‘I cannot watch it’ – Sean O’Malley on Dana White’s Power Slap

Even slap fighting aficionados know that their brand of combat pseudo-sports violence is a tough sell.

“Ninety percent of the people can’t stand this sport—they think it’s unfair,” SlapFIGHT Championship founder and Power Slap consultant JT Tilly recently told the New Yorker.

Slap fighting competitions, where two opponents stand across a table from one another and club each other across the jaw with as much force as possible—while the clubee stands, un-defended and unflinching—have become a viral video sensation over the last half decade. Enough so that UFC president Dana White decided to jump on the bandwagon, with his own Ultimate Fighter styled reality show: Power Slap.

The attempt to bring this niche spectacle into the main stream has brought fourth the expected chorus of backlash. But even hardened combat sports veterans are finding it difficult to stomach. Top UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley gave his thoughts on White’s endeavor on a recent episode of his BrOMalley Show webcast.

“It’s weird because some people just love it,” O’Malley noted (transcript via MMA Junkie). “I could see maybe watching the TV series part of it like ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ like them at the house, meeting them, seeing their back stories. But the actual ‘sport,’ whatever you wanna call it, itself, I can’t watch.”

“I cannot watch it. I don’t know if it’s—I can’t watch it, because I understand what concussions are? I understand, I’ve been through them. I know how bad it is to do that to your brain. … I can’t even see it.”

He’s not the only one. Former UFC champion and old-school MMA legend Frank Shamrock called it “horrible. Sad. Sickening.” And rising light welterweight boxing contender Ryan Garcia called it “a horrible idea,” adding that it “needs to be stopped.”

At the moment, White and Power Slap front-man Frank Lamicella have plans to parlay the show’s first 8-episode season into a PPV slap fighting event. While ratings for the first episode were fairly dismal, the show did see a decent boost in viewership for their second episode. It only remains to be seen if it can find a big enough audience to make the whole thing pay off beyond the short-lived spectacle it currently appears to be.

‘It made me want to hurt him’ – Tyron Woodley on ‘very disrespectful’ KSI fight negotiations

Contract negotiations in the fight business can be a nasty power struggle. There are reasons that, for the biggest boxing bouts, it often feels like it takes years of two men fencing in the boardroom before they get to the point of actually fighting in the ring. In MMA, where individual fighters have far less power, promoters like the UFC are notorious for their ‘take it or leave’ it posture at the bargaining table.

Despite all that, it seems Tyron Woodley still had the capacity to be surprised. Speaking to on a recent episode of the MMA Hour, the former UFC champion and two-time Jake Paul opponent got into the weeds on a planned boxing bout against celebrity pugilist Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji, better known as simple ‘KSI’.

The YouTube personality and hip hop artist first rose to sporting notoriety in 2018 with an amateur bout against Logan Paul, followed one year later by a professional rematch. He entered the ring as an exhibition fighter in 2022 with a one-night, two-fight boxing event against fellow celebrity boxer Swarmz, and 2-7 ‘professional opponent’ Luis Alcaraz Pineda, defeating both men via KO. KSI has already started 2023 off with a bang, defeating social media personality FaZe Temperrr in a January 14th PPV.

It’s that last fight that has the focus of Woodley’s wrath. Apparently that Jan. 14th fight card was originally supposed to feature a double-billed headliner, with Logan Paul taking on Dillon Danis, and KSI taking on ‘The Chosen One’. Paul hurt his knee in a guest appearance with the WWE, however, and Danis vs. KSI became the fight to make instead (complete with its own tragicomic promotional incidents).

Woodley doesn’t want to sound bitter about losing out on the fight, but according to him, dealing with KSI’s team was a complete nightmare.

“The negotiation of the contract was very disrespectful, and it made me want to hurt him,” Woodley recalled (transcript via MMA Fighting). “So I told this to his manager. I was on a call with his manager and I said, ‘Never in my life have I been disrespected like this in a contract.’”

“So every advantage, they wanted,” Woodley said. “And this was terms that were added after we had already agreed. So we agreed, I got a contract, and they went, ‘Oh, I’m sorry to do this, but KSI’s trainer wants to add this hydration thing.’ So when I went out to Dubai, I got in his trainer’s face too, I said, ‘I’m going to weigh f***ing 187. Homicide, that’s what I’m going to weigh. I’m not weighing no 185, and your boy is going to get f***** up.’”

