Mma Nation

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Kansas City is what I like to call a good, old-fashioned mixed bag. It has a terrific main event and some fun matchups overall. So where’s the problem? That lies in the stats, and there’s one that’s really putting a wet blanket on the whole event: 15 fighters are coming off losses. If this were an Apex card, that would be an easier pill to swallow,…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC is taking a little break after its 314th numbered event—a PPV that took place in Miami with the president and several members of his cabinet sitting cageside—so our crack team of analysts (just Zane and Connor this week) are here to provide plenty of laughs and even some thoughtful conversation as they courageously trudge through three miserable fig…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 314 looked incredible on paper and in practice, it was pretty good. It didn’t reach greatness, but it was pretty good. That said, there were some factors that kept it from that greatness that must be acknowledged. Let’s look at the good: Michael Chandler got dominated and choked out, making Paddy Pimblett look like a world-beater. Jean Silva choked …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 314 is a terrific card, full stop. It’s got all the elements we hope for: ranked fights, plenty of ranked fighters, and we’re not overrun with fighters coming off losses or from the Contender Series. The bouts are matched well and are compelling, with plenty of room for advancement. The main card is quite top heavy, with a concentration of top tier …

UFC Vegas 105 was miserable on paper and didn’t provide much more in practice. From weird judging to lackluster performances, the big moments we DID have just didn’t seem as impactful. There were a few surprises, though. Rhys McKee finally got a win, and a big one. Brad Tavares didn’t let Gerald Meerschaert have his way. Then there were the expected outcomes: Dione Barbosa finished Diana Belbita super fast and Loma Lookboonmee added another win to her resume, handing Istela Nunes her 5th straight loss. All in all, an underwhelming card. Let’s check out the results and bonuses while we’re here.MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.UFC Vegas 105 Results* Lerone Murphy def. Josh Emmett via unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47x2)* Pat Sabatini def. Joanderson Brito via unanimous decision (30-26 x2, 30-27)* Chang Ho Lee def. Cortavious Romious via second-round TKO (3:48)* Brad Tavares def. Gerald Meersch

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 105 happens to be another one of those cards that looks absolutely awful on paper, and while it may deliver some action, what sets it on a troubling path is the recycling of fighters coming off strings of losses. It’s one thing to have a dearth of ranked talent, but quite another to feature an athlete coming off four straight losses while faci…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Mexico turned out to be a pretty eventful card, filled with wild escapes, questionable reffing (I’m looking at you, Mike Beltran), and a fighter’s post-fight speech that reminded everyone why UFC is the bad guy when it comes to fighter pay. Loopy Godinez and Julia Polastri put on one helluva fight but received no reward for it, despit the FOTN bonus…

UFC Mexico is so bad that it broke Connor’s internet. That’s right fam, Zane and Connor set out yesterday to record the main card episode but were unable to complete it due to an internet outage. We view this as a sign from the fight gods to abandon ship. There was about 16 minutes of uninterrupted content, so we decided to go ahead and host it, then give it away for free. Let’s take a look at the event’s main portion and the alternative stats:MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.UFC Mexico Main Card* Brandon Moreno vs. Steve Erceg 125 lbs* Manuel Torres vs. Drew Dober 155 lbs* Kelvin Gastelum vs. Joe Pyfer 185 lbs* Raul Rosas Jr. vs. Vince Morales 135 lbs* David Martinez vs. Saimon Oliveira 135 lbs* Ronaldo Rodríguez vs. Kevin Borjas 125 lbsUFC Mexico Alternative Facts* Ranked Fights: 1* Ranked Fighters: 3* Fighters coming off losses: 15* Contender Series Alumni: 16* TUF Alumni: 3* Road to UFC

UFC Mexico is an ugly, ugly card. The alternative facts tell a very grim tale. But before you dive in and listen to our guys analyze these bouts, I’d like to draw your attention to the fact that you’re getting the prelims early and the main card late. There was a technical glitch, and to make a long story short, it didn’t get recorded. So, you’ll get that one tomorrow, but today, you get the prelims, and they’re FREE.Now, let’s take a look at the event’s preliminary bouts and the alternative stats:MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.UFC Mexico Preliminary Card* Edgar Cháirez vs. CJ Vergara 125 lbs* Ateba Gautier vs. José Medina 185 lbs* Melquizael Costa vs. Christian Rodriguez 145 lbs* Julia Polastri vs. Lupita Godinez 115 lbs* Rafa García vs. Vinc Pichel 155 lbs* Jamall Emmers vs. Gabriel Miranda 145 lbs* Austin Hubbard vs. Marquel Mederos 155 lbsUFC Mexico Alternative Facts* Ranked Fights: 1*

