The MMA Hour: O’Malley, Poirier, Page, Doumbé, and Wood | Mar 11, 2024

The Mixed Martial Arts Hour is back in your life! Below is a rundown of Monday’s show, which begins at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT / 6 p.m. UK time.

00:00:00 Standby

00:01:05 Intro

00:08:56 Recapping the weekend of combat sports.

01:03:51 Michael Page talks about his UFC 299 debut against Kevin Holland.

01:36:05 UFC lightweight star Dustin Poirier reflects on his UFC 299 win over Benoit Saint Denis.

02:06:14 UFC bantamweight champ Sean O’Malley talks his first title defense against Chito Vera at UFC 299.

02:45:49 PFL star Cedric Doumbé breaks down his controversial loss at PFL Europe 1.

03:19:54 UFC vet Joanne Wood reflects on her retirement fight at UFC 299.

04:01:39 Best bets and more from the crew.

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It’s the Mixed Martial Arts hour With big SP Tower is back in your life on this Monday March 11th 2024 hello again everyone I sure hope you’re doing well guys do we have a lot to talk about goly do we have a lot to talk about we have a lot to talk about on this

Beautiful Monday in New York City yes if you’re overseas you may be wondering why are we on an hour early it’s because you guys over there don’t put the clocks ahead until a few weeks from now of I figured it all out after doing this for so many years you’re like two weeks

Later down the line something like that anyway daylight savings kind of love it sun sets later it’s a beautiful time we get into spring now summer what a time to be alive and what a time to be a combat sports fans my friend oh my gosh

I was thinking about this today I think that we have like legit four to five top stories legit like usually you have one maybe two a big one some mini ones you can go in a million different directions and oh by the way uh I just got back

From Saudi Arabia uh I was just on the other end of the world it’s a crazy crazy thing that I’ve just experienced I have a lot of thoughts on that I could do a whole hour just on that uh could do a whole hour on what transpired on

Friday could do a whole hour on what transpired on Thursday not to mention Saturday we’re going to get into everything and more on today’s program I’m so happy to be back in this chair haven’t been here for like 11 days it’s been that long since before I went to

Puerto Rico it’s been a whirlwind couple weeks for your boy uher Puerto Rico then back home for 24 hours did the show from home then went to London to Riad was in Riad did the broadcast on Friday thank you to my friends at Doone for the opportunity had a blast working with

Everyone back home in time for the 299 prelims watched it all a little bit tired here we are and these are the days that we live for these are the shows that we live for it’s never been in my opinion a better time to be a Combat Sports Fan between what’s happening in

Boxing what’s happening in MMA what’s happening in program wrestling everyone’s cooking with Crisco and Gast at the same time and so I feel very blessed to be here as always we are presented by our good friends over at DraftKings more on them later in the program you see the code right over

There I’m sure you all had a great time this weekend if you are users of said app the DraftKings Sportsbook app aka the crown is yours that’s their tagline that’s your um shout out to GC and Rick on Wednesday holding it down in the studio the Street Fighter the banter the

On the nose it was tremendous watching it from afar uh I enjoyed it I enjoyed uh I enjoyed jumping on for a moment my guy Sunny was very excited to to jump on he got a lot of love for that so it was uh it was great to see the uh the Train

Roll on without me now uh what are we doing on today’s program well back into the show we’ll see how the parlay boys did did they get off the schneide are they back back to their winning ways what’s going on and if not what is going

On we’ll also check in with GC to see how he did uh prior to that we’re going to be joined by Joanne wood who had a thrilling victory over Marina marose and afterwards called it quits and if I’m being honest I didn’t know until essentially minutes before she walked

Out that this was it for her I I knew the end was very very near but I didn’t know that she made it public and I’m not sure if she actually did make it public or just made it public to the broadcast team nevertheless a bit emotional for me

If only because she is one of my favorite people that I’ve ever come across not just in MMA but in life I mean this when you when you look up salt of the earth human beings when you look up people who have hearts of gold true Menches and that could you know swing

For men and women Joanne wood AKA formerly known as Joanne Calderwood is top of the list without a question and I’m not just talking about Fighters I’m not talking about fight personalities I’m talking about people and so kind of sad that she’s no longer going to be a

Part of the MMA Community as far as active competition is concern but of course she’s always going to be a part of the community and she’s a big part of Syndicate um so she’s you know she’s not going anywhere she’s married to John Wood the head coach over there so um it

Was just a mix of emotions I was so happy that she came out on top what a win what a finish what a way to say goodbye with that spinning back fist a Trailblazer uh and in particular for European women um entering MMA a Pioneer

And uh again a great person so I look forward to talking to her at 4:15 speaking of European MMA Cedric Dum aka the best had a very eventful Thursday night in Paris uh going up against his uh his rival although they don’t really seem like Rivals at the moment baky they uh they

Engaged in a fascinating fight that went into the third round tied 1-1 and then a splinter reared its ugly head and then the was a controversial call by Mark GD did he get it right did he not get it right how does Cedric feel about it now

It was without a doubt the biggest night in pfl history way bigger than their card in in Saudi Arabia just a few weeks prior a couple weeks prior this was a soldout aqua Arena and it felt big again celebrities in the house the likes of Tony Parker it’s just amazing what’s

Going on in France characters that are not really known outside of France are huge Stars you see the reaction you see the crowd I was talking to py Carol about it he was there in attendance one of the few English media members english- speaking and writing media

Members in attendance and uh he was I mean this guy has seen it all as far as Dublin cards and European cards and he said this was top of the list an incredible atmosphere unfortunately the event ended very unceremoniously but you know maybe that means they could get the

Rematch and I do think by the way it was a great weekend for the pfl and I’ll tell you why later on in the program um a guy by the name of sua Shan Ali is going to join us at three he is the reigning defending UFC men’s

Bantamweight champion uh he had one of his best performances ever when you consider the competition when you consider the stakes and the stage uh he beat Cheeto Vera five rounds to nil and and and maybe it’s you know a 50 to 44 here and a 50 to 4 it doesn’t really

Matter it was five rounds to nil and I say nil by the way because I’m you know part British these days um it was an incredible master class it was a beautiful thing to see and once again he’s kind enough to join join us so I

Can’t wait to talk about him and to him later on in the show Dustin por had a thrilling win over benois stin they thought he was done y’all must have forgot he knocks him out he’s still in the mix he’s very much in the mix it’s

Like gatei in July is now a distant distant memory incredible what Dustin PO is still doing at his age against the competition that he fights coming off a knockout loss a brutal knockout loss a loss that we thought might change the trajectory of his career at this point

Uh he goes in there as an underdog against BSD and maybe the first round wasn’t perfect but the second round sure was incredible stuff by the diamond one of the highlights of the weekend speaking of which Michael Venom page another highlight he made his debut on Saturday and was Victorious against

Kevin Holland he’ll join us at two he’s at two Dustin’s at 230 first hour though we need to talk about everything that has happened and what we have witnessed and what we have exper experienced over the last few days like I said it’s never been a better time to be a Combat Sports

Fan I I I believe that in my heart and when I say that I say if you are a fan that special kind of fan that likes all different kind of Combat Sports like me it’s just like dizzying how much is going on and so brief recap like GC and

Rick were sitting here on Wednesday they said goodbye and that’s when the fun really started Thursday morning we wake up and we get the news at 9:00 a.m. that Jake Paul is returning to action on July 20th against Mike Tyson Jake Paul Mike Tyson real fight happening on July 20th

That’s item number one item number two is they’re fighting at AT&T stadium in Arlington Texas in front of it hasn’t been decided they’re they’re they’re working on it right now I’m told in terms of what the configuration will be but it’s going to be somewhere in the 65 to 880,000

Range as far as Spectators absurd there’s been a couple fights there Pacquiao Canelo Etc this is absurd item number three which I feel like has been completely lost and and I understand why there’s a 30y year age Gap it’s Tyson it’s Jake Paul it’s AT&T Stadium all

That I’m as intrigued by item number three which is it’s live on Netflix no pay-per-view if you’re a Netflix subscriber and they have 260 million approximately subscribers around the world available in every country if you’re already a subscriber which most people that I meet including myself and the team here our subscribers

You get it for free meaning you don’t have to pay extra it’s not like you have to pay $50 on top of whatever it costs $13 $1 I don’t know what it is to be a subscriber the amount of people that are going to watch this fight is going to be

Arguably the most amount of people to ever watch a live Combat Sports event I don’t think that’s a stretch because of the subscribers because of it being available to everyone via the same platform fascinating we know about WWE getting in bed with Netflix starting January of 2025 here they come Jake Paul

MVP nikisa up first they’ve dabbled in live sports they had a golf event my understanding is this was signed November 1st so I saw some people saying like oh you know they’re following in WWE’s footsteps actually my understanding was you know and I don’t know when’s you know when WWE deal was

Signed but for the record what I was told was it was signed November 1st so that’s before Andre August and before Ryan Borland perhaps that gives some sort of understanding and and and explanation as to why those fights were made if this was signed on November 1

For July 20th so that’s you know the first thing that happened and we’ll get into that I can assure you Thursday night pfl Paris like I said 1-1 Doom B Baki get into to the third round all of a sudden dumbe is talking to Mark goddd the

Referee then he’s talking to Baki baki’s talking to him then he’s talking to Mark Godard the fight is called off and in the moment you’re like what the hell just happened then after the interviews and the post fight stuff and all that we come to find out that he has a

Uh a splinter in his toe he says he told GD there’s a splinter he says he told baky there was a splinter baky tells him so remove it he tells Godard something Godard says the fight is off crazy ending we thought we saw it all apparently there’s more to be seen and

So the fight is off and it’s a loss for Dum can’t call timeout did he in fact call a timeout I didn’t see it but maybe he said it he says he didn’t say it crazy stuff massive crowd biggest crowd ever for a mixed martial arts event in France and

Now we suspect they’re going to run it back I mean if this was a ham weekend and that’s the biggest story we could do an hour on that story alone earlier in that evening we get the face off irresistible Force immovable object Francis andu versus AJ the amount

Of people that told me that I was wrong about the irresistible Force line it’s like it just show there’s so many new fans and there’s nothing wrong with being a new fan but you can’t correct someone if you don’t know what the hell you’re talking about irresistible Force immovable object is guerilla Monsoon

WrestleMania 3 March of 198 7 Pontiac silver doome that’s what he said when Hogan and Andre walked towards each other in the ring you think I would get that wrong I would never get that wrong are you insane I would never get that wrong no no it’s Unstoppable Force the

is that I don’t even know who you’re quoting are you just making things up no it’s irresistible Force immovable object Gorilla Monsoon the lake great I would never get that wrong anyway they end up fighting on Friday what an experience that was Kingdom arena in rad obviously I was there I

Could do an hour on that experience alone long event memorable event X Jang Joseph Parker fascinating stuff thought G hadam Parker wins co- Main Event Great Performances throughout Main Event France Sanu Anthony Joshua we had never seen Fran enanu rocked we had never seen enanu hit with clean shots

Like that we had never seen him knocked down before not only did we see that we saw it not once but twice and then the third shot was was the The Finisher knocked out cold scary knockout shades of Francis steepe 2 the knee buckles falls back never seen France like this

Out cold oxygen second round Anthony Joshua is back holy smokes holy smokes now in line for Tyson versus usyk but of course you have the stupid rematch Clauses so who knows when we’re going to see that fight because Tyson keeps saying told me multiple times last week

In person regardless of who wins there’s a rematch clause so if they’re going to fight again May and then October we’re not seeing AJ versus the winner of this fight until 2025 which is absurd cuz he’s on a rooll does he fight someone else who knows we’ll wait to see but

There’s so much there right from our perspective it’s what does Francis do now what does he do now I think the pfl was the big winner on Friday he goes back to MMA he fights henen fetta and resumes that gets his mojo back if he wins that fight in impressive fashion

Perhaps he thinks about boxing again but for now I think we have to put a pin in the boxing dreams cuz that was just so devastating oh by the way it was so devastating he’s going to need some time they want him to come back in the summer

Is that enough time that’s in four months July August four five months is that enough time after a knockout like that says he didn’t feel it it was like it was shot out of a cannon this was the best version of AJ we’ve ever seen and

Yeah you could say he was fighting a quote unquote debutant or a novice still he did that to Francis zanu who has never been knocked down or rocked or knocked out with 4 o gloves he did that in a box boxing match it was insane to

See it was insane I thought it was hallucinating it was 4:00 a.m. local time it was wild and so what does this mean for the the story of AJ and what does it mean for the story of Francis we’ll get into that now we get on a

Plane we make the journey from Riad to London to New York City we get there in time for the prelims to start I’m following along some of it in the air get home as jelton Almeida and Curtis blades are making the walk and and what a fight

That was and what a card it was top of the bill sha Ali beats Cheto Vera like I said five rounds To None co-main event Dustin porier knocks out BST asserts himself as the man once again at 155 and still a player BST will be back no

Problem shades of maybe GSP and Matt Hughes maybe a little too soon he’ll be back I have no doubt about that Michael Venom pagee with the incredible debut against Kevin Holland and let this be a lesson to anyone out there who is fighting getting a free agent signing if

You’re going to disparage and try to quote unquote insult your opponent and say that he’s lesser than you and that he’s a Bellator fighter or a pfl fighter or a ksw fighter or a cage Warriors fighter and that you are the Elite because you’ve been in the UFC for

Several years if you lose to that guy that guy especially in you know somewhat one-sided fashion it doesn’t reflect very good on you Paul Heyman told me a long time ago build up your opponent so that when you when you beat him it makes you seem like the man if you call your

Opponent a bum leading up to it and not on your level and then you lose in very one-sided fashion what does that make you it’s not very smart it’s not very smart in any event um very impressive win for Michael V and page and I’m curious to see where he goes from here

Uh pan with an impressive win as well um against Sona dong great stuff from him I I really thought he looked great and especially when you consider like you know how much was at stake and he hadn’t fought in a year and he’s trying to get

Back on track what about Jack Del Elena wasn’t looking good Great Clip of GC and Mike Heck watching on the watch party everyone was like okay this is probably going to be done and then all of a sudden he reverses things and uh starts Landing knees and elbows and ground and

Pound and I thought the fight went a little bit too long Gilbert took too much damage and JDM continues his undefeated ways and in the UFC that is and uh is now calling out shafat rahmanov the balls on this guy Curtis blades beats jelton Almeida Macy Barber beats uh

Caitlyn s minara I’m still not quite 100% sure on that one I know it’s chukan but she’s got the uh the new last name because she’s married now mat gamrot with a very impressive win over hardfought win over RDA Kyler Phillips looked great Felipe Lind look great Michelle Pera looks fantastic against m

O shook what about roess despine with The 18c Knockout in his debut Joanne wood like I said so there’s just oh my God sugar with the win and where he goes from here and he calls out alen and he says morab and we we see the thing with

Morab in the background BSD m i mean that’s that’s everything that happen in a 10-minute stretch and usually I like to sit here once again and wax poetic but there’s just so much there’s so we could do three hours just talking about all this stuff my head is still spinning

And so let me bring in the guys here and ask them the question that I think I asked a couple of weeks ago but now it’s an even tougher question to answer and that question is gentlemen hello what was the biggest story of the weekend what was the biggest what what

Is what is what is front page Story one A1 the biggest story of the weekend because I’m assuming you both agree I’ve not asked you there’s legit three to four maybe five contenders legit like legit like it like there’s a very good chance that both of you say 299 related

Things and Francis doesn’t even get talked about in the first 30 minutes of the show that’s absurd you know we did a whole three-hour show just on Francis almost almost beating Tyson Fury and so Rick I’ll start with you biggest story of the weekend what is it cuz honestly

Right now sitting here I don’t even know what my answer is perhaps you’re going to sway me I don’t even know what my answer is Netflix broadcasting live combat wow Off the Grid Rick off the that’s the one left feel see okay so so let’s talk about that just very briefly are you

Surprised that that was almost completely overshadowed no because the the absurdity the magnitude of the idea of comb in Jake Paul and Mike Tyson like should have that impact and that’s the impact that they wanted for it and to me it had the effect that they desired so

I’m not surprised that that kind of overshadows it but parceled in with that Netflix part of your subscription broadcasting live fights is going to have reverberations that I think will be felt for a long time so for me the last time we did this you asked me and I

Picked something that I thought had big reverberations for the sport and for the business throughout I again am thinking business Netflix broadcasting live Combat Sports is massive in a word or two Paul Tyson in or out in completely in totally wow this is the second shocker of the day why tell

Me I mean you know I don’t think it’s any secret how I felt about Jake Paul versus Andre August and Jake Paul versus Ryan Borland yes Jake Paul is one of the few Combat Sports influencers or Combat Sports personality or Combat Sports athletes whatever title you want to

Assign to him who can create big fights no disrespect to anybody else but the level of of star power the ability to carry an event that he has is different than many others there’s very few in his League when it comes to that and so wasting those opportunities against

People who I don’t want to see him fight feels like a misstep for me and I would rather see him hosting an event where he is fighting in Cowboy Stadium at TNT Stadium sorry um on Netflix against Mike Tyson a name that we all know um then

The alternative path for him so yes I’m all in and I think everybody else in the world is going to be watching whether you are a fan of the booking whether you’re not whether you want to um take the angle of being concerned about Mike Tyson’s age which is a completely

Appropriate and valid kind of point to be to be pushing um but this is what I would rather see from somebody who can put on events like this two quick follow-ups and then we go to GC number one um they’re still working on a few important details based on the

Conversations that I’ve had is it pro or is it exhibition they want Pro obviously that’s up to the Texas commission we wait and see um weight I’m told heavyweight rounds working on that as well I saw an interview with dererk chisora where he said they’ll be headgear I was told there’s absolutely

No headgear involved this is going to look like your typical boing match it’s just exhibition like Mike’s last fight was against Roy Jones in November 2020 or is it just you know a normal Pro yep heavyweight fight that has no strings attached in that regard so that’s one

Thing I did think it was super interesting that and this is the second point before we go to ugc the the it seems like the same people who were complaining that or criticizing or or or taking shots whatever you want to say that Jake Paul sucks that he’s not

Impressive that he fights cab drivers and he can’t beat anyone and that he’s crazy for thinking that he can do this and that he’s living a fantasy BL it seems like the same people who won’t stop talking about how bad Jake Paul is as a boxer are now all of a sudden

Extremely worried that he’s going to kill Mike Tyson and that he’s killing you know a legend and that this is unsafe and that this is cruel and that this is this that and the other how could it be both you can’t in one breath

Say this guy sucks and is a bum and has no business stepping in the ring against anyone and then in the second breath say he is going to kill a 57y old man you either think that this is a guy who is good or you think that this is a guy who

Is a bum the bum can’t be the guy that you’re afraid of killing you know a guy like Mike Tyson who I know is 57 and you can feel very strongly about a 27-year-old fighting a 57-year-old on paper yes that is jarring that jumps out

Of you right away but two days ago you were saying he was a bum now you’re worried he’s going to kill Mike Tyson Mike Tyson can can hold his own against a bum or a novice in my opinion I don’t know what’s going to happen and I still

I’m trying to make sense of it all in the rounds and pro exhibition all that stuff will help sway me one way or the other but I did find that that justos of of thoughts and feelings to be very interesting for you GC okay yes ju just

One thing on that it comes from a place of what they want to see is somebody kill Jake Paul right they’ve elim minated two Alternatives right they’ve eliminated is he going to face somebody commensurate with his level of boxing experience which would be the Ryan Borland Andre August level person or is

He gonna fight somebody like Mike Tyson or Anderson Silva or somebody in that vein where maybe they’re um past the the shelf life um but a bigger name and somebody who’s capable in the ring what they really want to see is Jake Paul face Rising top prospect who’s two away

From a title opportunity in boxing just kill him that’s that’s actually what they want to see and ask for is for the Jake Paul experiment to be over but in reality that’s not the that’s not the fights that Jake Paul should be fighting in that that is that is useless like

Again to the point Jake Paul is in this industry to be making big events happen Jake J I don’t care about Jake Paul as a boxer that’s not that’s not interesting to me because then he’s like everybody else the moment he becomes a boxer the the more and more he becomes a boxer

He’s boring he becomes uninteresting the interesting part of Jake Paul is putting putting on fights like this that come out of fantasy world where all of a sudden Mike Tyson and Jake Paul are fighting on Netflix that is the interest of Jake Paul that is what Jake Paul

Should always be chasing and so I don’t think that’s coming from a place where they actually are concerned about like what Jake Paul should actually be doing and more just want to see him lose which at the same time I think helps him to be honest because those same people who

Want that are also going to be watching him fight Mike Tyson not only will they be watching they’ll be doing YouTube videos and breaking it down all leading up all post etc etc okay GC you’re up biggest story yeah I can’t believe I’m saying this I mean it’s almost

Impossible not to go with Dustin po knocking out Beno stad why almost forgot not off the grid I’m agreeing with Rick not just the Netflix part though the entirety of it Jake Paul is fighting Mike Tyson he is in a higher age than we uh normally see people boxing at gon to

Be 58 on on fight day is just an insane storyline in of itself they’re going to be fighting in Cowboy stadium uh whatever seating amount that they end up going with I feel like they’re going to sell that out we saw the the sellout crowd in Dallas last time against Nate

Diaz Mike Tyson’s drawing power is is larger than Nate Diaz’s especially if this is a professional bout uh Cowboy stadium in of itself is crazy and then number three the Netflix it’s just all three of them and like it took me a while to digest to really be like wow

This is actually going to happen like all three of these things are insane and I think it’s going to reach just a ridiculous amount of people I I was getting hit up by people that don’t watch Combat Sports what are your thoughts on this how is this happening

Uh I was listening to podcasts that never talk about Combat Sports Jake Paul’s gonna uh fight Mike Tyson uh you turn on ESPN uh First Take Stephen A Smith is talking about Jake Paul fighting Mike Tyson like when it finally comes to fight day the event actually

Happening whether you love it hate it whatever I strongly believe you are going to be watching I think this is going to draw a ridiculous amount of eyes I think it’s just going to be a Monumental event so it feels like it happened two years ago because it happened on Thursday morning before

Dumay before inano before 299 uh but I still think that is the biggest storyline coming out of the weekend wow both of you have surprised me greatly I wasn’t really sure what you were going to say and so for the sake of this I’m I’m not going to just add to that again

You go you go a different well I don’t I don’t have really an answer because I think you could make a very strong case for for three things I mean Al’s win was gigantic he’s one of the biggest stars in the sport Blown Away by the $14

Million gate in Miami a place that they told us for years they couldn’t sell tickets um it just it just it continues to blow me away like again I I always use this as an example I I went out for dinner with my my nephews yesterday you know my nephew is

In 10th Grade and he told me that UFC is now his or MMA is now his his second favorite sport rivaling NFL a year ago he doesn’t even know anything about it and he’s like all his friends are watching and they love Shawn and they they know who MVP is now and they’re

Watching Dustin and it’s just the growth of the sport I mean it’s amazing to me that they’re like look at the celebs in attendance and it’s Mr Beast and Logan Paul and KSI and Aiden Ross Like These are the celebs it used to be George Clooney and Brad Pit and

Shaquille O’Neal and these are the people and that’s no on them it’s just everything is younger everything is like the UFC is on fire and sea is the perfect face for all of that he he connects with you know the the nek boys he connects with the YouTube generation

The Snapchat generation he’s just perfect and of course everyone’s waiting for the other shoe to drop everyone’s waiting for him to stumble and it’s like okay well yeah all right let’s see him fight a guy like P Yan it’s a big difference between you know um Pedro

Muno or Chris moutinho and Pon he beats Pon and it was close and maybe you want to make a case that he didn’t win the fight but it was pretty damn close then he comes back and beats alamain Sterling That was supposed to be the tough one

That was supposed to be the tough one um then he comes back and beats cheeto a guy who beat him right and he doesn’t just beat him by the skin of his teeth five rounds To None oh big deal he didn’t finish him I know he was upset

About that big deal five rounds To None hit him with everything in the kit in syn so what a story what a story DP is what a story MVP is I think I have to go with Francis if only because it touches so many different touch points Francis Tyson Fury back in

October was one of the greatest spectacles we have ever seen and for a lot of people one of the most shocking results we’ve ever seen even though he didn’t win just what he did to Tyson Fury and of course now the revisionist history is he didn’t you know fight the

Best Tyson Fury Tyson Fury Tyson Fury he didn’t take it seriously blah blah blah blah blah anyone going into that fight would have said a 50% Tyson Fury smokes Francis so don’t take that away from him don’t let the Joshua result take anything away from Francis of course

People will do that that’s fine comes back and you say wow if he can beat Anthony Joshua a rejuvenated resurging Anthony Joshua he’s now fighting for Undisputed gold in what would be his third Pro fight incredible and he seemed so confident and so at ease so relaxed all week and and Joshua

Was tense and and didn’t talk to us before the fight only fighter who didn’t let us go into the locker room all that stuff so you’re like oh my gosh is he going to crumble is he not all the way back is he not all the way there is he

Not who he once was and he comes out and does that he puts the exclamation point he’s like you don’t don’t even think about going toe-to-toe with an Olympic gold medalist with a former two-time unified champ knock down in the first two knockdowns knockout in the second

And it was never even close it was never even close and and just to see Francis in that state was shocking and so then there’s the trickle down effect right are we finally going to get AJ versus Fury are we going to get AJ usk 3 for

This audience I know you care a little bit more about MMA where does Francis go from here I think he has to go back to pfl and go down that route I think he has to do that but I think that there’s a lot of people you know Friday and Saturday who

Were trying to like dunk on Francis who were trying to insult Francis like again yes this is what should have happened against Tyson it didn’t happen and that’s why he was able to get this opportunity and then it happened against a very good like I said rejuvenated Anthony Joshua the best

