The MMA Vivisection & 6th Round Podcasts

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 86 is in the books and with it, we put the middleweights back on the shelf for a while….but wait, we’re not quite done with them just yet. Next week, UFC 297 will feature two contests at the 185lb limit, but fortunately for us, they’re both good fights. But let’s get back to the business of this particular event.Bloody Elbow is fighting for th…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 86 is the most Apex card that ever was…until the next one. They’re all starting to look the same to us. This week’s card is packed with 185-pounders, as if we needed yet another middleweight-led show. And just in case you missed our main card episode, here’s a few facts for you to get started:UFC Vegas 86 Factoids* Ranked fights (meaning both at…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comDid you know that since 2020, more than 50% of all UFC cards have been held at the Apex? And we all know that every time an event is held there, an angel loses its wings. UFC Vegas 86 is no different, as many already know, simply by looking at the name of the event. These days, having “Vegas” in the title is a signal that the matchmakers did their level…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comFor the last two weeks, the sports and entertainment communities have been reeling from the details revealed in Janel Grant’s lawsuit against the WWE, Vince McMahon and other executives and superstars under its umbrella. But before the lawsuit came to see the light of day, two big events occurred the last several months for WWE.Bloody Elbow is fighting …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe WWE is in hot water thanks to a lawsuit filed by former employee Janel Grant. The lawsuit alleges Vince McMahon, other officials and even included a former UFC superstar engaged in sex trafficking and/or sexual assault and the suit came with evidence. McMahon resigned from all his positions at WWE and TKO Holdings within hours and the evidence from …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 85 is officially in the books and much like it was on paper, in practice, it was a mixed bag. We ended up with just five finishes out of 13 fights. We had a no contest, a majority decision and six unanimous decisions. The main event was a grueling battle that got to be quite tedious with all the wall and stall that was happening and the Khizri…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 85 is kind of a mixed bag. The main card is solid—not great, but solid. However, the prelims are a whole other story. From the ultra softball match the promotion is giving Molly McCann to the lack of any name value aside from Molly’s, this undercard is a stinker.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share ou…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 85 might not be everyone’s cup of tea but it’s got several ranked fighters and an important main event, even if it’s not really a fight that will hit the casual fan’s radar. And since it’s at the Apex—where only the cameramen will clap, and the lone heckler that paid a small fortune to sit cageside and shout how the athletes are losers—it happ…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comIn what seems to be the most serendipitous timing in history, TKO Holdings was able to close a monumental deal with Netflix worth $5B to run WWE content over the next ten years. As a matter of fact, the press release announcing the broadcast partnership came just two days ahead of the bombshell exposé the WSJ did on former WWE head and TKO executive boa…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comA pair of unrelated videos surfaced yesterday that grabbed our attention, mainly for the inaccuracies contained in both. The first is a short clip of an interview former presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy conducted with Dana White. The second is from the Joe Rogan Experience and features a conversation between Joe and former UFC heavyweight Brendan Sc…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWe’re barely into the new year and UFC has already left us high and dry just two weeks after returning from a month-long drought. But lucky for you, our terrific trio are here to get you through this week with a re-watch of three godawful title fights. If the Apex were a thing back in the good old days, we’re certain this is where these three fights wou…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 297 was not the best card. As a matter of fact, if I had to rate it on a scale of 1-10, I’d give it a 4. On paper, going into the event, we were quick to notice how there were no ranked fighters on the undercard and eight of those fighters were coming off losses. All four of the opening fights were loser vs. loser. The main card wasn’t much better, …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comConor McGregor is—and has been