The MMA Vivisection & 6th Round Podcasts

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…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comLet’s face it, friends, UFC Vegas 82 is a miserable card, as most Apex events are. Zane Simon certainly picked the right week to go on vacation, so that he could be spared of this nothingburger of a card. But never fear, fans of sanctioned violence, the boys have a brand new episode of The MMA Depressed-us and it’s a hoot!Bloody Elbow is fighting for th…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comYou read that headline right, folks. Conor McGregor, who was expected to headline UFC 300 (never official, though) is no longer on the card according to his longtime coach John Kavanagh. In an interview with Ariel Helwani, Kavanagh revealed the UFC was the decider in this latest delay of McGregor’s return to action.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 295 is a damned good card, all the way through. Are there fights you can pass on and not feel bad about? Sure, but the majority of these contests are solid as a rock and look like they’re barnburners just looking for a place to happen.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.comWoohoo! We’ve got a terrific main card and the boys are here to tell you all about it. As the title suggests, Jiri Prochazka is back and taking on an equally dynamic athlete with not much mind for anything but violence in Alex Pereira. And it’s for the belt! We. Are. Happy.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share o…

We’ve got a special episode today, a preview of the last Grand Sumo tournament of the year, the Kyushu basho, with Bloody Elbow’s Tim Bissell. We go through quite a few topics, which I’ll list below, but if you require more in-depth analysis, Tim has a great feature that you can check out here.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.Now, let’s get cracking on that listicle.* General terminology* Why Mongolia is so important in Sumo* How to attend one of these tournament matches* What NOT to do when you’re a Sumo wrestler* Will a new yokozuna be crowned* Who is the ‘angry hamster’?* Ozeki jitters* All about Atamifuji* All about Hokutofuji* What’s up with Wakatakakage?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.comLast week, big news hit combat sports media circles. Well, actually two things happened:* The UFC’s appeal to the antitrust case was denied by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals* The release of every UFC athlete payout from 2011-2016That release of the athlete payouts gave John Nash and Anton Tabuena plenty of fodder to go through, and the long and the shor…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe boys are back in town! The boys are back in town! And they’ve got a brand new episode! This week features intense discussion on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denying the UFC’s appeal in the antitrust case. From important dates to the standard operating procedures of the courts and how the next series of events in this case could play out. Blood…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comAfter being absolutely ravaged by late cancellations and replacements, UFC Sao Paulo saw a mixed bag of results. Eduarda Moura announced herself to fans in a big way with her sensational debut and Vitor Petrino might have rearranged Modestas Bukauskas’ memories with the crushing left he hit the 29-year-old with.Angela Hill got back in the win column wit…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThat’s right, Elves Brener will be back in action against Kaynan Kruschewsky, the late replacement for Esteban Ribovics. Will the Elves keep his winning streak intact? And we cannot overlook the intriguing pairing of Angie Hill and Denise Gomes. Denise is riding a two-fight win streak and Angie is coming off a loss to Mackenzie Dern. There’s plenty of a…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comYesterday, news broke that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the UFC’s appeal to the antitrust lawsuit, so of course we had to record in the dead of night to bring our listeners all the details. John explains all the upcoming dates the honorable Judge Boulware has set forth and what happens next.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighte…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comPhew! We’ve got 13 fights to look forward to Saturday and you know what? They’re pretty good. You can probably guess why, though. It’s right there in the title, UFC Sao Paulo…as in not at the Apex. Are all the fights great? Nope. But a good many of them are, and that’s a decent way to set the table after a weekend off. And we have the added benefit of D…