Version of Anthony Joshua that we’ve seen in years with the best team around him in the best mental space I was so impressed with AJ I was so impressed with him all week and in the aftermath and and I wrote this on Twitter and I’ll expand on it real quickly he kept it

Real the whole time gimmick promotions comes from AJ AJ was the one that said this would be a gimmick fight and so they used that as as like a you know a rallying cry and and and and he had no intentions of fighting Francis before the fury fight and even

After the fury fight remember he signed to fight Deontay Wilder he signed to fight Deontay Wilder before the OV Valen fight he did the job he beat Valen Wilder didn’t do the job Wilder lost to Joseph Parker and so now he’s presented with another opportunity to close out

Riad season against Francis who at that point was the hottest commodity in Combat Sports and so he takes the fight and and all throughout he didn’t disparage Francis he didn’t try to diminish him take note Kevin Holland he said no I was impressed I didn’t think

He was worthy but I was impressed and so I’m going to take this seriously and I’m going to watch his MMA fights and Ben Davidson said the same I’m going to watch his MMA fights and we’re going to take this extremely seriously because this is the fight that gets us the

Undisputed gold and you could see how seriously he took it just looking at the performance looking at his State his mental state his physical state and then the performance itself but then even when he does it arguably his most thrilling win ever and one of the greatest knockouts you’ll see in

Heavyweight boxing he doesn’t celebrate he almost seems bashful about it like yeah okay I did that now can I move on hardly even calls anyone out seems very concerned about Francis says he wants to help him team up with him help him with his foundation he kept it real the whole

Time he didn’t say it was a shitty fight and then celebrate like he had just won you know the Super Bowl Tommy Fury did that leading up to the Jake Paul fight and then started crying when he beat him no you told us he was a bum you can’t

Act like it was the greatest thing in the world in the aftermath he kept it real the entire time he he he said it was ain’t no thing before and he acted like it was ain’t no thing afterwards and I really respect that about him for

Francis it’s a step back in the sense that he can’t continue this boxing Journey but it’s not a step back in the sense that he probably made around 20 million for that fight let alone the 10 to 20 15 or so for the first fight so we’re talking like what

3540 and now he goes back to MMA probably like all of this was a huge huge win all of this was a gigantic win but as far as his journey of becoming a boxing champion and that next step and allowing this Cinderella Story to live

On it it has to stop here because you can’t take a fight against a chisora or a or Auto Valen a lesser heavyweight and risk losing that because now you’re affecting your MMA Legacy I don’t think his MMA spot his legacy his star power his drawing power has been affected but

If you lose another one like that against lesser competition now we’re talking about affecting your brand and so let me ask you guys that your thoughts on what you saw on on Friday night Francis gets knocked out brutally AJ moves on in this mini tournament I don’t think it hurts Francis in the

Sense that I know a lot of people want to say like oh my God he sucks he he screwed up this or that he like we say he dared to dream he dared to be great he went down the impossible path no one thought he would even get to this point

But I think now it’s imperative he goes back to MMA he goes back to the pfl he dusts off La proa and then we could revisit this in mid 2025 or so we can’t continue the boxing stuff now do you agree Rick I agree from the perspective that

The boxing stuff is diminished and that’s why I I say it definitely hurts him to a certain capacity right because if he looked even competitive in this fight I think he could have kept rolling I think you could have easily done more heavyweight boxing fights you could have

Easily slid right into a Tyson Fury rematch at some point not that I think that’s completely off the table anyway but um the boxing train could have kept rolling now I think it’s very clear like if he has one more and loses it that has

To be it it um I would be okay if he if he left it now uh but what I saw on Saturday was a uh on sorry on Friday was a man who now has no regrets right if if Francis enanu had just gone to pfl and done that left the

UFC he never would have scratched this itch he never would have gotten the thing that he had dreamed about for so long when he was a kid he never would have gotten this opportunity and now he did it I’m sure he’s very extremely disappointed by the result I’m sure

That’s a tough pill to swallow but I don’t think he looks himself in the mirror and goes man I really wish I tried he did try he got two boxing fights already and maybe there’s more to come against two of the best heavyweights of our era including Tyson

Fury who I think is the best heavyweight of our era so he’s a man that I think won the game now again every time we say this every time we talk about that it feels like people will say that you’re making excuses for Francis Nano’s failures no he failed in the ring he

Lost brutally and it was not a successful night for Francis zanu but when you think about where he’s come from when you think about the money he was able to generate the generational wealth he’s now providing for his family and also the idea that this is what he

Dreamed of he made his his literal dreams come true it’s hard to look at it as a failure um even though the result was a failure no doubt it’s not excusing what happened in the ring he had a bad performance and got knocked out for it but everything else everything else was

Making a dream come true as far as going to MMA I actually think it helps him in a certain capacity which is that he now seems vulnerable I think the fight with Hanan Ferrera now becomes more even people will start to look at it and go yeah maybe this seven foot giant with

Huge power can clip him maybe he can do what AJ did maybe he can just put him out um and I think that actually helps I think it’s more compelling as a fight than if Francis had had ganu had just been out here like slaying boxing heavyweights and then comes back and

Nobody’s interested in the potential MMA fight assuming that Hanan Ferrera is his next fight um I actually think it helps a little little bit he seems vulnerable it seems like now if now if there was ever a time to get Francis and ganu for a guy like Hanan Ferrera it seems like

It’s now and I think that helps sell an MMA fight what was your reaction when you saw GC uh stunned I mean no doubt it it’s what you said we’ve never seen him rocked wobbled knocked down knocked out and just to see him get put on his ass

Like that and then knocked down again and then just absolutely folded like the knee the down the oxygen he’s not getting up I mean it was it was stunning to see it was just such an incredible performance by AJ uh and I actually agree with Rick’s point that was the

Point that I was going to make is a I think he needs to go back to MMA now because who who is he going to match up with in boxing at this point I know a lot of people calling for the Deontay Wilder fight like any heavyweight there

Is going to be a large chance of what happened against AJ being recreated and then you are so far out of the boxing game at that point if you go in to another boxing match and you get Iced Out in less than two rounds and it’s

Just a complete walk in the park for the other opponent then you’re completely out of the boxing game I think you go back you go to the pfl you fight Hanan Ferrera coming off this beautiful knockout in like 20 seconds he seems like this scary intimidating monster and

The amount of tweets that I saw that were like Francis Ando is going to go back to the pfl and Hanan Ferrera is gonna end his career and like yada y y I’m with Rick he seems vulnerable right now that image is not going to get out

Of people’s head of the knee folding back over him just being completely put out and the image of Hanan Ferrer just making it look easy against Ryan Bader and there’s going to be Intrigue it’s going to be Francis ganu is not young it’s going to be does he still have it

Can he come back to MMA and win fights or is he completely done if he gets koed by Hanan farer in the first round where does he go from there the questions are going to be endless at that point so I definitely think we go back to pfl it’s

A great fight people will be intrigued by it we want to see him back in MMA and see what he’s still got uh and I can’t wait for it I think I think you take some time off obviously after a knockout like that uh and then you come back and

Just by the way just looking at the odds with how many people I saw you know talking about Hanan Ferrera uh Francis got him minus 650 on draftking sports book against Hanan Ferrera right now yeah they have to wait they have to they have to you know wait for him to be 100%

Because Francis still has incredible value I think to pfl and uh you don’t want him to get starts in the first round because you know look what we just saw with Alex volkanovski Knockouts can change people that was three knockdowns pretty bad once and and I would say

Probably after the second he was done and in retrospect you know I kind of wish that the Third never happened I I you know I had the privilege of being around all week and I got to see Dewey Cooper and Eric nixi and Marquel Martin

I wasn’t there in October and I have no problem saying that as like a member of the MMA Community if you want to say that like I took I took great pride in seeing these guys who we typically see on Saturdays in the UFC meaning extreme

Couture guys Corner guys I was like man look at these freaking guys halfway across the world doing their thing you know dressing like they want to dress saying what they want to say wearing the get up all that stuff was like this is freaking great good for them and they

Couldn’t have been more relaxed more confident more at ease and and I was confident too ultimately you know did I know it was going to happen no but I thought Francis would you know make a good account of himself and I thought that he had a chance to win considering

What we’ve seen from AJ in the past against guys who can punch and considering the fact that the Robert Robert helenus is of the world rocked him and the Andy ruiz’s of the world rocked him etc etc didn’t happen it didn’t happen um but like that’s not you

Know even on the broadcast they were taking like some subtle shots at me afterwards like oh you talk about the elbows and the kicks and all that stuff which i’ had been saying all week long it’s like yeah that’s what makes this so shocking because we’ve seen him

And I know he’s not fighting guys who are doing you know spinning back kicks and stuff he’s fighting Stipe and he’s fighting uh you know Derrick Lewis and whatnot but still he’s fighting heavyweights in MMA with 4 ounce gloves and we’ve never seen him ever get rocked

Never seen him get rocked um let alone knocked down let alone knocked out so it was shocking and uh it it was like it was hard to find the words in the moment but my takeaway was the better man won AJ is a force this might be the best

Version of him we’ve ever seen and I can’t wait to see him fight the winner of Fury usyk and there’s a part of me that hopes it’s Fury so we could finally see that stuff that fight and I hope that if they do make that fight that it happens

Somewhere in England Wembley toam Hotspur stadium that would sell out in 0.00001 seconds here are my thoughts on my my trip to re I would be lying to the audience if I didn’t tell you that I was trepidacious going there I was nervous the fear of the unknown um obviously

It’s not a great time for my people in the Middle East right now obviously you know anti-Semitism is at an all-time high I didn’t know what to expect I didn’t know what I was going into walking into going to experience Etc and I say this without anyone telling me to

Say x y or Z it couldn’t have been a more pleasant experience in that everyone every single person from the cab drivers from the people at the hotel to the people at the venue to the fans to the people that I worked with everyone was so extremely kind and nice welcoming

Warm grateful that we’re there Pleasant polite uh it was really a nice experience and I didn’t know what to expect I uh I’ve been to Egypt before I’ve obviously been to Israel i’ never been to Saudi Arabia I had no idea what to expect and it it was a lovely lovely

Lovely experience everyone no one put me in a uncomfortable position no one told me to say x y or Z no one tried to force anything upon me did the job came home it was great and they couldn’t have been more welcoming and that’s really you

Know what I had heard going into things I talked to so many people I had to experience it for myself and uh I’m I’m very grateful and happy that I went and I would be open to going in the future uh the place is evolving the country is

Evolving and it’s going to be really interesting to see where they are in 10 to 15 years that being said I do think they have to figure out how to get more fans to come to these events and also the time you know the time slot that they’re doing the

Events is is is great for us here in America and also in England the rest of Europe but it’s tough to have an event of that magnitude a fight of that magnitude at 3:30 in the morning and so there are things that they have to work

Out there are things that they have to figure out but um overall you know it was it was unlike it reminded me to a degree of when we went to Abu Dhabi in 2010 for UFC 112 and and Abu Dhabi and Dubai have evolved so much since then 14 years later I

Suspect in 14 or so years Saudi Arabia they can’t you’re you’re not allowed to drink in in Saudi Arabia right now there’s there’s still a lot that has to happen for them to maybe get to where Abu Dhabi or Dubai is and I don’t know

If that’s where they want to be um but I will say like the people were all you know just couldn’t have been more welcoming and uh never did I feel uneasy or unwelcome or anything like that so if you were wondering what my thoughts were and uh trust me there there was there

Was a lot of uh you know I’m a pretty nervous and anxious person there was a lot of that the crew knows that as well but I didn’t feel one eye Oda of that and so I’m curious you know where they go from here with this obviously we know

About May 18th we know about June 1st we know about the UFC event in June as well um what does this all look like in two years and three years what does it look like in 5 to 10 years is it is it still

Going to be as big of a thing um so that’s you know that’s in addition to all of this that’s another story that we’re watching unfold in uh in the world of Combat Sports so I’m curious to see where Francis goes from here we certainly know where Anthony Joshua goes

From here um the big question is does he fight someone else while waiting for Fury NK to do the dance twice no please no I I would agree but now we’re talking about a guy who has benefited greatly from fighting four times in the span of 11

Months as opposed to someone who now you’re probably waiting a year right by the time those two guys fight twice it’s probably next march or so when he can fight again so you’re doing the exact obvious you’re doing the exact opposite excuse me uh maybe you

Fight Francis in PFO no no have a have a fight in the gym close the doors do something else absolutely do not sacrifice the potential for this matchup Fair cannot we cannot lose it I I will say this though yes I I agree with that for Francis even though I want to see

Him go back to MMA I I would be open if he gets by uh fetta the Wilder fight after that I would be open to that in boxing both either or I’m good with it prma first you you built it as the winner of prma versus Bader like you have to you

Have to have the payoff and also for pfl like Amanda Sano Jake Paul Francis enanu Savannah Marshall all these people that they’ve announced none of them have fought one of them has to fight so for them and their credibility someone needs to fight if a better option walked in

The door tomorrow I’d take that over Hanan Ferrera problem but there is none okay that that’s that’s a reality that I can accept but you agree that there isone right now if Deontay Wilder said hey I saw you get flatlined by AJ I’m gonna fight you in MMA sorry Hanan next

Yeah but it just goes to show again like people were saying oh Francis is never going to fight an MMA like we have to wait for these stories to play out you have to people want to be so quick to plant their flag into different ideologies same way with what people were saying

When he left the UFC when he signed the Tyson fight the week of the Tyson fight after the Tyson fight like just wait to see how the stories play out before being so certain about everything yeah felt like uh it felt like being reactionary was at an all-time high this

Weekend with with the Doom Bay everyone talking about oh yeah you guys really thought UFC fumbled the bag with him like look at him now and then in ganu it’s just like oh you know now look at him he’s a failure he’s a loser uh and then uh everything that happened on 299

I mean I had someone tell me they were like there’s no coming back from picking BSD like what a ridiculous pick it’s just like man the the the like hindsight is always 2020 I guess the pitchforks would have been out for MVP if uh if you

Bellator F I wouldn’t wanted to be had he lost the reactionary takes on Twitter would have been just incredible Bellator fighter yeah um you know more often than not it does seem like the guys who come over and we’ll see how Kayla Harrison does on April 13th it does seem like

They do succeed you know Chandler succeeded it’s almost like they’re very good yeah it’s almost like that it’s almost like they’re quite good Fighters it’s almost like patchy mix probably could come over and be a really good band you know but did uh did Mark Goddard get it right

Rick that’s a that’s a that’s a very loaded question because by the letter of the law of course he got it right right like the the within the rules within the confines of what the rules are trying to express he got it right but I would ask

And this point was raised by uh super producer Casey and and made me think in the case of like let’s say um tape on the glove right there’s not a timeout right it’s not a full timeout it’s not hey go to your return to your uh neutral

Corner and we’re going to sort this out but they’ll take 30 seconds they’ll cut the tape off and they’ll continue the fight same thing for dropped mouthpiece or whatever the case may be right that the referee takes a brief time out and is able to rectify the situation I don’t

See why that couldn’t have been applied in this case right like I think the big the biggest thing for me is the fact that it was one the speed with it which Mark GD ran in the second time to call the fight I don’t think that was necessary it could have been slower

Right there could have been a what’s going on let me assess the situation and and figure out what’s happening in that moment he could have then said oh Doom’s got something a foreign object in his foot we’re going to take it out and we’re going to resume the fight second

To that is the fact that dumbe and baky were both standing there staring at each other nobody was in Mortal Peril right nobody was in danger of being severely hurt and the idea of I’m stopping this fight because I believe believe you’re injured could have been assessed better

Right could have heard from Doom Bay could have decided okay now you actually are hurt after having this conversation of figuring out what’s going on and then TKO right if at at the end of this investigation at the end of this momentary conversation you decide actually he is heard and we’re going to

Stop the fight here that’s fine but there didn’t seem to be any concern for figuring out what the right thing to do in the situation was and more sticking to what the letter of the law is and that to me feels like an error or that

The the the law needs to be amended in a certain capacity it’s not the outcome anybody wanted I don’t I’m not I’m not raising a pitchfork I’m not you know up in arms about what Mark g mark G did but I do feel it was a suboptimal solution

It did not feel like the best solution in that scenario I’m looking forward to talking to him obviously we’ll talk to him at uh 3:45 the only thing that I feel like we can nitpick in my opinion like you yes you can call timeout and uh

You can’t stop and you have to always defend yourself and and and you have to engage and all that stuff I just sort of wish and I’d love to know if this happened when we speak to him was there a warning a Stern warning hey man if you

Don’t start fighting I’m going to call this off if you don’t stop talking to me or him about this I’m going to call this off and I just feel like it all happens so quickly like yes you know what I mean pull push him aside and be like yo man I

Don’t give a about your toe fight and if you don’t fight I’m gonna do this it just seemed like oh wait you’re talking it’s over it’s over nope you’re complaining it’s done that was my interpretation um and I and I’d love to hear from him and you know we’ll see

What Mark Ard has to say about it as well but like it just felt a smidge Too Fast Too Fast a smidge for sure like it wasn’t like Doom was like yo time out guys I’m tired man like let me get a break like he’s like there is something

In my foot I want to know like I really want to know how it got there like how do you get a splinter in the middle of in the middle of this octagon it could have happened to anyone it’s not like he like was calling a time out because he

Had a calf cramp or because like his leg was broken or something like that he was actually injured like this was a foreign object in his foot and I’m with you like I wish Godard had been like can you fight or can you not fight you need to

Tell me right now yes or no and that should have been the deciding factor and and from what I’ve gotten from the postf fight it felt like baky was like oh you’ve got a splinter in your foot like all just take it out yes like it’s just

Almost just like yo get him a stool take it out and continue the fight like it feels like I mean we we take timeouts all the time if there’s multiple cage grabs if there’s a a groin shot if someone loses their mouthpiece I mean p

Yan the next night had a tape issue and someone had to come in and fix it like it felt like we could have taken a beat before Godard like I mean he just like rushed him and just like screaming in his face like f like it felt like Cedric

Was much calmer than Goddard was in the situation the argument against this right is that fighter should not be able to call their own timeouts right fighter should not be able to say hey something’s going on stop the fight because what if the referee stops the

Fight and there was nothing going on and the mo and the opponent had momentum in reality though we have to use the context of what’s happening in the middle of the fight baky is standing there pointing at Cedric they are both looking and they’re looking at each

Other and they’re looking at Goddard and nobody is in danger baky is not in a position that he it would be detrimental to remove him from they are both looking for a solution here they have come to the referee for a solution and the solution was I’m going to quickly jump

In and end the fight which I do not feel was the optimal solution but also the second time baky was the one that was like what should we do man like it wasn’t like Cedric tried to restop it and it’s not like baky was trying to engage like they were both just staring

At each other and then baky looked at gard and was like shitty like take it out what should we do and then it was over from there it feels like 5 Seconds of conversation could have see sure it was 1-1 and like that third round Doom was having some good moments

Like early on in that third round like it’s just like it’s just such a bummer to see and like who knows if we’re going to get a rematch if we’re ever going to find out who I think they’ll rematch them at first in the first round you’re like oh man Doom

Is the Golden Goose and this was a terrible idea because he’s going to get you know yeah don’t don’t rebook this after round rebook this after that first round I was just like what was pfl thinking with this but then he had a great bounce back second one1 on all

Three judges scorecards made more interested in the Doom Bay story because we got to see more you know Tools in his in his toolbox um got taken down a lot but was getting right back up like it was not this n we saw it it was great

Cedric had a great second round onto a striker and we continue the train moving forward absolutely do not make the same mistake twice this was a mistake booking from the beginning do not make the same mistake twice that would be said it’s like the perfect scenario because per he

Didn’t actually lose and it was getting a little squeaky bum time there I mean I would I would argue though he was the one with the momentum right he had dropped round one he was the one who was on on the the up the swing the upswing

At that point but I don’t want to find out I don’t want to see baky again I don’t want to see baky having now seen Cedric again next Striker perfect got it he’s going to get this overturned to a new no contest he beat Jason Jackson

Hell no what are you talking about I I will also say what do you do with him so there’s no levels between that’s it Prospect baky and Jason Jackson there’s nobody in between there no that’s it but I will say d handled it pretty well like

He was he was laughing stff he didn’t throw a fit or anything like he was cool with it and then his the way that he took the Twitter afterward and like I think the first tweet was like uh this is a thorny subject he made all sorts of

Jokes about it the entire time like I think the guy probably got like a combined a million likes on Twitter after the fight can we talk about the presence of mind to be like do not remove that splinter from my foot get the camera over here and I’m going to

Show you the Splinter can we show the photo we have like a super zoomed in photo the it was hard to see butos tell the story the visual is Is Not Great like look at that thing golly but people are like now doing this comparison like it’s just like this

Speck on his toe and then they’re showing like the Jon Jones like toe hanging off like yeah but that’s the Cedric was not trying to stop the fight confused he was not trying to quit he was just like yo bro can I just take this out real quick there’s a something

Was in this octagon and it is now in my foot can take this out real quick like thank you like it wasn’t like he was like yo my toe’s broken can I stop the fight there’s there’s two reasons you’d want to jump in there right one if he’s

Actually hurt if he’s actually hurt youd want to stop the fight because you don’t want him to get further hurt two if he’s being timid right timidity we just saw this in in one Championship with red Arn Buller like if he’s not trying to fight yeah both of them were standing there

Looking for a solution to a problem neither one was concerned about not fighting and neither one was hurt I think it’s a very clear case of stop pause here the tape right the tape when when the tape gets cut because the tape is hanging loose nobody’s in danger of

Getting hurt they’re trying to prevent it from causing some kind of issue further down the line the tape gets on somebody gets in somebody’s eyes whatever the case may be or they’re able to pull on it and pull the glove this is the exact thing mouthpiece y y well

Mouthpiece is a little more import critical for the protection I think the glove is a better example but either way sort it out it takes 10 seconds if that we’re going to pull this out and we’re going to keep fighting and we’re going to get a resolution to this fight it

Felt like not the right outcome but at the same time by the rules I don’t think Mark G did anything wrong either I spoke to a couple people who are in the know and and their feeling was they wish that there was a Stern warning and and other than that there’s

Not much more that could be done it’s just a reminder once again the sport is still so young just when you think that you’ve seen it all I I want to ask him this question did he he walked to the ring or cage without shoes on or did he have

Shoes on because I’d love to know how this happened number one I would have to assume this happened in the middle of the fight no I don’t know but I I I get so squeamish with splinters to be honest so every time I look at that picture and even us talking about this

Makes me so uncomfortable um his picture makes you uncomfortable oh my God I like I don’t even want to look stop it stop it it almost looks like he just has a freck no it kills have you ever had a bad Splinter I have I have like can’t believe this

Is but then like something like this like like Joanne wood just like no that’s fine I I I can stare at that uh let’s see like just um um gigantic knee landed on cheo’s chin nothing no that’s good that’s Ben want s the knees like all the blood in his nose just exp

Floating like atomic bomb nothing but this this this is what makes you uncomfortable spe no no this is awful this I feel like the I feel like the shooting pain up the toe that’s the thing you canident ify with that feeling but you’re not going to

Get exped by a punch that’s fair that’s fair that’s fair um I I just I just wish that he would have waited a beat but now it makes things it makes things all that much more interesting it’s a uh no no rebooking move on do not do it yeah I

Could see that I think they’re going to move on from it you think so I actually think they’re going to rebook it please God please do I think they move on from I think they take a minute just like yeah we’ll just move on good one

You have a winwin win now now it’s like Cedric didn’t uh didn’t lose he had a decent performance you can book him against someone else baky he’s the guy that beat Cedric undefeated I mean yeah of course is there’s an asri next to it it is wild

Isn’t it wild though that by the way I think there’s a chance that becomes a no contest didn’t they put out like a press release bfl like send an email they were just like and baky defeated Cedric Doom by T didn’t like mention the Splinter or anything he’s just straightforward but

But isn’t it crazy that pfl Europe and and maybe even like pfl Paris if we want to make that into its own promotion it’s almost like a completely different thing than the rest of the pfl a thousand you look at that like wide shot of the event

It’s like oh this is like a UFC pay-per-view anywhere in the world and then you go to another event and it’s like there’s 300 people there at some venue in Atlanta like how could the two be so different and if so can you just do every event over there because it

Seems like that market is on freaking fire it’s a could but then you’d become a regional French promotion no I know but listen it doesn’t seem like bad make fting he you’re right it’s good business right now 20,000 people Tony Parker doing speeches before the Cedric

Fight and then like yeah when they were in Saudi Arabia they like zoomed out and it was just like we should probably not zoom out again there’s like 1500 people here yeah yeah if they put Cedric Doom Bay on it they’re all coming book it all

Right um we put a pin in this discussion again we could we could talk about everything that happened this weekend for 3 hours but the the magic of this program is that you don’t just get to hear us talk about it you you get to hear from the people who actually made

The news talk about things and at the top of the list as far as the most interesting and best stories of the weekend was the UFC debut of one Michael Venom page we have been talking to MVP we have been watching MVP for well over

A decade and he has been one of the faces of the sport and for the longest time was one of the faces of not only European MMA but Bellator MMA he finally crosses over he finally gets on the UFC stage and he gets a big spot on one of

The best cards of the year so far against a guy who was not all that complimentary of his resume and skills but I think his tone would be a lot different on this Monday he gets the win in super impressive fashion everything from the walkout to his demeanor in the

Cage to his to his actual technique to the results to the win everything was impressive what a debut for Michael ven page delighted for him and he is kind enough to join us there he is the man himself how are you sir congratulations thank you thank you so

Much I’m still yeah still buzzing man still Buzz here with the family still out in Miami just and we’re always just having a great time so yeah buzzing well appreciate the time as always and we won’t keep you too long but uh so happy for you because we’ve been watching you

