‘I’m not trying to promote misinformation’ – Joe Rogan responds to Neil Young controversy

Joe Rogan may have got his big break as the handyman on News Radio, and may have become a fixture to the MMA public as one of the key members of the UFC broadcast booth, but his true skyrocket to fame and fortune has come on the back of podcasting.

The Joe Rogan Experience has become one of the most widely consumed shows in the world, with an estimated 11 million listeners an episode and 190 million downloads a month (at least as of 2019). And as such, he’s also become a lightening rod for controversy. All the more-so during the COVID-19 pandemic, where his self-stated interest in pursuing outsider viewpoints and opinions has resulted in accusations of promoting misinformation as to the origins of COVID-19, the safety of vaccines, and the effectiveness of potential treatments for the virus.

Most recently those positions created some notable backlash for his hosting platform, Spotify—with Neil Young removing his music from the service in protest of Rogan’s show. Young’s public statements reportedly led to a $2 billion loss in the streaming company’s stock value. Although other outlets have noted that Spotify’s stock was already in a slide at the time. Still, the longtime UFC commentator took to social media with a lengthy video explaining his feelings and how he plans to adjust going forward, hopefully to offer a more fair and balanced view.

“I wanted to make this video first of all, because I think there’s a lot of people that have a distorted perception of what I do—maybe based on sound bites or based on headlines of articles that are disparaging,” Rogan explained, while recording in his back yard.

“The podcast has been accused of spreading dangerous misinformation, specifically about two episodes,” Rogan continued, highlighting his conversations with cardiologist Dr. Peter McCullough and vaccine patent owner Dr. Robert Malone. “Both these people are very highly credentialed, very intelligent, very accomplished people. And they have an opinion that’s different from the mainstream narrative. I wanted to hear what their opinion is. I had them on, and because of that – those episodes in particular – those episodes were labeled as being ‘dangerous’—they had ‘dangerous misinformation’ in them.”

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Rogan then went on to highlight his problems with the idea of ‘misinformation’, suggesting that people had been getting “banned” from social media just a few months ago for saying things like vaccinated people can still catch and spread COVID, or that “cloth masks don’t work,” or suggesting that “it’s possible COVID-19 came from a lab.” And now, to hear him tell it, all of those positions are widely published, and the first two even accepted as facts.

“All of those theories that, at one point in time were banned, were openly discussed by those two men that I had on my podcast—that had been accused of dangerous misinformation,” Rogan explained, by way of defending his past work.

He then went on to highlight the experts he’d talked to that were more in line with scientific consensus on COVID-19, including Dr. Sanjay Gupta and epidemiologist/Biden advisor, Dr. Michael Osterholm. Despite what Rogan suggests were good faith attempts to keep the conversation around the pandemic balanced, however, he did admit that there were steps he could take to improve his show.

“I do not know if they’re right. I don’t know, because I’m not a doctor, I’m not a scientist. I’m just a person that sits down and talks to people and has conversations with them. Do I get things wrong? Absolutely, I get things wrong. But I try to correct them. Whenever I get something wrong I try to correct it. Because I’m interested in telling the truth, I’m interested in finding out what the truth is…

“One of the things that Spotify wants to do, that I agree with, is at the beginning of these controversial podcasts – like, specifically, ones about COVID – is to put a disclaimer and say that you should speak with your physician, and that these people and the opinions that they express are contrary to the opinions of the consensus of experts—which I think is very important. Sure, have that on there, I’m very happy with that.

“Also, I think, if there’s anything I’ve done that I could do better, is have more experts with differing opinions right after I have the controversial ones. I would most certainly be open to doing that. And I would like to talk to some people that have differing opinions on those podcasts in the future. We’ll see.”

Rogan added that he’s very much still a Neil Young fan, and didn’t hold any hard feelings toward the artist—or toward Joni Mitchell, who followed Young’s example. Rogan also apologized to Spotify for the extra heat that they were getting on his behalf. And while he added that he believes his show’s conversational, casual nature is one of its strengths, he did sound at least open to the idea that he may need to do more research and prep for guests, so that he could better steer the conversation.

