off week in nine months? Not nine months, nine weeks? Like what in the world is a promotion doing? They have a chance to catch some eyeballs, maybe steal some shine from the UFC. Because honestly, the UFC's been rolling in promotions ever since Bellator has been kind of going up and smoke over there. I think the UFC's done a good job of not only compelling us with the contender series, but kind of keeping us intact with OK cards besides that Strickland, Adizania, pay-per-view.
Starting point is 00:48:12 And then, yeah, secondly, I kind of want to rebuttal one of the things I heard today, basketball-wise, I think you said the Sixers, I love the Bucks this year, Mike. What do you think the Celtics are going to have to do to match up with them? Damien Lillard, Janis, now Middleton. That's a match-up nightmare because J.T. and Brown. I guess maybe smart. I don't know. What do you think, Coach Mike?
Starting point is 00:48:38 All right. Have yourself a heck of a morning. I mean, smart's gone, which is tough. But I think they're going to be okay. I think they're going to be okay. Look, just because they, this is the NBA, man. Like, you can win 68 regular season games, but if you don't win in the playoffs,
Starting point is 00:48:57 it don't mean nothing. Ask the Miami Heat. Ask the Miami Heat what happened. All these fucking people giving me sure. shit because they went out there and beat the Celtics. That was their Super Bowl, man. That was their NBA finals. And then what happened?
Starting point is 00:49:14 They go into the finals and just get melted. And then this whole thing, oh, we're going to get Dame Lillard. We're going to get Dame Lillard. The whole media is doing all the shit. And then they don't get him. It's the fun. That's funny shit too. This whole thing.
Starting point is 00:49:27 Him not going to the heat is hilarious. Boy, is that hilarious. When I mentioned the Sixers, it was asked like who kind of needs to win more. It was the Sixers of the Heat. It's the Sixers. And they're not going to because they're just going to get run in the playoffs like they always do. Because they have individual talented people, but they have, they're just not a good camaraderie team.
Starting point is 00:49:51 And they don't have guys who just want and need the ball when it matters most. Go watch games. Go back and watch Game 7 in that Celtics series. What happened? Where is Hardin? Where was he? Remember when he wasn't playing in MB2? Remember when one of those guys is out and I was like,
Starting point is 00:50:14 they're going to be worse when they come back. Boy, I nailed that one. They're going to be a worse team when he returns. And that's what happened. And they got run out of the building in game seven. It's incredible. It is absolutely incredible. PFL think, look, I have not been the greatest.
Starting point is 00:50:33 I want PFL to be good and I just feel like they think they're great and it drives me insane. It drives me insane, man. Not that this card is like anything special if we're being honest because it's not like, it's not a PFL card. This is like a PFL Europe card,
Starting point is 00:50:56 which is not taking anything away from it. But if we're being honest, from a casual and even to a certain extent harder core level there's really, we just want to see Cedric Dumebe fight. Like that's it. That's really all we care about here. We can't get it. So big mistake, especially when you put out a release to the media
Starting point is 00:51:21 that you will be able to watch it and then you turn around three hours later and say, well, now you can't. What? What are you doing? So, I don't know. They should just find a way to like just stream the Doom Bay fight and call it a day. Make it up to the people. But this is whole, the, the NFL's attitude just drives you nuts, man. It really does.
Starting point is 00:51:45 Like they think they've already made it. They think they're there already. And they're so far away. They're so far away because of things like this. Because of things like this, like we feel like they're going to do something. And then little big, the headlines they make are just for the wrong reasons. It's for just mistakes they make. And I want them to be better, man.
Starting point is 00:52:13 I really do. And they can. They can. They can be the unique player here. And they just keep stepping on their own feet. Come on, PFO. Come on. Viking.
Starting point is 00:52:26 Go ahead. Hi, Mike. He's winning in between the owner. towards and COVID-2 according to you. Thank you. I'm out of questions, and I can't think straight. So I just have to have these stupid questions. That's it.
Starting point is 00:52:49 Viking. Viking. This is heck of a morning. There are no stupid questions. There are no stupid questions. I don't know. I don't have a pick just yet. Let me see what the betting odds are.
