Welcome to Episode 121 of The MMA Outsiders with Zain Bando and
Anthony Balester. It’s a show that takes a deep dive into all the news and fights that are happening in the crazy world of combat sports!
Presented by Playback
In this episode, Zain and Anthony discuss:
– Max Holloway vs Dustin Poirier 3: UFC BMF Title
– Paulo Costa vs Roman Koplov
– Kevin Holland vs Daniel Rodriguez
– Dan Ige vs Patrico Pitbull
– Michael Johnson vs Daniel Zellhuber
– Kyler Phillips vs Vinicius Oliveria
– Marvin Vettori vs Brendan Allen
– Other UFC 318 Prelims Preview
– UFC Fight Night: Nashville Reactions
– Usyk vs Dubois 2 Preview
– Pacquiao vs Barrios Preview
– PFL Africa Preview
– Conor McGregor NSFW Photos Released
– Ben Askren Update
– AND MORE
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He’s even willing to put his relationship uh with his wife and family um at risk uh to send uh nude photos to a woman. So, Conor McGregor continues to trend downward and it doesn’t seem like he might be fighting at the White House next year after all. Welcome back everyone. This is Dan Band and Anthony Ballister. This is episode 121 of the MMA Outsiders. Thanks again for joining us and happy Wednesday evening to you all. We have a packed show uh this week as we get closer and closer to the back half of the month of July, which means that the UFC events are beginning to ramp up a little bit in terms of uh star power and quality. So, I’m excited to go through all of those with Anthony today. But before we get started, just wanted to go over a few quick reminders. Please be sure to like and subscribe to the MTH podcast network. It’s very important that you guys do this as we’re getting closer and closer to a th00and subscribers. So, in order to do that, you go to youtube.com/gpnetwork, where you can find out all the major info there surrounding all of our shows, including this very one that’s going to go up on uh on YouTube here shortly as it’s currently premiering as we speak. And then, of course, you can check out all of our audio only work over on every single podcast platform to which you would receive this. So, Spotify, Apple Podcast, Acast, and so much more. Then of course, the MMA Outsiders is presented by Playback. Stay tuned for a message later on in the show to hear more about that. Of course, my name is Zan Bando. I’m a staff writer over at MMA Knockout and and of course to my right is Anthony Ballister. He’s an ETB Sports podcaster. You’ve seen him on a lot of different shows. He’s also the co-host of the flagship show on this very network, ETB Sports with Nick Morgans. Anthony, how are you today? I’m doing great. Uh we got a great uh card to break down. There’s a lot of stuff to talk about outside the UFC as well. Um, we had a really excited UFC card that just passed, so we get to talk about that. So, it’s a great time and it’s a great week to do the show. Yeah, definitely. It’s a great week to do the show. So, let’s waste any more time as we drop that there. So, get getting right to it. Uh, this weekend we go from Nashville, Tennessee to New Orleans, Louisiana for UFC 318. Headlined by a trilogy fight. It’s Dustin Porier’s last dance. He’ll be taking on Max Holloway in the main event for Max Holloway’s BMF title at lightweight. It’s a fiverounder. Uh these two last met in April of 2019 with Portier getting the decision win and then before that all the way back to UFC 143 to kick off the year that was 2012. Um Anthony, what are your thoughts going into this one? Do you think the UFC did right this matchmaking? A lot of people were very very confused as to why this fight gets a trilogy given that 48 is 2 and 0 in the series. Uh just give me your overall pulse uh on this fight before we get into a deeper breakdown and give some predictions because I think a lot of people are hoping that this fight is really exciting considering that the card underneath it um has gotten a lot of scrutiny. So what do you think? I think this was the right choice. I mean obviously uh Dustin Porier already fighting for the title multiple times. He was an interim champion at one point, but he did have the loss to Islam Mahachev, so he’s not going to get a a title shot at this point of his career. I think this fight allows him to kind of fight for some sort of title. Now, I know there’s a lot of people who kind of roast the BMF title. That’s not a real title. It’s kind of for guys who aren’t a champion otherwise. Um, but I just think that this allows Dustin Porier to fight for some sort of belt. It obviously makes the main event more competitive and more compelling because typically when UFC has pay-per-view cards, the main event is a title uh uh match. Now, obviously Dustin Porier having his retirement midfight, they want to give him the main event um in New Orleans. And the only way you could do that without having to fight for actual title is to allow him to fight for the BMF title. And right now, Max Holloway is the one who has it. He is moving up for 145 to 155. So, I think that is a tremendous uh pick and both these guys like to battle. Both these guys like to go to wars with each other. We know we’re not going to see much grappling unless if uh Porier pulls out one of those guillotine chokes, but I think this is going to be a very exciting fight for both guys are just going to stand in the middle of the octagon and go to war each other for 25 minutes. And I think it’s going to come down to whoever could last the war and whoever is going to have more strikes. So, I’m very excited. I think the fans will be very excited. This will be a fight that for years to come, people are going to go back and watch the highlights. And like I said, I think we’re just going to see two guys just battling out strike after strike. Um, but before I give my prediction on it, Zan, how do you see this fight going? Yeah, I’m excited for it. The second fight was good. The first fight was a very green Max Holloway who unfortunately us when both were super young at the at the time. Um, I think it’s going to be whoever has more stamina. I think the resumes between these two speak for themselves. Um there was an ESPN uh Instagram post. I’m not sure if you saw it. I wrote about it in one of my latest uh Sports Illustrated pieces where it was Portier’s last 11 opponents and seven of them were current or former champions uh that he had faced. So it’s clear that the resumes between these two are unmatched. You probably won’t see resumes like these for a very long time moving forward given how the sport has evolved. Um I just don’t see how Porier loses in his hometown. Man, I think he wanted this fight or wanted a chance to win at home to end just a remarkable career. I mean the only thing he never did was win was win a UFC undisputed title. I think outside of that, I think he has the Hall of Fame resume that could go up against anybody. He’s I think he’s 30 and N overall with I think I don’t know 26 27 wins in the UFC as it might actually be 22 now that I think about it. But still, in any event though, I mean I mean both guys are just awesome. Holloway said he has a few years left. So, if he can get one on Porier and it’s a great fight, uh, good for him to stay in the mix with whatever he wants to do, whether that’s lightweight or featherweight. Um, and of course, Holloway has only been knocked out once, and Portier rarely if ever gets finished. So, I’m excited for it. Um, I like Porier. I I know that that’s not very that’s not a popular pick, uh, given how Porier looked in his last outing. Uh, but I just feel like the hometown advantage is going to be gigantic. Um, obviously Holloway’s a stud. These two are going to go in the center of the octagon and just are throwing bombs. Uh, it’s going to be it’s going to be a great fight and and again this fight may not be the most topheavy card in the world. Again, as I