And talking to you for so long it was actually kind of surreal because there’s only so many guys left that you say like oh what would those guys look like in the UFC so to see you make that walk was almost like a video game where you’re

Like what would it look like if MVP fought in the UFC it was it was amazing to see but could I ask like from when you got there I I would love to go like almost chronologically what was it like being the new kid being the rookie so to

Speak new faces new behind the scenes people Tuesday Wednesday Thursday did you feel comfortable or did it take you some time you know all honestly I felt comfortable immediately and I’ve been saying this and I have to say I just want to keep biging up the staff there

Because it was definitely due to how they were with me I can kind of see there’s a family even speaking to certain people they’ve been there 17 years they’ve been there 10 years they’ve been there so these guys have been together for a very long time and I was

Immediately uh um led to feel included in that so it it it really didn’t feel like um outside of getting to know who did what it didn’t really feel like I was The Outsider I felt like I’ve been there for a long time and a lot of the

People that I was speaking to were all like um oh man we’ve been you know I’ve been watching you for years and it’s it’s excited to have you here now so they they felt certain of familiarity themselves so yeah it was I have to say I felt amazing from Monday right the way

Through uh it was unbelievable experience for me I know Miami isn’t foreign you right you have family there you’ve been there a bunch of times but did you feel Tuesday Wednesday like did you feel nervousness did you feel anxiety more so than usual you know I’d love to be be able to

Just be like yeah it’s you know it was a bit more overwhelming and so on and so forth but I can’t say anything like that I think I was probably more relaxed uh in this lead up to a fight simply because massive shout out to the pi guys

That helped me with the food that helped me with my rehydration that helped me with my my weight cut that helped me with um like any I had a few niggles that I needed sorting out so like the massages and I had cing and shock wve

And I had so much stuff done I normally I’m having to go and Chase up myself so between my coaches myself and uh like my teammates they’re running around town trying to organize you know a massuse and trying to organ this and trying to organize that and we had everything just

In our hotel I didn’t have to think to do anything and that seriously that made such a difference and truly made me feel like I’m an actually I’m actually an elite athlete now so it was a great experience and and just to be clear and I’m not trying to get you to disparage

Bellator or anything like that would it be fair to say like that’s not made available to you when you’re fighting in Bellator yeah not at all not at all which is why we kind of have to figure things out ourselves obviously they’ve got their own structure and way to do it

But they don’t have like a pi service um in the same way that the UFC does and to be fair I obviously I knew about the pi but I just didn’t know what came with it especially during a fight week so I understood outside of fight week I can

Go and use the facilities but there’s not anything available for me in the UK uh not yet anyway I’m sure you know in time they’re going to they’re going to develop that that area but get into the fight week I I just thought it was going

To be the typical fight week and it really wasn’t the stuff it really wasn’t they it it literally had blown my mind even I was with my teammate Nobert neni there he’s obviously part of Bellator and he’s just like what the hell you do this you do that he was he himself is

Blown away as well so yeah it’s definitely not the same and again I’m not taking anything away from Bator they they’ve still got you know they had they they they’re playing catch up for for for a long time so they had other things maybe to prioritize but it’s good to

Have this service in the background 100% I loved one of the first times if not the first time that you spoke at the press conference on Thursday just you reacted to the crowd to the scene uh it it was cool to see how appreciative you were of

It and just you kind of reacting to one of those scenes for the first time as a UFC fighter would it be fair to say you’ve never experienced anything like that at a press conference before no way like uh the press conferences that I’ve always been

Involved as much as it can be a public way and it’s very small it’s usually in a smaller room and it’s mainly uh media Outlets like such as yourself and you know other other media Outlets that will be there to mainly ask questions and

Kind of get it on their feed so it’s not it’s not really an event this one was an event and I was sat on stage just looking around at even down to the patch these people I couldn’t hear anything anything people were saying because it

Was so loud in there and you you would think that this this is the kind of energy that was you people would bring on a fight day not at a press conference day two days before the fight it was unbel even like as we were driving in

The line around the block of people waiting to come in that even that in itself was like what is going on here and I’ve it’s weird because I’ve seen it but experiencing it is very different what was your take on Kevin’s demeanor on that Thursday like the comment about

Bellator pay-per-views and all that stuff I felt like he was trying to diminish you and I think that that is a big mistake when you’re trying to build a fight why because then when you get dominated two days later what does it say about you when you’ve been telling

Us that your opponent is trash right so what did you make of what he was saying leading up to it to be fair I I’m a I’m I’m a very observant person and so I don’t pay too much attention to what people are saying I more notice his his Persona his

Behavioral patterns and a lot of what he said which probably led to him saying and making these comments was he’s nervous like he wasn’t very confident in himself even down to they say compliment is a you know sorry uh when somebody is uh like um mimicking you it’s a it’s a

Big form of flattery you know um and literally when I got on stage you know I looked around I was in you know taking the energy of the room in jumped on the scales I looked over some guy was waving i’ grabbed my hat I threw it over to him

Now obviously when I’ve done my bit I’ve w i I turned I walked off I’ve turned back around and I’m seeing Kevin take off his shoes and throw it to the same person again that that copying of my behavior which is a random one anyway like why would he want your shoes right

But that coping of my behavior said to me he’s nervous again when I I’m I’m in there just being myself when I’m you know I raise the snake up he’s grabbing my hand or trying to copy me that’s you now I’m now taking you out of your uh

What you would normally do and you’re more focused on what I’m doing that is nerves to me and I think literally and I always say anytime people see me clowning around in the cage it’s because I feel comfortable after the first shot I looked into his eyes

And I said this fight is mine there’s no way you’re beating there’s nothing you can do right now that’s going to beat me because the reality has just kicked in and I always wait for that moment but it happened as soon as I hit him because

It’s like damn that guy is actually fast this guy is ridiculous and that’s why I was like let me start Clowning Around from now wow that is unbelievable does it usually happen that quickly no but I just think as much as it can be made a big people try to make

It a big occasion for you know the newcomer coming in it like you said is also um a big occasion for the the veteran somebody that is known to be the guy that’s supposed to win this fight there’s a lot of pressure that he can

Also put on himself in turn and I think that’s exactly what he’s done he’s put a lot of pressure on himself and and it just just it was just a little bit too much for him I was surprised by the walkout we’ll get to the fight in a

Moment if only because I know that the UFC sometimes doesn’t love that stuff and doesn’t give people the creative Liberty to do that just the fact that you even had a prop uh like you know the the the cape if if you will that surprised me I loved everything about it

I’m just wondering could you tell us like Soup To Nuts the process in terms of getting that approved and did you have bigger plans that were shot down yeah yeah I had I had a big plan it was H and I I genuinely I’m I’m such a creative mind and I just can’t

Turn that side of me off so when I Envision uh the fight day it’s not just my opponent and how I’m going to beat my opponent how I’m going to defend against my opponent how I’m going to attack my opponent is from the walk out to how I

Leave so um you know you know I had an idea me and my family got together we’re talking about it y we got the we got the track made and um yeah we we were going over it so okay let me present to to UFC now

And they kind of they took a little bit of time I don’t know if they kind of they have I don’t know what their process is of doing but took a little bit of time to get back to me and then it was like no we can’t do that and they

Actually um uh said no to the the track as well initially and we kept pushing back kept pushing back managed to get the track cleared um which was great and then I was like okay I’m GNA have to do everything myself which is why it was

For me it was still it still worked out yeah I still really enjoyed enjoyed the walk up but genuinely if I was able to do what I wanted to do it would have been the best world cup that anybody’s seen in UFC could I ask what it

Was yeah I’m probably not going to use it again okay I think it had its time so um the go I’m going to paint the picture I’m going to paint the picture so initially it’s uh Undertaker track that comes in and then it drops and you start

It starts the the the intro to the the remix track that my my brother-in-law has made and we started to you know we start to kind of cook in that in that area but what happens initially is the lights go dark and everybody’s looking at the tunnel waiting for me to walk out

And then the spotlight was going to go onto the cage and I was going to be in the cage yeah so everyone’s going to be like wait wait wait what and obviously again I’m there in the hood I’m still in my uniform I do my sign just as the tune

Really drops I do my sign and when it drops then the lights cut again and come back on and I’m in the same position back at the tunnel oh what so everyone’s like wait wait what like wait what but what it was is my brother was going to

Be the one in the cage and he’s going to have the hood on and anytime I lose weight me and him look so similar as well so you would cuz he’s got a he’s got hair but because he’s got the hood on you wouldn’t have told because he

Looks like stature wise he looks exactly like me at that time people would have been like what what just happened like and they would have been just like Blown Away by that then I would have come with the same energy of the entrance and and kind of walk in but people definitely I

Think people would have just been like Blown Away by by that yeah did it ever get close to being approved again like I said we always try to push try to push Malak back back and forth is there anything could asking questions and and I tried to actually be

As I tried to make it as simple as possible that I didn’t have to run around doing anything crazy because it’s somebody else all I just needed him to be is escorted into the into the cage and escort straight back out as soon as

At you know the right cues and I had it all planned and the thing is I can tell even when I speaking to the team they can tell I’m not just throwing ideas I haven’t really taken time to think about I told them the time stamps and this

Okay at one minute this is going to happen this is going to this so I really do pay attention and like and I’m detailed about about it and I did it considering I don’t want the UFC or any of the guys to do too much running around it would have been one security

Guard and obviously just timing of the lights I would you know i’ have been happy to do a uh you know the performance the day before like a a rehearsal the day before just to get that right and um but yeah I I get it if

You know I’m G to keep trying I’m G to keep pushing I’m gonna keep pushing I’m G to keep coming out with creativity like I said I just can’t turn that side off of me and I and I love to entertain so um regard I’m going to keep pushing

I’m probably going to keep annoying a few people but hopefully they understand that what you know that what I’m trying to do for everybody and I think it’s you know massively I don’t know if you saw but Undertaker himself uh yes tweeted about it and like and I was that was on

Half the performance that was amazing saw that I just think it would have been it would have been even even bigger just curious what was the reason you were told us to why they didn’t want to do it to be fair no that to be fair there’s

So much going on I understand they have to I don’t I don’t I don’t over press I just try to see if I what you know what more I can get out of it and as soon as I understand the tools that are in front

Of me and I you know I I I make it work I don’t there’s no need for me to stress about it it’s just an idea that I had you know we couldn’t make it happen this time I’m going to make another idea work next time and I think hopefully they’re

Going to slowly see that oh know give this guy a little bit more freedom because he you know he’s on point with this kind of stuff and even down to the understanding of how C the cameras are working and how what the timing of the the cameras I’m very into all that kind

Of stuff anyway so it would have been a lot more seamless than they maybe would have thought but again they have to understand and get used to me the same way I have to understand and get used to them so even in the locker room beforehand no extra nerves you didn’t

Feel off you didn’t feel you know the feet were heavy nothing like that not at all I was feeling unbelievable in locker and and I always say when I get into MVP mode not everything else just disappears it’s just getting myself into that state of mind I think before that you get

Creep you know things creep in and creep out you know things what if this happens or maybe this might go wrong but the second I’m in that zone and I’m just pacing around and um even uh oh Ali’s team cuz they were we were in the same

Locker room they were watching me like I know like you can see them kind of whispering to each other like wow like you know I was on fire I was feeling amazing in that Chang room really was so um yeah at that at that State in that

At that point it nothing can phase me I was so happy that we got to see vintage MVP in there I I didn’t know if we were going to get to see like the UFC stripped down version and you would try to play it kind of corporate in your

First appearance you gave us pretty much you know the full show which was tremendous because I know there’s a lot of people who maybe haven’t seen you before who are just UFC fans and they’re like holy look at this guy are you happy with the body of work are you

Happy with how you fought yes you know I I keep saying I’m heavily critical of myself first and and normally I have a little bit of time to get that out of my system before I can start answering question but I got pulled straight to to to to media and um

And it was a lot of media like to to go through and at the time I was just being like I was going through that normal process I was like man I should have done this I should have done that and my coach after the first couple of uh talks

My coach came out I was like what are you talking about did you not see what you just did people remember you came in here and nobody expected you to win let alone dominate so please just be aware of that and just when you have your the rest of your

Interviews relax don’t be so hard on yourself but I needed to hear that but like I said I was just caught in that that’s usually how I am so I I knew I could have finished him in my opinion I know he’s a tough guy but I knew I could

Finish him and I knew if I pushed a little bit uh little bit more I could have landed the shots that I needed to finish him and that’s what I was very annoyed about but then when I take a step back I’m like mate this guy is one

Of the toughest guys in that division um nobody stopped him before nobody’s made him even look at that he’s normally the one talking and stuff I basically canceled that out and I didn’t have to say anything to do it um so be happy with your performance and yeah you know

What it was it was a good performance I just know I have I have more from this vantage point it seemed like like the most interesting thing was that you really frustrated him to the point in the last few minutes of the third he’s like losing he’s like kind of mocking

You just out of frustration he has nothing else that he could do it’s not like he’s trying to like ho on you and steal the round he doesn’t even know what to do did you feel that from the get-go that you were supremely frustrating him 100% he was you can you can really

Tell he was getting frustrated in there and he’s used to he’s used to th he thrives off of War CU he’s a tough man he thrives off of War I took that away from him I’m not I I don’t get into battles I get I’m I’m a I’m a a surgeon

I’m just I’m just finding exactly what I need to do I’m not trying to get into the into these walls I don’t need to I can do and for those that saw me in the bare knuckle fight they know if I need to dig dig my feet down and have a scrap

I have that in my locker as well but that’s not my plan a I never that’s that’s plan Zed if I need to and I’m losing a fight and I and I need to get this win then yeah I’m going to go and try and put it all on the line but I

Don’t start with that whereas his style is he likes to be in the mix and it allows him to then keep hyping himself up he’s he’s Landing shots he’s getting hit and then he can talk but where he’s not Landing shots where he’s still getting hit that’s added to the

Frustration when I’m clowning in front of him it brings back memories of things that he’s he would have seen of me prior to thinking like there’s no way he can do that to me adds more frustration and yeah for me is it’s exactly what I

Thought how I thought it was going to go bar I I I definitely thought I was going to be able to knock him out did you watch the fight have you watched it since I haven’t yet I’ve just literally just been family family family family family family and they they they had

Watched it last night again but I I want to watch it by myself you know what I mean cuz otherwise there just there’s still that energy in the room and I want to I literally want to sit down and analiz a couple of things so I’ll proba

I’ll probably over the next couple of days I was just curious if you saw the clip of him between the first and second rounds where he tells his corner like guys he’s he’s faster than we thought he was did you see that and did that give

You any Joy or did you hear about this yeah I heard it so a lot of my again a lot of the family they’re still watching everything that’s you know that’s going on I haven’t again I haven’t had a chance to yet but yeah everyone’s been telling me oh yeah did

You hear what he said and and then there’s another clip of him afterwards he’s like saying I just got beat by a bellor guy or something like that so I’m I’m getting random Clips like sent to me but um yeah again I KN I knew that that

Is me I knew that that’s I didn’t I’m just constantly gonna have to keep proving to everybody else that that’s the case and even down to and I’ve said this from before I’ve always been heavily criticized about you know my opponents and stuff and I always say

It’s because of my style of fighting it’s a blessing and a curse the blessing is it’s it looks beautiful but then it also looks it looks so beautiful that it becomes effortless and looks effortless so therefore it diminishes what my opponents like The credibility of my opponents then you have somebody like

Kevin Holland that couldn’t touch me and now you everyone has to question like okay maybe everybody else they were they were tough enough but it’s just this particular guy he is that fast and now we’ve seen it at the top level with somebody that is is uh that tough and

What he’s done to him you know hopefully people you know slowly learn but if not I’m happy to keep proving it can you share what you guys said to each other at the end of the fight um what did I say uh I I was just

We were still kind of like joking around with him and um he’s uh I was like ohin as soon as the I knew I had won to fight and as soon as the B went I was like Kevin you could have done better than that and he’s like what did you say I

Was like yeah you could have done better than that and he’s like yeah but I hate fighting guys you guys move too much and like we just like kind of he’s like no but I respect you though and I was like no come on you know I’m only playing I

Respect you as well you know thank you for sharing the cage we just had like a nice interaction there and it just kind of like it it was all it was all cool um afterwards I saw the Dana White press conference what did you make of him

Saying we we have to we have to do a better job of matching him up in his next fight or maybe paraphrasing and getting wrong but did you see his clip of talking about you saying like we need to like match him up yeah yeah what do you make of that

Statement yeah I’m not I’m not to be fair I still don’t quite understand in terms of what though like what like why he the statement came up I kind of I get I understand the statement but I don’t know if it means it in a

Good or bad way right um uh so yeah like I said for me it doesn’t bother me I genuinely like what whoever you want to bring whoever you’re going to put in front of me I’m I’m happy let’s let’s go I want to I I want I want to survive in

The deep and now I don’t want to be anywhere else uh did you speak to him after the fight I didn’t get a chance to unfortunately and obviously he got rushed we kind of was crossing path I was having still having to do media I

Think I was doing media for at least an hour and a half after the show still in my still in my fight shorts running around um but to be fair I was I had you know the energy was high still so it it was cool but yeah I didn’t really get a

Chance to sit down with him you know hopefully we get to talk at some point as well I also couldn’t tell how he felt about the walk out and if he’s going to try to strip that away as well he was asked about that in the Michelle paa

Walkout which was different than yours but obviously unique I love that stuff I want more of that stuff but he infamously or notoriously has said he doesn’t like that stuff so what do you think based on what he said yeah he seems like he you know he’s

Against it and this is a you know something I I always suspected in you know anytime I thought of my seeing myself in the UFC I thought you know I may piss him off a little bit um but um I think at the end of the day

If I if I do what I do in the cage on the other side um he he will allow you know for even things that annoy him to to to exist in my opinion so I again I just got to keep making sure I put on good performances so that it you know

It’s almost like I have to pay in the meter I got I got that and those you know K and flashy you know uh attractive wins is is me putting in the meter and then you know hopefully I get some credit on the other side who makes sense

Next in your opinion you’ve had a couple days to think about it what you what are you feeling yeah genuinely I don’t know I’m still still kind of riding this wave uh uh of what what’s just happened like I like I said until I’ve stepped and

Graced that cage I’m not a UFC fighter I’m finally a UFC athlete like I can consider myself a UFC athlete now um who’s next I’m not sure I don’t I’m not screaming for anybody in particular whoever wants to jump in front of this train then uh let’s see who wins there’s some uh

There’s some big talks of a potential event in England in July maybe Manchester that’s been discussed um does that make sense for you would you like to fight back in England in the UFC or do you like the idea of remaining in America oh no no no I I’ll fight

Anywhere the only thing is I’m really eager to fight fight in places that I haven’t fought before right uh well one place it’s only because he’s mentioned it already uh Vegas in um in the sphere and again my creative mind is going crazy because and if it wasn’t if he

Said it was just Vegas I know Vegas comes around regularly so I wouldn’t really care as much because it’s in the sphere I’m like I already know creatively what I can do and as I walk out as this and that and um and I guess there’ll probably be a bit more into it

Because just you know that’s part of the package of going into the sphere and and and fighting so I I’m just like I’m already my mind’s already going about what I can do what I can do there um if it’s July I don’t know if I have enough time to get back to

September maybe I’ll wait for September and do another close fight after that I don’t know I don’t know but yeah of course in my opinion England is not going anywhere if um if I don’t get a chance to get into it on this one then I I’ll definitely be there supporting all

The guys and I’ll definitely be back at you know the the next the very next time they’re there if I don’t but if if if it makes sense then let’s do it uh the name that I’ve heard a lot of people say is Wonderboy Thompson does that interest you

It’s it’s weird because I obviously I’ve I’ve been hearing this from before I even got to the UFC and I always tell people the same thing two positive doesn’t always make a positive what will be a great fight for me and Stephen Wonderboy Thompson will look like a terrible fight for everybody else

Because we’ll go back into autopilot of our Point scoring system and there’s a lot of battles that like battles that happen without anything really happening cuz as soon as I’m about to do throw that punch I can sense that he’s pulling you know he’s got that counter ready and

Then we might I’ll break away and he’s like we’re like a okay okay so there’s going to be a lot of not much happening in my opinion it could be also I could be also wrong it could just be an amazing fight but from my experience of fighting high level points Fighters and

And you know at my skill it slows everything down it’s like two Grapplers like canceling each other out and then having to strike you see what I mean um I think it can it can potentially be like that and also I just think the guy’s an amazing guy I’m sure everyone

Thinks he’s an amazing guy but just seriously meet him spending time with him I have so much love and respect for him um would that be my first choice not at all am I a prize fighter and if it’s presented would I take it yes of course

But yeah I I don’t think it’s as good as everybody thinks it may be you versus Leon would be gigantic how far away do you think you are from that potentially being a thing now oh I I I’d go tomorrow but that’s just me um it’s it’s down to the you

Know down to the guys at the top uh one more fight just to really wet my feet and then we can go but it’s it’s not it’s not my decision it’s not my decision at all I just I’m eager to make it happen at the same time maybe it

Takes me a few fights just to build that real noise so we can fill out a stadium but I I think people are I think people are watching are already curious about that already so um yeah let’s let’s make it happen by the way um are you I feel

Like you are are you familiar with this young man from England named Ben Whitaker who I feel like is MVP but in the world of boxing have you have you seen his highlights have you seen him fight and fight you were okay what do you what do you make I feel like you

Would love it I mean he is uh he’s pissing people off like you sometimes piss people off in MMA but I think it’s incredibly entertaining it’s incredibly enter say and I don’t understand like when the the referee warning him about you know the showboating element and stuff I’m like

Technically your he’s putting himself at risk he’s not really doing anything bad the crowd love it they even booed the referee for stopping him do certain things it’s it I don’t get when people you get those kind of you know those boxing pugilists like you know it has to

Just be you know know Gentleman versus Gentleman boxing like but this we’ve evolved from that there’s so much style and Swagger and I can’t even say nowadays because one of my favorite boxers is penel wha what an amazing boxer and he had so much style Roy Jones Junior lenko there’s so many different

Guys in boxing but it’s like they they always go against it first until he gets to the top but for me he is a he’s a what actually stood out to me the most is his Basics his clean onews and body shot which dropped the his opponent is

Equally as effective the the Showmanship is just an added bonus and that’s that’s what’s more dangerous for me were you surprised to see AJ do that to Francis um I was definitely surprised in the yeah I was definitely surprised it happened that way but technically what we saw is what should happen technically

Um I think it’s Francis inu’s mistake he even my my coach is like if you go south and it’s not if and that’s not something that you are comfortable with defensively then you can go southp and you go on the front foot immediately you can’t go southp and sit there and wait

Because your responses are different you usually slip the wrong way you make mistakes a lot more mistakes in South oh did we lose them yeah we did we’ll get them right back all right um great insight there about uh Anthony Joshua fellow Brit and uh obviously Ben Whitaker we had Ben whiter

On just uh a couple of weeks ago and if you’re unfamiliar with him he’s the uh Olympic silver medalist who is taking the world of British boxing at least for now by storm he fights for Boxer and he had that fight I think it was uh early March no sorry early

February where he was uh clowning his opponent we have him back there he is okay sorry we lost you yes yeah it just cut out I’m not sure where I’m not sure where but about yeah he he shouldn’t have if he’s when he went obviously we saw it in against

The fury but I felt he was pressing a bit more when he went Southport instead of going Southport and sitting down and waiting because his defense is South Bo is no your reaction skills are not going to be the same it seems like it’s the same thing but it’s not you’re going to

Slip the wrong way you’re going to you just make the bad decisions but after the first knockdown I saw AJ’s confidence shoot Skyrocket from the roof and then I I was just like yeah it’s now we’re going to start to see the old AJ and even down to after that last which

Was an amazing shot everybody saw him practicing that shot in in the back in the changer room after he landed that shot it took him it took him about four or five minutes to get out of that mode yeah like he didn’t celebrate straight away he was still stuck in this like

Fight mode which I was like man this is what I want to see from you AJ That’s my boy this is what I want to see Confidence from this fight hopefully they’ve just made the right decision it’s going to Skyrocket him into now I

Can this AJ is the guy that I can see beating uh Fury and and beating everybody else beating Deontay Wilder I can see this AJ uh getting back to the top and I’m so proud of him so happy for him well I am uh so happy for you my

Friend honestly one of the nicest people that we’ve ever come across covering this you’re you’ve never changed you really haven’t and uh I don’t suspect you change now that you’re a UFC Superstar and I’m sure a lot more people are following you and writing to you and

Doing all the stuff and by the way Kudos like even the video you put out on Saturday the Death Note thing like you did such a good job from beginning to end of just doing this your own way uh I hope they don’t stifle that because you’re just such a showman and so

Creative and it’s such a pleasure to watch you do your thing so thanks as always for the time congrats enjoy the time with the family and can’t wait to see you back out there soon and by the way rumors of you coming to New York if

You come to New York please I’d love to have you in studio yes yes I should be coming um over around the 9 if anybody has uh can can help me out message me and just let me know what what else is about but yes

I’m I can’t come to to New York and not come and see you so I’ll definitely be there thank you Michael thank you so much congrats my man enjoy thank you there he is the great Michael Venom page what a fantastic win what a fantastic

Debut for him on Saturday so uh he was on the main card obviously we move down the line and we go to the co-main event what a story it was Ben was ston everyone high on him he’s the favorite he’s coming off The Knockout win over

Matt Rola oh my gosh Dustin’s going to get slaughtered he’s going to get murdered he’s going to get decapitated is it on is it off this that and the other and what happens the boss comes through once again this time with a thrilling knockout I mean just a

Freaking I mean the pictures are the slow-mo all that stuff incredible stuff and then the post fight interview what more can you say about this guy an unbelievable credit to the sport a testament to hard work to humility to just biting down hard hat lunch pail a

