Mma Nation

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 96 isn’t just a raggedy Apex card. This time around, it also bears the distinction of being a TUF finale event, as well. And before you ask, yes, TUF is still a thing. The show is headlined by a middleweight contender matchup between Jared Cannonier and Zane’s favorite fighter, Caio Borralho. Will the leader of the Fighting Nerds be able get the W? …

We’re just a day away from a pretty solid PPV with UFC 305, and even the undercard has a little razzle dazzle. Once again, I can’t help but laugh to myself when I stop to think what you all are guessing the title means. It would be pretty great to see some of you came up with before you listened to the show. The comments are right there, just in case you want to share. MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.But right now, let’s see what’s shaking with the prelims. We’re getting a heavyweight bout as the featured prelim, and for that, I will offer up a rare bit of gratitude in keeping unranked heavies on the undercard. Junior Tafa is a crowd favorite and willing to get right in the pocket, so Valter Walker should prepare for that. It’s decent placement for this event. Let’s take a look at the rest of the bouts and some alternative stats:UFC 305 Undercard* Junior Tafa  vs.  Valter Walker 265 lbs* Jo

I bet you guys are wondering what the title means and it tickles me to death to tell you to listen to the show to understand why. Also, quick reminder that this week’s Vivisections will be FREE in their entirety. One of our hosts has a family obligation this weekend, so there won’t be a 6th Round Post-fight Show. To make it up to you, our loyal listeners, we’ve decided to make our bonus content for this week on the house. MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Now, on to the card, which is a very decent one. We’ve got the battle for middleweight gold in the main event, an absolute grudge match between the reigning champion, Dricus du Plessis and Israel Adesanya. We’ve also got a possible title eliminator bout in the co-main event when Kai Kara-France takes on Steve Erceg. Let’s take a look at the contests and some alternative stats:UFC 305 Main Card* Dricus Du Plessis  vs.  Israel Adesanya 185 lbs

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThank the heavens that card is over! There were only 3 finishes and one would be hard pressed to locate a contest worthy of FOTN. Unfortunately, that was reflected in the bonuses. The event seemed like an afterthought—just thrown together while the matchmaking brass were on the golf course, or while they were engaged in some other trivial activity. It’s…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 95 is terrible. Full stop. We don’t think we’ve seen a worse card in the history of the sport, and if there was, it’s escaped our memory. It’s like the UFC threw darts at their roster and wherever the dart landed is how the matches were made. Just an absolute mess. Don’t let the alternative stats fool you. When you peel back the layers of the …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Abu Dhabi is here and surprise, surprise, it’s a good card. Generally, the on-the-road fight night events usually are pretty good. UFC wants to make sure they maximize their gates by saving the better fights for these shows and it appears to be working. That and jacking up the rates of the tickets, but don’t let me get caught up in that. Let’s inste…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 304 is in the books, and if you had a parlay, you’re probably wondering what the hell happened. Last night was filled with upsets and surprise endings—not that it’s a bad thing. Belal Muhammad is the new champ, but will everyone remember his name? That remains to be seen. Tom Aspinall, however, is still the interim HW champ, though. There’s a reason…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comHold onto your hats! The UFC has given us a very solid card with this coming Saturday’s offering. UFC 304 bears all the hallmarks of a great event. Not one, but two title fights, name value, ranked talent…it has it all. Thank you matchmaking brass for finally getting on the ball. We are most definitely worthy, considering how much we sink into the ever-…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 94 is almost here and boy is it a really meager card. We’re sure the old platitudes of “these crappy-on-paper cards always deliver” will be there, but it’s about getting the butt in the seat first. How are we to do that if only the hardcores are the ones willing to watch, and they aren’t always paying subscribers? It certainly isn’t going to b…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Denver is officially in the books and the Fighting Nerds have logged another TKO victory. Jean Silva cut Dober open over his right eye and then targeted it relentlessly until Herb Dean was forced to call in the ringside physician. It was a FOTY contender, easily. At some point, Zane will reluctantly embrace this team. Rose Namajunas showed that ther…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is back to business after a brief, one-week respite. We return with a card on the road, to the mile-high city where Tracy Cortez will be able to let us all know if two days really is enough time to acclimate to that altitude. And Thug Rose will be able to answer the question of where her flyweight ceiling is. MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a rea…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comSince this is an off-week for the UFC, you already know what that means—another hilarious episode of The MMA Depressed-us. With the retirements of both Andrei Arlovski and Michelle Waterson-Gomez, the boys figured this would be the perfect subject matter for today’s show. There’s no better way to kick off your 4th of July festivities than with a triple …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 303 came and went like a fart on the wind. After the card was ravaged by injuries, most notoriously by Conor McGregor’s bum pinky toe, it would continue to transform into the unrecognizable mess it became. Midway through the card, Brian Ortega withdrew from his co-main event bout with Diego Lopes. Apparently, his weight cut went a lot worse than any…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 303 is here, sans Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler headling. In their place, we get a rematch between the two dynamos known as Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka—not a bad replacement at all. As a matter of fact, there’s quite a few matches we like on this card. All in all, it’s a very solid card, and it will be just fine without McGregor. The UFC, …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Saudi Arabia is in the books and it provided some very high points among some very mid fights, but Bobby Knuckles is victorious and that is all that matters today. His first-round destruction of Ikram Aliskerov summoned up memories of what got him the belt once upon a time, and it keeps his name forever in the title mix. We are not mad about that!MM…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Riyadh is here and while it’s not terrible, it’s nothing to write home about either. But it is infinitely better than the originally planned March card that was ultimately postponed to this weekend. That card was so bad the Saudis sent it back. This current iteration was so much better before it was ravaged by cancellations, some coming within the l…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comIf you thought UFC might reward you this week for making it through last weekend’s UFC Louisville card, you’ve got another thing coming. If it is even possible, this Apex event is worse than the last one and that’s saying something. You’ll understand when you get to the alternative stats portion. MMA Vivisection & 6th Round is a reader-supported publica…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Louisville is over and if you were pulling for the underdogs on the card, you ended up with a mixed bag. The undercard saw the favorites come away with the most wins, but Dominick Reyes shined bright on the main card with a sensational TKO win over Dustin Jacoby. I know, I know, it’s just unranked Dustin Jacoby, but when you haven’t had a win since …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Louisville is such a bad card. It’s like the matchmaking brass threw darts to set the bout sheet. At the top we have a nothingburger middleweight bout—our only ranked fight on an “away card”—between No. 4 ranked Jared Cannonier and No. 7 ranked Nassourdine Imavov. There’s nothing wrong with this fight other than the fact it shouldn’t headline an eve…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWell, UFC 302 is finally over and not a moment too soon. That event was the longest in history and absolutely lackluster to boot. The two fights most were interested in played out in completely opposite fashion. Sean Strickland jabbed his way to a completely forgettable decision that drew numerous boos from the crowd and had social media wishing they’d …