just alluded to a few minutes ago, um you know, it may not be the strongest undercard, but you want to talk about a essentially a oneight pay-per-view that everybody is looking forward to, I would say, on a stacked uh day and evening of combat sports. Um it’s hard not to get any better than two guy that just have given it all on the line for the last decade plus. And I think it should be a great fight. So, give me by split uh to to win the BMF title. uh walk walk off into the sunset and do so in his home state of Louisiana in front of a sold out Smoothie King Center where if you want tickets on the resale market, they’re going for close to $1,000. So, I think New Orleans uh did their job with making sure that uh that they uh that they show out for UFC this weekend and it should be a phenomenal uh scene when Dustin Porier makes his final walk uh to the octagon. locking out first, uh, which is a rarity for Porier these days, but the UFC, he has to do what they have to do because technically there is a belt on the line and Holloway is the rightful BMF champion after knocking out Justin Gage at UFC 300. So, I think this one’s going to be great. And uh, and I I like Porier by split, but I could very very well see I could very well see this going either way. And I see a lot of people saying that there’s going to be a finish. I just think it’s going to be a knockdown drag him out slugfest. What do you What do you think? Yeah, Zan, you really can’t go wrong um picking either or guys, uh this fight could definitely go either way. Um Dustin Porier being in his retirement fight. Um it’s definitely unfortunate. He’s one of the OGs of the UFC. Um the guy has fought the best of the best. Um not too many people have a better resume in terms of opponents they fought. And yeah, he was never the undisputed champion, but um I really don’t think that’s a blemish on your career when you’re fighting in a division where you have Kabid Demarov as a champion and Islam Mahachev as a champion as well. So the guys who have been champions have pretty much been unbeatable and I think he’s definitely going to go down as one of the all-time greats and definitely probably um the greatest fighter of all time did not have an undisputed title. Um like I said before, I think this is just going to be a war for 25 minutes. I think both guys are going to look sharp. Yeah, Max Holloway lost and got uh TK yelled by Ilia Taporia. Um but he was looking good up until that point and his fight before that um he knocked out Justin Gachi and looked really really good at that weight class at 155. It seems like the weight cut at 145 seemed to really hurt Max Holloway as he got older in his career. So I think 155 is a great weight class for him. He doesn’t have doesn’t get too drained. Uh his chin will be able to hold up a lot better. Um then Dustin um yeah Dustin did lose to Islam. Um he didn’t look that great against uh Justin Gatey a couple years ago, but being his retirement fight um coming off that loss um you know he’s going to rebound. You know he’s going to be a highly motivated Dustin Porier. Um fighting in New Orleans, you’re probably get a very very highly skilled and highly prepared Dustin Porier. We’ve seen what he did against Ben Wley Deni when he was coming off of a loss. Um I think we’ll get a similar Dustin Porter to that. But I just think at this point in their careers then I just think uh Max Holloway is much better and much closer to his prime. Um I don’t think he’ll get the finish due to Dustin Forier’s toughness um and the fact that he is a tough guy to finish. Um but uh yeah, I’m going to go with Max Holloway. I think he’s going to outstrike him. He’s going to land more shots. Both guys will have their moments where you think they’ll be able to get a TKO or or where you think the fight will go their way. But I think after five rounds, I think Max Holloway will have more strikes. um just be the the the better and cleaner fighter. And I think he’s gonna play a spoiler to uh Dustin Porier’s retirement fight. So, as tough as this fight is to pick, um I’m going to go Max Holloway by decision, but I think this fight’s going to look very similar to the fight we just saw recently with Joshua Van and Brandon Roy Val, where both guys are going to look so great that there really won’t be a loser when it all said and done. And you know, uh Dana White will probably take care of both these guys. though. Give me Max Holloway to swallow their retirement fight. But man, I’d be really, really happy for Dustin Pory. I’m going to be rooting for him and I would love for him to be able to go into his retirement fight on top with the BMF title. So, uh there’s been a lot of banter online and I have to ask you about this. Uh Max Holloway believes that uh Dustin Porier is going to basically do what Justin Gachi did and they’re going to go into the point down motion in the final seconds of the fight. Um, assuming it doesn’t end as emphatically as the holloway gachi fight did, uh, do you think that the point down um, uh, scenario will come into play late in the fight or do you think we’re not going to see that? Because a lot of people have been speculating that that might happen and then of course because people have to make this joke uh, because MMA social media is like this uh, people do think that Dustin Portier is going to jump for one more guillotine. So, out of those two potential predictions, which one do you think is more more than likely to happen? Or do you think that neither happen? Um, I wouldn’t be surprised if uh, you know, if that does happen. I know Dustin Porier is Common for going for the guillotine, but I think he’s going to give the fans what they want. He’s going to want to get a more exciting fight, and I think he’s going to try to do the same thing with that that happened with Justin Gatey. I think they’ll try to duke it out in the middle of the octagon. The only difference is when that happened, um Justin Gatey at that point was very beat up. He didn’t have much left and as soon as Max Holloway landed one shot, um it was pretty much over. I think Dustin Porier will be able to hold up a little bit better. He won’t be as beaten down by the time we get to that fifth round as Justin Gi was. And I think that both of them will just exchange shots up until they blow the the whistle at the end of the fight. So, I think that probably is the most likely scenario that Porier goes out, you know, in the middle of the octagon duking it out. And I think both fighters will just hold up and neither of them will get finished. But I wouldn’t be surprised if one gets finished. But I just think due to their toughness, I think this will go all five rounds and then I think Max will slightly get him on the scorecards. So, if you were to um if you were to predict a possible scorecard, are we thinking uh one that’s kind of leaned one-sided 4946 or you thinking or are we thinking a razor close fight here or we could see a potential 4847s uh thrown in? What do you think? Yeah, I definitely think it’s going to be 4847. There’s uh no way I think it’s going to be one-sided. Um, yeah, I do think Max Holloway is in a much better place uh physically and mentally um and closer to his prime, but being this is retired fight and all the extra work that Dustin Porier has been doing. Um, you know, he’s been doing things a lot early. He started dieting a lot sooner. He started training a lot sooner. Um, so I think Dustin Porier is going to be too sharp um to not win a round or two. So, I do agree. I think Max Holloway will win the fight, but it’s definitely going to be a very close scorecard. I like what you said the 48 47 he beats him by one round probably uh three to2 and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s 2-2 head into that fifth round and then Max Holloway’s just volume ends up getting giving him