for years—one of the most enigmatic figures in combat sports. Hell, he’s one of the most enigmatic figures in all of sports. Much like Ronda Rousey, he’s had a transcendent career journey, crossing the threshold between sports and pop culture. And with pop culture actually driving the demand for more events, stars like Con…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 297 is officially in the books, the first PPV of the year and it brought us two brand new champions. The card, as a whole, wasn’t very strong on paper, and in practice, it was a bit underwhelming. The early prelims were great and saw serious action from the jump. But as the event wore on, the fights began slowing down. It was almost as if we were in…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWe were pretty happy with the main card of UFC 297, but the preliminary portion leaves a lot to be desired. We can’t figure out how this undercard was paired with the five fights that will come after it. From the lack of ranked fighters to the dearth of name value, we think it’s kind of a stinker.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 297 is here to kick off the promotion’s first PPV of the year and they’re doing it in Ontario, Canada. While the main card has an almost weird vibe, it’s a very good lineup of fights. The top two contests are title bouts, but both belts on the line are from two of the three weakest divisions, the third being heavyweight.Bloody Elbow is fighting for …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comHe’s back! Well, at least for this episode. Who? The one and only Mookie Alexander guest hosted today’s episode so we could make our yearly champions predictions, break down seven select fights from UFC 297, look back at UFC Vegas 84 and discuss how Saudi Arabia is not going to accept just any old slop the UFC tosses their way.Bloody Elbow is fighting f…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 84 just wrapped and overall, it was a pretty nice start to the new year. That said, it still had some terrible moments (looking at you Andrei Arlovski), but let’s focus on the positives before you guys start thinking we hate fights. First and foremost, we finally get to put the ridiculous, forced “rivalry” of Magomed Ankalaev and Johnny Walker…

Legendary combat sports commentator, Mike Goldberg, spent nearly two decades with the UFC, starting in 1997 and making his exit in 2016. He then spent about four-years as a voice for Bellator MMA from 2017 to 2021. Now, the one they call ‘Goldie’ is commentating some bare knuckle at BYB Extreme 23 on January 18th, which is a Thursday show. Before sitting Trigon-side, Mike Goldberg caught up with Bloody Elbow for an interview.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.Mike Goldberg spoke about how he linked up with BYB Extreme, versus how he used to try and score gigs in the olden days. He also mentions how he gets to say his catchphrase ‘It’s all over’ much more frequently now working a bare knuckle event than he did working MMA cards. With Bellator’s sale to the PFL finally official, Eddie asked Mike about what the future might look like for one Scott Coker, as well as a spate of other questions.Being a good sport, Goldie also relived some of his most famous flubs from over the years, from Watt Miman to the Progidy, which will forever live on through fight lore. I also got to be the one to inform him that Travis Lutter, A.K.A. ‘the Michael Jordan of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,’ actually has a son named Jourdan, and he actually just won his MMA debut by RNC in the first round last October.Bloody Elbow will be on location for the BYB Extreme 23 event on January 18th, so make sure to follow along on our social media platforms to see and hear some of the hustle and bustle. If you happen to be in South Florida and want to attend then you can purchase your tickets HERE. This entire episode is FREE!Thank you for reading this article and listening to the podcast. Please consider subscribing to the Bloody Elbow Substack to enjoy our daily premium content. Your paid subscriptions are helping build our new site and keeping hope alive that our staff will remain intact. If you haven’t already, please pledge with a paid subscription today. If you have, please share this post far and wide.Follow us as @BloodyElbow on twitter, facebook, instagram, and at BloodyElbow.Substack.com & BloodyElbowPodcast.Substack.com.Thank you for reading Bloody Elbow Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC is back, baby! And by “back,” we mean back at the Apex. But, all is not lost, as the prelims are actually kind of good. That said, don’t let the featured prelim fool you, because that fight is very likely going to be bad. It’s a heavyweight fight, after all, and we know how those go when the top of the division isn’t fighting.Bloody Elbow is fightin…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comAfter an entire month away, the UFC is back to the old grindstone, and trust me, the Apex is the old grindstone these days. And what do we get for all these long nights we waited for your return? A rematch nobody ever asked for that a whole bunch of people seem to not care much about.