Despite his feelings of serious disrespect, however, it sounds like the longtime Roufusport talent knows he can’t get too heated over the whole thing. After all, he’s the guy who has actually won world titles and made a name for himself as a top-tier combat sports athlete.

“I kind of didn’t want to cry over spilled milk, because one thing I’ve got to recognize is that I’ve got to be careful with my legacy,” Woodley said. “I can’t be screaming and yelling and pounding to try to be able to fight these guys that are coming into it from a more entertainment standpoint, right? Especially with what I’ve done already in my career.”

All told, he just doesn’t understand why, once Danis dropped out of the fight and KSI needed a new opponent once again, Tyron Woodley wasn’t at the top of his list?

“KSI is athletic but I think he’s just a little fearful, because he can punch hard, but some people are used to being a hammer and not so much used to being the nail. He was going to be the nail in our fight, and I think him and his management staff knew that. If he wants to fight, it’s going to have to be double for my trouble.”

Masvidal battling First Round Management in court, now self-represented

It’s a good thing Jorge Masvidal has his bout with Gilbert Burns lined up, because the former Strikeforce standout and UFC welterweight title contender has been making most of his reputation lately for his fights outside the Octagon. Masivdal is currently involved in an ongoing legal battle with former friend, teammate, and opponent Colby Covington over allegations that the 38-year-old assaulted Covington outside a Miami restaurant in March of last year.

However, in a recent interview on the MMA Hour, ‘Gamebred’ also revealed that he’s got another (although seemingly less dramatic) court case ongoing. That case is the result of an apparent split between Masvidal and First Round Management. Owned and operated by Malki & Ibrahim Kawa, Masvidal has been a long-time client of FRM.

Reports that the two parties had severed their business relationship first surfaced back in December of last year, although they were still apparently on good terms at the time. That seems to be much less the case now.

“100 percent split with them,” Masvidal said (transcript via MMA Junkie). “You know, my momma always said, ‘Babe, if you have nothing good to say, don’t say nothing at all.’ So right now we’re going through some turmoil, litigation, that it’s not fair. I’m not going to talk about this or that right now, just we’re still going through it. At the end of this chapter, when all these things get done, I’ll have an exact report on that. We’re going through court and I don’t want to talk about anything right now, anything more than what I just said.

“We’re not in the greatest of terms, I’ll tell you that. I have no ill will towards them. I don’t owe them any money. They don’t owe me any money, but there’s other things that have affected the relationship severely. That they could fix, that they could’ve fixed by now, but they haven’t, so I’m just waiting for these things to get resolved.”

At one point, Masvidal was even apparently in a long-term relationship with Iman Kawa, sister to the FRM owners—a point Colby Covington jumped on in their now-infamous feud. Notable for their antagonistic style of media relations, Masvidal sounds excited to be working on his own terms now.

“They have their own way of doing stuff and it doesn’t appeal to a lot of people. There was a lot of people that I wasn’t talking because they have beef with them. I’m talking to everybody right now. Every week someone is trying to pitch me to go to lunch or some f*cking movie script this, sponsorship there. Ok, one day closed, but 2,000 windows opened. I’m managing myself.”

Masvidal is set to take on Burns in the co-main event of UFC 287, taking place on April 8th at a yet-to-be-announced location. The PPV event is scheduled to be headlined by a middleweight title fight rematch, with former champion Israel Adesanya looking to gain back his title against longtime foe Alex Pereira. Stay tuned to Bloody Elbow for more news and updates.

TUF Titties – Rampage wants ‘grudge matches’ against Wanderlei, Eastman and… Schoonover???

When all is said and done, when the dust has settled and the history books are written, it’s pretty clear that Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson will have had a remarkable MMA career. A 2003 Middleweight PRIDE Grand Prix finalist, Jackson was a top draw for the Japanese promotion before jumping to the UFC—from their purchase of WFA—in 2007.