that fifth round and ultimately the scorecards. So, while we’re here, given how great the second fight was, do you think that this trilogy fight, this this number three fight has a chance to go down as one of the best fights in UFC history? Because I think these two are going to be linked in MMA history forever. What do you think? Yeah, I absolutely agree. I think uh of the three fights, I think this is going to be by far the best one. Um just because of their circumstances in this um and the fact, you know, they’re both fighting at 155. It’s Dustin Borier’s retirement fight. Max Holloway now, you know, being fully uh developed into his 155 body. Um I think this is going to be a great fight and like I said, I think this is going to challenge um you know, maybe not, you know, beat it, but it’s going to be really close with Van and Roy Val for potentially the best fight of the year. And this is going to be one of those fights and where three to five years from now, UFC fans are going to be going back to YouTube and searching up the full fight and watch it over again. that I think is a solid prediction. And again, I mean, I mean, when’s the last time you saw the UFC for a pay-per-view uh go to a go to a city as a as as star crazed for a major fight? The New Orleans, they usually do these types of sendoff cards pretty often. So, I have to give kudos to the UFC for that. That they’re literally giving the hometown guy the retirement fight. uh that that you know that you know he feels he deserves and me and you and probably thousands of other people this game. So be sure to check out uh the main event for those of you who are interested. Unfortunately though the rest of the card you can’t really say the same for but let’s continue here. So, the co-main event is former title challenger Paulo Costa taking on rising contender um who seems like he’s he’s had a pretty solid run as a way and and Roman CPA. Uh to me, this is a setup fight just to get Costa out of there. What do you think? Yeah, I’m not uh super high on uh Costa. Seems like uh the best days um are behind them. The crazy thing is both these guys are similar in ages, but it seems like, you know, they don’t look that way. And it seems like both these fighters are trending uh in opposite directions. I definitely think uh Bofu land good shots. You know, Costa is very known for his wild shots and barges where he just throws a lot at at you, but he’s not really a big KO artist that, you know, knocks people out like that. Usually, it’s a TKO win if he does get that. Um I think uh you know, uh Copelof will be sharp enough um to be able to neutralize um those wild uh you know, barragees that Costa will throw at him. I think he’ll be more accurate. He’ll be the more sharper fighter. Um I definitely don’t think he’ll finish Costa. Um but I definitely think he’ll out strike him. Um it’ll hopefully be a much more entertaining fight than the Costa and Strickland fight, but I think uh Copelof continues his trend. Um I know we did have a loss a couple fights ago, but besides that, he’s looked pretty solid in all his rest of its fights, so I’m gonna go uh Copelof off to get this win uh by decision. Yeah, I’m taking Copel off by decision, too. And I uh if I were to have a lock for this card, I would feel pretty confident in picking this one. I’m going to go unanimous decision all the way. I think it’s going to be 3027 all three. What do you think? Yeah, I think Costa might be able to get one round uh particularly maybe round one. He might just throw everything at him. Hoping that he could uh scare him a little bit and uh you know, use that veteran experience against him and maybe knock them down a few shots and get that TKO win. But ultimately, I think Copelof will respond in round two and round three. So, I think Costa gets round one and then loses the second and third round and then um you know, Copelof wins it on a 29 to 28 scorecard. Okay, fair enough. These next two have a chance for possible fight of the night. And I would argue that one of these two should have been elevated to the co-main event, but what do I know? So, let’s continue here. Kevin Holland, the always active Kevin Holland is back in the octagon again. It was like he fights like every eight weeks. He’s fighting and in this time this time he’s fighting an absolute stud in Daniel Rodriguez. And to me, even though Daniel Rodriguez is fought, this is one of those trap fights where D-Rod better be careful. Uh in Kevin Allen’s last fight, he looked absolutely unbelievable. I was extremely surprised as to how as to how he looked in his last outing. And Rodriguez is always a fun fighter as well. Let’s take a look at the tail of the tape on this one because I think a lot of people are overlooking how good this fight actually is from a stylistic standpoint. So, let’s take a look. And speaking of taking a look, according to Tapology, uh 6 pm Eastern for the uh prelims and then of course 10 p.m. Eastern for the pay-per-view. Uh Kevin Holland 20 and3, Dan Rodriguez 19 and5. Let’s take a look at the tail of the tape here. Um Kevin Holland is a massive favorite at minus uh 410 whereas D-Rod who’s lost three out of his last five at 19 and five is sitting at a plus 315 underdog uh 32 versus 38 years old. This fight’s at welterweight and according to Tapology uh the Tapology community loves Kevin Holland to get this done. That’s 96% to 4%. Do you think the tapology is correct on this one or do you think that we could see a possible upset where Kevin Holland is maybe overlooking Drod and Dro that somehow pulls off another uh another thrilling win? Because he has these once in a while where where you go, “Oh, wow. I wasn’t expecting that.” I have a feeling that this could be one of those types of fights. But I really like Kevin Holland in this spot. What about you? Yeah, I’m not surprised at all by those percentages. I mean, the fights we’re going to talk about, I mean, this is probably the one I’m most confident in. Um, I’m definitely picking Kevin Holland. I mean, since him fully moving and committing to the 170 lb welterweight uh weight class, he’s really been phenomenal. And while, you know, Daniel Rodriguez is someone that you do have to respect, um, he does struggle when he faces uh these top tier competition guys where, you know, Holland’s been on a tear. Um, this the best version of himself. I think he’s better at striking. Um, I think he’s uh better at grappling for sure and uh I know Daniel Rodriguez has a good chin. Um, but uh I think uh Holland’s going to go in there and do just what he did in the last fight. I think he’s going to go out there and get the submission win. And yeah, you know, it’s a quick uh turnaround, but quick turnarounds really don’t affect Kevin Holland. It seems like he could just fight in every single pay-per-view fight card. So, I’m going to go Holland to continue this terror at this weight class, and I’m going to go uh Kevin Holland to win by submission. Yeah, that seems like a solid pick there as well. So, let’s move on here. Patriceio Pitbull looking for his first win in the UFC taking on the always tough and always durable Dan Eay. Uh, this is another one of those fights where I feel should be higher up on the card. I would argue that this should be the co-main event. Uh, it’s that’s just my personal opinion. I think that this is a huge fight for both guys and of course a huge step up in competition for Eay in fighting a former Bellator legend in Pitbull who did not have a very good start to his UFC career using losing to Rodriguez who’s now uh I guess uh I guess realizing the benefits of beating a guy uh w with such a name value as Pitbull. I don’t see Pit Bull going 0 and2. I just think that he has more experience and I think he’ll be able to use his wrestling and I think he won’t have the same debut octagon jitters that