Starting point is 00:53:03 let's see what the betting odds are for that fight I would I mean Leon's got to be the favorite I don't think he's a big favorite but he's got to be the favorite not by much Liam minus 135 Colby plus 114 I would bet like you know I always throw out the analogy
Starting point is 00:53:33 like if $20 falls on the ground and when I pick it up the magic person says hey here's your $20 we can only spend enough and you have to bet the money line on one of these fights and they've offered this one, right now I'm putting it on Colby because he's plus money. Now, I have a feeling, I think this line was much wider earlier this week. I want to say, I thought Leon was like a minus 170 or something like that when this opened. Let me see if I can, if I'm just full of shit or I'm an idiot. Where did this open at? Yeah, I was right. A minus 190.
Starting point is 00:54:19 So Leon open as a minus 190. He's our, Colby's at a plus 114 on draft kings. There are some betting sites that have Colby as plus 105. Colby might end up being the favorite by the time this fight happens. And if that's the case, then I would bet on Leon Edwards. Whoever the dog is, I'm probably going to bet because I do think this is, I actually think this is a, the people, I haven't heard a lot of gray area with this fight. people have said well either colby's just got a 50-45 Leon or Leon's just going to kill him
Starting point is 00:54:56 like people I feel like this is going to be a super competitive fight like I really do this is going to be a grind I think it's closer to 50-50 than a lot of people are giving it credit for but right now like if the fight was happening tomorrow and I had to put that $20 on somebody at these odds on draftings I'm putting it on Colby a plus money but if the rule are reversed and Colby somehow ends up being the favorite and Leon's got a plus 114 price tag on him. I would put it on Leon. That's just how I view this fight. If Colby can get off to a hot start, I think Leon's in for a really long night. But that's a big if. That's a big if. It all depends on how Colby fights in the first 10 minutes of this fight, I think.
Starting point is 00:55:45 Because Colby's not going to slow down. He's just going to get better as the fight goes on. but if Leon could steal a couple rounds early he'll probably win so the first 10 minutes of that fight is going to be super important in my eyes uh bull go ahead mike good morning so look
Starting point is 00:56:09 Dana just put out his top five goat list right I'm sure you've seen that and uh it was a lot of outrage my question is in particular on the Connor McGregor position on the list and the animosity that's been built up between him and hardcore fans of the sport.
Starting point is 00:56:33 For some reason, it seems to be the more hardcore you are, the more you hate Connor. Can you explain that dynamic and talk about it a little bit for me and also address his place on that list that Dana put out? Thank you, sir. a scholar. Thank you.
Starting point is 00:56:54 What is his list? Let's see. Who does he have? John Jones. Okay. Rhonda Rousey. Manda Nunes. I haven't seen, honestly, I have not seen this list at all.
Starting point is 00:57:29 I don't know if you want to hop back in and tell me what his list is because I can't see it. Okay. This is one from, because he, all right. I'll pull you back in. Because this had like 18 different lists. So I don't even know which one in this list is. Bull, what's his list? It was one that, uh, that was going around on Twitter the last couple days.
Starting point is 00:57:56 Um, it was John Jones. Um, fuck, I can't think it off top of my head. But, but Connor was like number four on the list. I don't even really care about like the order of the list. Just, just wanted you to kind of speak about Connor being on the list and hardcore's being so anti-Connor, it seems, the last few years. Like, the more you're a fan of the sport, the more you dislike Connor, even though he's the biggest superstar we ever had.
Starting point is 00:58:26 I just wanted you to kind of address that dynamic a little bit. Okay. Yeah, so he's done, I mean, Danny gets asked us all the time. His answer is always different. Like, in 2022, his list was, uh, Rousey, Jones, Anderson Silva, McGregor, and GSP. but with the Mike Tyson interview, he didn't mention Silva McGregor, GSP. I mean, it depends.
Starting point is 00:59:01 Because Dana could be looking at this from multiple angles. He could be looking at this greatness in different ways because he's obviously looking at this through a different lens. He's looking at this as, you know, a fight promoter lens, but he's looking at this from a business perspective too. And if you're talking about the most important figures in the history of the UFC, Connor McGregor is 1 million percent on that list.
Starting point is 00:59:27 Like the company does not, the company does not sell in 2016 for $4.2 billion without Connor McGregor. If Connor had not done what he had done over the year or two before that, they're not selling for $4 billion. This was based mostly on Connor to some extent. Like he made the sport, I mean, he put the sport in a different, fucking planet during that run.