Freaking one of one an OG and right back in the mix at 155 pounds L damante kind enough to join us the pride of Lafayette he is back hello Dustin how are you back in the winning circle last time you were on on the Monday after a fight it wasn’t

That fun Monday after a fight here you are big smile congratulations my man hey thank you brother yeah it’s always nice doing these interview rounds and and seeing your face especially after a win man yeah uh considering last time considering your age and everything that you’ve been through in your in your

Life and career is this one of the sweetest wins of your of your illustrious career dude they all are I mean it’s always nice to bounce back you know I am Mr Bounce back um to to to write the ship to get back in the win column after you know a devastating loss

Like the the gatei fight you know it just just to to do the right way have a great training camp really focus you know I practice a lot of mindfulness this Camp I kind of block myself out from everybody I have so many people to catch up with because I didn’t respond

To any texts I didn’t answer any calls like I was just freaking I took myself into another another place like this training camp you know have you ever done that before like to that extreme not not to that extreme though and and how extreme is that like are are you

Literally not talking to anyone except your family like how how deep do you go even even my family I mean I haven’t spoke to my father in like eight or nine weeks wow he was calling me all throughout Camp he called me on fight day um I didn’t

Return any any calls to anyone and and why is that needed or why was that needed for this particular one I’m not sure I I just wanted to block everything out you know I just wanted to block everything out and really fully 100% focus on this fight I don’t know obviously you’ve had

The ups and downs it’s all well documented you’ve never hid from any of it but did you feel this time like your back was truly against the wall like was this as close to do or die as you can get they’re all the biggest one the next

One’s the biggest one and then it’s the biggest one but like did you feel that way considering all the circumstances leading up to it yeah and you know I’m no stranger to to to being beat you know to coming off of losses but this one at at 35 years

Old after getting title shots and working my way up getting another title shot these when you lose like that to a guy like gatei and at this age it just it really felt like you know all losses suck but this one really hurt you know because I don’t know how many more runs

How many more chances I have left that’s why I kind of embrace this whole fight week even in the tunnel before I walked out this training camp like I was just more grateful for everything because I I really mean it like every time I do this

Could be the last time and I just want to enjoy those feelings those feelings and those emotions I was telling my wife before the fight um on fight day like what a life what a how grateful am I to be able to experience these emotions like even through fight we

Through the interviews and stuff I was like you know what I’m I’m getting to experience this I’m Greatful for it I feel good it’s just like it’s tough to put into words the emotions of fight weak and the stress and the pressure of being under that magnifying glass of a fight like this

Especially coming off of a loss but I tried to put myself in a mind frame where I was just looking at things like an experience instead of I have to do this interview I have to do this workout I have like I get to I was looking at it like from a third

Person like outside of myself like I get to experience these things you know this is an experience these emotions this uncomfortableness I’m about to walk out here in front of Miami and and fight for my life I get to experience this like it it it just felt good thinking of things

That way and I’d imagine maybe when you’re coming up you don’t look at things that way right there’s there’s a a point no right when when is this the first time you felt that way yeah this is the first time I kind of took a step back and

Said how awesome is this I I’m going through this right now I’m uncomfortable I’m warming up for the fight I’m watching these guys fight before me oh I’m two fights away oh okay what an experience this is you know that’s interesting because I think some people

Would be like oh tense I can’t lose I can’t afford to lose yet it seemed like you were just kind of enjoying it like I don’t know maybe like there was less pressure on you because you had nothing to lose it made me feel grateful for the

Moment I was in wow instead of being back against the wall feeling wow you know it changed my perspective on the moment uh you can say interesting um so so you weren’t like super nervous you weren’t super tense no I felt really loose and and grateful to be under the stress yeah

Grateful to be there it just it just really flipped my mindset um what what about just like you know being the underdog and all the buzz surrounding him and France and all that stuff chip on your shoulder it fair to say you had that I I mean every fight’s a chip on my

Shoulder that’s just the kind of fighter I am you know but just more surprised and wondering why you know the odds makers had me at I think plus 200 on some some websites like why maybe because I lost I was just really like picking my brain like why too bad I

Can’t freaking bet man yeah yeah yeah um when you like when you fa off people were making a lot of uh noise about the face off like oh the cold stare all that stuff what did what what were the vi like we just had MVP on and he was

Breaking down like Kevin Holland’s body language leading up did you take anything away from him he had never been in a spot like this before with all due respect to Matt fola like he’s going from the prelims to the Cain to one of the biggest fight cards of the year it’s

A massive jump for him while you’ve been there time and time again did you take anything away from his demeanor leading up to the fight not really I I i’ expected him to be more like a aggressive but he was very stoic you know I know he has a

Strong mindset coming from the things he’s done and the training he’s had in the military and stuff but I just thought he would be a little bit more like a aggressive you know uh but he was like I said he was very stoic and he he

Wasn’t you know all fight week he wasn’t a he was he was respectful I I knew we were into you know we were we were getting ready to see something spectacular we were in for a treat as they say when the warhe hat made an appearance correct me if I’m wrong did

We not have the warhe Hat in Utah did you keep it at home no I had it I had you had it okay so why didn’t why don’t I just I saw that thing and for I guess I convinced myself we didn’t have it in Utah so I was like oh it’s

Back they didn’t let me wear it to the press conference in Utah ah okay so I knew but I I I had it when I got to the arena I had it on okay okay okay there’s something about that hat I don’t know what it is what do you feel when you

Wear it I don’t ever wear it the only time I wear it is when you see me wearing it for the fight oh sick I put it in a case I have a hat case I don’t freaking touch the thing until fight day what do you feel when you put it

On I feel marvelous that is appropo of course for those that don’t know Marvin Haggler made that hat very famous by the way I don’t forgive me if I’ve asked you this how did you get it so there’s a guy uh named Roman Faldo who fights makes martial arts he’s from

Qest Florida a great fighter but uh he had it on the gym one day he was a spar partner of mine for I don’t forget what you know I don’t remember what camp but he was he’s he’s still a training partner of mine but he was a specific

Spar partner partner for for a fight camp and he wore it to the gym and I was like and I’m a big boxing fan so as soon as I saw it I was like it man this is crazy I love that hat he said I’ll

Get you one and that the the one he gave me is the one I’ve been wearing ah sick I’m happy they let you wear it uh what was your assessment of the first round how did you feel about what went down in that first five minutes I was uh surprised at how much

Success he was having riding me out and you know I was like this is you know but never stopped jumping Guillotines either he never took me down I took myself down like five times what is the obsession with this uh jumping Guillotine like why why do you love it

So much and why are you so insistent on trying to nail it multiple times a fight I don’t know Ariel I need to stop but I would never but what is it about it like you just love the way it looks do you love the sensation do you hit it in

Practice why are you so why are you so adamant about it because it it it yeah I hit it a lot I hit it a lot put people unconscious hell is this like a thing now you have fight you have to nail it is this like a thing that just nags at

You yeah maybe I’ll maybe I’ll I’ll submit Islam with it when did it first start the obsession over this move probably a few years ago Dude don’t be silly jump to Gillie that’s that’s the motto feels like merch right there by the way I feel like that would sell very

Well might have to make a shirt might have to make a shirt um would you say first round like this guy hits really hard he is the truth he is worthy of all this praise and hype no not a he’s not a big puncher he’s a big guy and he’s physically

Strong but like punching power is something like you don’t have to be a big guy to have that I don’t know if it’s the bone structure the ligament attachments just people some people have it you know um he wasn’t a big puncher but he was he was very strong when he

Grabbed like when his hands were together against the fence or when he got on top he felt physically strong okay so how are your how are you feeling first going into second good dude I rewatched the fight last night with my wife when we got back to Louisiana Joe Rogan said I was

Exhausted said I was tired like five time bro I do not get tired I have some of the best cardio in this fight shoot that we do like I can go 25 minutes hard cracking the whole time um I can’t believe he said that but I felt good I

Felt like he was going to slow down you know that that’s what I was I was hoping for I I thought third or fourth round is when I would really start to like pull away and break him down but I got him out of there in a second I’m I’m

Grateful for that yeah incredible shots um so I was just going to ask if you were surprised that you got him out that early I guess maybe you thought it was going to come a little bit later but obviously you were confident that you

Were G to win yeah I thought I was gonna have to break him down wear him down a little bit more um but I caught him in a in a in the middle of a trade when when his chin was up and his body wasn’t set for

That that right hook you know the timing of it was just perfect to to whip his brain around maybe a stupid question but I’m just curious like can you even verbalize what that feels like when you fold someone like that when like a clean knockout like what what does that even

When a body just goes limp it’s kind of uh surreal like it’s it feels like it’s happening in slow motion like you land the shot it doesn’t even feel like a big shot you know it just like feels smooth and you see the the reaction to their body and it feels

Like is this like it’s a rush of emotion because it feels you’re you’re excited but it also feels like it’s a a weit coming off your shoulders at the same time like this is is this is ending right now you know the pressure everything I did it I did it again like

It’s it’s it’s you can’t if we could bottle this we’d have you know we’d be billionaires selling this feeling um and then again considering what happened in the last fight it just gratitude right all that stuff like you don’t know when you’re going to get those again

Right yeah and gratitude and just like it’s so it just feels so good because no matter how much I prepare you know I’ve said this over and over again but it’s a theater of the unknown like I I think I’m better than this guy I know

I’m better than this guy I know I worked hard I did everything I needed to do to to put myself in position but I could have been on the other side of that I could have been the one going down you know man down it could have been me and that that’s like

Something I accept every time we walk out there but that’s what makes this so much such an experience you know what were you saying afterwards like I saw the shot and it looked like you were looking at Donald Trump but I don’t know if you were saying anything to him

Because it was from your back were you saying things to people outside I saw Mercedes Lewis a longtime football player Legend you know one of the longest active football players I saw him in the crowd I saw steo I was there was just a bunch of people I was kind of

Acknowledging uh Action Bronson was there yeah but whenever I was it looked like I was talking to Trump I was talking to Dana oh what’ you say I I said hey hey you want me to fight these young huh this is what happens that’s what I told

Him that is incredible uh and he gave you much deserved props in the uh in the post fight press conference um how do you have the like the postf fight interview man and I I talked to I got to talk to uh St a little bit before he

Walked out the Octagon too oh you know cuz we we didn’t really get to talk fight week it was you know fight nerves and staring each other down and stuff like that so I wanted to just shake his hand and talk to him what’ you say to

Him told him to take care of himself train smart I said if you want to do this you’ll be right back where you just were but but take care of yourself you know as I get older and having fights like I have with gaii um I just think about what we do

You know like I respect these guys and you know their tenacity for chasing this dream but like you this is bad for you you know when you say take care of yourself you have to be smart do you mean like take time off don’t rush back things like that because of the long-term

Effects yeah exactly yeah and I never really thought about that stuff on the way up but like as I get older and my daughter gets older and I take fights like these crazy ones that are you know they’re just not good for you and we love this and we’ll do it again and

Again and again but like but I told br Moto like people I saw a lot of comments like this guy like takes stuff too serious it’s like looks too far you know the people were talking about what I told Brett like a piece of me really does leave you know a

Piece of BSD left in there but that’s the game we play you know like oh there I am again it’s always so weird I just pop up on the screen looking at myself um man it’s really incredible talking to d uh to Dustin because he has such

Perspective and he’s so matter of fact about everything and he has such appreciation he’s seen it all and he’s done it all he’s lived through it all um I just I just love it he’s not he’s not someone who sugarcoats keeps it real that’s what we love about him that’s what we appreciate

About him we’re going to get him back here and a reminder that uh top of the hour we’re going to be joined by sha Ali so we’ll go from MVP to DP to sha Ali still to come Cedric Dum and Joanne wood um so some big Winners and unfortunately

For DB a uh a non- winner I don’t want to say a loser because he’s not a loser but you get I don’t know what the opposite of a a nice opposite of of winner was or is uh do you want to ask

DP in a moment here I like to I like to get so philosophical with him but do want to ask him about the uh the back and forth tweets with uh Islam and uh it would seem as though he uh oh there he is you back yeah what’s up brother sorry my

Laptop died ah no problem no problem yeah it does seem like a bit of a different angle here but all good um okay so I just wanted to ask you about the postf fight interview like just the stuff you were saying about you know you

Can’t hold the spot you got to fight and even when Joe says you’re the man I’m just the man it’s just like you you just nailed that whole thing it was just I don’t like it sounds like I’m I’m kissing your ass here but it’s just like

I don’t even know how you the presence of mind to deliver these matter of fact lines in those moments so well done to you thank you man I appreciate it um and and and that and that’s that that that sort of mindset do you feel like that’s

A bit of a problem in the sport where you say like yo you you do have to fight these guys you can’t just hold your spot you know what I mean does that annoy you you know Ariel like being 100% honest if there was a bigger fight if

Something was available if there was a bigger money fight or a higher profile fight of course you know this is business I would have taken the bigger fight but nothing was available that was that was huge at the moment I wanted to fight I wanted to get

Back in the wind column and we got this guy and like like I said I do honor this and I understand this is business and the way this goes and somebody gave me my shot it was just right timing okay um well speaking of bigger fights

Afterwards I see Islam I see his manager ali uh tweeting about you saying June is this a real thing do you think this could happen you versus for the belt in June I haven’t spoke to the UFC but I I do think it could happen I said that you

Know fight week doing those interviews like people were asking me where do I think I am in the lightweight Division and I I really believed that that like I was one you know one big win away one good finish you know it doesn’t matter the opponent I just need to to

Look good and uh just with my career and and how many fights I’ve had with UFC and how how many times I’ve you know beaten top guys and stuff I always feel like I’m one Big Win away from it at any time in my career you in the last few years yeah of

Course um and I think I don’t really think anyone would bad and ey maybe maybe Justin gatei has a problem with this but he has a fight coming up and what you know he could easily lose that fight um there is no one for Islam to

Fight so why not what do you think the UFC would say do you think they’d be open to it let’s go um I I do you know I think so no one said anything to you on Saturday about it no I I ran into Dana at the press conference when he got off

Stage he shook my hand told me a couple things but we didn’t talk at all about what could be next okay and uh I mean kind of a quick turnaround right that’s in three months but it I mean I know you just went through a training camp and

And the but like is that would you be okay with June I didn’t take any damage in this fight um yeah I’d be okay with June I didn’t take I actually went into this fight with a couple injuries from Camp oh wow my ribs my rib gamr

Busted my ribs up like three almost three weeks ago and it’s been bothering me really bad ever since so would June be a problem no okay all right was it bad enough to where you thought maybe you’d have to pull out no I mean it was bad enough to where

I was like hoping he wouldn’t rip my body on that side but hurts when I sneeze when I twist and stuff you know I I didn’t go to the doctor or anything but something’s going on with my rib for sure okay do you think he can be a a to

Player like a contender like everyone thought going into this fight do you do you believe that or not yeah look at the yeah look at the stuff he’s done you know he’s still young in his career man he’s still learning he’s gonna learn a lot from this fight you know the first

Time I I lost that way I learned a lot he’s gonna find out a lot about himself you know um he losses like that if you’re in the right state of mind they it’s really a beautiful time to experience yourself to find out who you are and have a moment

With yourself when you’re winning and the ball’s moving and you know it’s going down like like a Snowball Effect everything’s moving so well with you growing big everything’s getting bigger it’s easy to to miss a lot of the lessons you know and I think about this

Stuff the older I get with wins too with losses with everything like there’s so many little messages that are that that we could be learning from going through this experience of of life and fighting um if he’s in the right State of Mind he’ll pick up the lessons you know it

It’s it’s just really a great time to experience yourself um fantastic perspective by the way um obviously the last time we spoke we spoke a little bit about like some of the drama leading up to the fight were there any lessons from that for you was there anything cleared up in the

Aftermath ABC always be closing Ariel uh even I mean like I thought maybe Dana might say something like he just kind of it was all love in the aftermath so no no issues there no me and the UFC I spoke to Dana Hunter we’re all in a in a great great

Spot okay that’s good were you worried about that yeah yeah really you you don’t strike me as the type well you know honestly the UFC has been you know I know they get bashed all the time for fighter pay and this and that and the way they you know they do

Their their business but they really been good to me man yeah you know and of course I’ve I’ve earned it and been with them a long time and had the ups and downs in negotiations and fight contracts and stuff but dude they’ve really Hunter and Dana have both

Really been good to me by the way what about I mean the the thing that blew it all open was uh actually Johnny eblin doing an interview about it did you tell him like yo Johnny can you chill the F out here I’m trying to fix this why you

Try to did you I mean it was all love he had your back big time but I was just wondering how you felt about that Johnny’s the man uh no I haven’t even seen the interview so I’m not even sure dude perfect don’t see it don’t

Look at it it’s all good he just had your back he just had your back my man I got his back I got his back I didn’t watch interviews I didn’t watch uh that was another thing this Camp too I I didn’t feed into that stuff why do you

Usually watch a ton yeah yeah like if I’m on Twitter or X you know you know how you you get like the timeline does a thing where think you’re interested in or whatever so it’s all of course it’s all fight stuff so I seen I’ve seen a

Lot of them and normally I would click on them and watch them you know but I didn’t watch any do you think that’s going to be the way you you handle the buildup to fights from from here on out or was that just for this particular one that’s what you needed to

Do I mean that was for this particular one but I want to keep it moving forward I’d love to keep it just less less of the mental reps you know when you said at the beginning of the interview that you practice mindfulness does that mean like meditation and stuff

Like that or is that just like what you’re talking about here no meditation as well this camp like most days I did a 30 minute or 20 minute walk every morning before breakfast huh just to clear my mind set my intentions for the day be appreciative for freaking breathing air

You know like just I’m just I don’t know maybe I’m getting old maybe I’m being an old man I don’t know I’m just trying to like experience things in a different way cuz I’m so blessed you know just to be in this mindset you know I I I don’t

Know it’s tough I don’t want to keep harping on or sound weird I love it you know but I’m just I’m just like maybe I am getting older I don’t know I just like really grateful for the experience of Life providing for my family like every

Day you know wake up walk 30 minutes in my own thoughts get away from electronics and just yeah give gratitude you know cuz what a journey what a journey man who who um sort of opened your eyes to doing that to that being you know beneficial to

You after this after the gatei fight man I went through some real the world doesn’t know or people don’t know people are close to me know I went through some real mental struggles man like I I was going through some stuff and uh that’s that’s really when I I started really practicing mindfulness

And setting my intentions and just trying to be grateful for for every day how how how bad did it get really bad really bad to like worst than it’s ever been yeah oh yeah and H how did you get out of that by by doing by doing these things

Did someone help you or did you figure it out on your own a lot of a lot of people helped me okay um my friends my business partners here in Louisiana but my wife my wife really dude I’m just very thankful for her did it did it get to the point

Where like and if I was in her if I was in her position I don’t know if I could take the stuff she’s taken you know I would like to think I can but I’m just grateful to have somebody like that like the stuff she’s seen you have to go

Through yeah and the things I put her through going through it right yeah yeah your bond is incredible and obviously you’ve known each other since you were kids was it to the point where you thought you might not fight again yeah or worse than that couple times

Yeah worse worse man man and uh do do you feel like that’s like how do you not you know cuz you know like the next one might not go your way how how do you make sure that that never happens again I don’t know I don’t know dude I don’t know is that

Scary yeah it is it’s very scary did you talk to a therapist I I try to like yeah yeah I I try to like to look at things a little bit different you know like fighting is just something I do that kind of mindset because fighting was was everything to

Me it was my whole life like I judged who I was but on by fighting it was my it was a person I am if I’m not the fighter Dustin the fighter who am I and I just kind of like tried to take a step back from that

After the gat you lost when I was going through all this and like it’s just something I do fighting is part of my life it’s been a vehicle to get me in my family where I need to be to set up the foundation and help people like it’s been a vehicle to get

Things in the right place but this is just something I do I can’t life goes on you know uh I feel like I’m kind of dancing around it um but like was it to the point where you were like worried about your own well-being yeah big time oh man and and

Do you feel like you’re out of that right now I am for sure yeah last the last two two two and a half months I’ve been out of that that Darkness okay have you talked to other fighters who have gone through this no but like whenever I saw

Vul you know talking and being kind of Express himself and being honest I I was like you know what that’s just we’re going through the same thing and who did you speak to like you said a therapist was it like a fight therapist no no not a fight therapist I started

Actually doing therapy after the fight okay and is that something you’re going to continue doing maybe not as frequently but yeah I I think it’s important to like open up and talk about how you feel you know we’re such in the spotlight and being tough guys all the time and stuff but

We’re people too you know like that’s the part of the the mindset like Dustin the fighter but what about what about Dustin you know what about me um yeah like dude life is deep man yeah and fighting is something just something I do um so some it’s good to tap in with

Yourself you know check in on yourself be good to yourself like my boy Theo says you got to be good to yourself man uh great video of him celebrating I think he was in Australia celebrating your win I saw that on uh social media so obviously you are loved and uh we

Appreciate you man uh thank you for this I mean this the entertainment you provide to us is amazing but just knowing you as a person like it’s impossible not to be happy happy for you I was over the moon and that’s not because I was you know I’m supposed to

Be a journalist and unbiased but like I’m a human being and I just was so freaking happy for you and I and I like benois a lot but it’s just a different connection and I knew I didn’t know that you were going through that but I knew

How hard the gatei fight was and uh it was amazing to see you in that in that Spotlight Winter Circle doing your thing so uh thank you as always for the time much love enjoy the victory I toast you uh Celsius as well shout out to them for

Setting this up for us much love and uh enjoy the win my man you deserve all the good in the world so I hope you never go through that again and you’re able to just enjoy great times with your family because you’re you’re a blessed

Man blessed by the most high for sure I am man I uh I’m very very appreciative of the journey and the experiences of Life man when you step back like everybody listening try that take a day out where you you step back from from being in the spotlight being in the

Moment Like step back and just take a deep breath and like wow you know we’re fortunate we get to live this life and appreciate things and experience things the hurt the bad the good you know it’s incredible man when you look at it that way amen much love Dustin thank you so

Much enjoy the win enjoy the time at home I hope you took the money line Ariel I for sure for sure there he is DP uh just a man what a guy uh and incredible stuff as always from him so that was the story in the Coman now

Let’s go to the main event and as I said at the top of the show virtuoso master class from Sha Ali what will they say now about him I’m I’m sure they’re going to say other things but as far as Saturday night that was five to nil that

Was 5 nothing uh 50 to 45 50 to 44 it was it was incredible got everything done except for the Finish but it’s pretty damn hard to finish Cheto Vera he’s kind enough to join us right now the reigning defending UFC bantamweight champion back in the Sprinter hello Sean how are you sorry

Got it got really deep there with DP right at the end so I’m sorry for keeping you waiting but uh appreciate the time and congratulations on the win no worries Ariel that that’s some real you guys were talking about and I saw you were drinking a Celsius

What the is up with that drink a rise buddy what are we doing here they sent it and they set it up they set up the interview and he was he was rocked out so you know what do you mean you can’t text Dustin for you and say

Brother can you come on no you got go through that no I actually can’t text him I can’t but they were kind enough to to facilitate um but you know I have I’m I’m neutral I have love for everyone so um and I love you and thank you for that

By the way I texted you and Imran about that the cotton cand is nice isn’t it thank you thank you appreciate it where are you going by the way see the car moving yeah we I just had to run some errands go drop off Danny she has to

Pick up her car uh I just got some I got to do today and uh so we’re just doing that back to normal life when when you hear Dustin talking about that stuff is that you are so young and just on a rocket ship can you relate to any of

That or or is that all those those emotions are those are those foreign to you I might have lost them here uh no you froze up on us uncel you there brother uh okay can I am I good now now you’re getting a little bit better but it’s still a little bit choppy

Shoot um now maybe now I’m getting a little bit better oh no not good not good I can see you and hear you brother sorry you can see me fine okay now we’re maybe we’re getting better we fight through it we fight through it like a fight see hear you

Fine well let me I’ll restart yeah I know I’ve never lost so it’s hard for me to relate but I will say this winning feels pretty good but I bet losing is just 10 times s worse than winning is good okay yeah I can understand that um

And so speaking of which so you go in there against the guy who there’s a history with I know there’s maybe some bad blood and whatnot is is this the most gratifying win of your career maybe even more so than the Alo win which was the one which made you become

Champion yeah it felt good you know I was a favorite obviously going into this fight I was a massive Underdog going into the aljo fight worst match up in the division for me there’s 0% chance I win then I go out there and knock him

Out in the second round so that one felt that one probably felt better you know beating Cheeto you know it was it was nice just considering how the first one played out but it’s like I you know Alo was a difficult difficult fight Cheeto I felt like was obviously a hard fight

Five fives but I just you know I knew I was going to go out there and piece him up it was just a matter of time and but yeah they both felt good now that the the Rivalry is kind of over at least for now with Cheeto C can you talk about the

First fight like how much should it bother you that you know that’s a win for him when when you said afterwards I you know no one the world looks at that as a win they officially overturned it sh State athletic commission officially legally overturned

It if anyone looks at that as a win you know they’re delusional so that wasn’t part of the the motivation here to to write the wrong to to show people that you’re not on the same level you know it was there obviously like that one I never when I was say

I’ve never lost and felt like I lost to where it was like depressing because when I that first fight I fought to Cheeto and that happened the way it happened it was a fluke in my mind that it was like I knew I was better than him

I knew I was I just had to eventually someday I’d prove it so I never let that fight bother me ever um so you know I obviously got to go out there and prove it 5044 at one point this for one of the judges so you know but felt good uh your

Your assessment of your performance in the fight like are you happy with what you did out there are you obviously there’s I think sitting here nothing to really criticize about but I know that Fighters are always most critical of themselves how do you feel about it yeah I mean considering it’s damn

Near impossible to knock out I think I did a pretty good job uh I I would love to know if I broke something in his face with that knee it was the loudest pop I’ve ever heard punching or you know hitting someone it was actually disgusting feeling it was it was gross