“I don’t know what else I can do differently,” Rogan summed up. “Other than maybe try harder to get people with differing opinions on right afterwards. I do think that that’s important. And do my best to make sure I’ve researched these topics, the controversial ones in particular, and have all the pertinent facts at hand, before I discuss them. Again, I’m not trying to promote misinformation. I’m not trying to be controversial. I never tried to do anything with this podcast other than just talk to people and have interesting conversations…

“My pledge to you is that I will do my best to try to balance out these more controversial viewpoints with other people’s perspectives, so we can maybe find a better point of view. I don’t want to just show the contrary opinion to what the narrative is. I want to show all kinds of opinions. So we can all figure out what’s going on. And not just about COVID, about everything—about health, about fitness, wellness, the state of the world itself.”

‘Never have too much f-ing lube’ – Sean Strickland takes fans on tour of ‘luxury’ apartment

The UFC may not be generous with fighters and their split of the promotion’s revenue, but after eight years and fourteen fights, it’s hard to think that middleweight Sean Strickland couldn’t be living a little better than this if he really wanted. to.

The #7 ranked fighter at 185 lbs recently decided to take fans on a virtual tour of his bachelor apartment in Las Vegas, NV, granting full access to his shockingly spartan lifestyle. If we’re being honest, I’ve seen jail cells that had more lived-in charm.

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“You guys asked for the tour of where I live. And now I don’t want to make you feel bad about your life, you understand I’m in the UFC, I make a decent amount of money,” Strickland said, before starting the tour of his living space. “So, different levels to this shit, right?

“Alright, here’s my fuckin’ table. Motorcycle helmet. I sit here,” Strickland said pointing to the small folding TV tray. “There might be some mold in my coffee.

“Fuckin’ pulleys, man; I’m a fuckin’ man of pulleys, I love me some pulleys. Guitar; I thought, you know what, when I was a kid I was like, ‘This is gonna get me laid.’ Turns out, I can’t play the guitar, so that’s not gonna work.

“Punching bag; Start moving up in weight, instead of running, I just punch the fuck out of that thing,” he continued. “And you motherfuckers said I needed furniture. Well, look at this fuckin’ couch. Is it second hand? Yes it is, but I don’t care.

“Alright, let’s see what else we got. Fuckin’ drill press, you never know when you gotta drill some shit. Show you the kitchen; yeah, it’s a fuckin’ pretty glorious kitchen. I gotta fix this drawer, one day I’ll get to it. Fuckin’ lube, fuckin’ never have too much fuckin’ lube.

“Let’s see what else we got here,” Strickland continued, moving to the firearms on his counter. “Guns; You know, I got a 76-inch reach, you never know when you gotta reach out and touch somebody. This is like my, ‘Oh fuck, I’m going to a sketchy area, I need high capacity. I might get into a fuckin’ gun fight.’ That’s that gun. This little motherfucker is like, ‘I’m gonna check the mail, I might have to shoot a crackhead,’ and just, like, right there [shoves holster down pants]; fuckin’ money, can’t even tell it’s there.

“Alright, moving on. Oh shit, I forgot, my after-market blinds. One day I’ll get this to close, one day.

“Let’s go to the fuckin’ bathroom. This bathroom is pretty fuckin’ special if I do say so myself, right? I’m still cleaning it, but whatever. So, the issue that I fuckin’ have, right, this – the dongle, the valve – it doesn’t work. So, what you gotta do [grunts], what you gotta do is you just gotta reach in there,” Strickland explained, reaching inside his toilet tank. “You just gotta pull up and it fuckin’ works. Alright, so fuckin’ one day I’ll get maintenance; after this fight. I’ve been a little busy.

“Go to the bedroom, that’s where all the magic happens. Bed frame? I don’t need no fuckin’ bed frame. Bed frame’s for fuckin’ losers. Lotion by the bed; I’m in Vegas. You got fuckin’ dry feet? You need lotion by the bed, you know what I mean? So yeah, life of fuckin’ luxury. Let’s fuckin’ go.”

Strickland is set to take on fellow top-ranked talent Jack Hermansson in the headlining slot of this week’s UFC Fight Night card going down at the Apex facility in Las Vegas, NV. Alongside the main event, the card is also expected to feature middleweight bouts between Punahele Soriano & Nick Maximov, Sam Alvey & Phil Hawes, Bryan Battle & Tresean Gore, and Marc-Andre Barriault vs. Chidi Njokuani. Stay tuned to Bloody Elbow for more news and updates.