We had a special guest drop in this week, TUF 30 winner Juliana Miller gave us 20 minutes of her time to discuss the surgery that’s taking her out competition until sometime next Spring, the external sponsors she’s managed to acquire, training at Sikjitsu and more. I had toyed with the idea of making this our bonus content, and in the episode, that is what you’ll hear, but in practice, I am making the entire episode free so everyone can have access to the 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.We also weighed in on Francis Ngannou’s big weekend and the impact it’s had on combat sports and what we’d like to see next from “The Predator.” Finally, we made our picks on four fights from the main card. Spoiler alert: This is not a bad card! There are plenty of potential bangers on UFC Sao Paulo. Rejoice! Let’s take a look at the fights we selected to preview:UFC Sao Paulo* Jailton Almeida vs. Derrick Lewis* Caio Borralho vs. Abus Magomedov* Rodolfo Vieira vs. Armen Petrosyan* Ismael Bonfim vs. Vinc PichelHEADS UP! IT’S FREE EPISODE WEEK!! THIS ONE IS ON THE HOUSE!!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.comFrancis Ngannou’s boxing debut was nothing short of incredible, and even though he didn’t get his arm raised in victory, many in the combat sports world felt he DID do enough to get the nod, but the judges instead scored it in favor of reigning lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. The tally would see “The Predator” take a split decision loss—in his f…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comEddie Mercado has been interviewing fighters for years and he does a darned good job too. This week, he was able to sit down with UFC veteran fighter-turned broadcast team member Din Thomas. Din answered lots of questions, mainly about things he’d change about the sport if he could. It’s a great episode that you won’t want to miss.Bloody Elbow is fighti…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comYep, the title says it all. We think Fury-Ngannou will not be competitive. Is there really any other sane way to look at this? The training footage Ngannou released over the last several weeks has not been encouraging, to say the least. Is Tyson Fury even training for this fight? Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comTwo Bunkers in one week! What’s going on? Did we hit the podcast lottery? The answer is yes, you did. Let us explain why we gave you two episodes this week.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.It’s not every day our fearless leader gets bona fide MMA…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThis week, Nate opens up the MMA Bunker for one of his patented tête-à-têtes, this time with Icon Sport founder T Jay Thompson. Thompson reminisced on what those early days were like in Hawaii as one of the first promotions in the sport not named UFC. He also discussed the downfall of fighters that were once on his roster like Phil Baroni and Jason “May…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 294 had quite a few shakeups along its journey to Abu Dhabi, but the card was solid, even if punctuated by some weird moments. The physician in attendance was responsible for questionable ringside manner as well as numerous raised eyebrows. The way he handled Victor Henry’s low blow and Johnny Walker’s injury was bordering on egregious. Bloody Elbow…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe undercard for UFC 294 is pretty robust, like the main card, and features some intriguing pairings. The one that’s really got our attention, though, is Mokaev vs. Elliot. Elliot is a savvy veteran grappler who depends on split-second adjustments and scrappiness. Mokaev is the exact opposite, often demonstrating control and technical wrestling. In his…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 294 might have lost two of its key players, but we still think it looks great. There’s some definite action fights, two titles on the line and some shakeups leading up to the event in the last few weeks that saw opponent changes and some injury dropoffs—all leading to possibly a better card than the original lineup.Sure, Chimaev vs. Costa was a good…

A few weeks back, we told you all a rumor that Showtime Sports would be closing its doors for good by the time 2024 rolled around. Unfortunately, that rumor proved to be true, with confirmation hitting the community today. All 38 employees, including Stephen Espinoza, will have their positions terminated. Dan Rafael reports that contractors and freelancers (including Luke Thomas and Shakiel Mahjoury) will not be affected by the regular staff cuts.We take a look at Tim Elliot’s extreme haterism, just how well the Misfts promotion is doing, and how Dillon Danis manages to keep failing upward. We also spent some time looking back on UFC Vegas 81, as well as providing a mini preview of the UFC 294 card via the four fights we chose for our picks and predictions. Let’s have a look at those: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 294* Islam Makhachev vs. A. Volkanovski 155 lbs * Kamaru Usman vs. Khamzat Chimaev 185 lbs * Magomed Ankalaev vs. Johnny Walker 205 lbs * Tim Elliott vs. Muhammad Mokaev 125 lbsHEADS UP! IT’S FREE EPISODE WEEK!! THIS ONE IS ON THE HOUSE!!