he might have had a couple months ago uh in Miami. I think he gets it done. What do you think? Yeah, this was one I definitely went back and forth on. This is a very tough one to pick. I could see this one going either way. Yeah, Patricio Pit lost badly to Yay Rodriguez, but Yaria Rodriguez is world class. He’s one of the best in the world and that’s why he was an interim champion at one point. He fought Vulcanoski for the undisputed title and most likely might be fighting Alexander Vulcanoski again someday for the featherweight championship. Um Patricia Piple though is older. Um he’s coming off of losing three out of his last four fights. Um he lost uh before in the promotions before he got to the UFC and yeah he’s 38 years old. Dan Eay um being the younger fighter I think at this point he’s the faster striker. Um, yeah, Pit Bull could probably smother him and beat him on the ground, but I just uh really didn’t like how Perisha Piple looked in his last matchup. Yeah, I think he’ll look better um going up against a guy much lower um down the ranks, but I think Dan Eay is going to go in there and surprise some people. And I’m going to take Eay to win uh by decision. I think he’ll be able to keep this fight uh on the feet and just be the sharper striker. Okay. So, we disagree on this one for sure, but I could see you very I could see you be uh very well being right considering that your UFC predictions have killed it. So, I could see you I could see you getting this one. Okay, let’s move on. Now, we have the always experienced Michael Johnson taking on Daniel Zel Hooper. Um, to me, I think this is another one of those scenarios where Johnson’s up there in age. He’s been in the UFC probably a little bit too long. huge step up in competition for Zel Huber. I think he delivers a highlight reel finish. What do you think? Yeah, I absolutely agree with you, Zan, on this one. I know Zel Huber did lose uh in a split. Um but he lost to Reeba who’s a really good fighter as well and he is a very promising upcoming prospect who I think is just starting to scratch the surface of his prime. Um Michael Johnson who’s a very competitive fighter as well like you say being 39 years old. Yeah, he’s won his last two fights, but they really weren’t the guys you would consider as highly skilled guys or very impressive opponents. So, I think just like you said, I think uh Zel Huber is gonna um go in there and I think he’s going to land something big and I think he’s going to go out there and get the TKO win. So, give me Zel Huber as well. So, are you going as far to say that Zel Huber could be a guy that gets a performance bonus, do you think, or No. Um yeah, I could definitely see that. I think he’d go in there and maybe get a first or second round um uh TKO and it it could be I wouldn’t be surprised if it is in spectacular fashion. So, I would definitely not be surprised at all. Very well said. So, that’s the main card. We’re going to talk about the future prelim now. That’s on ESPN. Kyler Phillips versus Venius Olivera. A fight that’s not being talked about a whole lot. I think it’s a big step up in competition for both of these guys is I think most people who are tuning in to the ESPN portion of the card um and not know who these guys or so Anthony let’s do a little capsule here for those who maybe have not seen either of these two compete before in your in your view what should they what should they expect because I think this is a chance to be another another all auction fight on this card that people are that people are sleeping on what do you think yeah I like what you said there’s in I mean when we look at this card, yeah, there’s some fights on the main card that maybe not be as desirable, but I really think that this fight should have been on the main card. This is one of the more exciting fights on this fight card. These are two rising prospects in the top 15. I know Phillips is coming off of a loss to Rafont, but Raf’s a very, very world class guy. Um I absolutely love Alivea. Um I think he’s got a really really high ceiling in this sport. Um, the guy can KO you with any part of his body, whether if it’s a knee or elbow or his fist. The guy can grapple when needed. He’s very, very big and muscular for the 135 pound weight class. He’s undefeated so far in the UFC. And like I said, before uh Kyler Phillips has lost um to Rob Font, he was looking like he was going to be on a tearing on a rise as well. So, both these guys look like, you know, they’re just uh hitting their prime of their careers. And I think Kyler Phillips um will respond after coming out loss. So I think we’ll see a much sharper version of him. But I just love uh Vinci as Olive a lot. Um this is one of my favorite upcoming prospects. I wouldn’t be surprised if in a couple years from now this guy’s ranked in the top five in the bantamweight. I think he continues to move up the ranks with this fight and I think he’s going to win this fight over Kyler Phillips um by decision. Um how do you see this fight going Xan? Yeah, this is a for sure this is a nasty fight. Not only is this kid 3 and 0 in the UFC, he’s a dominant three and win in the UFC. I mean, what he’s what he’s been able to do to to the caliber of opponents, I mean, Zahed Nurmagameov was another one of those prospects that I think a lot of people were high on. Ricky Simone has been in the UFC forever. Uh, Sapai looked like he had found his footing and he was viciously knocked out. Um, I think this kid has come out of nowhere. I think that Brazil just always continues to produce just so much talent and this kid’s resume, this kid at 22 and three, he’s nothing to he’s nothing to sweat at. And this is no disrespect to Kyler Phillips, but but but you but as you just said, uh the the let down performance that he had in his last fight, which would have been a huge catapult if he would have won. He he could have been, you know, stiffing, you know, sniffing midway through the top 15 or the top 10 and oh, he has to rework his way back up fighting on the main event of the prelims, which is still a decent spot to be. Uh, but where he probably would have hoped to be at this point in 2025. I just think Aloa has too much momentum and I think that the UFC potentially has a hidden gem with this kid because you and I both know this bantamweight needs more contenders. uh you’re starting to see the old guard kind of fizzle out. I mean, obviously you got, you know, Peter Yan fighting Marcus McGee a few weeks and then you just had Shawn Ali lose and there’s other contenders out there and 135 as well. But it just seems to me like this new guard that’s coming up happens to be one of those guys in that mix and if he can get a solid win over Phillips, uh this is the limit for this kid. And uh according to MMA fighting, uh the UFC is going to have an event uh this fall in Brazil. I think if Lok Dog can get away in or this weekend, I could see him being a showcase fight in the main card of that fight night in Brazil. So I think there’s a lot more on the line for Lok Dog than there is for Phillips. Yeah, absolutely agree. And I like how you point that out. I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if he is like a co-main event on that after coming off of a win like this. if he does get the win over Kyler Phillips, he’s going to be challenged one of these guys who are in the top 10. So, I would love to see that. I mean, the sky’s is the limit for this kid. I can’t wait to see his future for sure. And looking at the last fight before we get into a few more uh I guess smaller things in regarding this card, two middleweight contenders, Clyde, Marvin Vtori versus Brendan Allen. Huge spot for both guys. I feel like it’s a must-win spot for Vtori here. Uh I think that I think that Brendan Allen is playing with house money knowing that he’s one of these kind of