Imagine if the NBA commissioner sued Lebron before a finals game – Paul blasts White over Ngannou lawsuit threat

The contract battle between Francis Ngannou and the UFC took an interesting turn last week, with the revelation that the promotion had apparently threatened their heavyweight champion’s management team with legal action. It seems Ngannou’s people have been speaking with Jake Paul’s people about the Xtreme Couture fighter’s ongoing boxing interests, and the UFC wants to put a stop to it.

The ‘Predator’ claimed that his team received an email from the UFC shortly before he was set to step into the Octagon for his title unification bout against Ciryl Gane, outlining their plans to take Ngannou’s management to court. Whether they carry through on that threat, they’ve already created at least one ripple effect. Namely giving Jake Paul more ammunition to work with in his ongoing war of words with the world’s largest MMA promotion.

Paul recently released a new Dana White ‘diss track’ complete with music video. And speaking to MMA Fighting about the project he gave his thoughts on the UFC’s treatment of their champ.

“Dana White is too busy sending out lawsuit threats to his heavyweight champions minutes before they enter the cage to fight another man,” Paul said, speaking of his feud with White over fighter pay. “I think he actually sent my partner [Nakisa Bidarian] the same thing at 9 p.m. that night when Dana’s supposedly being president at his big PPV event for a public company.”

“Imagine if Adam Silver sent a lawsuit to Lebron James minutes before he took the floor for the NBA Finals, then, refused to present him with the NBA championship trophy after he won,” Paul added. “It’s pure disrespect to the athlete and the sport.”

Those “trophy” comments refer to White’s noted absence from his typical spot cage-side during Ngannou vs. Gane, and the fact that the UFC president also wasn’t in the cage to present the belt to the defending champ after his victory.

White scoffed at suggestions that his absence was an intentional slight to Ngannou due to the rocky relationship between fighter and promotion, telling reporters that “…for anybody to think that I was showing any type of disrespect toward Francis… I saw Francis all week, you idiots,” adding that he was dealing with “some stuff” backstage that required his attention instead.

For Paul’s part, he maintains that his battle with UFC brass is all about pushing the company to treat their talent better and deliver a larger share of revenue. Paul claims that all proceeds from his music video are “going directly to fighter causes,” and recent news about his acquisition of shares in UFC parent company Endeavor is all part of his plan to put pressure on the UFC.

“This isn’t about boxing or MMA,” Paul explained. “This is about doing what is right. UFC can and should do better given the control it has exerted over MMA fighters. Either treat them as independent contractors, like Uber does its drivers, or give them the compensation and benefits they deserve as employees.”

Lately Paul has been on a hiatus from his celebrity boxing career, as he focuses on promoting an upcoming women’s boxing superfight between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano. No word yet on just when he might return to the ring.

UFC parts ways with Jeremy Stephens after 15 years and 34 fights

He may never have fought for a UFC title, or ever been hailed as one of the top contenders in his division, but over the last fifteen years, Jeremy Stephens has been one of the most dependable talents to step inside the Octagon.

The ‘Lil’ Heathen’ headlined his first UFC card all the way back in 2009, and his last in 2019. Over his 34-fights inside the world’s largest MMA promotion he faced off against ten former UFC title contenders and champions. But, as MMA Fighting reports, it appears Stephens’ time with the UFC has come to an end.

The 35-year-old hit a sizeable rough patch recently, going winless over three years and six fights. Following just the third TKO/KO loss of his career – at the hands of Calvin Kattar – the longtime Alliance MMA talent tried making a return to the lightweight division, where he first got his start. The result? A quick submission defeat via Kimura against former KSW champ Mateusz Gamrot, and the completion of the last fight on his contract with the UFC.

Fighting has confirmed that Stephens and the UFC did not come to terms on a new deal following that last fight, which should make Stephens an unrestricted free agent from the promotion (provided the UFC doesn’t pursue any matching rights).

No word yet on just where Stephens might land. It doesn’t seem like retirement has been on his mind, even given recent struggles. And between Bellator, PFL, Eagle FC, and BKFC the free agent market for exciting, action-forward fighters is a decently hot one. Stephens will leave the UFC with a 28-19 (1 NC) record, a collection of 10 ‘of the night’ bonuses, and the somewhat inglorious title for ‘most losses’ in UFC history.