That same year, Jackson won the UFC light heavyweight title, knocking out Chuck Liddell with a highlight reel right hook. His title reign ended a year later with a (somewhat controversial) loss to Forrest Griffin, but he still went on to pick up UFC victories over Wanderlei Silva & Lyoto Machida during his time in the Octagon.

Even when his best years were clearly behind him, Rampage put up five straight victories to start his run in Bellator. He ended his run with the Paramount-owned promotion in 2019, off a disappointing TKO loss to Fedor Emelianenko and hasn’t fought since. Even if he didn’t ride off into the sunset on a glorious note, the end result was a 20-year career of highlights and accolades.

Only, to hear the former Wolfslair talent tell it, he’s not done yet. In a recent interview with the No Jumper podcast, the 44-year-old revealed that he still has a few bouts he’d like to take. “Grudge Matches” with fellow legendary opponents like ‘The Axe Murderer’ Wanderlei Silva, Marvin ‘The Beastman’ Eastman and… that one guy on TUF that he made fun of for being fat???

“I’d like to do some grudge matches, since I’m old and stuff,” Jackson explained (transcript via MMA Mania). “There’s a couple guys I owe some ass-kickings to. For one, Wanderlei [Silva]. Me and him, we fought four times. We’re 2-2. I would like to box him or something different. Even the score. Then Marvin Eastman, I owe him a rubber match. We’re 1-1. And a guy from The Ultimate Fighter, Darrill Schoonover. The guy I gave the nickname ‘Titties.’ He hates me.

“And I feel kinda bad, because the young kids, they think it’s bullying when you make fun of somebody,” he added. “When I grew up, bullying was when you beat the s— out of someone and took their lunch money or something like that. But, now bullying is when you make fun of somebody’s shoes. And so people … I called him ‘Titties.’ But, he started the whole thing, he made fun of me. I was just funnier. I like to joke around.”

Schoonover retired from MMA back in 2015, with an overall record of 15-8. Shortly after his last bout he made a brief campaign to fight Jackson under the Bellator banner. In a 2016 interview with MMA Junkie, Schoonover revealed that he was currently finishing his undergraduate degree in water technology, with the hopes of pursuing a masters in psychology some day.

“I’ve dropped school enough times for big fights,” Schoonover admitted, saying that while he was largely done with fighting he’d make an exception for this bout. “I dropped out of school for ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ I don’t need to do that anymore. But I will take this fight, I will train my ass off, and I guarantee he’s not going to be ready for the first two or three months. It will be, what, six months before this even gets to happen? I wish it would happen sooner.”

That was seven years ago. Judging by Schoonover’s lack of social media presence in the time since, it seems like whatever moment there ever was to make that bout has long passed. They say that a dream delayed is not a dream denied, but it just may be that Rampage will have to move on to luring the other big fish on his wishlist out of retirement.

‘It’s going to be a long time before any of that happens’ – Miocic talks Ngannou’s failed UFC negotiations

The heart of Francis Ngannou’s dispute with the UFC may have been focused on boxing, contract limits, and (as always) money, but there were a few other aspects to the negotiations that appear to have informed the fighter’s decision to leave the world’s largest MMA promotion.

The Xtreme Couture talent came to the bargaining table hoping to gauge the UFC’s interest in providing a healthcare plan for the athletes on their roster, as well as allowing the placement of a “fighter advocate” in company board meetings. Those ideas accompanied another longtime sore sport for athletes in the Endeavor-owned promotion: improved sponsorship rights. The UFC notoriously restricted the ability for fighters to court outside sponsorship in 2014 with the introduction of Reebok uniforms and the removal of sponsor banners from corners.

“They say, ‘No, we don’t do business like that,’ Ngannou recalled of his negotiations in a recent interview. “They say, ‘Yes, [you] can pay your health insurance?’ and all that. I’m like, ‘Yes, I can pay my health insurance. At this point health insurance for me is not a problem. But, how about those guys that are at the bottom? Make $10k + $10k or, lost the fight, made $10k? They can’t really afford that health insurance.’ And I have been there. So, it’s something that I still carry in my heart.”

“I knew it couldn’t happen, but I asked.”