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is back after a long winter’s nap and what do they give their loyal fans? More Apex slop. One might think they’d want to kick off the new year with a firecracker of an event but instead, we get one that even if it does go off like a house afire, who’s gonna care? And more importantly, who’s gonna give that crowd pop that great fights deserve? Th…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comOver the course of the last few weeks, several boxing stories have dropped. We watched Showtime air its last boxing event after nearly 38 years of broadcasting the sport. From there, PBC, who had been calling Showtime their broadcasting home, ended up signing a huge deal with Amazon, so we’ve got one major promotion secured and accounted for.Bloody Elbo…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com2023 was a pretty wild year. The very first day saw UFC president Dana White slap his wife on camera and that kind of set the tone for the rest of the year. One thing that never changes is the sport’s ability to provide some of the greatest fights, and alternately, some of the worst. That’s why we’re here, to provide you with an unbiased (or maybe compl…

The holidays are always good for fun videos and photos, lively quips and interviews and lots of social media posts by combat sports athletes, but none have been quite as mesmerizing as the ones Conor McGregor puts out. Over the last two weeks of the holiday season, the Irish former champ-champ kept jaws wagging with some over the top antics.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.We start off with his appearance at the Joshua-Wallin / Wilder-Parker fight card where he was instantly memed following video footage of him seemingly jabbering Cristiano Ronaldo’s ear off, all while the soccer star looked like he’d rather be anywhere but the seat he was in. Conor delighted in his captive audience, regaling them with talks of a possible fight with Manny Pacquiao and the size of the ring the boxers would be in.From there we discuss his interview with Gareth Davies where “The Notorious” said the UFC was gravely mistreating him. He even went so far as to say that no other fighter in history had been as mistreated as he had (the entire roster would like a word). He lamented how a fight with Pacquiao was being brought to him and UFC was doing nothing.Then we got to his New Year’s announcement of the next appointment on his fight schedule. Yesterday, he announced that his next contest would indeed be against Michael Chandler. McGregor stated that the fight would go down at International Fight Week and most surprisingly, it would be at the middleweight limit of 185lbs.We also have a stellar interview with EZ PR’s Ed Zitron who weighed in on crypto and AI and all the pitfalls associated with it. It was an enlightening conversation that you won’t want to miss and to start off this 2024 year with a bang, we’re giving it away to you for FREE, so make sure you check it out and hit the subscribe button if you haven’t already done it.Thank you for reading this post and listening to the podcast. Please consider subscribing to the Bloody Elbow Substack to enjoy our daily premium content. Your paid subscriptions are helping build our new site and keeping hope alive that our staff will remain intact. If you haven’t already, please pledge with a paid subscription today. If you have, please share this post far and wide.Follow us as @BloodyElbow on twitter, facebook, instagram, and at BloodyElbow.Substack.com & BloodyElbowPodcast.Substack.com.Thank you for listening to the Level Change Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comMojave Diamonds won’t be taking the awards season by storm, but it is an unintentional comedic gem. The acting is awful, the dialogue is ridiculous, the action is brawlic and the vibe is as cringe as one would imagine when met with a cast that features Chael Sonnen, Donald Cerrone and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWhile our fearless leader battles malware demons and other wicked foes, I sneaked back into his bunker for another chat with longtime investigative journalist Zach Arnold. I don’t know where Nate hid the shotgun (even though I said it was by the door), and I’m pretty sure that the mongrel outside the gates isn’t his mighty hound, but I did pull the shad…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comMauricio “Shogun” Rua made his name in PRIDE and cemented it in the UFC with a style that was crowd-pleasing in both promotions. Fights with Rampage Jackson and Dan Henderson are what fans immediately call up to memory, but you could really go through his record and see a veritable cornucopia of names