Starting point is 00:59:57 Everybody knew who Connor McGregor was in 2016. Everybody. Like he passed the grocery store test back then seven years ago
Starting point is 01:00:07 where you go to the grocery store and be like you know what Connor McGregor? Yeah, he's the guy in the UFC. Like 90% of people you would ask
Starting point is 01:00:14 would know who Connor McGregor was. And I feel like Rousie was kind of similar as well. The problem with McGregor is, and more so over the years,
Starting point is 01:00:24 is the man one just can't get out of his own way. Two, he doesn't seem, I don't know, it's just broken promises, you know, talent not really met, I guess, in a lot of respects. Like, this is the biggest star in the history of the sport. People want to see this man fight and he's not fighting. And even when we get to the point we're like, yeah, he's just not going to fight again.
Starting point is 01:00:51 Then he goes and coach is tough with Michael Chandler. We're like, all right, now he's definitely fighting. still not fighting at this point. We don't know if he's ever going to fight again. And I think people are just frustrated with it. I think people are just frustrated with it. Like they're ready to move on from Connor. They're ready to move on from it.
Starting point is 01:01:10 Like Connor is great for business. There's no doubt about it. But I think people are just frustrated with him. They're frustrated with him. They're frustrated with how the business changes when he's involved. Because like I mentioned earlier, if Colby Covington wins the Welterweight title and Connor McGregor says, I want to fight Colby Covington.
Starting point is 01:01:30 And Colby Covington says, I'm going to fight Conner McGregor. Like, they might just make that fight. They might just make it. Charles Oliver beats his own Mockageap. He's like, I want to fight Conner McGregor. And Connor's like, yeah, I'll go to 55 and fight him. They might just do it. And the guy hasn't fought in almost three years.
Starting point is 01:01:48 And the last time he fought, he got iced by Dustin Porre twice. So, like, it's just frustrating, man. I think people are just kind of over it. like are you going to fight or are you not going to fight if you're going to fight great but if you're not going to fight like don't fight go box go do something else like you have a million business dude is successful as fuck and deserves it all good for him the troubles with the law all that stuff dudes out partying everywhere like and people are just kind of frustrated like dude I thought you were coming back thought you're coming back are you just doing all this other shit getting
Starting point is 01:02:28 in trouble all the time. Like every, it seems like every three months, there's a new report of something coming out. Some of those have been debunked. Some of those have been settled. Some of them turn out to be nothing, but some of them, there's smoke. There's a video of the man punching an old dude in the face. I mean, just a lot of stuff, man. A lot of stuff has happened. I think people sort of miss the climb, the rise. People say it all the time. Like, getting to the top is hard, but it ain't as hard to stay in there. heavy lies the head that wears the crown and i think Connor
Starting point is 01:03:03 has done some great things in the sport like he none of the success happens without him one million percent none of it happens without him but i think people have just kind of grown tired of it they're tired of waiting they just want to like is he going to fight or not and there was a time where i mean after
Starting point is 01:03:29 when connor gregor beat eddie alvarez that conversation was a real conversation. That, I mean, if you, like, if you're a newer fan, because there are certain timeframes where people jump in. One is, I was there from UFC one, baby. I watched from the very first one. Then there was kind of like where I was, the one that would like, you know,
Starting point is 01:03:54 if you're at a bar or playing pool or something, like you watched it, but like you didn't really get into it until the first season of the ultimate fighter came out. there's that fan. Then there's the Rousey fan, the Rousey and Connor era where people kind of migrated in because they were such big stars.
Starting point is 01:04:13 And then there was like the pandemic era fans where there's no sports ever, there's no sports in the world to watch except for the UFC. Then we get a whole new cluster of fans. If you are one of those fans, if you are a newer fan of the sport who came in during the pandemic era
Starting point is 01:04:31 or any time after 2016, if you did not watch Connor McGregor beat the soul out of Eddie Alvarez, I highly implore you to go watch UFC 205 pull it up on the screen. First of all, that event is incredible.
Starting point is 01:04:50 Secondly, that might be the greatest title. That might be the greatest performance by a title challenger ever. This was one of the... Connam McGregor pitched a perfect game at Madison Square Garden. Eddie had nothing.