Win or lose, however, Stephens always put on a show. Wherever he lands next will almost certainly get a quality addition to their highlight reel in return for their money.

The MMA Depressed-us – Worst of 2021: Thiago Santos vs. Johnny Walker

A brief gap in the UFC schedule means more time to cram in other MMA. And, if you’re extremely into self-punishment like we are, it’s an opportunity to revisit some of the best of the worst action of 2021.

All things considered, last year saw the UFC on a very strong run. PPV business was booming, fans got several big, exciting title fights, and the promotion made a whole mess-load of money. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t still a few standout stinkers. We’re kicking off this week’s show with a notably sloppy middleweight bout between Team Diaz’s Nick Maximov and Cody Brundage at UFC 266. Following that, a real rise-and-grind snoozefest from UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Sakai, Roman Dolidze’s 3 round decision win over Laureano Staropoli. And to cap the whole thing off, a surefire award winner for most disappointing bout of 2021: Thiago Santos vs. Johnny Walker.

June M. Williams

This time around, we’re watching all three bouts over on ESPN+. If you want to watch along with us, we’ll be starting each video – from the beginning – when Zane says the word ‘Go.’ For listeners who want to watch the fights via other means, Connor will try and cue the start of round 1, so you can sync your video there.

If you enjoy our show, give us a shout out in the comments here on Bloody Elbow, or give us a “like”, share & subscribe over on whichever BE Presents Podcast Channel happens to be your listening platform of choice: SoundCloud, YouTube, iTunes & Apple TV, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn, OverCast, or Player FM, & Amazon Music – While you’re there, don’t forget to subscribe to Bloody Elbow Presents; that way you’ll always be the first to get all of BE’s daily MMA offerings. For previous episodes of the show, check out our playlists on all of our BE Presents channels.

‘Kind of a boring fight’ – Justin Gaethje gives surprise review of FOTY Michael Chandler bout

From the moment that the UFC booked Michael Chandler to face Justin Gaethje, it was clear that violence was on the menu. Gaethje has built a career-long reputation as one of MMA’s most unforgiving matchups with an arsenal of power punches, kicks, and a willingness to absorb huge amounts of damage to land his own shots.

For Chandler, the former multiple-time Bellator champion gained his own action-forward reputation off the back of legendary wars with Eddie Alvarez and a bevy of quick finishes over a 12-year-long MMA career. Putting them in the cage together was a guarantee that fans would get to witness something special.

And that was the result, with Chandler vs. Gaethje winning ‘Fight of the Year’ honors from multiple publications. But, not everyone seems to have thought that the bout was quite as thrilling as it’s been made out to be. Most notably (and surprisingly) Justin Gaethje himself recently revealed that during the bout he was actually a bit… bored???

“To be completely honest with you, I felt like that was kind of a boring fight when I was in there,” Gaethje admitted in a recent interview with BT Sport (transcript via BJPenn.com). “Yeah, it just makes no sense. It’s the first time I’ve ever wanted to win more than to knock somebody out. So, yeah, it was not good, I didn’t like it. I wanna go back to just wanting to hurt somebody and finish them – but now that I’ve won, got my title shot, I can go back to how it should be.”

The win may not have blown Gaethje’s socks off, but it did get him something else to get excited about—namely a title shot against Charles Oliveira. The bout hasn’t officially been announced for the Trevor Wittman-trained fighter, but Dana White admitted the pairing “makes sense” after Oliveira’s recent title defense against Dustin Poirier.

“I’m expecting a call any day,” Gaethje told BT Sport, revealing that the fight would likely be targeted for the UFC 274 PPV in Brazil.

“I want to go down to Brazil, I want to fight in the chaos,” he added. “If you go back and listen to my early interviews, I said I want to go into enemy territory, like Brazil, and fight in that chaos. Them screaming I’m gonna die, 20,000 people—I’m 100% confident that when I’m done they’ll love me.”