Former rival and two-time heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic seems sympathetic to Ngannou’s cause. The 40-year-old professional firefighter has had his own string of difficult negotiations with the UFC, and in an interview with the MMA Hour admitted that he feels the promotion is a long way away from the kinds of changes the Cameroonian-born Frenchman was calling for.

“I get it,” Miocic said. “I mean, it’s going to be a long time before any of that happens—[Ngannou was] trying to move [the sport] in the right direction, which is great, but it’s going to be a long time before any of that happens.”

For his part, Miocic wishes that Ngannou had been able to come to an agreement with the UFC so that he and the ‘Predator’ could have a chance to face off for a third time inside the Octagon. Instead, the Strong Style fighter hopes to find himself at the front of the line for a title shot after Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane face off for the vacated belt in March. And maybe, just possibly, face off against Ngannou in the boxing ring one day instead.

“That’d be fantastic [to box Ngannou],” Miocic responded when asked about the possibility. “Hell yeah, I love boxing.”

Askar Askarov returns to MMA with Absolute Championship Akhmat

Askar Askarov’s exit from the UFC could hardly have seemed more sudden. Unbeaten over the first eight years of his career, Askarov suffered his first real setback against Kai Kara France back in March of 2022, losing a unanimous decision to the hard-punching New Zealander.

Still just 30-years-old and with name wins over contenders like Alexandre Pantoja and Joe Benavidez (plus a split draw against current champ Brandon Moreno), even in defeat Askarov seemed primed to contend for UFC gold in the not too distant future. A few months later, however, and the wrestling champion from Dagestan was gone.

“Due to the fact that my return was delayed for health reasons, and it was my last fight under contract (with Brandon Royal), I asked the UFC to release me, to which I received a positive response,” Askarov wrote in a social media post last October. “First, we will put our health in order, then we will see what and how.”

Whatever putting his health in order might have involved, it seems to have happened relatively quickly. In a post to their Instagram account, Chechen MMA organization Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA) announced that Askarov has signed a contract to compete under the ACA banner.

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Formerly Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB)—until regional dictator Ramzan Kadyrov announced that ACB would merge with his own World Fighting Championship Akhmat (WFCA) organization in 2018—Askarov previously competed for the promotion from 2015 to 2018. While there, ‘Bullet’ picked up the ACB flyweight title, defending it twice before making the jump to the UFC.

No word yet on exactly when Askarov expects to take his first fight back in his old stomping grounds, but it seems likely that a fight announcement will be coming in the following weeks.

Pereira vs. Adesanya 2, Burns vs. Masvidal added to UFC 287

The UFC’s April PPV card just got a shakeup. Previously rumored as the planned landing spot for a bantamweight title fight between Aljamain Sterling and Henry Cejudo, in a video broadcast over social media on Friday, January 27th, UFC president Dana White announced that the card would now be headlined by a middleweight title fight rematch between Alex Pereira and former champion Israel Adesanya. Alongside that bout, the event’s co-main will be a welterweight top contender’s bout between Gilbert Burns and Jorge Masvidal. No word yet on what that means for Sterling vs. Cejudo.

Adesanya and Pereira met for the third time in their careers just back in November. For the first time, however, they faced off under MMA rules, and with Adesanya’s middleweight title on the line. Pereira won the bout via stunning 5th round TKO stoppage, making him 3-0 against the ‘Last Stylebender.’

That victory brought Pereira up to 7-1 in his MMA career, and 4-0 in his brief run through the Octagon. The 35-year-old former kickboxing star re-started his MMA career just back in 2020, and made his UFC debut in November of 2021—making it just 12 months from his first UFC bout to winning his first UFC belt.

With five successful title defenses to his name heading into the Pereira bout, it only makes sense that Adesanya would get an immediate shot at reclaiming his crown. Much like Pereira, Adesanya made the move to MMA after a highlight-filled kickboxing career, winning the interim middleweight title in just his 6th UFC bout, and capturing the undisputed title a little more than 18 months after his Octagon debut.

Fresh off an easy-breezy first round submission win over Neil Magny, former welterweight title challenger Gilbert Burns seems to be finally getting his wish, for a high profile bout against one of welterweight’s bigger-name opponents. While he called for a bout with Colby Covington after his victory at UFC 283, ‘Durinho’ is now set to face off against Jorge Masvidal instead.