going as far back as 2003 when he faced Evangelista …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comMMA has had an incredible year news-wise, thanks mostly to three big stories. We’ve seen all sorts of drama, from the New Year all the way to now. We opened the first week of the year with Dana White assaulting his wife on video for the world to see. We’ve seen Power Slap become a real thing and it has now been sanctioned in California—something we woul…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 296 just wrapped and we’re still trying to figure out what happened to Colby Covington. The king of volume certainly had very little of it tonight. Leon Edwards basically had his way with him 26 different ways from Sunday in one of the most boring fights of the year. Perhaps now the UFC will make way for more deserving title challengers.Bloody Elbow…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThis week, our tremendous trio returns with a new episode. The big topics on deck are details around PFL’s buyout of Bellator and all the latest antitrust updates. The antitrust case has been the gift that keeps on giving as that tree continually produces fruit. This time, the guys take a look at the latest requests from the defendants.Bloody Elbow is f…

Karate Combat has been putting on quality events for several years now and their production is top tier. Their middleweight champion, Ross ‘Turbo’ Levine is a dynamic athlete with speed and power, two vital elements in the recipe that makes a champion karateka. This weekend, he’ll face 1-0 heavyweight and former UFC staple Sam Alvey for the vacant heavyweight title.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.Eddie Mercado snagged a great interview with Levine where they discussed a variety of topics. You can read along here. Of course, at the top of the list was his upcoming bout with Sam Alvey. The leap to heavyweight might seem wild to MMA fans, but heavyweight in Karate Combat tops out at 205 pounds, so the leap up isn’t as stark as some might think. Let’s take a look at what else they discussed.* Doctorate in Physical Therapy by day, Karate Combat champ by night* UFC guy vs. Karate Combat champion* Moving up from middleweight* Training with big bodies* Sam Alvey or Sam Towelvey?* Ross Levine’s prediction for Sam Alvey fight at Karate Combat 43* Darren Till, Luke Rockhold, Lyoto MachidaThank you for reading this article and listening to the podcast. Please consider subscribing to the Bloody Elbow Substack to enjoy our daily premium content. Your paid subscriptions are helping build our new site and keeping hope alive that our staff will remain intact. If you haven’t already, please pledge with a paid subscription today. If you have, please share this post far and wide.Follow us as @BloodyElbow on twitter, facebook, instagram, and at BloodyElbow.Substack.com & BloodyElbowPodcast.Substack.com.Thank you for listening to this Bloody Elbow special interview. This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 296 is how you end a tumultuous year that has seen some of the biggest news in years. From Francis Ngannou making the biggest free agency move the sport has ever seen to the antitrust lawsuit updates, 2023 was jam-packed with headlines, and most were not encouraging.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our …

We’ve all been wowed by the stellar bout sheet for UFC 296. It’s kind of hard not to. Even the curtain-jerker is a killer match-up. Who wouldn’t want to watch Randy Brown put to the test by Muslim Salikhov? And as you move up from there, the great fights just keep showing up. Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.And when is the last time we didn’t complain about the heavyweights? The weakest of the men’s divisions doesn’t produce enough talent outside the top 10 to really make us sit up and take notice, but pairing 11-0 Gaziev up with 13-1 Buday is genius booking for 265.Eight fights comprise the prelims and all eight are worth checking out. If they don’t provide serious movement in the rankings, they provide potential for what every fan craves, certified bangers. Bryce Mitchell vs. Josh Emmett in the featured prelim spot is also another bit of genius matchmaking. Let’s take a look at the rest of the undercard:UFC 296 Prelims* Josh Emmett vs. Bryce Mitchell 145 lbs* Irene Aldana vs. Karol Rosa 135 lbs* Cody Garbrandt vs. Brian Kelleher 135 lbs* Casey O'Neill vs. Ariane Lipski 125 lbs* Alonzo Menifield vs. Dustin Jacoby 205 lbs* Tagir Ulanbekov vs. Cody Durden 125 lbs* Andre Fili vs. Lucas Almeida 145 lbs* Shamil Gaziev vs. Martin Buday 265 lbs* Randy Brown vs. Muslim Salikhov 170 lbsThat said, there are a few minor annoyances with a couple of the fights but nothing that seriously detracts from the card. We’ll go through those , but again, it’s nothing that impedes or takes away from the event.Don’t forget to check out the bonus section for a great review of the UFC Vegas 83 preliminary card. Make