Starting point is 01:05:09 Eddie had nothing. Connor had him beat before the fight even started. And then once they got in there, Connor just annihilated him. And it was incredible. It was incredible. Now, the Connor we know now, if you have not seen that,
Starting point is 01:05:29 and then, of course, that's where everything started to fall apart. He wins the second belt. Comes to two division champions simultaneously. And then he goes, he gets the Floyd Mayweather fight. And then it's like, that guy's gone. Because he goes and just gets run over by Habib. Yeah, he beats Al-Saroni and then hasn't won a fight since.
Starting point is 01:05:51 But, man, that Eddie Alvarez performance is fucking insane. That was like pure greatness, man. pure greatness. And I think those people who watch that performance, they just want to, they want a piece of that. They want to see that shit again or something close to it.
Starting point is 01:06:13 But that was like, and that was an all-time great showing that night. We'll take two more. We get Anthony, then we'll get Joe, and then we're going to get out of here. Anthony, go ahead. Hey, Mike, how are you, sir?
Starting point is 01:06:23 I'm good. And I got like a few questions, if you don't mind. Sure. So, so are you talking? talking about that that connor mcgregor thing right i've seen that fight man that was a beautiful fight man and it was and um my second question is will will carna mcgriger fight joan jones again who john jones what if carna mcgregor fight john jones again would he well i mean he's never
Starting point is 01:06:59 fought john jones nor would he so no he will not fight john jones again Joe, go ahead. How are you doing today, Mike? I'm doing great. Man, so I'm at work during these spaces. So if you hit this and I walked away, I apologize. We've been talking about errors. Kobe came up and Sean came up.
Starting point is 01:07:21 Personally, I'm very excited for the possibilities of Kobe winning the title. Sean and Kobe holding titles for maybe a year would be great. And that's all relevant to, like, we have errors. Like the Chuck Liddell era was a lot of fun, a lot of fans, a lot of hype. You could skip all the way forward to, like, the Connor McGregor error without happening. Well, there's Anderson Silva and Connor. What do you think the potential is to, I don't want to say recreate because, you know, Silva's error and Connor's error were nothing alike, but they were both amazing.
Starting point is 01:07:57 So, like, what do you think of the possibilities for making, MMA fun again if these two guys can get these belts and hold on to him. Like, what do you see? Do you see this as a new error possibility? Um, I don't know. I don't know. It's a really interesting question. Because I don't know, man.
Starting point is 01:08:27 The problem is, like, it's not them. It's not like, I love chaos as much as the next guy. I love throwing the chaos card down. I'm the guy who picked Charles Oliver to beat Islam Makachep because of that. chaos card. I was just too early on it because 2023 is the year of chaos. And I mean,
Starting point is 01:08:48 kind of pun, not intended, because that's Colby's nickname, but you get what I'm trying to say. Does it make it more fun? I don't know, man. Because Sean is just going to fight every day if you ask him to and Colby's not.
Starting point is 01:09:04 So while it's interesting to have two sort of brash individuals holding belts and creating controversy and chaos, what are people going to do if Colby wins the belt and then doesn't fight at all until like December of next year? Are people going to get frustrated with him now? I mean, I get the arguments here. I get why people who have been frustrated with this whole situation.
Starting point is 01:09:34 Colby hasn't fought since March of 2022. By the time he fights against Ian Edwards, it is going to be 19. How many fucking months? God, I got to do math. 9. It's going to be a long-ass time, man. Almost two years.
Starting point is 01:09:53 Almost two years. 20 months, 21 months? That's a lot. That's a long, frigging time. So, I don't know. If he could be active, sure. But I don't know, man. I don't know. What am I missing?
Starting point is 01:10:21 Am I missing something here? Oh, shit. Really? Get the hell out of there. How did I not see this? Tyson Fury and Alexander Usik have signed contracts for an undisputed heavyweight championship fight in Saudi Arabia. This is from Mike Cappinger. Fight could take place December 23rd or sometime in January sources
Starting point is 01:10:54 that Fury first meets France in Ghanao, October 28th in Saudi Arabia. Golly, man. And then Fury kind of confirmed it. Bad ass, man. That fucking rules. All right. Okay. All right.