Masvidal and Burns had been linked to a potential UFC bout in 2022, but the fight never managed to materialize (likely in part due to Masvidal’s legal woes). ‘Gamebred’ is currently riding a 3-figth losing streak that includes back-to-back title shot losses to Kamaru Usman, and a 2022 decision loss to Covington. He has been out of action for most of the past year after Covington accused Masvidal of assaulting him outside a Miami restaurant, shortly following their UFC bout. Masvidal has plead not guilty to a count of felony battery and currently awaits trial while free on bail.

Alongside these bouts, White also announced a welterweight booking between Kevin Holland and Santiago Ponzinibbio, as well as previously reported bookings between Rob Font & Adrian Yanez, and Raul Rosas Jr. against Christian Rodriguez. No word yet on a location for the PPV event, but word on the street is that the card may be headed to New York.

WATCH LIVE! UFC 287: ALEX PEREIRA VS ISRAEL ADESANYA 2 – UFC Middleweight Championship & Gilbert BURNS vs Jorge MASVIDAL, VENUE TBD | MAR 11, 2022!

Plus, Rob Font vs Adrian Yanez, M. Waterson-Gomez vs Luana Pinheiro, Kelvin Gastelum vs Chris Curtis, & Kevin Holland vs Santiago Ponzinibbio, & MORE!| Stream all the fights LIVE on ESPN+ RIGHT HERE — don’t miss a single second of face-punching action! | Stay tuned to BloodyElbow.com for more details!

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‘Thank you God, it wasn’t my time’ – Conor McGregor reportedly unhurt after getting hit by car

It’s been a hell of a busy week for the UFC’s biggest star. On Tuesday, reports surfaced that police in Spain were re-opening an investigation into an assault accusation against Conor McGregor. On Thursday, the ‘Notorious’ SBG talent revealed that he was in talks with the UFC for a coaching stint on the upcoming season of the Ultimate Fighter (with rumors swirling that Tony Ferguson would head up the opposing team). On Friday, apparently, he got hit by a car.

“Got a bang of [sic] a car just now from behind,” McGregor announced in a since-deleted Instagram post. “A sun trap, the driver couldn’t see me. Full speed straight through me. Thank you God, it wasn’t my time. Thank you wrestling and judo also. Having an awareness on the landing saved my life.”

Conor McGregor shared that he was hit by a car while riding his bike a little while ago. Luckily he is ok. pic.twitter.com/Aw4mUAa0Qw

— Nicole Bosco (@NikBos) January 27, 2023

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“All good, mate, all good. Don’t worry about it,” McGregor could be heard telling the driver of the car in a video recorded at the time of the incident. “Mate, that’s—nah, I could have been dead there. Look!”

“What’s your name, my man?” McGregor asked as he and his bike got a ride back to his home. “Nick just smacked me with his car. We have the bike in the back.”

“I could have been dead!”

Conor McGregor was just hit by a car while riding his bicycle.pic.twitter.com/QMembqCZeX

— Chamatkar Sandhu (@SandhuMMA) January 27, 2023

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The UFC has yet to make any formal announcement on McGregor’s return to active competition after more than a year and a half away from MMA—spent rehabbing a broken leg as well as acting in an upcoming Road House reboot starring Jake Gyllenhaal. However, SBG Ireland head coach John Kavanagh recently stated that he would bet the house that the former two-division champion would fight inside the Octagon in 2023.

Bella Mir, daughter of former champ Frank Mir, signs UFC’s first ever amateur NIL contract

Could this be the new face of UFC talent development? For years, the world’s largest MMA promotion has taken something of a catch as catch can approach to finding new fighters. Whether it’s poaching champs from other smaller organizations, targeting talent on the rise from notable camps, depending on managers to curate prospects, or holding try-out shows like the Ultimate Fighter and Dana White’s Contender Series, most athletes only tend to get to the UFC after proving themselves to the promotion in other arenas.

On occasion the UFC has also run talent development programs like their ‘combine’ events to identify potential fighters to watch for the future. But, this could be a more significant way for the Endeavor-owned company to headhunt talent early in their careers.