sure to tune in immediately after this weekend’s fights for breakdowns and analysis on our 6th Round Post-Fight Show.Thank you for reading this article and listening to the podcast. Please consider subscribing to the Bloody Elbow Substack to enjoy our daily premium content. Your paid subscriptions are helping build our new site and keeping hope alive that our staff will remain intact. If you haven’t already, please pledge with a paid subscription today. If you have, please share this post far and wide.Follow us as @BloodyElbow on twitter, facebook, instagram, and at BloodyElbow.Substack.com & BloodyElbowPodcast.Substack.com.Thank you for reading and listening to the MMA Vivisection. This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com/subscribe

Since leaving the UFC, Sam Alvey has scored two knockouts. Once at heavyweight for the B2 Fighting Series and once at light heavyweight in Karate Combat. After a cycle of nearly five years without a win, this rejuvenated version of Alvey is finally finding success again and we’re happy for him.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.Eddie Mercado scored an absolutely stellar interview with Alvey where they discussed a myriad of topics. You can read along here. Everything from his upcoming bout with Ross Levine to advice for Ian Garry was fair game. No stone was left unturned. Let’s take a look at some of the subject matter:* Sam Alvey plotting Ninja Turtle showcase* Sam Alvey on fighting the middleweight champ up at 205* Sam Alvey or Sam Towelvey* Double champ status?* Sam Alvey was couch Surfing with Sean Strickland* Karate Combat 43 prediction* Cornered by UFC Champ Sean Strickland* Strickland vs. The Karatekas* Sam Alvey’s advice for Ian Garry* Did Strickland cross the line?Thank you for reading this article and listening to the podcast. Please consider subscribing to the Bloody Elbow Substack to enjoy our daily premium content. Your paid subscriptions are helping build our new site and keeping hope alive that our staff will remain intact. If you haven’t already, please pledge with a paid subscription today. If you have, please share this post far and wide.Follow us as @BloodyElbow on twitter, facebook, instagram, and at BloodyElbow.Substack.com & BloodyElbowPodcast.Substack.com.Thank you for listening to this Bloody Elbow special interview. This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 296 is a card done right and proof that when the UFC wants to, they can absolutely put on great events. With the stranglehold they have over the sport, all their cards could look a lot better and they certainly need to get the majority of them out of that stinkin’ Apex facility, but I digress. We need to stay on track here.Bloody Elbow is fighting f…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comIt’s been a hot minute since we’ve had a Bunker episode, so we decided to do something a little different. Nate pulled the blinds, put the shotgun by the door and the attack dog patrolled the perimeter as he welcomed me into his hallowed grounds for a bit of a role reversal. This week, I put Nate in the hot seat to provide a detailed update on what’s go…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 83 was a great looking card on paper but unfortunately, the main event kind of stunk up the joint. With several finishes and some damned good battles, we were definitely on track to be the recipients of a warm winter’s gift. What we got was a far cry from it and what WAS that judging on the Park-Muniz fight?Bloody Elbow is fighting for the spo…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comRising stars sometimes get put in a padded bubble, especially if it’s one the UFC wants to focus their energy on. Tatsuro Taira seems to be just such an athlete. This match-up with Carlos Hernandez certainly feels like those kid gloves were on when Sean Shelby and/or Mick Maynard put names in the sorting hat and pulled Carlos’ name from the depths of th…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe Apex card is back, here to steal Christmas joy by placing an actual decent show in the hollow, lifeless Apex center. The lack of a crowd for an event like this seems like an egregious wrong that needs to be rectified immediately. The worst holdover to come from the pandemic for the MMA community is that stinkin’ Apex facility. Bloody Elbow is fighti…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comIt’s been another busy week, especially regarding the UFC antitrust case. With the mountains of discovery now available, there’s a veritable treasure trove of documents that include contract information, text messages, e-mails…just about everything but the kitchen sink.