outlier wildcard uh fighters at middleweight given uh you know the middleweight championship that’s going to be contested in about a month or so and uh these two are working uh kind of right in the thick or at least outside of the title picture here. Um, I think there’s more pressure on Vtori and Allen, but I just think Brendan Allen is a little bit more well-rounded everywhere. And I would argue that this fight should have also been on the main card just given just given the value with these two of that they meant to the promotion over the last several years. Obviously, obviously Marvin Vtori, former middleweight title challenger, Brendan Allen has been on the doorstep a couple of times and just simply hasn’t broken through yet. Um, if you would have told me that this fight was a rematch, I would have believed you. But to see them make this fight now is a little bit surprising. Uh, but I like Allen overall. I just think he’s the better wrestler. And I think people have been able to figure out Victoria’s gas tank as of late. And I think the lead save was a prime example there a couple months ago. What do you think of the fight? Yeah, this is definitely another fight that should be on the main card like you said and another fight that I really could see going either way. Um, I went back and forth with this. I mean, both guys are coming off a back-to-back losses. Whoever loses this fight’s going to be looking at a threeight losing streak. Yeah, you know, Brandon Allen’s the younger fighter, so a loss for him probably doesn’t hurt a guy like Victoria who’s been around for a lot longer. But Vtori, man, he’s got a great chin. He’s got great uh takedown defense. Um Brandon Allen did struggle with Chris Curtis. Um he didn’t look good against uh Imavoy off or Hernandez. And I think Vtori, yeah, he did lose to Dunce, but I think there was points in that fight where he did show promise and he shows that uh he has the chin and that he could go for wars uh for long uh stretches of time. I think if this was a five round fight, it would definitely benefit a guy like Vtori, but even a three round fight, I’m going to still go with Vtori by decision. Um I don’t like the pick. I have a tough time picking one or these guys, but I just think Vtori knowing that he needs to win that he’s been around the UFC for a lot longer. Um, he’s got to get a win at some point. It’s been a while since he’s got that win. So, I think Vtori is going to get this win by decision, but I’m not assume extremely confident either or. Yeah. So, we’re going to we’re going to slightly disagree on that pick as well. Taking a look at some other prelims and I kind of nailed it last week when we were looking at the Nashville card with Hey, Davis. My other preliminary to watch on this card to me is uh is is is Bruno Ferrer. I think that he’s got Jackson McVey right where he wants him. Um McVey is a McVey is a late replacement for him. He’s 6 and0. Um I don’t think his resume going into the UFC is very good and I think that Ferrer is the perfect guy to welcome him to the UFC to kind of show him like, hey, this is the big leagues now and you got to step up. And I actually see Ferrer getting a very very impressive finish. So that’s the other preliminary fighter that I’m looking at. Is is there a preliminary fighter that you’re interested in? Yeah, that’s so funny. Zan, we must be thinking alike because that’s exactly the guy that I gravitate towards was Brutal Ferrer. I mean that guy is very very exciting and seeing him going up against the undefeated McVey. Um I think he’s probably going to get the win pretty easily. Even though McVey is undefeated, I think that’s a lot to ask for going up against a guy like uh Bruno Ferrer. I think he’s got tremendous potential. Um, I know he did lose uh not too long ago, but I still think the sky’s is the limit. I did still think he’s a fighter that’s uh still improving with each and every fight. So, I’m very excited to see that. I’m also one other fight I’ll mention is um the heavyweight fight between Ryan Span um and uh Bruseski. Um two guys who are top 15 guys, but probably our top 25 guys. And um now I think both those guys are coming off of a loss. um both those guys are going to want to go out there and uh you know not be losing back toback and be on a two-ight win streak. So I think we’ll see the best of both those guys and uh hopefully we see a very very exciting knockout on the heavyweight division. So those are two fights that stand out to me. Yeah. And another thing I wanted to mention on McVey and another reason why I’m comfortable not picking him is uh is uh there is a guy on his resume and I’m not joking here because tapology is always right. There’s a guy that he fought on the way up. His name is Jquis Williams. Anthony, do you want to know what this guy’s overall record is? Because I am absolutely dumbfounded. Are you ready? Are you ready for this? Yes. You talk at this kid, Jacquis Williams at Shamrock FC in July in July of last year. His record was seven and 13. So Oh my god. So So if that doesn’t tell you that the UFC in some respects are desperate for prospects, I don’t know what I don’t know what will. So that’s sad. Usually uh you know that’s like a bad uh football team record uh sounds like. So usually uh you got guys in MMA that at least got uh you know a winning record whether they’re good or not because they fight tomato cans. But I guess against even Tomato cans I guess that guy can’t get wins. Apparently not. So that’s going to close it out for UFC 318. But before we get to our UFC Fight Night Nashville reaction from last week, we’re going to take a quick time out to hear um a message from our friends over at Playback. And we will be right back to finish the second half of the show. So, we’ll see you guys soon. All right, just want to do a quick time out in the middle of the show to remind you guys that the MMA Outsiders is presented by Playback. And I teased that there was something a little bit earlier in the show, but now without further ado, here we go. Presented by Playback. Watching sports is more fun with others, but we spend too much of our time watching alone. Playback is a virtual space where communities can stream live sports together with everyone perfectly synced up. Readers can hop on stage, deliver their own play-by-play analysis and commentary, and invite viewers up for Q&A. Playback makes watching sports fully interactive and a social experience when playing fantasy sports, repping your favorite players and teams, and watching with the commentators and communities you care about. Win or lose, sports are best enjoyed together. Join our community by going to playback.tv/b network to find out more, including our live stream schedule. You won’t regret it. All right, thanks all. Thanks again. And again, the MMA Outsiders is presented by Playback. Be sure to check out all of our content over at playback.tv/pvetwork. So, with that out of the way, let’s continue on. That was UFC 318. We’ve given our predictions for the entire card and select prelims. you’ll get the full uh lineup of predictions on the day of the event. But we’re going to move on now to this past weekend’s card, which was UFC Fight Night from Nashville, Tennessee at Bridgestone Arena. And uh this night card was actually one of the most entertaining fight night cards in recent memory. And you actually did quite well on this card. I went seven and five, you went nine and three. I mean, you who hit some of the major winners. Uh how did you feel overall about your card uh this past weekend? And how do you feel about getting to 70 wins so far? Yeah, I was uh pretty stunned. I mean, UFC is the hardest uh sport to predict. You know, obviously I did go nine and three, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I go 0 and 12 or 0 and 13 this week. I mean, that’s