“Bella was destined to become a member of the UFC family her entire life, and I’m proud that she’s making history as our first NIL ambassador in one of the best programs at the University of Iowa,” UFC president Dana White said, via press release. “She’s a four-time state high school wrestling champion who has won jiu-jitsu tournaments and three professional MMA fights before turning 19. Bella is an incredible role model for young women who are not only looking to get into sports, but also pursue their dreams. She’s on another level, and we can’t wait to see what she does next.”

We’re happy to announce Bella Mir as the UFC’s first ever NIL ambassador!

Mir is currently a freshman at the University of Iowa (@TheIowaHawkeyes) and a member of @IowaW_Wrestling ‍♀️ pic.twitter.com/7JCEQd1WqT

— UFC (@ufc) January 27, 2023

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‘Name, Image, Likeness’ deals have become a noted trend in college athletics, following the NCAA’s recent moves to loosen restrictions on how amateur athletes can leverage their celebrity into money-making opportunities into things like sponsorship deals and social media influencing. Alongside supporting Mir’s collegiate career, the UFC has also signed an independent deal with the University of Iowa to sponsor their wrestling programs.

“The partnership between Iowa wrestling and UFC is a perfect fit,” men’s wrestling coach Tom Brands said in a December press release. “We both celebrate tough, physical athletes who compete at the highest level. There is a bridge between wrestlers and fighters across the two sports. With this agreement, it is even more significant.”

It’s not at all difficult to imagine White & Co. signing similar deals with other rising stars, not just in wrestling, but possibly in sports like BJJ, judo, or maybe even boxing as a way to start building working relationships with top talent well before they’re ready to make a serious run in mixed martial arts.

“I’m super grateful and I honestly couldn’t be more thankful to [UFC President] Dana [White] and UFC for giving me this opportunity,” Mir revealed. “I’m going to make sure I do my best to represent UFC and show the world what I’m all about.”

Bella Mir is 3-0 as a pro fighter, having last competed at Xtreme Fight Night 381 back in June of last year. After debuting at 137 lbs in 2020, she currently competes in the women’s flyweight division.

Sage Northcutt was planning comeback ‘the very next day,’ never considered retirement after crushing ONE debut

Sage Northcutt is all set for his MMA return on May 5th in Broomfield, CO. The former top UFC prospect left the world’s largest MMA promotion back in 2018 to play the free agent market, eventually landing with Singapore’s ONE Championship. What was supposed to be a glorious debut, against former kickboxing sensation Cosmo Alexandre turned instead into a career altering moment for the Team Alpha Male fighter.

A quick KO in round 1 saw Northcutt suffer 8 facial fractures. He hasn’t competed since.

Despite the severity of the setback, in a recent interview with the MMA Hour, Northcutt revealed that the idea of stepping away from competition permanently never crossed his mind.

“No, not really,” Northcutt admitted, when asked if he’d considered retiring (transcript via MMA Fighting). “After my fight, even right afterward, the very next day I was already planning on coming back. It did take a little while — as a lot of people know, for about a year plus, I was just healing up. So that took a little bit of time, for sure. But after that, I was full-blown training.”

In fact, The now 26-year-old had his MMA return all prepared for April 2021—a bout against Shinya Aoki—when he was hit by another major medical setback.

“Horrible coincidence, but two weeks out from my fight, I was supposed to leave to go overseas, I got COVID,” he said. “That just threw everything for a loop. I was pretty sick for a little bit. It took like six months of doing blood work, trying to figure out what’s going on.

“I didn’t even know for the first couple of days. I kept trying to train through and started to get run down, ended up testing positive for COVID. … So I was trying to work around that, and I think trying to do that, I just ran myself down pretty bad. Then I had to sit at home, and that was the hardest thing, not doing anything.”

All told, while it hasn’t been the most productive time of ‘Super’ Sage’s life, it sounds like he’s found a quality silver lining out of it. Namely that this major series of setbacks came early in his career.

“I”m glad this happened at a time when I was so young and didn’t happen later in my career,” Northcutt enthused. “I have a full career ahead of me. It happened now, and it’s better than later.”

ONE Fight Night 10 takes place at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, CO. The card is expected to be headlined by a 135 lb title trilogy bout between Demetrious Johnson and Adriano Moraes.