That’s entertainment! Jackass drops full Francis Ngannou nut shot video

The big storyline for Francis Ngannou in 2022 isn’t about his title unification bout with Ciryl Gane, or even his ongoing battle against the UFC. No, the real, meaty story to tell is Ngannou’s guest spot on the upcoming Jackass 4 movie. The UFC champ’s participation in the project was teased last summer, with reports that one of the cast members had signed up to take a shot to the groin, full force, from the man widely regarded as the most powerful striker in MMA.

That cast member ended up being none other than Ehren McGhehey, who took not just one heavy shot to the jewels, but a whole slew of them. Ngannou recently revealed to Bloody Elbow that the stunt required multiple takes to get just right. Fans may only see the one punch, but it was the best of several delivered to McGhehey’s vulnerables.

“It was so weird. I was kinda nervous,” Ngannou admitted. “Like, ‘Man, what can happen?’ And the worst thing is you have to do it multiple times. Because, first I was nervous, then I was afraid to go full force. And they’re like, ‘No, you have to. This is how we do it. You have to go full force.’ And sometimes the guy would be moving, and you would not hit it—like hit it on the side. And they’re like, ‘No, you rest and you come back.’ I’m like, ‘Bro, this guy will die.’ Yeah, that was so… [sighs].”

Revel, then, in stupidity perfected.

Ngannou is fresh off his 5 round victory over Ciryl Gane at UFC 270. That bout was reportedly the final fight on the ‘Predator’’s contract with the promotion, and it appears both sides are settling in for protracted negotiations. So it just might be that this is one of the few punches we see the big man throw for the rest of 2022.

We’re ‘seeing the evolution of heavyweights’ – Usman talks Francis Ngannou’s UFC 270 win

Francis Ngannou’s fight against Ciryl Gane in the UFC 270 headliner didn’t go the way anyone seemed to expect. Two highly respected strikers – one with devastating power, the other with a large bag of technical tricks – went five whole rounds, in what ultimately proved to be mostly a grappling contest.

Later fans would learn that the ‘Predator’ had suffered a severe knee injury in training, one that had medical professionals advising that he pull out of the fight. But he didn’t, and walked away the victor nonetheless.

And while it may not have been the prettiest thing, Ngannou cornerman and current UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman had some glowing praise for the Xtreme Couture trained fighter.

“It’s always tough to watch a brother compete, because I can’t go in and actually physically help,” Usman told BT Sport backstage after the bout. “So, I’m excited for him. That belt comes back home to his home country of Cameroon; you know, Africa still has three belts.

“When you become the champion, of course you’re the champion—the number one guy. But, everybody in the world is gunning for you. So, to be able to defend that belt and hold them off, that truly depicts the mark of a champion.”

More than Ngannou just finding a way to win, Usman highlighted how he feels the wrestling and grappling skills put on display show the continued evolution of heavyweight MMA.

“Francis, that’s the thing about him, he’s one of those special athletes that—he takes everything as it comes. He was gonna be able to deal with whatever was coming at him. He didn’t engage in the clinch or the wrestling in the first round. That came from Gane, which I thought was an excellent gameplan. But, we’re just seeing the evolution of heavyweights. I mean, did you see that sweep in the fifth? I mean, damn! Even I don’t do that one. We’re seeing the evolution of the game. Francis is a scary man.”

While the bout has not been officially agreed upon or contracted, all signs point to a rematch against Leon Edwards as the next step for Kamaru Usman. Usman and Edwards first met way back in 2015, with the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ picking up the unanimous decision victory.

“I think Leon has grown a lot as a fighter and so have I,” Usman said when asked about the bout. “If that fight does happen, the one thing that remains true is that I know his heart, he knows mine when we’re in there. That’s the only that matters is that when we’re in there, face-to-face, man-to-man, is that he knows my heart and I know his heart. I’m a champion, and the best man will definitely prevail.”

Report – UFC 269: Poirier vs. Oliveira hit half million PPV buys

If there have worries as to how the UFC’s PPV business would do without multiple major PPV stars to headline several cards a year, 2021 may just go some way to allaying those fears. Helped along by two big Conor McGregor PPV events, the world’s largest MMA promotion put together what may have been the best fiscal year in their 20+ year history.