Starting point is 01:11:20 Good. Now that's fun. That's fun. And then real quick, before we get out of here. What is fun to me? I'll tell you what's fun to me. What is fun to me with the UFC is
Starting point is 01:11:33 No-J UFC. That was fun. The Robbie Lollah. retirement and then like taking it seriously and treating it with respect that was fun the ufc is trying i've noticed in 2020 the ufc is trying to do more fun things because for years on multiple shows that i've been talking about for a long time and some people like thought i was just being a hater and some people still feel like i'm being a hater but it's just not true uh i called them the unfun championship because it's just so vanilla everything was exactly the same
Starting point is 01:12:09 We got uniforms. Like no one could show their personality, all this stuff. And I feel like not much has changed, but at least like we feel kind of feel like they're trying to do more out-of-the-box things. Like they're trying to do more fun stuff. And I think that's what this is, man. Like, I just think we need to veer more towards the fun side. Fighting, I mean, watching fighting is obviously fun,
Starting point is 01:12:40 but we can be more fun. Like we can do more fun things. And what's frustrating about the UFC is that we know they can be fun. Like we know they can do it. When they want to be, they do it and they do it incredibly well. But it's just so few and far between
Starting point is 01:13:00 that it's just, that's frustrating too. So look, Colby wins the belt. It's going to be interesting and it's going to be fun for some people, but there's going to be other people who want to see active champions that are going to be like, ah, shit,
Starting point is 01:13:15 maybe he's not going to fight as much as Oospin did, or as much as Sean Strickland fights, or things of that nature. So I think you'll get a mix of both types of things. Sean O'Malley kind of the same. Sean's not the most active guy himself. Guy wins the belt in August and says,
Starting point is 01:13:38 hey, December, I'm going to fight you, Cheeto. And then we're like, oh, shit, we're going to see Sean O'Malley fight Cheeto, of air in December and we're not. Not that we're getting bad fights instead, but you know what I'm trying to say. It could be fun, but it just depends on who you ask. I think everyone's going to have different tastes about the whole situation.
Starting point is 01:13:59 All right. One more, Tocke, because we haven't heard from you today. Go ahead. You're very short, Mike. I know you've got to get out of here. I'm just coming in here to say there's only eight weeks between Francis and Ghanu, Fury, and then Fury, Yusik. This seems like the organizers know exactly what's going to happen in the Fury and
Starting point is 01:14:23 Ghana fight, because there's no margin for error. There's no margin for Fury actually getting an injury. They know exactly what they're getting into. They know that Fury is going to win, barring a freaking miracle. So, yeah, I just think. Thank God we finally get this fight. And yeah, I guess hashtag Read season because the Saudis are really throwing money around, eh?
Starting point is 01:14:53 So, yeah, that was basically all. Thanks, Mike. Yeah, look, we know what's going to happen on October 28th. We know what's going to happen, guys. I know if you watch BTL yesterday, Jen Mishu made his bold prediction that Francigano was going to beat Tyson Fury. it's just not going to happen.
Starting point is 01:15:16 Tyson is going to box that man up in a bad way. And with this fight now being announced, like I kind of felt like Tyson would might carry him a little bit. And I didn't even think that's going to happen. I think Tyson is going to run them because now he's got this other fight to worry about one of the biggest heavyweight fights, like most anticipated heavyweight title fights of all time. Honestly, by the time we get there.
Starting point is 01:15:39 So, hell yeah, man. let's go. I love it. I love it. Maybe this takes a little bit of shine away from the Francis fight because I think some people are going to feel the same way, but at the same token, I think people are just going to try to support Francis
Starting point is 01:15:55 and be happy for him. He's going to make a big bag of money. Although he's going to get rinsed pretty badly in Saudi Arabia. But there you go. Good for them. And good for Tyson for taking this fight. I have a feeling it will probably end up being in January, but look, man,
Starting point is 01:16:12 you want to do it December 23rd to be a hell of an early Christmas present. Is it not? I'm down. But all right, everybody. I got to go. I have to go. Thank you all very much. Steve A interview will be coming up, hopefully soon, on M-Mayfutting.com.
Starting point is 01:16:32 Appreciate it. I am off. After today, I'll be off the rest of the weekend. I'll be back on Tuesday to do this show, which I'm very excited about. I'm going to take a few days away from the space. and enjoy some time with the family. Just relax a little bit. And then all gas, no brakes.
Starting point is 01:16:53 The rest of the year, baby. So thank you all very much. Have a great weekend. Enjoy the rest of your Friday. And as always, have a heck of a morning, everybody. Okay, only 10 more presents to wrap. You're almost at the finish line. But first, there, the last one.
Starting point is 01:17:43 Enjoy a Coca-Cola for a pause that refreshes.

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