So I would love to see a picture of his face today you didn’t enjoy that I you know what leading up I was just so excited to just get my hands on just to beat his ass and then you just it’s it’s a weird thing and then you

Know you hear someone like Dustin por talking about how bad he was feeling how you know down in the dumps he was from after the uh Justin gatei and uh you know I’m sure cheo’s dealing with some right now whether you know I doubt he would disagree I’m sure

He’s you know he’s not having a great time right now so there is a part of me that feels bad for him and I obviously caused that but you know it’s it’s the fight game did you say anything to each other afterwards either in the cage or in the

Back no we we we did like a little uh little handshake both of us seemed like it wasn’t really very genuine handshake it was just kind of like a respect we went five fives and uh that was it uh what about the uh the love that he was receiving in Miami obviously relatively

Close to Ecuador were you surprised by how many people were there supporting him not at all I I you know I figured it was gonna be like that in Miami I I thought it was you know it was exciting Boston was obviously 99 sua one Alo you

Know Miami was a lot a lot more Cheeto fan but uh I enjoyed it you know it makes it fun the back and forth you know I I really enjoyed the hearing the crowd go for him then me beating his ass and I’m just getting sad

I enjoyed that and and uh you know like just the whole scene there 14 million gate I think the fourth best gate in UFC history um do you feel like is this it have you arrived are you the face of the UFC do you feel OB Connor is Connor and

We haven’t seen him in 3 years and hopefully we see him in June but as far as people who are champions actively fighting multiple times a year etc etc does this cement you as the guy humbly I would say yeah I think you know my next fight whether whoever it is

With is going to be the biggest fight of the Year okay um I I I will get to the next fight in a moment but I I did see you um you know coming out of the cage there was a little bit of a limp and

Then I saw I think you were in a boot afterwards so how is your foot or leg how are you feeling on this Monday yeah I feel way better today than I felt 5 seconds after the fight you know after the fight your body’s just in flamed you’re hurting uh my

Foot was real sore I kicked him in the face with it a few times it was the same foot I had the Liz Frank surgery on and it was it was really hurting so I was a little nervous about that and they got you walking miles backstage from

Interview to interview like L and laps around that place so you know I figured might as well put my foot in a boot take a little bit of the pressure off it um my forearms hands are feeling feeling good so yeah I don’t think there’s any serious injuries okay you know I haven’t

Got any x-rays or anything I don’t even really know if there’s going to be need for it but uh yeah I think I’ll be back back to running around here in a couple of days what about that shot to the body uh at the very end yeah landed a nice liver shot

Um I wanted to put his lights out so bad you know the last you know there 10 seconds left I’m like I’m going to stand and bang you know obviously I didn’t need to do that I could have ran around and punched him but yeah he landed a

Nice body shot at the end and I knew I knew there was no more rounds left I was like I’m just going to sit here my goddamn breath chillax and uh yeah uh if that would have happened like a minute into the fifth round or second round third round would it have been

Problematic it wouldn’t have been uh ideal I would have been able to gut it out and finish it finish the fight out it wasn’t a fight Ender okay was that was that the the biggest shot he landed on you would you say yeah nothing else right it didn’t

Seem like there was too much that threw you off or hurt you considerably no it didn’t really I mean I I watched the fight three times now and there’s I I’ve slowed down certain spots where it kind of looks like I got rockish but you know I feel like I

Rolled with a lot of the punches a lot of the stuff nothing really rocked me do you feel like now you are and you probably don’t care but do you feel like you are getting more respect now in that you know the Yan fight they said was

Super close and some thought he won the Alo fight they were like uh you know two months he he didn’t have enough time to prepare this one it feels like you’re getting your flowers do do you feel that way as well yeah I think so I mean I I think we

Could all agree Cheeto got gifted that title shot it was you know I asked for it I believe I deserved to be able to ask for it after performing and doing what I did against aljo so you know I asked for the Cheeto fight I got the

Cheeto fight but he got gifted that um and uh so I think I still got to go out there and prove to the haters the doubters um that I can beat someone like morab or Elia or Cory or whoever is next your Top Choice is it fair to say it’s

Ilia I go back and forth Ilia and morab Ilia I don’t this guy’s acting like he’s running the show like no you don’t no you wait you sit down wait like UFC is going to decide buddy it’s guy’s acting like he getss the call no you he wants

Me to fight morab like I have more title defenses so he’s uh he’s talking out of his mouth a little bit too much but at the end of the day it’s gonna be what Uncle Dana Uncle Hunter it’s gonna be what they want I’m open for for whatever

Is there something about Ilia that makes you want to fight him because I remember when vul was champ you said you you like V you don’t want to go up there you have no interest in fighting him what is it about Ilia that makes you want him I don’t know there’s certain people

That uh you kind of just want to fight El is that guy he’s also done a really good job he’s you know built he’s somewhat of a star no’s I would say he’s a star he’s not a superstar but he’s he’s close and uh it takes two two big names to make

Massive fight and that’s what I’ve I’ve been very vocal since I’ve been in the UFC my goal is to be get the massive fight that’s what I want and uh that’s kind you know the reason behind that call out do do you not feel like a morab

Fight would be a massive fight I feel like he’s gotten a lot more popular now in the last like six or so months do you do you feel like it wouldn’t be as big no I I definitely think a morab fight would be pretty big um yeah he’s

On a 10-fight win streak you know he’s he was kind of known for being boring boring boring now he’s popular from being boring so it’s kind of a weird way to get popular but he did it which is impressive um so you know I think that fight can be

Marketed well 10 fight win streak I knocked out his his cousin and uh it’s all good uh have you seen his social media it’s actually been pretty entertaining as of late are you impressed by it yeah I know he’s doing a great job he’s really you know he’s he’s doing he

Really is doing a good job can’t deny that okay did you really not recognize him when he came up to you backstage no I did I just thought that would be funny it was pretty great did you did you you feel like they were try or him

Or pan I saw that as well like did you think that they were trying to make a scene to get the fight as they should be yeah 100% you I mean this is that’s how the fights happen you know unfortunately we never saw Leon versus uh Forge you know what

Happened backstage and that that would have been sweet but like that happen people want to see it um what about P’s performance what did you think of his win over Sona dong did you get to see it I have not seen it I didn’t watch I

Didn’t watch any of the fights uh in the back um so I did not actually get to see that fight I heard it was very close though okay uh when you’re in the back what like I know the TVs are on and whatnot um is that is that a thing that

You just don’t want to watch do you make a point not to I lay in the back okay glasses on dark room meditate follow my breath for hours wow really yeah minimal warmup no I’ll warm up I’ll start moving around about an hour before we got to get there

So early but about an hour before I’ll start really kind of moving my back moving my move my my body getting some blood flow everywhere and just kind of slowly progress to a warmup do my warm up and then I’m ready to rock but yeah we’re there you know two and a half

Three hours before MVP told us that you shared a locker room with him what did you make of of him just like his striking style being close to him being around him what’ you make of his vibe yeah so there there was a the the main

Locker room and then there was a little tiny locker room in the back that’s where I Turned the Lights Off laid down and I didn’t really do uh I didn’t see much I did hear I had my airpods on playing some music and I I would hear

Him just exploding on the pads every once in a while like random explosions just like going hard I was like damn this is really warming up um but yeah it was crazy being back there with he’s got a crazy style um he was pretty lose had a good flow you know I

Only saw him when I would go pee you know we so hydrated that night I had to pee so much but uh that was the only time I kind of had any any interactions with them is when I went to pee okay uh the one thing I keep hearing about is

Your fight IQ wow what a fight IQ um do you feel like that’s always been a thing and you’re only getting credit for it now yeah I think fight IQ you know it doesn’t just come with just SEC baby he’s coming doesn’t just come with experience it comes with experience and

And knowledge of the game and I have a lot of fights I had you know 14 amateur MMA fights four kickboxing four kickboxing they got a lot of amateur experience obviously have like 20 Pro fights so been doing this for a long time and I do think I have gained a lot

Of experience and I have a good idea uh of Energy Efficiency and and stuff like that so yeah i’ would say have a pretty high IQ of fighting how’d you get the shorts done again I think that was just you know if I went out there and had a

Boring fight against alj Jo and and barely won and it just wasn’t that exciting I don’t think that request uh gets granted but you know when you create Magic like that and and you ask for a little favor uh things get done uh is that going to be the color

Here on out or are you going to keep switching it up I mean I think pink just fit me right I thought it was perfect it felt I felt like a video game character he’s coming me I felt like a video game character and it you know I I love the pink short

That would love to keep stick with that um again I don’t know if the UFC is going to allow that I don’t I don’t see why not I I don’t think you can go back from that so yeah hopefully stay in with that I like a tie dye could we do a tie

Dye or is that to I think that would be awesome no that’ll be decent pink pink bar um no disrespect to Boston but it’s not Miami how was the uh the Afterparty I actually have a friend named Jake who somehow stumbled into your Afterparty said it was uh lit I do believe I

Believe the kids say but how how was it from your perspective yeah the after party was cool you know I had I didn’t get out of the Arena till like 3:30 it was obviously daylight savings switch so like 2 a. it switched to 3:00 am so I

Didn’t get to the club till like 3:45 and uh we went to 11 the club in Miami it’s just so mindblowing at 400 a. that people are just awake and just doing their thing and uh was pretty it was pretty crazy I had Russ perform uh you

Know shout out 11 to make for to make that happen and shout out to Russ for performing at the after party Russ is one of my favorites so it was really really cool to Just Vibe out you know celebrate with the team and just kind of

Hang out the the video of you in the in the hotel with uh with Tim is that after the fight yeah we got we got back to the hotel like 7 AM we rewatched the fight I was like yo let’s make a funny video

Let’s hit submit uh did you so I did you go did you go to the club wearing your fight gear I went straight to the club after after all the interviews and stuff had blood all over me re rocked in my pink shorts uh I didn’t want to go to the you

Know go shower up get dressed up and then go to the club then it’s 500 am so I just wanted to go there Vibe out for a bit and then head back did did you not feel like sort of sticky and gross oh no I felt a little sticky and

Gross Ariel but but I I didn’t I didn’t stink too bad though so it was all good oh were you still wearing your wraps no I had the wraps off had the cup on no I took the cup off but um okay so perfect world when do you return like

What’s the scenario when and where um headline in the sphere in Vegas let’s do it okay even though that’s a Mexican Independence Day weekend card oh yes yes I’m sorry I’m sorry we did this last time I’m sorry I’m sorry yes we did that we did did that

Sorry so you versus morab headlining Mexican Independence Day I mean I think that makes sense I don’t think anybody would uh you know argue against that I think that would be legendary I know Connor’s talked about potentially going on that card potential International fight week so you know out

Of respect for him still being the best and the biggest in the business you know I’ll take wherever I can can get but uh yeah I think that’d be interesting okay and did you say this to the UFC brass when you were there do you know if they’re interested at

All you know I actually still I talked to Hunter Dana briefly backstage real quick but I didn’t really uh haven’t had a conversation with them you know I’m I feel like they’ll call me you know sometime this week okay uh it’s amazing to see man and and I’ll let you go after

This like I I just feel in a way Boston Boston was one thing but like I I just there’s something different now I feel like the first title defense out of the way as dominant as it was do you you feel it do you sense it as well I feel

Like you’ve just if this was like a video game you’re now at a different level you’re in a different Stratosphere do you do you sense that as well yeah I mean I feel like it’s just the slow progression of of becoming you know the biggest in the sport biggest in

Combat Sports and it’s been a a beautiful Journey but yeah Boston still it was a little bit smaller venue but that place was electric that night Boston is still a m very magical moment you know might have you know Miami was insane but Boston was legendary and

Magical baby we’re almost there but uh hello my little princess is she getting airpods is she getting uh Restless she just woke up from a nap and uh we dropped Danny off at her car so she’s waking up so saying where’s Mommy but uh she’s good she’s good but yeah no

I feel like we’re on our way to becoming what I’ve said i’ gonna become you know seven eight years ago yeah it’s amazing um last thing I I have to ask cuz he was in my studio talking about you Ryan Garcia what what do you make of of

Everything that’s happened you know a lot has happened since he was in the studio and is that something you are really going to try to explore um again I just think mentally that kid is not where he needs to be uh we’ll see how he looks against Devin

Haney and uh kind of go from there I feel like an MMA fight is just so unrealistic there’s z% chance he would ever even make it to that fight I mean it it would take him one MMA Session One wrestling day one jiujitsu with anybody that knows anything for him to realize

Okay never mind this is a bad idea so if anything would happen it would be boxing I mean I don’t really know I don’t even know if I want a buildup of that kind of fight with with where his head’s at right now you know just because it would

Be massive you know might not be RG might not be it but you know there’s there’s they’re Big B still up there there’s uh come here you know Floyd Floyd’s still kicking you know what I’m saying Floyd’s still running around the boxing room so you know I keep going out

There and doing what I’m doing there’s no I might just skip Ryan I might skip Dante and go straight to the big dog I love it all right uh for now enjoy your time at home thank you as always for coming on appreciate it Sean still the

Quickest texter in the game no one beats you pound-for-pound you’re number one um long may that continue and long may your rain continue congrats on the W in uh and and and an unbelievable master class it was really it was really something to watch so uh much love and respect and

Looking forward to the next one thank you Uncle Ariel have a good one brother peace out my man there he is uh Shan Ali the reigning defending UFC bantamweight champion uh what a performance what a freaking performance on Saturday and uh you know we love

Cheeto and I have so much respect and uh admiration for him and what he’s been through and uh what he’s what he’s had to accomplish to get to this point um it’s one of those where like I really love both guys and I really respect both

Guys and I really admire both guys and they’ve given up so many great moments tough to see him get beat up like that but you know there was no controversy whatsoever um 50 to you know you can you can make a case I think what was the

Round that was a 108 I don’t remember now was it the was it the second um but hell cheo’s chin and his toughness and his just tenacity is uh something to behold and and what about I also felt like to a degree like we saw Cheeto In a Different Light like

Cheeto fighting in San Antonio there was no real craziness Buzz hype he fights in Miami and I saw like Mark rundi was uh posting a whole bunch of videos and others as well like I felt like that fight was in Ecuador we’ve never seen Shawn get kind of booed like that and be

Drowned out by the opposition’s fan base um and I don’t think that’s going to be a normality I don’t think that’s going to be something that is going to continue to happen uh but it was just a unique thing given the proximity given cheo’s love um and connection with his

Country and the fact that he’s essentially the only one flying the flag it was just a really cool scene what what a weekend for the UFC on many levels right the Francis result of course people have uh talked about that but just 14 million like I can’t stress

It’s enough the UFC went to uh Miami some 20 years ago and it was a dud of a of a card from a business perspective 20 years later it’s now the fourth highest gate in the history of the company 14 million you know what 14 million is beating their previous record the

Company’s on fire it is absolutely on fire and uh it’s just amazing to see how far the sport has come and you really feel like they’ve just scratched the surface like they have reached this point where I don’t know 7 years ago did not seem possible pre-c Conor certainly didn’t

Seem possible postcon Conor midc Conor yes but now it just seems like where where where are they going and how big is this going to get and they have it like like even the card on Friday which I was a part of the broadcast the blueprint is

Right there the blueprint is right there boxing has to like I I was talking about this on uh Wednesday was it Wednesday yeah the press conference in Riad like the blueprint is right there how and I don’t know if it’s ego I don’t know if it’s stubbornness I don’t know if it’s

Anything like that but how anyone can you know how anyone cannot look at what the UFC does as far as the weigh-ins as far as the press conference to be fair the weigh-ins on on Thursday were were were pretty damn Flawless but like the press conference in particular and then the

Fight night and say this works this system works this blueprint works this is perfect this flows it it it you know yes it can end late but it’s like bang bang bang bang bang and it just keeps going and then the press conference going down the line and asking everyone

Questions and then like the press conference on Wednesday it took like 50 minutes just to get to AJ and you’re asking you know the coaches questions and the promoters questions it’s like no start with the main eventors that’s what we want to hear we want to hear from Anthony Joshua

And we want to hear from Francis andano that’s who we want to hear from and then we’ll move on to you know the next guys and then we’ll move on to the next guys we don’t talk to everyone and then get to um you know to to the big dogs at the

Very end when everyone’s all tired and stuff that’s not the way to do it so it just feels like the blueprint is there the package is there just emulate it just rip it off it’s right there for the taking um but I know I know everyone’s different I know that everyone has their

Own way of doing things and uh that that car delivered it was pretty damn incredible uh we could bring in the gentleman here we have a a few minutes before we get to Cedric doom and then of course uh Joanne wood going to round out the

Day in perfect fashion uh do you guys think that they entertain Ilia Shan I think they’d be silly not to at least consider it um but ultimately I do think they’ll do different go different directions and he’ll fight morab next I think so too I I really like the idea of

Of morab Sean and in the sphere yeah I I I freaking screwed that up again he did the whole breakdown of the Mexican heritage and I walked right into it right well again cuz like I don’t you know I don’t conect Rob now you know a little bit of an honorary

Mexican as well I by the way what what is like bar Rob even like he shows up in Mexico he’s wearing the traditional gear he shows up in Miami he looks like you prior to oh he looks great he I mean like who’s doing this where was this guy

A year ago how did this all happen some someone is like and I think he’s just all in on it I mean especially the reception that he’s getting people love it on his social media it’s it’s really remarkable it’s it’s really amazing how he’s just not missing at this point I thought they

Were going to bring him into the cage I don’t know why they did it he was right there I guess look I mean again you it would be it would be irresponsible not to at least consider ilot tore I guess they didn’t bring it in because Sean

Said book me the PJ to to Spain instead of being like morab but then he Fair he did say Mor Rob right after yeah I think to be fair to Shawn he’s not he’s not somebody who’s like like as an example right ilot toor is like I don’t want to

Fight any of these guys I’m calling the shot I want Conor McGregor I don’t want to fight Sean’s like I really want to fight Ilia but also fight morab no problem so I mean you know let’s be fair to Sean because I think there’s some people out there who are like he’s

Trying to duck him not really no he’s not he he said it I’d fight morab if you guys I think he said like if you guys want me to knock him out or something yeah the good news for the UFC is that’s probably always a massive fight uh even

If they end up losing at some point but with each win each title defense that these guys get it just gets massive if morab knocks them off that’s not a massive fight anymore I got one of those not a massive no yeah no yes it is he if he moves up

To 45 and he fights for a belt against Celia Toria not bigger than like Holloway still a pretty big fight he needs the belt at this point it has yeah Champion versus Champion I got one of those of course it’s bigger it’s still a big fight though currently opening

According to one of these books but excuse me they don’t sponsor us I’m not going to give uh Ali plus60 yeah Sean and Underdog and both of them morab minus 185 om Ali plus 245 Ilia minus 285 anything surprise you there GC nah no not really I mean the way both

Those guys have looked as of late but man we have seen morab get get hit before and get wobbled Mar maras can do it I mean you could think John oal could do it as well yeah yeah I’m not saying it’s anything set in stone obviously but like

I mean Mar most people when was the marem fight two years ago yeah yeah most people are not walking through some of the things that Cheo did so you know I don’t think they’re I don’t know who’s staying standing after that knee yeah it’s you know it’s not uh it’s not

Out of the question that sha Ali could beat morab deal shy definitely not out of the question who’s the biggest star in the UFC right now Connor doesn’t count Connor will always be Connor is Jon Jones yeah Jon Jones really yeah easily and clearly Jones books of fight what are we what

Are we considering star power yeah yeah yeah yeah uh $14 million gay that what are we considering star power yeah John can sell out MSG pretty easily I’m I’m confident the C Cent you think joh Jones that who’s bigger with the youth who’s bigger with the kids oh with the youth

Yeah you know sharan Ali might be the biggest with when it comes to the youth yes but overall it’s it’s still Jon Jones man who Okay Jon Jones is getting into like the people that don’t watch the UFC who really who walks down the street and

Gets notic what I don’t agree with that okay you’re talking about like a guy with like rainbow cloud I was I was going to say he’s walking down he’s walking down the streets of New York Shan is probably getting mad number two who’s number two Islam yeah Islam makha is massive

What what are the uhia is still massive the what’s the Instagram breakdown like how how much more pull up it’s not going to be good for you because I actually know the numbers what who has the most of the of the Champions right now in the

UFC all those guys are all those guys are sitting right around eight uh what does Sean have Sean’s at four there he’s kind of going in a in a back and forth right now with uh with ilot tore ilot tore at like 4.2 uh you know’s at 4.2 already oh my

Gosh he’s blown up since what did he have a million before the vul fight uh yeah yeah he had like two million going the V fight isan makev has 8.2 I mean we’re talking about double the numbers I mean like makach is mat style Bender 8.6 yeah he’s been around been around

The blocks I mean so has uh so is Jon Jones yeah uh Jon Jones eight flat really I mean 8.3 8.3 so let’s see what Charles Al is Jed tossed this out there um Jed M 7.3 Jed Michu from our very own MMA fighting yes where does Dustin porier fall in top stars

That the UFC has not a champion but somebody whose name people know will you you will plop down money to watch him fight um he’s got to be in the top 10ish right 10 to 15 range and what would be the top 10 what can we

Just talk about like at the very end of that interview Dustin’s comments yeah opening up and then I’m looking at the clock and I’m like yeah well it sounds like Sean enjoyed it so you got johon in the Sprinter and I know but it’s just

Like you know you try to block out 30 minutes and then he’s like dropping this stuff which I don’t want to be on the one hand I want to I want to like learn more about but I also don’t want to be disrespectful and be like well okay

We’re out of time of course yeah I thought it was great I thought you handled it quite well and rare for Dustin to open up like that he’s just uh there’s just something about that guy I don’t know there’s something about like his matter like he doesn’t give you long

Answers he’s not verbose but he’s just so matter OFA and then like the you’re the man I’m just the man how do you nail that yeah that that the second that came out I was like wow this that was incredible I mean I’m a don’t be silly

Jump the Gilly guy myself that’s a great line too but it’s the man is okay too how could you be so like you just starched this guy who everyone’s high on and and I have no doubt will still be a factor down the line and all that and

Like how could you just be so calm about it so just like I mean even Cal when he got thrown off of him he just kind of stood there and was and like walked back to his Corner was just like yep just did it just did the thing and like the way

That he talked about like yep BSD left the piece of himself in that octagon but that’s just the game we play like I completely separated him from his Consciousness but you know game we play if I had to describe Dustin porier in one word it would be composure 100% in

The in the wildest of firefights he’s always composed in in the moments after he’s always composed he’s just a wellp put together type of guy and I think the reason he’s able to you know what you’re talking about in terms of what he says first of all it’s authentic right that’s

The key that’s one of the keys right because when we think about like cutting a promo most of the time it’s written on a piece of paper rehearsed it thought about it we’re talking about Michael benam page planning out this whole thing he has this whole elaborate thing Dustin

Porier is just an authentic human being who if you ask the question will give you an authentic response which I think helps certainly in those moments but also the fact that like he’s grounded in other things besides fighting and sees fighting is a business like the emotions

Of fighting and things like that are at least a little bit removed um because he’s got other things and he’s thinking about other things and life and family and fighting is his business that he’s in it’s his job um and I think he’s just well thought well grounded he’s he’s

Just a good human being it it does kind of break my heart a little bit like you know we talk about a fight we move on and then we move on and it’s like okay uh UFC end of July then we go on to sha

Ali then we go and like to hear that he was going through that for probably months on end like that you know like I said I was kind of dancing around but it sounded like it wasn’t just like your typical post-fight depression which I hate to even say typical because I can’t

Even imagine I can’t imagine what it’s like yeah but now where is he you know like I know but from all the way in the hole all the way in the darkest possible spot to now he’s on top of the world to now but then on the flip side he said like

He doesn’t know what’s going to happen if he loses his next fight he doesn’t know where he goes there from there scary I just can’t imagine living a life where it like four months that tension and the buildup and the anxiety and the as he said like being under the

Microscope and then It All Leads to 15 or 25 minutes and then this is why MMA and Combat Sports boxing as well is not comparable to the NBA to the NFL it’s not it’s not the same thing when Jason Tatum has a dud game and misses a shot

He’s first of all he’s back the next night or two nights he get it back on Tuesday and basketball going in a games yeah and he’s not sitting on the sidelines for four months watching a video of him getting flatlined like Francis zanu is now a meme and that doesn’t go away and

That’s that’s why this is not like other sports that people compare it to right like you don’t just deal with like the ridicule and then just like the the self loathing I guess of like the disappointment of of losing the match you also have to deal with the injuries

Everything that comes along with it is just devastating it’s it’s devastating is heartbreaking really cuz like these guys are so special like I remember they showed him walking out and you just see like the confidence and he’s walking out and all eyes on him and I’m like I just

Can’t imagine I can’t imagine when they talk about being in the back and like like the buildup and this fight happens and this fight happens and you know that at some point they’re going to let yes I just can’t imagine all this I’m getting stressed I was just talking about it and

It just takes a you just have to be a different type of person yeah that’s the thing I say they possess DNA that we just don’t possess don’t have it don’t have it in me I I know that for a fact I’m not ashamed to admit I mean on the

Flip side of it imagine what BSD is going through right now yeah I mean there’s no way he’s he’s sitting there with a smile on his face right now no but I just feel like B like he’s so he’s he’s young it’s the Relentless motivation he’s probably using it as

Like this was not my best night I’m going to work 10 times harder sure different points in the career you know DUS Dustin’s on the back nine no matter how you look at it like there’s not there’s not going to be a ton left for

Him um well I mean I’m not going to I’m not prematurely retiring him maybe hopefully there’s 10 to 15 more because I would watch that guy fight every single day but realistically with how many fights he’s had it’s probably the back nine and so yeah it could get it