Buoying that success, however, has been what used to be a staple of years past, and that has been harder to come by during the latter half of the 2010s—regular mid-level draws. Even while McGregor was at the height of his powers, it often felt as though the bottom had fallen out of PPV interest in everyone else. In 2017, only 2 cards had publicly reported buys that crossed the 500k threshold. And 2018 was no better.

In 2021, however, seven events have been reported as selling at least 500k buys (with rumors that UFC 258: Usman vs. Burns came in just below that mark as well). The latest success appears to have been the final PPV of the year, UFC 269: Oliveira vs. Poirier.

Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern dropped the news on Twitter.

.@ESPNPlus sold slightly more than 500,000 PPV units for #UFC269 last month, per SBJ sources. pic.twitter.com/EE5Yuqe7UE

— Adam Stern (@A_S12) January 20, 2022

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Part of that could be down to the UFC’s increasing reliance on multi-title fight events, with 7 cards carrying more than one belt on the line in 2021. But the UFC had 6 multi-title fight PPVs in 2018, so that clearly can’t account for the entire story. It seems more likely that the UFC’s deal with ESPN has done a remarkably good job of putting the promotion in front of more fans.

Whatever the reason, it looks like 2021 was very good for business, giving the Endeavor-owned company plenty of momentum heading into the new year. The UFC’s next PPV is set for February 12th at the Toyota Center in Houston, TX. There, middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is expected to rematch former title holder Robert Whittaker, with a heavyweight bout between Derrick Lewis and Tai Tuivasa in the main event. Given that Adesanya’s last three PPVs have all been hits, it seems likely his latest will pay off big for the UFC as well.

UFC 270: Ngannou vs. Gane – Fights to make

Despite a main event that truly lacked luster, UFC 270 sort of over-delivered. Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane may be nobody’s idea of a thrilling fight to go back and watch over again, but in the moment it was highly compelling theater. Deiveson Figueiredo’s third battle with Brandon Moreno provided all the high stakes, back-and-forth action of their first two fights. And a card of otherwise relatively unknown talents put on some solid action to carry the rest of the night.

So, is there any fight on deck the UFC can off Francis Ngannou to entice him to stay? Are we going to get the first quadrilogy in UFC history? And should the UFC throw Victory Henry straight back in to the deep end of the bantamweight talent pool?

To answer those questions – and a few other things – I’ll be using the classic Silva/Shelby fight booking methodology from the UFC of years past. That means pitting winners against winners, losers against losers, and similarly tenured talent up against one another. Hopefully, by following that model, a few of these bout ideas will actually make it off the page and into the Octagon. Now, let’s get to the fights!

FRANCIS NGANNOU

No fighter’s future is more unclear than that of the UFC heavyweight champion. With no bouts left on his current deal, Ngannou seems positioned to wait out the end of his contract and test the free agency market. Both he and the UFC have hinted at the idea that they’re willing to come to some kind of terms, but for Ngannou it seems a key part of those terms needs to be the option to take boxing bouts. That’s the kind of exception that the promotion has never been willing to grant, with one very notable outlier. And whatever Ngannou’s status as a top shelf fighter for the world’s largest MMA promotion, he’s hardly a star on the level of Conor McGregor. Would the UFC willingly let a heavyweight champion walk from their organization in his prime years? Can Ngannou really cash in on a higher-earning combat sports career without the UFC’s backing?

If a thousand different fates aligned, this still seems like a fairly ideal time for the UFC to try and put together Francis Ngannou vs. Jon Jones as a high-profile, high-money PPV offering for both men—possibly coupled with a couple other notable draws to make sure the whole thing really sells. A more plausible (as wild as that is to say) possibility is that the next thing we see is Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury, either with or without the UFC’s help. Just because that seems like the fight most likely to scratch his boxing itch. The most pedestrian answer would be the winner of Lewis vs. Tuivasa, especially if that winner is Lewis. Or maybe a 3rd Stipe Miocic fight, since it might be the only thing that gets him back in the cage. I’ll say Ngannou vs. Fury is what we’re gonna get, just because it seems like a key part of negotiations, whether they fail or succeed.