just how the sport works. I guess I had a lucky uh trend lately. Um they’ll come to an end. That’s just how the sport works. But in terms of the fights, Sam, the fights were very, very exciting. Um you were right about Derrick Lewis uh getting the KO win. Yeah, at first I thought it was an early stoppage, but when you really look at it, I mean, um, Talison had to use the fence to get up. If he didn’t grab that fence, there was no way he was getting up. It was gonna end that TKO. And what is the referee supposed to do? He’s not going to stop the fight and prevent Derrick Lewis from getting the TKO win just to take a point away uh for grabbing the fence. So, I think the referee made the right decision. Um Darl Lewis, man, not only is he excited fighter that can knock you out with just one touch. Um he’s a very funny and entertaining guy that’s always gonna sell out and always be an exciting fighter. I mean, the guy’s on the phone with Donald Trump. So, I love the fact that Derrick Lewis can continue to win because as long as he’s getting a knockout here and there, um the UFC is going to continue to promote him and have him in the promotion. So, it was nice to see that. Um some other things that stood out was Steve Garcia. Um he looked really sharp. Yeah, he didn’t get the TKO win over against a really gritty uh Calvin Kater who’s a guy that doesn’t really get finished, but all the the rounds in that fight, Steve Garcia pretty much won. And Luke Sharpen was dicing him up throughout the whole fight. And then finally, I thought uh Bone Fen looked pretty good. Um I know Wonder Boy had his moments later in the fight. I mean, he showed tremendous toughness. I mean, he had a huge gash uh in his calf from that leg kin. He was still uh throwing kicks and looked like he may have been able to finish, landing a kick to the head. So I show he showed tremendous toughness. Um but I definitely think the scorecards were right. I think Bone Fiend definitely was the better fighter. But man, there was just so many finishes and so many exciting moments on this card. Yeah, there definitely I mean it even started with the first fight of the night. A brutal head kick from Klein to start the night off and there were definitely some exciting finishes for sure. Uh but but yeah, Dererick Lewis stole the show at the end of the night and uh to beat Talison Ter in the way that he did to Hen Ter’s first loss was hugely surprising. I knew that he would knock him out. I didn’t know would only take him 35 seconds. And you want to know a fun fact? Titson Tur’s UFC debut, even though he won, was also uh was also 35 seconds. So, I don’t know if that’s karma or what, but but I found that I found that to be very very very interesting. I’m like, “Wait, wait a minute. Wait a minute. We’ve seen this movie before. What’s go what’s going on here?” Yeah, that’s definitely a crazy coincidence. But I think like Dererick Lewis said, I mean, he was talking crap to him. So, he was very uh pissed off and wanted to go out and get this win. That’s why he reacted after getting the win. Um, basically uh you know, telling uh Terara to basically suck it. And he’s right. I mean, being 25 years old in a main event going up against a guy like Derrick Lewis, I mean, that’s a lot to ask for from a 25-year-old kid. For for sure. and Derrick Lewis uh remaining at top the UFC knockout standings with 16 uh KO TKOs. Where do you think he fits into the title picture or because I actually think that he’s potentially one fight away from getting a title shot? And I actually think if the UFC goes the route that I think they’re going to go I think think the fight that makes the most sense is to do him versus Thomas Almeida in a number one contender fight. What do you think? Yeah, I uh I think there’s definitely a couple ways to do it, but I agree. He’s definitely one fight away. I mean, we know with the heavyweight division, there’s not a lot of contenders and these guys seem to go back and forth with each other. So, I think any guy who’s ranked in the top 10 of the heavyweights is always two fights away from winning it. Well, he just got one TKO win. Um, he just got to get another one. It does seem like Aspenol probably ends up getting matched up with the guy like Sir Gan that’s probably going to be the next heavyweight championship. Um, but you do got Jelton Almeida out there. You do got Bo off. I know. I think Elmea and Lewis bad. I had my I had my and thanks for thanks for correcting me, right? My I had my I had my Almeidas mixed up, but please please continue. No worries. That’s definitely a common name in the in the UFC world. So, but yeah, you got those guys when you look at the picture. I mean, I think what would make the most sense, I think he did fight Almeida uh recently. I think that was one of his last losses. I would like to see uh Derrick Lewis go up against a guy like Volkov. Volkov’s a guy who’s very very technical with his strikes. Um they fought before as well and uh Dererick Lewis uh you know KO him before. So I would like to see Derrick Lewis go up against a rematch against either Almeida or Volkov. And uh if Lewis could get that win, I could definitely see him fight in whoever wins between Aspenol and Sir Roan um next year. And Lewis being a fan favorite, a guy that’s very entertaining and very exciting. um he’s definitely going to get pushed up the ranks a lot sooner than some other fighters and the heavyweight division is just desperate for guys like that. So, I agree. Match him up against one of those title contenders and if he wins that fight, um I would love to see him against Aspenol because he’s one of the few heavyweights that’s ranked that Aspenol hasn’t fought. And what an exciting fight that would be because all he’s got to do is touch Aspenol and Aspenol’s down for it. But Aspenol is explosive and fast and could grapple as well. That’s a really great match up stylistically. Yeah, it’s a great match up for sure. And I’m just trying to think as to who Talison Dura could fight next. Uh given that he’s more than likely going to drop in the rankings. Well, will he will by the time this comes out as we’re as we’re recording this, the rankings haven’t been updated, but I feel like Sher takes some time off. He maybe fights in that Brazil card, but I would say we don’t see him until early 2026. What do you think? Yeah, and I could definitely see, you know, him being 25 years old. I think uh maybe they push them too fast too soon. I think they take a step back and I wouldn’t be surprised if he fights a guy who’s not even ranked, the guy who’s just outside the rankings or maybe they match him up against a guy like Shamil Gazif. Um I wouldn’t mind that match up as well, but I would like them to take it slow. He’s one of the younger heavyweights on the roster. So I would like to see him fight someone just outside the rankings, build up his confidence up, and then maybe years from now we see him fighting a top 15 guy again. Well, listen. So overall, how would you grade this card on a scale from 1 to 10? And do you think this surpasses as the best fight night card of the year so far? What do you think? Yeah, off the top of my head, it’s definitely got to be one of the top, if not the best fight night cards um on of the year. And um in terms of grading on a scale of 1 to 10 on just uh fight night cards, it’s definitely got to be around our eight or nine out of 10 in terms of just uh fight nights. I mean, we see a lot of lackluster fight nights over the years. Um, you know, because the UFC has to promote so many fights each week, not every fight card could be this entertaining. And, um, this one definitely delivered, and I would probably give it probably an 8.5 out of 10. How about you? Yeah, I would say more of like an 8.8 and nine. I mean, I think the main card uh, delivered for the most part. The Thompson