Could get darker as opposed to BSD who’s like he just got here there’s so much ahead of him so many lessons to be learned from that massive jump though from Matt in retrospect like this is obviously revisionist but mistake no no first of all he won that first round yeah oh like

Dominated in he had him flattened out with like like 45 seconds into the second round I was like oh my gosh he’s like G to make this look easy like this is how he’s going to get it done if he secures one of those chokes in the first

Round then we’re going mistake for Dustin like it’s just that’s this game it’s a game of inches like that I mean he you talk about taking a risk I mean he was the 12th ranked lightweight I I think he was getting to fight a legend

Number three ranked us in p i mean you have to take that especially the way he’s been looking lately the confidence that he’s had no no definitely not a mistake before we get to Cedric Doom uh quickly want to ask you guys about MVP’s uh idea his walk out idea I would have

Loved it that would have been incredible I wish he had been able to pull it off cuz at first I didn’t really know what he was saying I was like what does this mean but you put the brother in there oh I mean that I would have like to see

Dana White’s face as explained it yeah that’s what I would like to see I wish I could have had likeed it why are they so against this stuff I I get I mean I could see why that one didn’t go the more ridiculous the better they’re under the same umbrella as WWE

You can’t say this anymore more ridiculous the better as I I even liked Mich doing the dance not I I freaking love that not everyone gets it not everyone gets it but if you’re you know I mean we have we’re about to have Cedric Dum on he’s walking out with

Mattresses and things like that at pfl so there’s there’s a place for people who want to show off some creativity d that how dare you say that to MVP makes it to the UFC now you’re saying he’s not UFC caliber huh all right fine fine that’s exactly what I said yeah um all

Right speaking of Cedric Doom let us go to Cedric Dumay Thursday was uh I mean the big in my opinion the biggest night in pfl history um the biggest night in French MMA history I know the history isn’t a long one but it was just amazing

To see the turnout the buzz the buildup all that stuff and then the uh the the the ending as unceremonious as it was controversial as it was is one that’s going to be talked about for a long time so it’s a pleasure to be joined by the

Best Cedric Doom who is kind enough to join us on this Monday uh Cedric meon ja thank you for the time I appreciate it uh could I ask it’s not your typical Saturday Monday breakdown you’ve had a couple more days to digest what happened on Thursday does it feel

Like a bad dream how would you put into words what what went down on Thursday night by the way your French is amazing keep going thank you thank you my friend thank you by the way it helps when you’re doing the I like when you do the

Interviews in French in the post fight CU then I get to be cool and translated to the world in English and I hope I actually pray that you don’t get a translation so I could be the only one who really understands what you’re saying so keep that up please yeah I

Will uh thank you very much for inviting me again again it’s always a pleasure to be in front of you and um this is not you know the the situation I used to to to to to get uh it’s like a bad dream you know because uh I feel like I have

Two feelings the first one is like I didn’t I didn’t lose the fight so you know so it’s okay but the second one still on the paper they say that I lost the fight so it’s very weird like uh I really don’t understand what what happened last night I really don’t

Understand but I will explain I will explain just ask me ask me and then I will explain to you okay and and before I want to get into every single moment and beat but I’m just curious are you planning on appealing the loss um yes of course yes yes because uh

As every you know uh thanks God I I got witnesses so everybody saw that uh I didn’t lose the fight uh everybody saw that U I didn’t even stop the fight I mean I was about to fight you know I wanted to fight I was fighting you know

I I was in a fighting stance I didn’t stop the fight like something is wrong but I don’t understand okay so so tell us um and and I also want to ask you about the first and second round but the third round is is the biggest moment and the most

Controversial when do you start to feel that there’s something in your toe um when I when I talked to the referee I started to to feel it like 10 second before okay and and what did you say to him when did I say the first time you

Spoke to the referee Mark Goddard what did you say when you when you turned to him in the third round what are you saying to him at first at first uh if you you see the footage I tried to remove it by myself with with the other

Foot oh it didn’t work so then I I raised my hand and talked to the referee I said I have some under my foot I have something under my foot as I didn’t know how to say Splinter you know I say I have something under under my foot he said Don’t Stop

Don’t Stop uh keep going fight and then I was like okay it doesn’t want to it doesn’t want to understand it doesn’t even want to listen so I kept going you know I I get back to to the fighting stance and then I was looking into backy

Eyes I was like okay I can remove it it by myself but I don’t want him to kick him kick me in in the head but I know he’s not the the that type of guy so I look at him and he saw there is something wrong with my food and then uh

He told me like what’s wrong I say I have I have a splinter sorry in French I have a splinter under my foot uh is annoying you know he said but just remove it and then he he he you know he talked to the referee he say like

Something like leave him remove the thing and then I stopped also looking at the referee and then he stopped the fight and then I was like you know I was shocked I was like what what the what the hell what the what the hell is happening and then the referee say you

Cannot stop the fight I say yes I know but I didn’t stop the fight you know and then after after everything were cool you know I was cool you know I was relaxed I said Mark can I talk talk he were talking talking talk I said can I

Say something he say yes you told me I cannot stop the fight I say yes that’s the rules I kept going I kept going I kept fighting but the second time I didn’t stop the fight Baki talked to you and then you stop me and then he said no

You cannot stop the fight he didn’t want to listen to me and you know I was very I was very you know sad because uh we trained three months uh we we did a lot of my team and me we did a lot of marketing around that fight that was sold out

Everybody you know the crowd even uh the war fans everybody were was were waiting for that fight and uh Mark godar just stole the fight you know I really don’t understand of course I know that to be a referee is very very very hard you know

It’s not an easy job to be a referee to be a a judge that’s very very complicated so I understand that but you have to listen to me uh you know I have fought with two broken ribs I fought with uh even actually I’m fighting with

My wrist broken you know my wrist is broken it’s wrong you know but I’m fighting I’m training you know so I’m not a you know I’m not like a little girl you know so I can fight I’m a man but a a splinter is something uh outside

You know the the the the fight you know if I’m fighting against Baki Baki break my arm he break my nose it’s okay because I’m prepared for that you know but something wrong inside the cage uh I don’t know if it’s glass wood uh whatever uh water you know that’s not uh

That’s not normal you have to stop the fight remove the the thing and then the let the fight continue so really that that’s a mistake you know uh to to be a man you you have to recognize also that you did a mistake of course it’s not

Easy to be a referee I understand that I cannot blame you but you have to listen and to say okay I did a mistake this fight I shouldn’t stop the fight like that this is not a TKO this is a no contest and then we go back again and we

Do the fight so just wanted to get and thank you for that explanation clarification on two things did you have ever at any point say like I need a timeout I need a break anything like that cuz that’s what I heard say something like that okay I just I

Was about to remove it by myself you know but I didn’t want to you know to take that decision you know by my own like okay I stop the fight I step back and I remove no I just asked to the referee even I could even remove it by

Myself like can I remove it by you know but he didn’t want to listen you know he he said that he said that he he he didn’t know what’s what what’s happening with my food and I agree because he didn’t listen to me that’s why um at any

Point did he say to you if you keep talking if you keep stalling I’m going to stop this like a warning something like that he say don’t stop keep going don’t stop that’s what he said and then I just kept going and then the second time baky sto the fight by talking to

Him and then I look at him by pointing my foot again and then he stopped the fight and I told I told him the second time Mark the second time I didn’t stop the fight you know in the aftermath have you talked to him I know you said you

Had a conversation with him in the cage but in the back um Friday Saturday any other convers no no no but I feel like you know I feel like I don’t want to be that guy but I feel like maybe he doesn’t like me or something like that

Because but I know that that that is not the first time he do he take this type of decision you know as I said and I say it again to be a referee is not easy you know and I I I will never take uh I I

Will never be a referee a referee because he very very complicated but you choose to be a referee you have to do your job why do you think there’s a chance he may not like you why do you feel that way I really don’t know how can I explain that situation you know

Right was was there any feeling that you had before that he didn’t like you or is I have a footage of uh Nate Jazz against Ferguson M he did he did Wars wars he even turned his back to his opponent I’m talking to about Nate Jazz he he even

Turned his back of Ferguson Mar God didn’t say anything they just say fight let’s go let’s fight let’s fight three four time maybe five time he didn’t stop the fight so how can he can he stop the fight I didn’t even uh stop the fight by myself baky

Did but he he stopped me take TKO come on Main Event in front of um 20,000 people in theow the crowd in front of so million of uh viewers he stopped the fight like that the fight the most wait uh waiting in the in MMA in France come

On uh you cannot do do things like that what happened when you went to the back when you went to the locker room did you speak to any of the commission officials pfl officials what were people saying in the back I talked to the to the the

Press I talked to the press conference you know I was in my brain that was a little bit mixed you know that was funny sad that was very strange because it’s funny when I’m explaining the situation it’s funny because it’s like a joke I was fighting in the cage main event and

Then I Ste into a a splin that that’s very funny I was like I I don’t even know what you say I really I was like guys I don’t even know what to say you know I step into something wrong and you have to understand that while I’m

Fighting I don’t know that is a is a splinter I don’t know that is a is a glass you know I just know that something is under my foot he might be something worse you know so I was like let’s just check remove move and go back

You know did it Hur I say that the fight I never say that I’m injured or of you know I just wanted to fight that’s why I was surprised when he stopped the fight if I say that I don’t want I cannot fight I’m not able to fight anymore I

Wouldn’t be surprised when he stopped the fight but I was like I was shocked did it hurt a lot yes I cannot say like a lot like u a toes broken or something like that but I I couldn’t step into that foot yeah um so in the back the commission did they

Say anything to you oh we agree we disagree with was there any kind of discussion about how it was all handled from from the officiating standpoint I didn’t talk to the the I mean to the the commission guy but all the people I saw in the back they say

Yeah you’re you’re right that’s a you know that’s object um an object yeah that’s an object foreign object yeah ex exactly a foreign object so you’re right even even if he he remove it and then you couldn’t fight uh again it will be the same because it

Would be a no contest you know right but that that was the situ that wasn’t the situation I I wanted to fight even if you remove it even if I was injured I would like to fight uh back you know because uh we are Fighters you know it

Doesn’t matter what you know if I broke broke my ribs if I broke my nose I just keep going because we are warriors but I don’t like Injustice I don’t know how to how you say that Injustice like something that was done to you that you

Feel was was wrong really hate that I swear to God I really hate that and I I felt like that I really felt like that that’s why I say doesn’t like me I don’t know because I have no explanation um so I mean obviously you’ve been fighting

For a long time kickboxing now MMA has anything like this ever happened to you before training fighting anything like that no sometime in in kickboxing your mouthpiece just uh get out you say to the refe sorry my mouthpiece and then he take it he he put it back or he he say

Uh pose and then he go watch it and then he put it back but you know I I I always learn that when you have something wrong you have to talk to the referee you cannot take your own decision by yourself so that’s why I wanted to do

But he went went wrong so we got the scorecards afterwards and it was one1 going into the third uh he got the first round you got the second round how were you feeling about the fight going into that point um because it didn’t start great but then you you did an amazing

Job of showing your versatility and your Evolution as a fighter so how are you feeling going into the third up until that point you know normally I’m not a type of guy who take his time during the fight I’m a one round fighter like I take you

In the inside the one the first round I knock you out normally that’s my that’s how I do you that’s how I fight but this time I did a very great job by saying that I would knock him out at the first round that was a strategy for me because

I know he will be scared of the first round I know for him the to win the fight for me the for him the victory were to survive for only the first round and after the first round I knew that he will be more I don’t know more cool more

Relaxed like more okay I can explain myself and then I will knock him out inside the second or the third but I will I will prepare to fight three rounds that was my strategy so the first round I just check him you know I saw

His his game plan his game plan not to box at all only running uh and he he he would dodging the the fight you know he he he he didn’t want to fight you know because he knew that I hit hard and I can knock him out even with one punch so

He didn’t want to fight he were running and waiting for the the best timing to take me down he did a great job in inside the first round and then I understood the second round I were better and then the third one I were way better I fed very very good and that

That was my round if you if you even look look at the F you can see that the beginning of the the third round I was winning the fight you know and I was like I was talking to myself during the third round be passion be passion be

Passion you will catch him be passion be passion be passion so I was winning I was winning the fight that’s that’s what that’s why I’m more frustrated because I really don’t understand you know I was winning the fight it’s not even be it’s not even like I were losing the fight he

Got two rounds he was smashing my face and then I got a splinter on my foot I was like thank go thanks God the Splinter save me no I was I was winning the fight so I really don’t understand by the way when did they take out the

The Splinter Who removed it when was that actually it’s funny because when he stopped the fight I didn’t want to remove it because I I thought that maybe people will say that I’m a liar so I I said that no no no leave leave the Splinter on my food

Until the camera came until the the doctor everybody came their their soul you know the sprin there and then after that even I think after the decision or before the decision then I remove it okay you did it yourself yeah I did my step okay U by

The way did you did you walk like I’m just trying to find figure out how it could have happened because we’ve seen so many fights and this has never happened before did you walk to the cage Barefoot yes I I was U yes I walk but

Before step in the cage uh one referee uh told me to watch my food my feet okay how do you say p to to wash your feet no the the you know when when you have house yeah in front of your you have something to clean your face yeah

Like a doormat yeah exactly doormat thank you so the there were doormat in front of the cage and then the referee told me to uh to clean my feet and then what what which I did and then I steep in the cage and the first round second

Round I didn’t feel anything of course but in the third round I Ste on something in the cage because uh during the night you know uh people were walking in the cave with their their shoes their shoes their shoes on even um guest they they made they made one

Interview with I don’t want to blame him yeah Tony Parker yeah the Tony Parker in the with Timberland on and uh you know they didn’t watch the they didn’t make the vacuum on the cage so very funny when I’m even when I’m explaining it to

You it’s like I lost because of a spner and I it’s crazy but you’re right they should if they’re going to bring people in they should sweep after every time right course because it’s very funny because we we we will we will never even imagine that this type of thing could

Happen but it happened it happened so we have toh figure it out so the um you know the the the consensus seems to be oh this is okay for pfl because now the rematch will be even bigger that it’s going to be great drama the buildup will

Be great there’s a story now are you interested in that of course I’m interested because as I was winning the fight I wna you know I’m a man you know if I were in the in that situation I mean in bak’s situation that they say that Cedric dumbe won the

Fight because of a splinter I would say no don’t raise my hand I didn’t win the fight I didn’t win that fight don’t raise my hand I want to rematch I want to fight him because I’m I know I’m able to beat him you know I want to beat him for real not

Like this I don’t want to sto his uh the victory you know so uh it’s not fair you know and as I’m a man as I’m a warrior I want to win you know fairly so um of course I want a rematch of course uh he

He has to take the rematch because uh I think he’s a man he’s a warrior too so we we have to give the fan what they want you know we have to figure out who is the best between him and and me and I think and I show that I’m the best and

If you if you watch the fight I’m winning the fight so if you really want to be the guy who beat the legend Hass said the legend Cedric dumbe you have to take the rematch and beat me for real he said in the post fight interview that he

Wants the rematch to be in an even bigger venue do you agree with that would you like to see it in a stadium or in a bigger venue in France I would like to see it in the park de or if if if you

Want to re the rematch as sub as soon as possible I know that pfl booked the the BC aore arena for May but if you want it to be bigger we can wait after May I’m I’m ready I’m ready you know so may is in two months you would be okay with

That that’s a quick turnaround of course of course of course even one one month three weeks I’m ready uh is is that the same Arena the one in May or is that a different Arena yeah the same Arena Al Arena wow uh were you I I know this

Might be a silly question to you but were you surprised by how big of a deal it was how how quickly it sold out the attention all that stuff or is this is this everything you expect at this point that’s everything I expected because my

Team and I you know uh my manager David also paring with John we we made a lot a big big job you know with marketing and uh and I love to sell fights and I’m very good at it so uh I’m not surprised that people want to see C Dum fight

Again you know it’s not even because of Cedric Cedric against Becky it’s because of Cedric dumbe he talks a lot he talks too much we want to see him fight again so I’m really not surprised and when I say that I can I can book St def France

I’m I’m very very very really convinced that I can do it do do you think they’re interested in that pfl I think yes yes why not if uh if the the crowd is bigger than the last time of course they will be interested you know I I was curious about the walk out

It was a little less uh you know was a little more understated than the first one there were no props or anything like that why why did you go that route you know what to be honest with you we we tried to make something really really

Insane but they didn’t want us to do that who who didn’t want we pfl why we were we were about to come in inside the ambulance and do a lot of crazy things but you know they didn’t want us to to do it so so what was it can you tell us

What did we miss you riding in an ambulance well yes me arriving in inside the ambulance with two medical people uh with the with you know the the the bed you the small bed with for strer medical yeah exactly the stretcher coming with this uh um with the two guest Eric and

Ramsey because they are famous in France because the they play in a big big big TV show in France like doctors ah you know France you got the you know you will understand immediately so uh that that what we uh you miss you miss they they want they said no because they

Didn’t want to take that risk with am I didn’t really understand were you upset yes yes we try until the last moment we try even when I was in the local room we try we try we try they say no I said okay then you have to move on

Yeah let’s just do it right um and so is is there any scenario in your mind that they go in a different direction and they book you against someone else next or do you think it’s 100% going to be baky I don’t know I I want I want uh I

Want that to be backy 100% I want that because I want to show people that uh I’m the best you know I want to show people that I can I was I was beating him and then that that I can beat him again and um also I wna I want to clarify the

Situation you know but if they put me some someone else it is what it is you know I can I can say any anything but I just what is very important for me is to clarify the the decision you know I didn’t lose the fight I don’t want my uh

My record to be a a dirty you know if I lost against someone because he’s better than me then I just take it like a man go back to the gym and try to beat him again but if I if I didn’t L I don’t I don’t like Injustice so have you guys

Begun that process of of trying to reverse the decision yes yes we started the process to the decision are you confident they will reverse it uh I trust God you know I trust also uh uh the the president of the the the French commission I hope we I mean we

Got footage we got everything you know so we cannot lie we cannot even uh say something wrong so if if if everybody is fair then it will it will happen Okay um what a crazy thing and and I’m just wondering if if you heard from anyone else like I was asking some

People and and their assessment was unique situation it’s never really happened before in a major MMA event but perhaps a warning or something like that would have helped um did anyone tell you like have you guys talked to any other officials or commission or anything to

Say that yes you were wrong like do you feel even more confident a few days later that this could have been handled differently nobody say that I’m wrong yeah even on internet on social media nobody say that I’m wrong the only thing I saw what is wrong is that uh Jon Jones

Fought with his toes broken how can he complain with but this is not the same situation as I said I fought with two broken ribs I’m fighting with my wrist broken that this this is not the same situation you know is something an object a for range an for range object

Is you know a splinter doesn’t got his his his place in the cage if I don’t know uh water in the cage I don’t know whatever inside the cage uh doesn’t belong in the cage you have to stop the fight remove it and then we go back to

The fight so this is not the same situation I can fight with one arm broken whatever because this is the part of the fight but glass water Splinter wood whatever is not part of the fight otherwise we are glad we give me a a knife you give him a knife and then

Let’s fight by the way for the rematch could we get five rounds I feel like the main event needs to be five rounds I I feel like I would be even better with five rounds is that a possibility yeah of course okay of course and are you gonna even people thought uh

Thought that I ask for three rounds because uh my cardio is bad because I’m not a five round fighter but I am you know if you put three rounds I fight three round if you put one round I fight round round if you put five round I will

Fight five round um are you gonna stay with pfl like uh as there talks of you going into Bellator people like what do you what was the plan if if you would have won on on Thursday what was the plan for you next uh the plan

Uh were to fight Jason Jackson oh that was the plan yeah because uh you know he’s the super Champion he’s supposed to be the Super Champion but he cut out Cedric dumbe yeah you know how a champion can call out a guy who is even

A top five because I’m the best so yeah the plan where to fight Jas Jackson take the belt and show to the the world that I am the best the world in the division that would have been would that would have been France I don’t know I mean I would like

To fight in USA you know to show myself to the US crowd I would love to do it you know because now in France I think I have a I have accomplish I accomplished everybody everything everybody knows that uh I’m I’m a real fighter I’m a I’m

A very good fighter so I wanted to take all the French people and say okay let’s go to us and beat the uh American guy or whatever you know I feel show to the that Cedric Dum is is is the man I feel like we need the stadium show first and

Then we do USA let’s go let’s go we we check that one off and and then we go uh to the US by the way uh by the way I didn’t see you in France you said that you would come and then we about to eat the burger I know I know

That was a big problem no but I said I was coming for the Olympics remember oh yes you say Olympics yes uh which I will be there uh I would have liked to be there for that one but uh I went to uh to Saudi Arabia for Fran ganu s you saw

That yeah I saw that I was like f he did a mistake I sent him a message he did he did he did only one small mistake to what was the mistake CH to change to to get on the South Pole inside the first round that’s a very big

Mistake against Antony Joshua but you know we all do mistakes he will come back I trust him he’s the baddest man on the planet and I I I’m really convinced that he will come back and show people that they are wrong he’s one of the best in boxing MMA whatever for for those

That don’t understand why was that such a big mistake because um you know for his I mean for his last fight or maybe the last one an Tony Joshua prepared himself for South Pole so his preparation were his training camp were already for S so

He’s very very very good at it and when uh when Francis uh get his himself to a South Pole immediately Anthony josha throw his right hand straight and then he caught him inside the first one so maybe he he should have done it in the third

Round or maybe the fourth but you can say if if if if you know it’s always the same I I understand I don’t know if you’ve done it yet have you taped it yet you’re going to be on a massive show in France a TV show did you do it yet or

You’re about to do it tonight which one s are you on a big show I’ve done it I’ve done it I’ve done it okay did it air yet yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah it’s it’s online now oh it’s online okay but it’s not bigger than this one right it’s

There’s level right it’s not as big as this what is bigger than I love it I love it uh well it’s good to see that you’re able to to at least smile and uh take it all in stride uh very sorry that this happened great fight f it was riveting the whole thing

Was just like theater you know what I mean it was just incredible to watch and so hopefully we get to see you guys again and we can you know get a a winner and you can move on and if they reverse it that would be great as well for you

So uh thank you for on and talking about all this I know it’s not very fun but we appreciate it very much thank you very much for inviting me again and it’s always a pleasure thank you very much Mel see we’ll talk to you soon thank you

Cedric there he is the great Cedric Dumay unfortunate turn of events um never seen that before don’t know if we’ll ever see that again he makes a fantastic Point regarding people walking into the cage no you know it’s not malicious it’s not malicious at all but uh yeah probably should uh should wipe

It you know sweep the cage and by the way like you you you see people walking into the cage all the time or the ring in boxing but they’re not fighting Barefoot um so this is an important thing I know sometimes UFC I see they’re they’re well when there’s blood and

Stuff they’re spraying they’re cleaning I don’t know if they sweep every time can’t recall but uh that feels like it’s a thing that should happen very important um so let’s run it back think he might have a case in terms of a no contest historically they don’t reverse

Those but I feel like he might have a case um so let’s see what happens there most important run back clear-cut winner five rounds I would like that and then uh everyone could move on and maybe we get the Jason Jackson fight end of the year all right one more guest and so

Excited to be joined by her uh as I said on Saturday night one of my favorite people ever uh not just in MMA but in life one of the nicest people that you will ever meet salt of the earth uh a true you know just a saint of a lady I

Mean I can’t say enough good things about her and honestly I I I knew that the end was near but I I wasn’t quite sure that it was coming to an end win or lose on Saturday until they mentioned it on the broadcast maybe I missed it on

Fight week but uh I didn’t see that stipulation come out and so there was a lot on the line for Joanne wood she went out there and what a way to go out a pioneer of the game a Trailblazer especially with those closing moments and the spinning

Backfist I have no idea how Marina morose ate that and kept on picking but in the end she gets the win she goes out on top rightfully so and she gets to sail off into the sunset uh of Victor a winner of her last two by the way kind

Enough to join us the one and only Joanne wood there she is hello Joanne how are you hello I’m good ter you who’s this guy or gal Goose remember from the last time oh yes I I he was all he was over there sleeping and then I think he

Heard your voice and he was like I want and then this again than he am I crazier or is he bigger than the last time yeah he’s bigger yeah okay yeah wow well that was a year ago remember that was a year ago yes how old is he

Now he’s a year in five months I think oh wow okay so he was a puppy wow um well congratulations so great to talk to you am I right like did you maybe I missed it did because I heard the broadcast say this is it for you but I

Don’t remember you saying that before or it coming up before did you just tell them that or did I miss it you missed it but it’s okay it’s okay I know you follow me anymore what I that’s wrong first of all where did you

Say that this was the end for you no so I think I my last when when the fight got booked I wrote up this was last time to sadle up okay so yeah so I put it on my social media and then kind of from there it’s but I

Knew I knew this was definitely going to be my last fight and why why was why was that the decision made months ago because last year after my went in London I was like hey this would be a perfect time to you know hang up the

Gloves and then I had one more fight left on my contract so I was like ah maybe I should just fight the last fight and then so I was between that too so I knew it was it was it was close for sure and and why was it a year between

Fights H because of the sport you know injuries and just yeah yeah I had a lot going on and uh I had a few injuries as well so I actually was supposed to fight in September in Salt Lake City oh but my Visa I I appli for my greenen card and

It was be issues so H don’t want to point any elbows but Danny ruing St that up not less than to me but yeah he there was an issue and then I had to pull out that F Danny dropped the ball a rare Danielle

Wow so he got fired then and then he got fired again on Saturday night ah because you’re done you have no use for him anymore that’s right um well he wasn’t at my f why wasn’t he at your F where was he because it was a first

Fight he’s wa wait a second he was in Miami but he wasn’t in the arena yeah oh my god really aren’t you one of his first ever clients uh I think I was like first to five or something he didn’t show up to the fight did you did you address this