CIRYL GANE

By the end of round 2 just about anyone could be forgiven for thinking that Ciryl Gane had this fight in the bag. The Francis Ngannou who had looked so calm and composed into the second frame against Stipe Miocic looked surprisingly winded after even a competitive five minutes with Gane. Unfortunately for MMA Factory talent, some solid Muay Thai experience and ten pro MMA fights don’t necessarily prepare a fighter for everything. And when Ngannou switched things up to a wrestling heavy attack, Gane had very few answers. But it’s those ten pro fights – over just three years and change – that really should be the context of this loss for ‘Bon Gamin’. Even entering his early 30s, the Frenchman is very much a young heavyweight by reasonable standards. And even if the only thing he does over the next decade is get more fight experience, I still expect he’ll be champ at some point in the future.

At the moment, however, options are a little limited. A fight with Curits Blaydes would be an obvious choice, but it also feels like it could be a terrible risk for Gane off a contest where getting taken down was a major issue. The other obvious option would be Stipe Miocic, but I’d be lying if I said I had any confidence in Miocic stepping into the cage for something other than a title fight or some kind of big-money superfight opportunity. That leaves Tai Tuivasa or Tom Aspinall if either man wins their next bout. Or a fight with Chris Daukaus. End of the day, I’ll say Gane vs. Miocic (possibly for another interim belt). It feels the most like the fight I want to see right now, even if I’m not sure there’s a chance it happens.

DEIVESON FIGUEIREDO

What’s old is new again. Deiveson Figueiredo has recaptured flyweight gold with a nip-tuck display of striking against Brandon Moreno. He started the bout out with a bevy of crushing low kicks that Moreno did little to stop—and even while Moreno often got the better of striking exchanges in the pocket, he was also the one who ended up getting put on the canvas. After the bout ‘Deus Da Guerra’ said that he’d be happy to meet Moreno for a 4th fight in Mexico. And while I’d love to see that, I’m not sure that that’s the way the UFC is going to go right this second.

It seems just as likely to me that the winner of Kai Kara-France and Askar Askarov will get to compete for the belt, and that Moreno (fair or not) may find himself needing to get another win to return to contender status again. If the UFC wants to do Figueiredo vs. Moreno 4, I’m all for it. But I suspect we’ll see Figueiredo vs. the Askarov/Kara-France winner instead.

Related

UFC 270: NGANNOU VS GANE & MORENO VS FIGUEIREDO 3 | 6th Round Post-Fight Show

BRANDON MORENO

I don’t want to say that Brandon Moreno fought a bad fight here, but it really felt like he didn’t pay that much attention to what Figueiredo was bringing to the table—and ultimately paid a big price for not respecting the Brazilian’s power and strike selection. Leg kicks went unchecked and Moreno did a lot of brawling inside. And while the latter won him battles in large stretches, both lost him the war. He may just come back from defeat with an immediate title rematch, a fourth turn in the stagnant flyweight division. But if the UFC wants to change things up a bit, I wouldn’t blame them either.

Fights with the Askarov/Kara-France loser, the Schnell/Perez winner, or a rematch against Alexandre Pantoja would all be quality options if the quadrilogy isn’t forthcoming. Of those, I gotta roll with the Pantoja fight. The Brazilian seemed like he’d got himself lined up for a chance at the belt last year, before injury derailed him. And given that he’s already beat Moreno twice, that seems like a win the ‘Assassin Baby’ might want to get back. Moreno vs. Pantoja 3 (ish) is a great bout if the UFC isn’t going to go with Moreno/Figueiredo 4.

MICHEL PEREIRA

To his credit, Andre Fialho did a very good job of proving he wasn’t going to be easily out-classed in his UFC debut. He did well to fight off Pereira’s creativity early and land hard shots of his own. But, the Brazilian showed that his cardio issues aren’t nearly the same Achilles heel they once were, keeping the pace high and the power sharp all the way to the final bell. The end result should reassert Pereira’s quest for a higher profile welterweight test.

He was previously booked to take on Muslim Salikhov, and I’d love to see that fight get put together once again. Otherwise, bouts with, Daniel Rodriguez, Geoff Neal, or Li Jingiang would all be quality matchups. Since I don’t know when Salikhov will return, how about the fight with Neal. Neal hit a serious skill wall vying for the top 10, but returned with a pretty decent showing over Santiago Ponzinibbio. Is his boxing enough to pick Pereira apart? Or will the Brazilian’s dynamic, quixotic approach catch Neal off balance? I’d like to find out. Michel Pereira vs. Geoff Neal would be a great step forward for ‘Demolidor’.