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our m…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC antitrust case is the gift that keeps on giving, especially recently. You may be asking yourself “What’s happened now?” and the answer to that question would be class certification. Once the honorable Judge Boulware awarded the plaintiffs class certification, it set the wheels in motion for an avalanche of discovery. Thousands of documents, text…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Austin wasn’t just great on paper, it was absolutely marvelous in practice. With finishes galore, including slam knockouts, there was a lot to love with this card. And Arman Tsarukyan’s violent finish of Beneil Dariush was positively scary. But nothing was scarier than watching Jalin Turner knock Bobby Green out twice. That’s right, the ref, in one …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comAustin, Texas will set the stage for this weekend’s UFC Fight Night with the Moody Center hosting the event. And, if you hadn’t noticed, this is a damned good card, but we know why that is. Say it with us, fam, because it’s not at the Apex! However, there is a caveat: Arman Tsarukyan, Bobby Green and Kelvin Gastelum are the only fighters from the main …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comMiesha Tate is certainly a longtime veteran of the sport and some even call her a pioneer. To see her relegated to the prelims just seems so incongruous and out of place. But, after the disappointing losses she’s taken, perhaps being in the featured prelim is just what the doctor ordered—taking the pressure of main eventing or being in the co-main.Blood…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWell, after a week off from UFC weekend content, we’re back to the grind. We’ve got a very nice event this weekend in UFC Austin, so we selected a quartet of contests that we feel are the most important ones. Here’s the bouts we predicted:Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becomin…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comEddie Mercado is back with another great fighter interview, this time with the Wheaties box poster boy, Anthony “Showtime” Pettis, who is planning an unexpected turn for the future. Find out which former UFC champion will be facing him in the Karate Combat arena. Hear his thoughts on PFL and a lot more.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighter…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWith no UFC until December 2nd, the boys are back with another depressing watch of three fights. The focal point of the show is foul play (fights with lots of fouls). Pretty ingenious considering we’re about to enter the foulest holiday of them all. We’ve even got a Faux Phil since real Phil was unavailable for recording. Let’s take a look at the fights…

FREE EPISODE ALERT!! FREE EPISODE ALERT!! FREE EPISODE ALERT!!A lot has happened since our last episode so we tried to cram it all in a neat package. First, we went over the absolutely phenomenal cards that were Bellator 301 and UFC Vegas 82. Bellator saw two new champions crowned but never let on that the PFL purchase revelation was just two days away. They kept their secret in the most impenetrable vault.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.UFC Vegas 82 was also a great card. Top to bottom, the event delivered all manner of submissions and some gnarly knockouts, as well. In practice, it performed so much better than it did on paper. One thing is clear, and that is Paul Craig’s ceiling.We also discussed the latest developments in the UFC antitrust case. Zuffa, UFC, et al are not fairing well with their motions. The honorable Judge Boulware indicated that he was going to deny their motion for summary judgement. He also denied their motion to reopen discovery and then he did something nobody was expecting—he put injunctive relief back on the table for the plaintiffs if they win. Finally, in our bonus section (which is FREE today), we welcomed back Bloody Elbow’s Tim Bissell for a Sumo Stomp update of the Kyushu basho, which is in the last days now. Find out how those ozeki jitters affected some of the wrestlers and what’s going on with the ‘Angry Hamster’. If you’re a budding Sumo fan, this is a can’t-miss episode.Thank you for reading this article and listening to the podcast. Please consider subscribing to the Bloody Elbow Substack to enjoy our daily premium content. Your paid subscriptions are helping build our new site and keeping hope alive that our staff will remain intact. If you haven’t already, please pledge with a paid subscription today. If you have, please share this post far and wide.Follow us as @BloodyElbow on twitter, facebook, instagram, and at BloodyElbow.Substack.com & BloodyElbowPodcast.Substack.com.Thank you for listening to the Level Change Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 82 looked miserable on paper, and is often the case with Apex cards, the event delivered a lot of action in practice. That still doesn’t exonerate the promotion of phoning it in with Apex cards. At least they’re consistent, though. Fans are all but guaranteed fights from deep within the roster’s benchwarmer ranks with names man have likely nev…