With him yeah yep I then I fired him legit but it doesn’t matter retired did this bother you no okay you could care less yeah wait what’s going on Whose camera is this right here this camera just showed up in the middle of the shot what’s going on we turning the tables on

Us yeah you’re getting nerv right don’t see anything okay is there a documentary crew following you yeah for for me and John and the the gy as well what is it about that’s all oh yeah more yeah I can’t really talk about it right now but yeah okay I didn’t know we

Had company that’s all how many people are in the room right now h four okay feels like a hostage situation you everything okay blank twice yes yes yes okay great um so knowing that this was the last ride so to speak how was the journey to

Get to Miami like because I’m sure maybe you thought this is the last time I’m cutting weight this is the last check-in this is the last this did you find yourself emotional leading up to the fight yeah that kind of creeped in but I tried to not kind of let those emotions

Come in because obviously I don’t want those emotions there I wanted to keep it everything until Saturday night until after the job was done so uh it was exciting for me I felt I definitely felt it in the weight cut I was like this is stupid I don’t know this sucks why why

Are why did we ever do this like every time like it’s terrible so yeah I definitely that came in I was like at least it’s my last one so that was the only time came in that at least it was my last one you know I’m not going to

That for sure probably never going to see 125 again how did you feel in the back before the the final walk I had all the same feelings you know I was nervous ER you know this is one thing I tell everyone after doing it for 20 years after fighting for 20 years

H it you would think it would get better you know the lead up it doesn’t if anything it gets worse really you don’t get like used to it more comfortable in that tension no but you know you need those nerves you need all those feelings just

To keep you a l and keep being what living um was was part of the I don’t know the the fairy tale of this being the last fight the fact that you get a chance to fight the woman who beat you for the first like did did you just love

The way it all it was like a nice little neat package did you did you like the symbolism yeah yeah it was perfect it was like a full circle and the funny thing is I didn’t even ask for that fight W it just that was the name that I

Got given so yeah it was perfect um you you f great and then you landed that spinning back fist could you imagine if that was it if you would have won on the spinning back fist were you shocked that she ate it yeah the fans kept her up I feel like

If that was out in the open and uh yeah I I feel like that’s a sh me you know of typical like that could have been the end could have been 50 G’s right there and but nope defense was there for her she took it so but I I don’t care it was

It was perfect um how much did the result mean to you meaning like did you think a lot man I don’t want to go out on a loss like I really want this one you always want to win every fight but knowing that it was the last one how

Much did you harp on that yeah yeah it it meant it meant a lot to me but also like I didn’t want to put that extra pressure on me cuz the pressure is already there as you know so H I just I just left it was like you

Know what what’s meant to be is meant to be I’m here I’m this career has brought me to where I am right now and I couldn’t be more happier even if I go out and I loss like it doesn’t change my life outside side of the octagon it’s just this it

Was perfect it was a cherry on the top the top of winning going out on a win but like I said it matter if I I lost because I’m winning in life right now and there was no part of you in in that moment like

Hey two in a row I’m rolling here let’s keep going no it’s no when you wake up and you’re already tired and sore and you know it’s it’s it’s just time it’s time for the next chapter and uh you know I have a great life and I’m just ready to

Enjoy it and with injuries and stuff you just really don’t know even for this Camp I got a scar with my back two weeks before and it’s it just really puts things in yeah consideration of what we’re actually doing here so obviously the body takes a toll and you get up there

In in age and you know you’re not you know father time as they say undefeated but is there any other reason why this is the right time to do it like you just feel like you’ve squeezed everything out that it’s not as fun anymore what what

Is the the the ultimate reason why you feel like now is the right time yeah I ain’t a spring chicken anymore and like I say this is hard this is hard what we do you know training two or three times a day the injuries we go

Through the what we put our body and mind through it it isn’t easy and as you get older it’s even harder because you’re you can’t train as hard or as much as you trained when you started so yeah I just felt like it was a good time

I want to go on high and knowing that I’m still good and uh not just keep keep fting I I I don’t need to fate I’m still doing it because I love it and I’m back in the gym you know I love I’m going to

I’m never not going to do this you know especially for my mental health I’m going to be doing this all of my days and and just not competing at the highest level I saw in the post fight interview you were emotional and as you’re walking out like knowing that it

Was the last time what did that feel like wasn’t thinking about it at the time but now hearing you talking at the start was really I’ve had to stop their Waterworks now it’s finally like when the adrenaline kicks in and all that it was I wasn’t I wasn’t ready to be

Emotional which was good but I know at that night today probably this whole week I’m really going to have been feeling it meaning the like everything’s going to come out yeah I’m probably I and I have been like crying you know like this this is it’s it’s hard you know to know that

What I’ve went through and to know that where it’s brought me you know it’s it’s hard so you know one thing and uh I hope you don’t mind me asking this like I I notic that you you always mention how how good your life is now and you seem like it’s just like

Radiating off of you how happy you are in life your personal life which then bleeds into your professional life and I know just knowing you a little bit that at one point that wasn’t the case right did you were there were there moments where you thought that you would never

Get to this happiness that this happiness was unattainable yeah there yeah there’s been lots of times where I’ve thought that there’s been lots of times I’ve hit rck bottom ER and you know to get to this place where you know it’s it’s not easy everyone’s gone through their struggles even now

Like even though I’m at that point and I’m happy it’s so really hard life’s hard but to know that I’ve been to Rock Bottom to be been to that place and still kept going you know get never gave up is means a lot to me how long ago was rock bottom jeez I

Can’t I was saying John I need to write out a Tim line line because I forgot more than I know but I mean I I faced something last year and I won’t go into details but that was that was rck bottom for me but there’s been like I said

There’s been lots of rck bottom moments for me and um I fight and I get up and brush off my knees and get back at it so as recently as last year I thought you were gonna say like five six seven years ago no oh wow hey life throws carve

Balls and he just have to take roll with the punchies okay um and do you feel like you’re in a better place now yeah okay yeah by the way how what led you because it feels like the big turning point for you was going to Las Vegas going to Syndicate meeting your future

Husband John what were the circumstances that brought you there CU for a minute you were kind of like a little bit of a nomad right training all over the place you’re even in Montreal at one point all over the world how do you end up there who’s responsible for

That Clint at the pi the ufcp he uh he helped me with my nutrition and he got me back on the path to come back and being healthier so yeah I owe a lot to him for bringing me here and that was the start of me you know

Really making a turn in my career and going all in on the science and being a better athlete and then to get to Syndicate I mean syndicate’s two minutes from the pi so I I came here because at the time there was a lot of ghetto Fighters so

That was also one thing that I left Scotland looking for was for ghetto female female training Partners so yeah that brought me to here when when you you your first fight was in your first pro fight was in 2012 um when you but I know you were fighting and training

Before that um when you started all of this how long did you think it would last like what were you planning for what did you envision uh think my plan was to have kids when I was 35 so I was hoping I would be done by 30 but you know life

Never goes goes the way you you think it’s going to go or the way you plan it and and why did you even start this start MMA or start just this light yeah this why did you go down this path I wasn’t very good at school chasing that like

Oh what was my click and just by chance I went to a my Tha class with my brother and it just I done I done a class and I was like hey this is this is awesome and uh yeah ever since then I knew that was

The bug inside me I knew that was the love so yeah I just done whatever I could to keep doing that because when I went there and I was training hitting pads sparing my my little brother everything all my problems outside gone I was in the moment living that moment

And I just kept on chasing that high did did he travel down this road as well did he try to become a fighter no he done it for a while and then he he likes Golf and football stalker right right right he went down that road but he’s my biggest fan

Probably knows more more about MMA than me um was he there on Saturday no unfortunately no but he was watching okay your mom was there no she had already planned she already planned her Las Vegas trip H for the end of the month so I asked her to come out but she

She couldn’t get time off her work so she’s coming in a couple of weeks so that would be good okay so she wasn’t there I saw the the photo of your your rager Afterparty it seemed like a crazy time I don’t know if you’re uh you’re

Still feeling the effects of it but what was that like when you got back to the to the room with your husband with your stepson and I think you had other family members there maybe right yeah yeah I brought I brought a Scottish family out

Te he’s helped me a lot since even since I’ve left Scotland all those years ago he’s he’s always checked up on me and just always been there for me me cornered me for my fate in London actually but he brought his family out and it’s it’s great because I just have

A little bit of comfort hearing Scottish people and just you know not having to change my words or change you know like thinking oh did they understand me you know I just I’m just level and it’s a great comfort knowing that they’re there so yeah they were all there and a

Few people that came out from guess so it was good it was good and I was in bed after the the main event nice so it was perfect didn’t have to get wet for and just straight to bed you don’t want to stay and and watch it all

Live well we can’t you know we we can’t as soon as you fight you get checked by the doctors do media and you’re straight at the back door that’s so great that that blows my mind there’s no no oh my Lord uh I noen green room or anything

That’s the the main thing that we yeah we always used to be the ice cream room like I there’s none of that anymore yeah after Co they stopped that yeah that’s that’s why I’m retiring no no more ice cream oh yeah yeah no I don’t blame you

Um if if someone there’s a lot of new fans if someone wants to see like Jojo at her finest Apex of your career what you’re most proud of what’s the fight that you would tell them to go watch uh H I would say probably the first Scottish fight in

Glasgow and when I bought Courtney Casey I thought that was that’s a great fight and we got fight the night for that and for me it was I just went out there and threw a m and H yeah I love that fight and I I still say to this day that’s

Probably my favorite fight amazing um and and and as far as like you know when I say like pioneer Trailblazer things like that are you comfortable with that do you consider yourself that I mean you know me I don’t like talking about myself for saying anything good but

Yeah I’m proud of what I’ve done and proud proud of Looking Back Now proud of everything any regrets oh geez there’s lots of regrets but if I go back and I res all that then I wouldn’t be sitting right here right and and what about the circumstances

Regarding fighting for a UFC belt do you think that’s something that will bother you that that it never happened I know I I didn’t even make it to the poster but I got the picture Okay H man that was crazy that whole event like her telling us that she wouldn’t

Make the fight and then them asking me to fight in two weeks and we were in quarantine and it was during covid and then going and lose and then there was an incident afterwards and I like I was in there amulance I I saw the light in the ambulance and it’s funny looking

Back yeah you just you just don’t know this this life’s crazy and but I’m I’m like I say if I raised all that would I be here I don’t know what do you mean you saw the light in the ambulance yeah I passed out after that F

And uh they took me straight to hospital and they had to call for backup because my heart rate dropped and they were thinking they put John up front and yeah they they didn’t know what they had to call for backup so it was it was crazy but

Anyway doesn’t matter you know there was a lot I do regret but but I’m not going to live on that I’m happy here in this moment and so I’m here just curious considering that scare did you did you consider stop fighting after that yeah we I ended up getting I tested positive

For covid a couple of days later and H I was really really bad and yeah I had to have a hard think about about what but like I says we’ve got we’ve done injuries that we’re like hey but is this the I can remember the

First time I got to Las Vegas and H someone spiked me on my head and I’m lying there like I finally got my life in order and I finally came here and I’ve met the man in my dreams my my steps on you know and I’m lying on the

Mat looking up at the ceiling like is this it and I’m never going to be able to I don’t I didn’t even know if like I could feel anything you know these are things that we go through and there’s story behind every every fight every fight Camp every fight you don’t take

Every just everything and anyway I’m trying not to cry here I’m SC I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry you’re doing a great job uh I’m assuming you’re not going to miss any of that right you’re not like all that like just maybe it feels like an 800 pound gorillas off your

Shoulders yeah I was saying that to John this morning I feel like my chest is lighter you know I don’t have all this you know I’m still going to train still going to help a lot of people in the team and still do Jiu-Jitsu and things

Like that but it’s good to know that you’re not you know you can take a day off you can take a session off not worrying about i f that you have to compete at your best are you going to transition now to being a coach at at the gym like

Full-time I’m sitting in John’s seat right now this is the bossy seat I’m I’m ready to take over and he just walked in uh oh uh I’m just saying that he just walked in no I’m I’m ready to help him with the business side the team and yeah

Ready for that chapter um are there are there I don’t think ready or the team have my weap are there things outside of MMA that you want to do no this is my life I still want to be part of the sport and er yeah still want to be involved and i’

I married a a guy with a gym so I’m set up for life and and I’m just curious I know you mentioned your stepson in the postf fight interview how how has that changed you being being a mother to a young boy how has that changed you as a

Person it’s Sur proudest thing I’ve ever had going on in my life love him dearly he loves me we respect each other we have fun we we just I’m it’s funny cuz now I’m like okay now I can be even better stepmom and he he’s how can you how can you be

Be how can you be better so yeah I give him my all but I know I can now it’s going to be like you know when you’re cutting weight and stuff you’re always can going to be a little bit grumpy and stuff so he gets even though he gets all of me he’s

Just going to get even more is John still in the room no oh I wanted to ask him a question about about I think he’s okay bab baby what I always got a question for you hey John how are you what’s up man I just wanted to ask good how how did you

Feel seeing your wife on Saturday retire on top and how she fought just curious your your emotions as well man you know I was just telling my guys at practice very very few people get to write their own ending of the story and have it go the way they want it to go

And you know this is a situation that was obviously very special for me to not only you know I tell people there’s two sides this it’s bittersweet it’s my wife so it’s amazing that you know she’s able to have a career and was so happy for

And the fact she gets to go out on a two fight win streak and do that um you know was amazing and it was a lot of emotions and you know it was it was it was a mixture like I said a bitter sweet because at the same time you know she’s

Also my fighter and and fighter first and foremost that’s one of those things that when we first got into this is like hey these things are separate and we’ve done very very good at doing that but you know losing one of the people like

With Joe is I wish I had you know I wish I had 20 to her cuz she’s always on time early she’s always ready to go you never have to tell her when to show up when to go how hard to go how to train do

Everything is just is and I’m not just say this CH my wife you know it’s she’s spot on with everything so you know losing that as a as a as a coach um you know kind of sucks to not have that on the mat every day you know I know she’s

Still going to train and be part of the gym but um you know she’s always been a pleasure to work with but um you know most it’s a mixture of emotions you know obviously more happy than than sad and obviously getting a win um I’ve probably

Never smiled as hard as I did that night you know and there was a you know those moments of like oh my God should I cry should I laugh should I myself you know it’s just like I don’t know it’s all over the place you know where it’s

It’s just a lot of everything but overall I’m so happy for her so happy for you know the team and to have her be able to transition into something else after you know fighting is is I’m I’m proud to be able to you know be part of

That too so it’s just just the beginning for a new chapter I love that I love that shirt by the way when did 2.0 start that’s a great shirt was a couple gez we did this one like four or five years ago okay I didn’t get that one but I that was when

I first when I first came here I do have these in the in the studio proudly right over here so very guys are always the best one too that you’ll thow yeah the wedding gift yes wait what was that JoJo the best one too that you’ll throw

Yes yes yes oh of course the best one two yes I will translate the best one two thank you thank you uh and and uh by the way John just in closing um how do you feel about being demoted um you know she told me that she’s now the head

Coach so I was just curious about that I mean if she’s willing to step up and take the work off my plan I’m actually good with it I’m okay I I’ll sit back and watch her go through all this crap so um well I I do have to say

299 was a great card and a lot of good people who I admire greatly went out on top nothing made me happier than Joanne wood going out on top with a win it really was a beautiful thing and honestly one of my favorite people that

I’ve ever met in life not just in MMA so you’re a very lucky man and I wish you guys nothing but the best and we’ll miss you JoJo but happy that you’re still in the sport and uh wish you nothing but the best I’m glad this was my last interview with

You I hope not but if you want it to be then that’s okay this is it over this is it all right I don’t want to be in front of the camera no yeah got a lot of good memories and any we I think that was a thank you Eric

Yeah I know all good thank you so much no problem and uh I’ll we’ll always have that trip supp of course and we’ll always have that trip to the barber shop in uh Brooklyn I don’t think you like the haircut but I always enjoyed that

Trip and uh it was one of my highlights so uh well done and uh I’m so happy for you congrats on an incredible career thank you thank you so much thank you for always getting me on here and yeah never I’ve never been the best interviews but you’ve always stuck with

Me and appreciate you thanks guys talk to you soon all the best there she is Joanne wood I’m G to put this back oh boy some Waterworks there my friends um I I I mean genuinely an incredible person oh gosh is there anything we could cut to there for a

Moment uh is there a commercial break um she’s just I mean how could you not love her and uh she’s had some ups and downs and I don’t know about the uh the Downs of last year I’m not sure about that uh that’s a good shot thank you

Appreciate that that’s very nice uh what is that shot called uh the the fourth wall yeah yeah that one it’s perfect um but yeah we went to a barber shop in Williamsburg before her fight in 2019 that was the uh Arian lipsky fight which he did you remember there was a period

Where she had the uh the shaved sides um it was a very cool look for a while um and uh she got the haircut done we so I set it up I I took her to a barber shop but I don’t think she loved it for whatever reason she had a person in

Vegas and uh I just got you know you know you get someone a present or something you put in you’re like they’re like thank you so much but you don’t really feel like they love that was just me and my interpretation it also might be my Neurosis um

That’s a very personal thing yeah no no I didn’t do the haircut I didn’t cut it but I just took her to a place and I I mean not everybody can be paoc Costa but what I’m saying is um that relationship is very personal so gifting somebody a haircut or I

Didn’t give know taking a haircut is not not a great remember do you remember this I remember the video now you have to remind me of the circumstances no the video was first show on ESPN and my idea for a shoot was it was for the pre-show when we were doing the

Pre-show stuff yeah that we would go to a barber shop and see her going she say she was already going to a barber shop or did you propose this no no no this was the period remember she used to do the shaved of the the thing so I was

Like could you could we follow you and then she said like I don’t you live here right you live in this area so would you recommend so I recommended my own Barber Shop what that what what am I supposed to do not recommend my own Barber Shop

Take her somewhere else put a lot of pressure on that yeah well I mean at least I could sort of vouch for it as opposed to you know taking her to some jabroni spot maybe she would have gotten it done in Vegas by the way she hasn’t actually confirmed that she didn’t like

No no no well I’ll say this when you said I feel like you didn’t like it she didn’t rush to say no you’re right you’re right golly now I feel hor let that one sit now I feel horrible I mean look when she talked about regrets in

Her career obviously that’s what she was talking about she said there was many that she was like yeah what about that barber show Barber show in 20 19 um what a what a what a great person interview she’s always been I know she you know

She is a little bit shelled up and has said like it’s hard for her to come out of her showell but I feel like you two have always kind of had a great Rapport and it’s been a long time man it’s been a long freaking time man uh Andrew

Feldman posted a video of me in our hotel room with Casey Casey and Esther always had a great relationship with her too still do I don’t even remember what this I think it was a San Jose fight which did she have a fight in San J for some reason the hotel looked familiar

Maybe I’m Wrong Glasgow Ottawa oh you know what I think it was Cleveland that’s what it was Jessica andraud UFC 203 that’s what it was yeah um anyway we did a whole thing there she talked about the haircut and all that when when you were doing PR for

Invicta was she there or was this pre or post that was post I was not there during you were you came after when she was already in the UFC yeah yeah um man there was just uh there there’s something about that like first wave of straw weights and the early you know

Invicta Fighters I mean she fought Invicta 6 Invicta 3 like you know this is the explosion 2012 2011 and I’ll say it once I’ll say it a million times that era fighter from like 0708 09 to around 2012 like those Fighters it’s just like I I I

Feel as a fan of of the sport and obviously someone who’s been covering it for a like I feel like a piece of me dies as well I feel like a piece of me retires as well um and I don’t know this this may be a silly thing but like I I

Do feel like it’s unfair that I get to continue and they don’t and I know they get to continue and be coaches in the ways in which they want but it’s just a weird thing it’s like they’re the ones who should be able to continue forever um the media guys shouldn’t be like

There should be an end date for us um not for them but I don’t know it’s just a range of emotions and especially when it’s the uh you know it’s one of the good The Good the good people the good souls in the sport bummer that she never

Got the title fight remember the circumstances she thought that she was going to get it and then she took another fight instead of waiting and then that fight didn’t go way the Jennifer Maya fight I think it was um rolled the dice didn’t work out but in

The end nothing to be ashamed of nothing to hang her head about nothing to be down about um a true pioneer of women’s MMA of European MMA just uh an amazing fighter an amazing person an amazing soul and very happy that she has found this happiness and will now be a part of

You know teaching the new generation and getting them uh ready and that’s the beauty of these Fighters now retiring they can now you know cuz they’re they’re they’re the originals and hopefully now with the sport evolving and getting to be so big that uh you know we’ve reached this point

Where now these Fighters can teach the new Fighters about what to do what not to do dos and don’ts things of that nature so congratulations to Scotland’s Joan wood for an amazing win on uh Saturday and an amazing career an amazing spinning backfist as well could you imagine if she would have retired

With a spinning back fist knockout not someone who was known to be a knockout artist but that was flush that was clean and what about the full circle nature of her beating the person who handed her her first loss as a pro back in April of

2015 at the Kow Poland and I think it’s kov if I’m being precise Poland card uh headlined by Gabriel Gonzaga versus Miro crocop how about that wow isn’t that amazing that’s some throwback right there part two of course part one was in London remember was it in London or was

It in England uh sorry was it in London or was it in Manchester uh where was it Gabriel Gonzaga I think it might have been outside of London Manchester yep 2007 one of the greatest knockouts of all time all right um let’s see how the boys did but first a quick word from

Our good friends over at draftking sports book as you guys know the thrill and excitement of March Mania is here in draftking Sportsbook one of the top rated sports book apps in America is giving new customers a shot to turn five bucks into $150 instantly in bonus Bets

With any college basketball bet uh it’s starting the big turny Syracuse of course favorites uh GC used to actually host little know fact a college basketball was it a college basketball podcast or was it a college basketball betting podcast a college basketball betting podcast I mean that

Is as a get that is ridiculously specific no one listen to it um do you watch college basketball at all like how how many games you think you’ve watched start to finish this year uh zero yeah not a single one start to finish you’re talking about tip to final buzzer not a

Single one have you watched any like has there been any game where you’re like oh I need to like at least catch the second half I need to I’ve tuned into a couple Yukon games you know living in Connecticut got some friends that are that are Die Hard fans yeah obviously

Dan Hurley uh and them being so good I’ve I’ve tuned into a couple of those I’ll throw it on on uh you know big Tuesday or or Saturday but now was it was such a labor of love the uh the podcast that like it made me dislike

College basketball wow I mean it was I we did it for free no one listened to it and it was so much work what was it called again uh one and dun one and dun yeah uh Conor bur and the great Jake L getting a shout out earlier on the show

To Die Hard uh Nigam Forest fan as well yeah um yeah he was at he was at 11 right he was at 2 99 and then he was at 11 he was at 299 too yeah he had a Dustin po sha oi parlay said like one of

The greatest moments he’s seen at a live sporting event was Dustin pu getting that knockout cuz then he felt good going into the final leg Yeah and then he you know finishes it up with the main event um all right so you guys and uh any any picks for March Mania as we’re

Calling it here I think because the other term is Trade Mark is there a favorite is there I mean there’s definitely a favorite I think yukon’s the favorite right now maybe Houston is one by the way I think Houston is right now wow uh but yeah I don’t know I mean

I’ll obviously bet on it once it comes around I mean March Madness is still or March Mania excuse me is uh is still one of my favorite sporting events ever there’s just something special about it Springtime in the air ah nothing like that daylight saing Thursday the Friday

Daylight savings time just hit St Patrick’s Day I mean it doesn’t time especially in New York it really Starts Now with the uh the conference tournaments those are fun as well oh yeah it’s a great and um I P you know last year of course I went on a limb I

Picked Yukon to win of course NBD and then did the the profile on Coach Hurley so obviously I I love the Yukon guys because of the connection but Syracuse number one in my heart so let’s see I think they’re going to be uh a force I

Think they’re in the top 10 seven or something like that so let’s see how it all goes down of course the place to be for all your action draftking Sportsbook download the draftking Sportsbook app and use the code the M new customers can bet 5 bucks to get $150 instantly in

Bonus bets only on draftking sports book with the code DM the crown is yours gambling problem call 100 Gambler or if you’re in New York call 8778 Hope NY text Hope NY that’s 467 369 in Conneticut by the way help us available for problem gambling call 8887895118 and now it is the moment of truth are we back are we off the schneide your body language does not suggest so no gentlemen no all right listen not back yeah uh what happened uh xile jang’s gas tank happened uh on he was looking so good he

Was looking so good so good rocking and rolling when he got that first knockdown I was like this is easy work the pride of New Jersey a New Jersey man would never let me down like this yes Bloomfield and you know then it starts not looking so good then he gets another

Knockdown I mean just effortless power uh and it was just it was such a was such a miserable watch because you you knew the gas tank was gone you knew Parker was going to get those last four rounds and you knew it was going to be

Close on the scorecards and you just saw it coming from a mile away and you just had to watch it happen especially those last two rounds he was just doing nothing so I killed it on Friday backtack weeks I mean this is heartbreaking stuff right here this is

Just it’s embarrassing for me backtack weeks I am the sole Coster of the parlay Pals and uh the the end of March approaches even faster and we remain winless I mean we think in April maybe May no UFC 301 we finally get on the board this week baby it’s coming this is

A good week to do it Apex 88 stacked yeah I mean fight after fight after fight top to bottom curtain jerker to to headliner can I just say when they went uh at the end of 299 they’re like these are upcoming events and it was I it was like

Four I like it was like a visceral reaction for me when I saw it I was just like oh my God at least we got Atlantic City yeah we’ll be there for that but yeah this Apex card is it’s not great like putting taiu evasa in the Apex seems sacr like it’s just