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.comWe’re just coming from a damn good card that should have been given an audience in an arena not named the Apex. What an absolute downer it was to not hear a crowd going bonkers over the action fest that was Edson Barboza vs. Sodiq Yusuff. There were other great moments on the card, as well. Terrance McKinney needed just 20 seconds to get the job done an…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comAn actual good card at the Apex?! It DOES happen, just not very often. We’re not here to look a gift horse in the mouth, though. We’re here to celebrate the great things about the event. Let’s start with the obvious: There are three ranked fights AND a seventh ranked fighter—seven fighters ranked on a single card? Yes, we like this a whole lot.Then, as …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comAs with the main card, there is some name value to be noted on the prelims, too. But what made us scratch our heads was that Darren Elkins is riding in the featured prelim spot. Okay, but are we to ignore that Darren has only won three fights in his last nine? We actually have a ranked fighter on the prelims in Chris Gutierrez. Why wasn’t that fight in …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comFor the last few days, “pundits” from all over the MMA and boxing communities have been weighing in on the lawsuit against Dillon Danis, launched by Logan Paul’s fiancee. Every one of them seems to think it’s Logan himself that’s initiated the suit, but it is indeed Miss Agdal responsible for the litigation.Sonnen, Schaub and McCarthy all seem to think …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 80 is officially in the books and what a quick end to Grant Dawson! Bobby Green needed less than a minute to put Grant Dawson away before attempting to bring his dog into the cage for the post-fight interview. Daniel Cormier had to talk him down as he was summoning his corner to bring the pooch in. Between that and Vanessa Demopoulos leaping i…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThat’s right, folks, there’s just a single ranked fighter on the prelims. Karolina Kowalkiewicz will be doing all the heavy lifting Saturday night. There was another ranked fighter on the prelims, Chris Gutierrez, but his opponent, Montel Jackson, withdrew with an illness, so the fight was scrapped from this show.Now, Poland’s shining star has the weigh…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 80 isn’t a completely terrible card. It’s got reasonable fights on it, even if there are only two ranked fighters across the whole of it. Bearing that in mind, we are left to wonder where the main event is. Surely it can’t be Grant Dawson vs. Bobby Green. That’s hardly the stuff headliners are made of and further, it’s hardly the stuff that ge…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThis week’s UFC card is quite possibly the most APEX card we’ve ever seen and that’s saying something. It started with just three ranked fighters (not fights) out of 12 fights. Then the unfortunate news came that one of those three was having their fight scrapped thanks to his opponent’s sudden illness. So here we are, with the biggest promotion in the …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comOver the years, John Nash has reviewed contracts from all the major MMA promotions and several big boxing contracts, as well. We’ve been able to see just how restrictive, and at times, draconian, most of the MMA agreements between promotions and athletes truly are. The UFC set the standard with their boilerplate contract and with new changes, have made …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com“A young man trapped in his apartment with a swarm of creatures outside his door must find a way to survive the night and escape from apartment 213.” That’s the synopsis IMDB gave this movie starring Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. Watch along with us as we try to make heads or tails of whatever this movie is trying to achieve. Spoiler alert, the movie makes n…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThat’s right, folks, Showtime Boxing is rumored to be shutting down after their 2024 schedule. Reports of everything from dwindling viewership and rising costs to online streaming have surfaced as contributors to their reasoning for the closure. Here are some of the other headlines we discussed:Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and th…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comIt’s been a busy couple of weeks in the world of MMA business and finance, but we tried to cover all the most pertinent topics. Front and center is the new filings that came out last week on the UFC’s first half of the year. We also discuss the latest rumblings of a Bellator buyout by the PFL and what that could look like in the future. Here’s a list of…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 79 saw a spate of decisions on the prelims with just one official finish (vintage Tim Means!) and a DQ stoppage as the most notable moments. The main card, on the other hand, saw all fights end in a finish with the exception of the co-main event, which was a good fight. The headliner would end early, but not on a high note. Unfortunately, as R…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWe’re kind of having a hard time believing this is even an Apex card. We have three ranked fights and tons of recognizable names on the bout sheet—even across the prelims. This is the exact opposite of what we’ve been getting. Is this the beginning of a new era? One where the matchmakers show that they appreciate the insane amounts of money we fans dump…