Bonfi fight, as you said, was very close. A lot of people thought Thompson won. I was kind of indifferent about it. Um, I think Wonderboy, I’m sure you would agree to an extent that Wonderboy needed to finish in the third round and he couldn’t get it. That’s kind of all I saw that fight. I don’t think Thompson was as aggressive as he needed to be. And then of course, as we just alluded to for the last little bit, uh, Dererick Lewis stole the show. And, uh, and again, as people like to say, um, in this business, if you will, the, you know, this term is overused a lot, but fraud checks, I don’t think they sure it was fraud checked. I just think he lost to a guy that’s been a UFC mainstay for a decade plus and happens to have a lot of knockout power and I think Terra probably over um underestimated uh Eric Lewis still has it. Derrick Lewis can knock out Rodrigo Nasamenu and if Derrick Lewis can knock out Talis and Terra there’s a good chance that he could really knock out anybody and again as you just alluded to I think a fight between him and Espanol is absolutely uh fascinating and I know it’s not the fight that everybody wants to see but um I think I think Derrick Lewis is down to fight him. He said it publicly in interviews uh this week and that’s a fight before he retires. I would I would love to see because I actually think that he would give Aspenol problems and I know that a lot of people think that Aspenol might run through him but I think think that Derrick Woo’s left hand is as nasty as ever and I think a fight between him and Aspenol would be very very interesting for sure. And speaking of heavyweights, we’re going to move over to boxing now. A major rematch. Alexander Usyk versus Daniel Dubois taking place during the day on his own pay-per-view. Uh, did this fight go similarly to the first one or do you think that Daniel Dubois has some tricks up his sleeve? Because I feel like as long as doesn’t make a mistake, I think he’ll coast in this fight. What do you think? Yeah, I agree. I think uh Duba is going to look better and much sharper. He’s definitely a much more improved fighter um since the last time these two guys fought. But man, Usk um after beating uh Tyson Fury back to back, I mean, those two guys were a one a one beat for the best heavyweight in the world. And for him to go out there and beat Tyson Fury backto-back fights like he did, um it’s just, you know, right now it’s uh Usyk’s world and we’re all just living it right now. And I mean, he’s a smaller heavyweight, but with his technique and with his speed, no one could beat him. And I just think until it happens, I I can’t pick anyone against them. The guy is on a tear. I think he goes on and wins this uh fight. Um he doesn’t probably KO him. Um but I think he wins this fight uh on the scorecards and Usyk continues his legacy as going to go down as one of the greatest heavyweights this world has ever seen. Yeah, again Usyk 23 and0 Dubis 22 and2 of course one of those losses is to Usyk himself. Um and this is overall a decent card, but I think a lot of people are interested in this main event. Um, Anthony, just given the current state of boxing these days, I have to ask you, um, given the next fight we’re going to talk about, do you think it’s fair that uh, Don and Amazon are making people pay 60 bucks individually for both of these fights? Because I I think that this is a little bit wrong and I think that boxing is making a mistake uh, directly uh, um, um, uh, colliding with the likes of the UFC and the PFL. What do you think? Yeah, I agree. I mean, it’s definitely a bad weekend right now. Um, with everything going on with another UFC pay-per-view. I mean, we know the UFC is always going to have more eyeballs on them. And the thing that sucks for boxing is, yeah, it’s uh it’s considered a pay-per-view and yeah, they want you to pay money, but there’s really only one fight that everybody really cares about. I mean, at least with the UFC, there’s multiple fights that the fans are going to want to see. So, yeah, even their prices are high, you’re getting more than five or six exciting fights that all the fans are going to want to see. With boxing, you’re essentially paying $60 just to watch one main event. No one really cares about the undercards on these things because the undercards are pretty much all um unknowns that no one really knows much about. So, I think boxing is making a big mistake. I mean, it’d be one thing if you had this and the fight that we’re going to talk about next on the same card, then yeah, the $60 is warranted, but you’re pretty much paying $60 to watch one fight. And I don’t see a lot of people want to do that. I don’t disagree. as someone who’s already uh pre-ordered the and unfortunately I guess I’m one of those people that’s uh that’s on the opposite side of the fence there where I felt it was important to support this fight as well as important to support the next fight because you can not only get it on Amazon Prime, you could also get it on ppb.com with zero subscription required. This is Manny Pacquiao’s return fight against Mario Barios. Uh um unfortunately I think this is just a a cash grab for Pacquiao and I think he loses a very underwhelming decision. Um and I don’t think this fight is is all is all that close. I I think they put this fight together for name value alone. And uh trust me, if Pacquiao wasn’t on one side of the poster, I don’t think anybody would care because I think that Barios is a little bit past his prime himself. And I actually think this will be the worst fight of the weekend. What do you think? Yeah, it probably won’t be in super entertaining. Um, but I mean, I’m gonna go with Pacquiao just because uh Pacquiao is a guy who, yeah, he may be older, but he does stay in great shape and he’s one of the legends of the game and like you said, Burios is another guy who, yeah, he may be closer to his prime, but he’s also probably outside his prime as well. So, I think Pacquiao will go out there uh find a way to win this fight uh on the scorecards, but it’s not going to be a fight that’s going to be over exciting. I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Pacquiao lose, but man, a guy who’s a legend of the game. He’s won so many different belts and so many weight classes. Um, like you said, this is probably a cash grab. One more big fight. Um, but just because I like Pacquiao, I think Pacquiao finds a way to win on the scorecards. Okay. And moving on to the final fight preview. The episode we have PFL Africa which also collides with Fury or excuse me versus Wyoming was Fury 3. As much as I as much as I wish that fight was happening this weekend, it’s not. Uh but we do have PFL Africa. This takes place on ESPN Plus and the newly launched PFL app. Uh the main event is Evelyn versus uh versus Van Stenis and also the co-main event is Dakota Deaven and it was also extremely extremely exciting. This is a card I’m not super excited about. I think I’ll probably watch the least amount of fights from this one. Um and I do think Johnny Evelyn does enough to remain undefeated. What do you think? Yeah, I agree. Johnny Evelyn for the longest time has been one of, if not the best fighter outside the UFC. Um, I just hope someday we get to see that. But it seems like it’s a less and less option. Um, possibility the longer we get into his career. But Johnny Emble, one of the best fighters in the world. Um, I’ll definitely want to tune in to watch his fight. I definitely think he wins that fight up against a guy, um, who’s definitely a really good skilled fighter that you have to respect. And then, um, I’m excited to see how Adrien McKe responds. Uh, he did lose to Paul Hughes recently. I think McKe responds. And I’ll also be interested to see how Corey Anderson looks as well. Yeah, I’m excited to watch Corey Anderson. He’s also very