Like criminal what are we what are we doing like he’s on a short list of Fighters that should never fight in the Apex walks who whose shoe is he going to take yeah n they’ll be some influencer guy there Mark Zuckerberg’s gonna toss his shoe up to to Tai Aiden Ross or

Something sneo these people have just been like forced down our throats it’s like I can’t I can’t escape them at this point between my kids kids who are slowly getting into this world and and now just like the amount that the UFC pushes them on us it’s like I I feel

Like nothing else exists Nothing Else Matters it’s just this this is my life every time I go on Twitter this is how I get on Twitter every time I get on Twitter it’s another one of these videos this is how your parents felt about all

Your Idols at the time it’s a fair point when I used to watch pro wrestling and the Undertaker in particular what come on the screen my dad immigrant from Egypt would say what is this stupid what is this smart boy watching take his yes exactly I get it now fair enough I get

It oh boy I get it um man I’m sorry no it’s all right I just I just need to I need to stick to what I know I just I need to stick to to UFC I shouldn’t I shouldn’t have listen my pride for the great state of New Jersey got the best

Of me and and that’s I mean that’s what did it I wanted to support the Garden State and and look where it got me good good good good news is is I get to do it again in just a few weeks couple couple New Jersey Fighters fighting in New

Jersey so I can I can support then uh but yeah I mean the rest of my picks like I said I just kind of need to stick to the UFC got reverse swept on pfl and boxing Cedric Doom uh yeah we lost to the Splinter that was a tough one but I

Was like man we got so many picks we’ll bounce back one of my favorite plays of the of the week of the year Joshua under a half knockout no knock or I mean a half knockdown knockdowns yeah that that got that got wiped quick that got wiped quick I mean

I was we were throwing ticker tape parades back here with like how good of a bet this was I mean we were like we’re just waiting for this thing to cash and then it took about 60 seconds and it was a straight loser Josh we by decision L and gam by split never

Even had a chance that was just me just making oh yep draftking Sports we here’s my donation to you uh the good news is is that we did find some success on 299 we got a little bit back we got a little bit back not much uh do well on the

Parlays there’s uh you know the AF for mentioned Z Jang you know being the only parlay piece that lost for me all week double in the parlay PS and in in my own buts uh but it is what it is uh yeah losing week I mean we were feeling so

Good after UFC Mexico City we were we were on fire we have come crashing back down to earth we are we are fully back in in Earth down on the week down on the year fall back below 100 units like you guys said good news is we can bounce

Back at UFC Apex 88 I mean look at this though we had 41 14 bets I will do no more than five this week five is my absolute limitation I will not Place more than five and it might even be less than five five is my absolute limit for

Bets on UFC a piex 88 um I am not the story of the weekend though because I you know I did poorly we got to get into some big hitters because there are some absolutely insane ones from this Weekend Syracuse Orange ranked seventh huh yeah am I wrong I think seventh in the ACC tournament yeah that’s just as important what are they ranked overall uh not ranked not ranked unfortunately H interesting I was actually when I saw the seven I was like oh wow they’re actually pretty

Good yeah I was like if your team seven yeah I would do I would I would love to have Georgia basketball be good but we stink we we sold ourselves for football um all right let’s start it off Kane leack goes by Swiss uh 13 leg parlays 13

Up 13 down through $5 on this thing to win 5,140 that is a plus 12,8 800 bet I mean that just sounds fake uh gets pretty much every fight on the card correctly the only person he left off was Joan wood I guess he missed the first fight

Of the night uh $5 into 5100 wouldn’t mind that right now I would not mind that great call by him the winners this week are just crazy big Rudy shout out to our guy Rudy plus 34,7 166 he turns 87 cents into $32 I I don’t even know some of these

Names I mean he was all across the board he had some Glory mixed in there Rico ver hoen oh yeah 299 I mean he was he was all over the by way I called it yeah you I saw I I heard you guys take some subtle shots you went on Lim and worked

Anyone else yeah yeah good uh next up Fox foxy 281 28159 266 J fox shout out to him 10 leg multi Plus 22,4 460 gets every fight that he predicts correctly got a couple dogs mixed in there Dustin porier Michael pagee Felipe lens turns $10 into

2246 just insane and then there’s a guy our guy Mary nude he consistently makes the show and I just I don’t know how this guy does it he hit a he hit one parlay uh $30 into 13,452 another one uh $67 into 2800 and then one more uh $50 into

7,6 uh by my estimates that’s turning just over $140 into almost 20,000 I mean he got every single fight R I don’t I don’t know how many of these he puts in but it’s it’s it’s truly just unbelievable a couple more here big parlay here from Brian Cashman two to

Two to win 339 got every fight on the main card correct but not just that he got the methods as well Al decision pory AKO Paige decision unbelievable stuff uh John bonjourno shout out to the bonjos uh he goes you know same uh bonjo are a uh a family

Friend our our friend Jake uh comes from bonjo lineage oh wow Jake getting a third shout out in today’s this is the Jake C uh $25 into 3,800 Ali decision robes Des Spain P Yan decision por AK Paige decision and gamr just just crazy stuff uh I mean I I got

A million of these if you didn’t make the show today I’m sorry you had to have like a plus 11,000 uh next up not our Jake but Jake The Snake oh yeah he gets the whole main card right too why not plus 11,000 86 into 10K before the main card starts he has

$86 when the the main card ends just a few hours later he has 10,000 shout out to Jake The Snake uh another just like Dart here J Patrick 991 uh $20 into 2,200 just gets every one of his fights right and then one last main card just

Nailed it Pon points MVP Jack Dela Shan Mali points Dustin porier that’s our man GSP 5103 2849 oh yeah Pagan I mean you know you know him well how could you mistake anyone else and then lastly the bad beat of the week this one hurts bad ironically spuds bad bets this was a

Great bet Spud but unfortunately he has like a 14 leg parlay plus 7849 120 would would have turned 10 lb or €1 into 78,000 had damn songy dong beaten on could you imagine how good he felt going into that second round I mean you can

See on the slip right now he had a $10 bet with a cash out option of 65 he obviously didn’t go with that and got nothing but he was songy dong away from getting 78 Grand so that’s the bad beat of the week that one hurts that’s what that large

Yell was that I heard somebody who realized he lost it shout out the Spud Poor Song song look like a superstar all week huh with the cut off shirt and the hair and everything oh he looked great but Yan back on track downloaded the information got it done

Yeah um all right well congratulations to all the big Winners you guys will get back on track and um we always do yeah I mean I saw some like I’m not really into all that world I I saw some people hitting parlays and stuff this week you know like if you

Want any sort of any tips or anything like that’s cool it’s like wow you no no I just I saw people doing it like just sort of on their own to it’s what is this the No No your parlay that you did hit this week if you want to step in for

Me I don’t no I’m not talking about me you think I’m talking about me a guy you think I’m talking about me no I know no no no I wasn’t talking um nah it’s freaking uh I did see this coming through here on the wire uh pfl’s new

Season 60 participants 34 of them are from Bellator that’s a lot that’s what I like to hear 22 are returning so there’s more Bellator guys than or and and gals um 22 are returning pfl Fighters and four free agent signings the first one is April 4th in San Anton uh anti delli

Against Valentine malski uh Dennis goov against Linton Bessel uh Juliana Velasquez against Liz Carmo Tyro Fortune against Daniel James who else is there Dakota dvon the prelims that’s an interesting one Bruno capoa returning Dennis ke Holtz against Talia Santos tal Santos making her debut uh Steve mauy so a ton

Of Bellator I like this yeah I like the combining of The rosters this is Kan wanabi Lucas Brennan uh we move along the next event is the day before UFC 300 what do we got April 12th in Vegas Phil Davis against Robert Wilkinson um impa kasang against Alex Pelosi patricky pipple against Klay

Collard that’s a fun one mads Bernell against Michael dufor sat buy against Josh svera Antonio Carlos Jr against Simon bong who else uh Brent primis on there so a lot of familiar faces I’m not gonna lie I completely forgot about Tyler Santos being in the pfl until you just mentioned that yeah

Uh April 19th Andre koreshkov on there Brandon Loch against Pedro carvalo that’s a fun one uh Logan storle against Shamil musv non Gracie against GOI amuchi I mean this is a lot of Bellator uh more than half yeah Adam borck Brett Jon’s Kyle crutchmer my guy always bet

On Kyle uh going up against Don M so this is actually more Bellator than I expected interesting all right so there you have it um that’s April 12th uh I did mention a lot of the big things that happened this week obviously Tyson Jake for July 20th pfl Paris Francis

Anthony uh shout out to Rico verhoven for winning the glory one night kickboxing tournament shout out to Todd Grisham by the way Todd Grisham going from Puerto Rico to Saudi Arabia direct three flights actually one of his flights got canceled had to sleep in Philadelphia gets to Saudi Arabia got

There after me and I went home for a day um calls the fight fight goes incredibly long throws to the ring to Bruce Buffer making the announcement leaves has his bags with him at the airport gets in a cab pays the cab driver three times the rate oh Michael Buffer pays the cab

Driver three times the rate to speed to get him to the airport to catch a flight to Doha and cutter to then go to Amsterdam makes the first play with minutes to spare literally minutes he had 45 minutes from the arena to the airport to get there makes the flight

And then gets there just in time for the start of the card to call it in Amsterdam and then go home on Sunday just a freaking Beast um anyway glory and then 299 probably missed out on the biggest news story since we last spoke on Wednesday which is what Lexa Grasso

Valentina shevchenko oh tough tough yeah how do we feel how do we feel you know what I messed up on what the that was the story yeah the biggest story that’s a good call that was a good call uh they had a face off how do we feel yeah we

Got the we got the video for it can we see the face off yeah I think we can before we talk okay here we are good stuff the trilogy shout out to Forest Griffin in the middle there oh yeah looking great any firework what is this what’s happening oh they’re friends I

Mean they’ve been War twice what’s going on hugging it out no Jersey for Valentina we keep the Jersey color secret no I like that Conor shears her own be funny if they were talking wild even though they’re like smiling at at the forward facing Alexa with the belt oh oh Valentina

Gonna sneak like she’s gonna sneak it thank you to Oscar Willis for that footage oh shout out my guy yeah yeah yeah um what do you think that Valentina is killing her with kindness it seems it smilees a little I like that move by her yeah bringing her in yeah what were you

Going to ask Rick how do we feel about it no so you asked how we feel about it I was just you know when you know when you say a question and then somebody repeats it and you can tell that they either don’t care it’s or you know they

Don’t have an answer because there’s no answer yeah that I was just repeating you because who cares like what what I’m hyped for it I’m hyped for whoa whoa who unfortunately negativity there was a press no no I’m not talking about the fight no no no tough yeah stop it I

Know I know AK Lee was here and you know he’s the the the man yeah AK was in the house expert um and no disrespect to Connor new you know tough talk uh co-host uh T tough hang sorry tough H uh I came up with the name I’m allowed to mess up

Um yeah nobody unfortunately fortunately I’m I’m super hyped for the season I can’t wait for it I’ll be sitting down in front of my television every Tuesday for each episode but uh yeah I did see a press release put out by MMA fighting that season 2 of tough hang was not

Renewed wow I was just going to ask pretty heartbroken about it yeah me and did anybody tell AK yeah me and AK were pretty pretty upset yeah uh you know the brass we we fought to and nail but unfortunately just uh just couldn’t make it happen Cuts you know social no video

Every single week you know if we if we’re going to do we want to be all in now I’ll just be I don’t even I’ll probably just not even watch out of solidarity uh without no I don’t when does it officially start uh I’m looking right here by the way it’s men’s

Featherweights and uh men’s middle weights I wouldn’t know AK would be the perfect person to ask about this it starts by the way Tuesday June 4th sweet no one loves a summer reality show more than yeah that on the calendar it’s uh 10 pm. Eastern on

ESPN wow what we really needed was for eron blanchfield and Men on Faro to like wait long and you know not have any prospects of a title opportunity for another year it feels I feel like this was destined for the sphere no so it plays out goes till sep sure I

Get I guess so um so the timing works out um in any event men’s featherweight I I I wouldn’t know AK would know I think this might be the first time where there’s female coaches But no female Fighters oh yeah that’s going to be interesting that’s possible that’ll be

Interesting um some recognizable names Nathan Fletcher from Liverpool um Patty mccy from uh Belfast West Belfast um a very a very International cast Ireland here I see Toronto Athens Greece wow I don’t know how many people from Athens have been in the UFC Johannesburg South Africa Switzerland Russia Rio Australia Mexico Tajikistan

South Africa Lithuania England New Mexico there’s only one one two Americans on this show like the Olympics that’s got to be a first can’t wait to learn about each and every one of them week after week yeah so there you have it um and and speaking of women’s MMA uh congratulations to Yani

And J oh yeah on being uh announced as one of the members of the 2024 Hall of Fame induction class that was a great moment great pack Shing up nicely yeah Frankie vanderlay Yana Champion I mean this is nice yeah they’re doing a good job no I love it I

Love I love those announcements and I love uh that they’re they’re finally making it into a big deal of course I I would love for the Hall of Fame to not just be a uh a wall on the uh the staircase at the uh the pi like I I

Don’t yeah is it the pi yeah I don’t understand why it can’t be like an actual place that people can visit but you know maybe one day and uh you certainly can’t argue with that one she is no I thought she might come back at some point but maybe this cements it

This doesn’t preclude wasn’t BJ pen in the Hall of Fame and still fighting something like that if you guys fa you’re not precluded I just noticed that we had the shano Mali doll right over there I didn’t notice that all he the champ one did you guys put that

There yep oh wow we’ve also got the the name as a champ sha Mal poster here I forgot to shout this out last week but our friend gien gong that’s nice yeah is that the same one from the in August uh different but um obviously same artist and uh same

Subject in Shao Ali but yeah shout out to G and gong he’s he’s the best I do love March 11th March 11th is a date that is uh engraved in my mind forever March 11th 1995 tell me a uh a 12-year-old Ariel helwani went to Madison Square Garden

For the first time whoa big see the Knicks against the Seattle SuperSonics uh Patrick y had a great game got injured in the fourth quarter had to leave sat in the 400s and uh yeah I was just I looked forward to that date so much that every

Time March 11th pops up I’m like I remember that that was incredible we flew to New York on a Friday went to the game on a Saturday night um it was a Saturday night game and then flew home I got the New York Post I kept it and uh

It’s just like it was like Rudy you know like when the dad walks in he says this is the greatest sight These Eyes I’ve ever seen that’s how I felt went to to uh Crosby’s do you remember Crosby’s there was a store right next to MSG that

Had all the jerseys Rangers Knicks and like coming from Montreal where you couldn’t get a single NBA jersey like you couldn’t even get a Jordan Jersey in 1995 wow and and it was so NBA was so irrelevant it NBA was like like like I would say like Bundesliga in in New York

Like you’d have to go to like a super like you couldn’t get any coverage whatsoever you go to this store and it’s every sing like one through 12 back then when they had 12 players on the team on the Knicks like every Jersey possible got an Oakley Jersey it was just an

Incredible time one of the best best days best weekends now you go to MSG you’re sitting next to Katie Kirk and AA Bron I’m just chilling yeah what about action huh what about action during the Cheeto walk out and he’s like rocking out to his own song He’s like going

Crazy I was more happy about the Yana I was going to say getting the hug and everything with Yan and what about the fact that he’s rocking the Ying Nick Jersey in Miami tremendous fuucking hell the mayor of New York that was incredible I just get such Joy just

Seeing him there I think everybody gets I think he is the the number one purveyor of Joy he brings joy to everybody I went down a rabbit hole of like these uh action in the kitchen videos from like 2009 yesterday mhm they were crazy I mean we’re talking about

Real life 15 years ago I got to show them to you sometimes they’re not even on his YouTube channel they’re on someone else oh wow it’s like I’m talking zero production value it’s like one of his friends like just video recording him in the kitchen and like him making like ravioli or something

It’s like the the early early early days of if that’s delicious um so again I mean we could we could talk about everything we’ll save some more talk for Wednesday answer some questions thank you to everyone how were the questions by the way were you happy with the

Questions on amazing they were two many too many I see what you have to go through now basis like you can’t stop that’s why we went so long I know it’s tough it’s tough um I have one final question so I’m I’m debating it um NE

This has never happened to me oh my years of traveling was in a bit of a days came back from the arena had to quickly pack I didn’t I didn’t expect the event to go so long in ried a quickly pack what time did you get out

Of there what are we talking like what’s the what’s the actual time on the clock oh 4:30 oh wow I walked into my room like 455 yep had a lift to the airport at 6 yeah so I had an hour to pack sleep yeah no

No of course not had an hour pack and take a shower cuz I knew I had 24 hours so you know I was just at an event for we got to the arena we got to the arena at 3:30 Eastern I left at 4:30 a.m. that’s how long it was nuts

But it it honestly it flew it flew by I did hit a bit of a lull like maybe right before the Jang fight but anyway quickly packed all good all good come home unpack yesterday real realized that I left one of my button-down shirts like

One of like the shirt that I wore on on Friday like the white butt down um called the hotel in Riad MH asked him if it was there and it was I think I left it on the bed and like it got mixed in the covers and everything and I

Didn’t it was a white shirt a plain white button down just a plain white you know custom but shirt yeah yeah not just like uh uh so I asked my wife she does a lot of shipping for her work to set up a pickup they said you could pick it up up

And we’ll send it to you also left a charger in there um she says it’s $300 to do like the cheapest worth it no I don’t know how much your custom shirts cost how much did the custom shirt cost I mean it’s around that if it’s around

That then no it’s not worth it just buy a new one laptop charger what are you talking about uh we’re talking phone charger phone phone I mean new USB phone charger you had to buy Rec yeah yeah yeah and the adapter yeah that’s a solid 10

Bucks do you think this is from that time he took someone’s suitcase no that I gave it right back I I turned around and went don’t I’m I’m going to write that that shirt off as a loss and uh yeah just move on but I I like that shirt n just go ahead

And move on I think really yeah you can just get another one another one I think they’re like about 365 each yeah so then you’re good you can just buy a new one I think I’m going to do it stupid why explain it to me give me the thought

Process it’s the same thing it’s you mean it’s the same thing I’m gonna have to ask for another one you know yeah now you have a new one yeah not soiled from I felt good no it’s it’s a relatively new one it’s less than a year

Old okay now you have one that’s less than less than that I’m on team go ahead and get it sent back to I I think so I think I’m going to do that Frank there’s no practicality in that silly it’s a long journey they wasting their time and

Sending it back there’s a whole industry of picking up and shipping that’s depending on you doing this and you’re basically saying no I’ll just throw it to the you’re right even when I called the guy $300 shirt I called the guy I’m like there’s no way they’re going to

Find this I called the hotel the hill yeah they probably walked right in and they were just like oh this guy left his shirt charger he call he he calls me back maybe 30 minutes later first thing he says he apologizes for taking so long

To call me back I was like I didn’t think you were ever going to call me back to be honest he’s like oh sorry it took so long yes we have your shirt and charger I was like oh man now I definitely have to do this if you pay

For this shirt it’s now a $600 shirt be honest with this buy a new $300 shirt you ship it back it’s already here it’s already on the way right now no no she’s she’s emailing me she’s like this is going to cost 300 bucks I’m like yeah I feel like it’s worth

It hard pass I’m not so hard pass Frank you go for you should tell what mysterious Frank says go ahead and grab the shirt yeah I think I’m going to do that I think she’s trying to rake you over memories with the thing who’s raing you

My own wife no no no she’s she’s the one emailing me about the cost whoever is providing the actual procurement and shipping too much she’s trying to screw me not your wife who your wife is not going there and estimating these prices right there is somebody who FedEx is trying to

Screw me no I think no his wife is the one that estimated the yes my wife is saying your wife is trying to screw you over that’s not what I’m saying that’s what I’m hearing who who who told me about the 300 is going to physically

Grab the shirt put it in a box and send it back who is that person uh the hotel people yeah too much what whatever it’s costing that’s too much have you asked the hotel people how much it would yeah that’s that’s they’re the ones who said

You need to like make a shipment send us the label and schedule a pickup you know what I mean oh you’re oh so Jaclyn’s just going into FedEx and being like this is from here to here yeah yeah yeah yeah well then FedEx is the one to blame

Yeah FedEx they’re trying to I mean it’s a pretty long journey I just did ity you could get on a flight and go get it for about just go do that I would have just as soon as I realized it was gone I $300 to ship a shirt to throw it

In in the cargo bay of some other plane yeah no way mean was it I one time was sitting on a plane on the tarmac and realized I left my watch in the security bed and I was just like well guess I don’t have that watch anymore the only

Moved on with my life the only thing that’s worth that level of shipping is something sentimental that is not sentimental it I I yeah for a very big event you you really want this ship this shirt shipped why does and like we need to I I like like that’s that’s an

Important night in the history of Combat Sports oh we’re going to got other momentos the shirt is the shirt going game worn dress shirt I don’t know um it’s a nice looking shirt yeah you know what you should do this is what you should do have the hotel send you some more stuff

Just to make the value worth it like some coers in there throw some dates in for me you don’t mind some dates a robe are spp the something yeah you might as well get him to throw some bavan then as well the food in the Middle East is so

Underrated you should you should contact uh somebody local just be like hey do I know anybody there and have them see if they can send it back to you for you mean his Excellency oh you could do that for sure yeah go call Turkey uh turkey

Uh I was a little bit disappointed I was like this is uh this is Ariel helwani just for the record calling I thought they’d say Oh Mr helani we will send this to you right I I was in that given the hospitality and the reception that I

Think you did you say you know a guest of uh I didn’t go that far there you go I was on the Zone I don’t know if you guys saw me in there I was in the back no they were like wait what what were you here for the tech conference yeah

That was know there was a big fight there this there was a big thing yeah that is true um did you write your initials on the tag of the shirt that’s a good question it was custom end I’m not a big initial guy I should get

Initials on there but I probably C more who cares why do people like that the like little like thing on the you know what I mean mon yeah on the cuffing yeah me people proud of their names yeah you’re right um all right is there anything else we need to cover

Or great show today told me yeah it was pretty good yeah dang good amazing guest well done to the booker shout out to him it is amazing could it’s just you two guys sitting here and you get more love for that than me having the top three winners

From Saturday night yeah I mean I said that on the show I mean it’s ridiculous you know it’s old hat for you though you know there’s still a fresh exactly let me and Rick do 10 more shows and then they’ll be like oh God these guys again

Are you guys gonna do a Friday show or what listen I said my agent is is standing by waiting for the phone call you know just a couple of negotiations away from making it happen two watch parties this weekend double watch party back to back

Tired oh man that when we w when we went off the air on Saturday that was a uh that was a great relief for me oh crashed hard at least you didn’t go late on Friday that is good yeah but I mean it takes you know as you say shout out

To the booker the watch party shout out to the graphic maker and you know everyone yeah it knows a lot what time did you sign off what time did it end 7 8 uh yeah 8:00 8 o00 we got off the air did you sleep here or did you go

Home and come back no but I did think about that like the Green Room you could sleep in in there yeah you could sleep in there well uh it was a big uh big week and uh it’s another big week ahead in the world of Combat Sports so we will

Be back on Wednesday gentlemen to talk about it all uh there’s a couple cage Warriors events there’s a KS dub event and there’s the UFC Fight Night event uh next weekend first Bellator events of the new era uh there’s uh a whole bunch of other stuff going on but that is

Interesting that’s on Friday the main event on Saturday at the Apex is Tai twe B against marcine Tor and there’s a bit of a drop off after that but uh we can worry about that on Wednesday this is a 400m Eastern main card no prelim start so I’m guessing

Then it’s a uh 7 P.M main card start so that’s some good news see if there’s any other interesting names here ah shout out to Natan leevy jald Mir against Brian barbarina bamb bam right over there yeah and shout out to AK Lee and his uh his wonderful girlfriend for

Bringing us this new edition which has fallen over a couple times look at that how about how nice is this huh huh I didn’t even know they sold those yeah me neither let Bill’s pot yeah it’s like a half football with a plant in it they

Brought it all the way from Toronto wow wow a housewarming gift yeah did they drive here they fly here I think they drove oh okay it’s beautiful uh it’s a uh oh yeah it’s a it’s a bromad plant you know why he said cuz we’re

Bros nice yeah going to put it here one second I just want to make sure it doesn’t fall again because it’s been a little bit dicey dicey does it need sunlight we have a light here I was just about to say have a light here there’s a

Light on top of it do you does it does it is it showing I can’t tell a little bit right tiny bit I mean corm is blocking it DC that’s one way to fix it his head fell off good guy bad guy my ass anyway um it needs to be clipped

Off uh you could send us home Frank unless you have any final thoughts no I mean I me I’m concerned about the plan that’s a real plan right um yes you’re taking that artificial light is enough for that yeah I think it’s okay uh my nephew Jared is saying

That it’s a fire addition to the studio so he’s watching live should be in school no or is school over spr is it spring break it’s 5:35 p.m. school is long over there’s things there’s things happening after school activities there’s uh chess club what is there there’s uh hockey practice big time hockey

Goalie this young man a year ago could couldn’t tell you a single person in the UFC now he’s staying up to watch every show every pay-per-view he’s playing the video game he’s all in he’s all in now we won’t bring up the fact that he was a

Hardcore Alo fan now he’s a hardcoree sugar Shan fan he’s waffling a little bit with his fandom um he’s locked into Thiago Moises smch Ramirez this week he’s all in he’s let’s go but he’s one still he hasn’t quite seen the light when it comes to other organizations so

Like is he watching ksdb is he watching pfl he watching Bellator no comment but he loves LFA I don’t know what it is about LFA he’s just a big LFA guy big uh roess despine guy I mean who is elab of course uh Fury of course anyway what a day what

A show what a time to be alive thank you very much to all our guests thank you to MVP DP sugar Shan Sid and Joanne wood what a show thank you very much to all of them thanks to you back on Wednesday same time I’m out of here