SAID NURMAGOMEDOV

I expected this fight to be an absolute nail-biter, down to the final bell. Stamann is always tough and Nurmagomedov has had struggles before against durable fighters capable of putting the grind on him. Obviously, then, Nurmagomedov had to go out there and submit Stamann in the first minute of the fight and leave absolutely no doubt as to who the better man in the Octagon was that night. The victory has left him primed for another top 15 opponent, and there are a few high quality options. Most notably, Ricky Simon and Song Yadong both look like perfect options for the Dagestani right this moment. Between them, I’ll say Simon seems like the tougher style matchup. Nurmagomedov vs. Simon should be a great test to see if the 29-year-old can keep carving his way through to the bantamweight elite.

VICTOR HENRY

Few fighters had as daunting a task ahead of them as Victor Henry on Saturday night. The Josh Barnett-trained bantamweight stepped into the Octagon against one of the UFC’s most underrated talents, Raoni Barcelos, and put on a remarkable show of grit, technique and pace. Despite Barcelos’ reputation as a heavy-handed slugger, Henry stepped straight into the pocket and let loose a constant barrage of combinations, creating a non-stop war of attrition that Barcelos could just couldn’t match. The end result is a huge win for Henry to start his UFC career. And with so much mileage already under his belt, it should be a win that catapults him right into another tough, high-profile fight. I’m not sure he’ll get a top 15 bout off of this, but it should be someone right on the edges. Opponents like Rani Yahya, Brian Kelleher, or Casey Kenney.

That considered, I’ve been saying that Kelleher should be seen as the gatekeeper to the top 15 at 135 for a minute now. And this seems like a perfect chance for him to assert that role. Henry vs. Kelleher is a great way to see if ‘La Mangosta’ is really out to make an instant impact in the division, or if this was a singular performance.

JACK DELLA MADDALENA

A last minute opponent change for Australia’s Jack Della Maddalena really set him up well for success in his UFC debut. Pete Rodriguez simply didn’t have the same depth of pro experience, especially not when considering Della Maddalena had been set to fight Warlley Alves. That said, it’s still always a great sign when a fighter goes out and does exactly what they should do with a prime opportunity. The Aussie didn’t get wild or sloppy, didn’t make any big mistakes. He just worked carefully behind his jab until he had Rodriguez biting on his feints and getting desperate. Then he put Rodriguez away.

A great debut for Della Maddalena, but there’s no reason to rush him too high up the division. Welterweight is a deep pool with lots of time to grow and improve. So for a next step, how about a matchup with a slightly more experienced heavy-handed puncher also looking to make his reputation. Matthew Semelsberger is 3-1 since debuting with the UFC back in 2020. A fight with Della Maddalena should be a surefire slug-fest. Semelsberger vs. Della Maddalena is just the right fight to test both men’s toughness.

MATT FREVOLA

It’s been a rough couple of years for Team Serra-Longo’s Matt Frevola. Fortunately for him, Genaro Valdez gave him one hell of a chance to jump back on the horse and prove that he’s not just a fun fighter, but can be a tough one to put away as well. Both men hit the Octagon at 100 mph and didn’t stop throwing until Valdez had gone down half a dozen times in 3 minutes and change. The win has Frevola primed for another all-action fire fight in the middle of the lightweight division. And while there are plenty of options out there, I love the idea of a fight against Mike Davis. Another dynamic power-striker who can push Frevola to the brink. Frevola vs. Davis should be a war.

OTHER BOUTS: Andre Fialho vs. Benoit Saint-Denis, Cody Stamann vs. Kyung Ho Kang, Michael Morales vs. Weeks/Garry winner, Trevin Giles vs. David Zawada, Raoni Barcelos vs. Casey Kenney, Pete Rodriguez vs. Martin Sano, Tony Gravely vs. Vince Morales, Saimon Oliveira vs. Gaetano Pirrello, Genaro Valdez vs. Natan Levy, Vanessa Demopoulos vs. Ariane Carnelossi, Silvana Gomez Juarez vs. Maria Oliveira, Jasmine Jasudavicius vs. Melissa Gatto, Kay Hansen vs. Victoria Leonardo