exciting. It sucks he’s not fighting in the United States because he does like fighting close to home considering that he is a native of Rockford fighting the always tough and always durable Dennis Goldoft who has power for days. Um, this is definitely a card where uh you might see a future superstar come out of this one. I just don’t know who it’s going to be just yet, but the PFL is offering that card. And then finally, a few small news items. Well, these might have been two of the biggest nonfight items outside of the entire episode. So, let’s get into it here briefly. Conor McGregor is back in the news again for the wrong reasons. U there’s been some weak photos of him uh that we really don’t want to have to describe. They’re publicly out there. They’re a little bit disturbing. Um it’s leaving people to question whether or not he’s faithful to to Delin anymore or not. And I think this is the worst look possible. And I think this is a this is a permanent instain on his legacy for sure. And uh I I I think there’s a reason why Dana was so nonchalant in that no interview as I think he knows some stuff about McGregor that’s going to come out eventually that nobody knows and I think he’s very very disappointed and I think that this is the final straw. What do you think? Yeah, I agree. I mean for a guy uh who’s trying to run for president of Ireland, um this is definitely not a good sign. It definitely seems like uh this puts a nail um into that coffin as well. And uh definitely not the b uh gift that you’d want to get uh on your birthday for uh Conor McGregor. And it seems like every time we talked about him on this show, Zan, uh it seems like it’s always in a negative light. And it just seems like that’s continue. The guy’s just got so much money and so much power, he just doesn’t really give a damn anymore. And he’s just going to do whatever he wants to do. And because of that, we’re going to continue to see things like this. So, um I know I saw him hyping up uh the Mike Perry bare knuckle fight and he’s talking about, hey, maybe whoever wins this fight, you guys will have the opportunity to fight me. Um maybe that’s the one time we will see him fight since uh he does have a kind of part ownership of that promotion. So, maybe we’ll see him fight bare knuckle fight, but honestly, I think his fighting days are over. He’s got too much money to go through a fight camp and to sacrifice that. He’s not really trying to sacrifice anything at this point. I mean, he’s even willing to put his relationship with his wife and family um at risk uh to send uh nude photos to a woman. So, Conor McGregor continues to trend downward, and it doesn’t seem like he might be fighting at the White House next year after all. I don’t think so either. And another, I guess, promising update is seems like Ben Asprin is slowly but surely on the road to recovery. Very, very emotional videos that he’s been putting out over the last week or so. Um really all I can say is just prayers to him. I mean it was a very very uh difficult uh situation to kind of uh witness all the all the uh the immediiacy on social media about his condition. Um I sort of wish for him and his family that he had more privacy, but it’s good to see that uh that the UFC had their contributions and that the wrestling community has come together. Um, I just hope he can make it to full health because I think he is one of the good guys um, in the sport. But I think he’s a guy that, you know, has a good heart to him and um he owes that, you know, he’s known for some he he’s known for some fights that, you know, have been me memeable and stuff and he and he solely understands that. But, you know, oh, just to see his just to see his class and his work ethic and to know that um he’s still in good spirits and he’s still with the entire MMA community is really good to see. Um it just sucks that he lost uh so much weight from his procedure. I felt really bad to see him in that state. Uh but it’s good to know that, you know, he’s as vocal with the fans as he can be. I just wish for his sake that they get some privacy for now and maybe in a few months, uh we get the update that we’re really waiting to hear, which is that he’s back to full health. Um per personally, I’m one of those people where even though I’m I’m in support of all the media attention he’s getting, I just feel like from his from his perspective, I feel like privacy is the most important thing at the moment. and hopefully he ends up getting in here soon. And uh and I just think it’s really cool how close the community has gotten to supporting him. And uh hopefully he makes it back to full health soon because what he went through uh with staff infection which turned in into pneumonia was very very serious and a lot of people didn’t know if he was going to make it for a bit and given how young he is, it would have been really tragic. But to know that he’s okay and he’s on the road back to full health. Uh I just hope he ends up being okay eventually. And it was good to see him put out that video because it was the first time he had broken his silence since the entire ordeal. And uh and as I just alluded to, I hope he’s okay. And for the sake of everybody around him and for the sake of the wrestling community, um the community deserves some good good news as of late. and to see that he’s that he’s doing the best he can was a very very good sign. Yeah, that’s very well said and um I couldn’t have said it any better than you. Um like you said uh with all the media attention, you definitely want him to get more privacy. It was definitely nice to have him come out with his own video um giving us a very positive update. I mean, that’s all we can pray for and hope for at this time. And I’m glad that uh Jake Paul was able to go wild and help him out financially. I know Daniel White does keep everything secretive. He doesn’t report stuff like that. But after having his press conference and being asked about it, he announced that uh he helped out the family as well. So, I’m glad that the Ben Ascrin family is uh getting the help that they need financially and emotionally. And I’m glad that uh he’s on the road to recovery and I just hope that we just continue the trend uh positively as well. For sure. And that is a great way to cap off the show. And this has been the MMA Outsiders episode 121. Just a few quick reminders before we get out of here. Please be sure to listen to the MMA Outsiders River podcast. It’s very, very much appreciated. And for those of you who are listening on the audio only side, be sure to go back over to YouTube. You can do so. YouTube.combetwork. And of course, once you subscribe, hit the notification bell. That way, you don’t miss any uh new episodes of this show or any of the shows across the network. And with that said, Anthony, do you have any final thoughts uh before we get out of here and we let uh the uh combat sports community at large get on with the rest of their week? Yeah, I just got to say uh you know, it’s a great week to be a fight fan. Um I just hope all you fans be all tune out tune in um and watch the great fight card. I think the Max Holloway fight and uh Dustin Porier. Yeah, it’s not the typical title fight that we get on a UFC uh pay-per-view, but it’s going to be a very entertaining fight and probably deliver a lot better than some of these other title fights that we have seen. So, it may not be the title fight that we like, but it’s the title fight that uh we deserve. So, definitely make sure to stay tuned and watch it because it’s going to be very excited fight, potential fight of the year. Absolutely. We we will be back with episode 122 next week to recap it all and so much more. But until then, I’m Zan Bando. He’s Anthony Ballister. Have a great rest of your week everyone and we will see you guys soon. Have a good one.