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC London has some good looking fights on the card, as should be the case when we get an on-the-road events. The alternative stats don’t look terrible, and the action quotient looks like it could present us with a banger of a show. Will Sean Brady be able to best the former champ or will Leon Edwards return to form and shut him down. And for those of y…

UFC Vegas 104 turned out to be a typical card. When you look at it on paper, it inspires you to want to load it into a cannon and fire it directly into the sun. But in practice, it delivered a lot of action and plenty of finishes. When it came to the main event, Roman Dolidze was able to scrape together the victory, avenging his previous loss to Marvin Vettori—who somehow managed to forget his cup before the fight. Dolidze wasted no time in calling out Robert Whittaker and Israel Adesanya. Let’s check out the results and bonuses while we’re here.MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.UFC Vegas 104 Results* Roman Dolidze def. Marvin Vettori via unanimous decision (49-46 x3) * Chidi Njokuani def. Elizeu Zaleski via TKO (strikes) (R2, 2:19)* Alexander Hernandez def. Kurt Holobaugh via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 x2)* Da’Mon Blackshear def. Cody Gibson via submission (kimura) (R2, 4:09)* Brendson

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 104 has a deceptively decent alternative facts list, but don’t let that fool you. We have a more than healthy dose of Contender Series, TUF and Road to UFC alumni here—17 in total, or more than half the card. There’s just a single ranked fight on a card with 13 bouts total. Are ya picking up what I’m putting down yet?Now, bearing all that in m…

UFC 313 looked decent on paper but in practice, it wasn’t much to write home about. We did get four great finishes and a banger from Gaethje-Fiziev, but the main event was anti-entertainment. It was a dud of a fight that saw Ankalaev hug his way to a title. Jalin Turner declared he was retiring, but King Green said he wasn’t—both were finished in the first round of their respective fights. It was an odd fight night that somehow didn’t have that big PPV vibe to it. Let’s check out the results and bonuses while we’re here.MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.UFC 313 Results* Magomed Ankalaev def. Alex Pereira via UD (49-46, 48-47 x2) * Justin Gaethje def. Rafael Fiziev via UD (29-28 x3)* Ignacio Bahamondes def. Jalin Turner via sub (triangle) (R1, 2:29) * Amanda Lemos def. Iasmin Lucindo via UD (29-28 x3) * Mauricio Ruffy def. King Green via first-round TKO (2:07) * Joshua Van def. Rei Tsuruya via

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 313 has a solid main card that looks like it has all the ingredients for an action-packed night. At the top of the event is a title fight to be contested at light-heavyweight between reigning champion Alex Pereira and Number 1 contender Magomed Ankalaev—a real wrestling vs. striking bout that will test the grappling of Poatan and the chin of Ank. We…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 103 looked absolutely dismal on paper and in practice…well, it wasn’t too bad. Hyder Amil managed to get a good fight out of William Gomis and Nasrat Haqparast defied the odds to eke out a split over Esteban Ribovics. Andrea Lee may have set a UFC record with most losses in a row, as she just logged her sixth, consecutive L. Julian Marquez was…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWe’re back at the Apex for another watery card. After last weekend’s Seattle event, it’s hard to look at this bout roster and think that it holds much promise, but lest we forget, for the 18 people that will watch this card, it will probably be gangbusters for them, thanks to being loyal enough to want to spend a Saturday night with a bunch of fighters …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comAnother weekend, another UFC card—this time, we get an on-the-road show in Seattle. It’s not terrible, but the accursed injury bug ravaged this event to the point of being unrecognizable. That said, there are some good contender bouts and some well-matched prospect contests that could give us a glimpse of the next crop of contenders. At the top of the c…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 102 was awful on paper but delivered some high action moments. The problem still remains, though, just how valuable are those moments considering the level of talent. Youngish Gregory Rodrigues learned the hard way that old man strenf is a real phenomenon when Jared Cannonier introduced him to the power in his fists in R4. Calvin Kattar was on…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comDid you guys think because we got a dismal PPV card last week, that UFC would somehow reward you with a better card this week? If you did, you’d be a gullible soul and I might possibly have a bridge to sell you. That’s right, kids, we’re back at the Apex and back to a spate of ugly upcoming cards. This one features Jared Cannonier facing off against hou…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 312 was not a good card and only saw a couple good fights amid a sea of nothingburgers. Rongzhu’s battle with Kody Steele was definitely worth going back to see if you missed the event, and Weili’s absolute domination of Tatiana was just a wonder to behold. Sean Strickland made zero adjustments to his game from the last fight with Dricus to this one…