Mma Nation

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is back on the road to Canada, and boy, oh boy, the fine folks in Winnipeg are really getting the short end of the stick with this miserable offering from the promotion. Sure, they get some local favorites on the card, but not only is star power lacking, ranked fights and quality are, as well. We have several fighters on multi-fight losing strea…

UFC 327 was a really solid card on paper and it delivered some solid moments in practice, too. Vicente Luque defied oddsmakers when he not only defeated Kelvin Gastelum, he stopped him in the second with a pretty gnarly D’arce choke. Tatiana Suarez kept her streak alive when she choked out Loopy Godinez in the second round, and Mateusz Gamrot put an early end to Esteban Ribovis’ night with an arm triangle to wrap up the best moments of the prelims. The main card opened with Cub Swanson stopping Nate Landwehr in the first round—a picture perfect ending to a great career. Josh Hokit and Curtis Blaydes didn’t end in a finish, but it was a decent enough fight with plenty of action that saw Hokit scrape by on the score cards. Paulo Costa defeated Azamat Murzakanov via headkick TKO in the third round after looking like he’d exhausted himself shortly before was absolutely not on my Bingo card. Finally, in the main event, a hobbled Carlos Ulberg knocked out Jiri Prochazka in the first round, a testament to willpower

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is on the road to Miami for their 327th numbered event. The Kaseya Center will play host to a really awesome card with Jiří Procházka vs. Carlos Ulberg taking center cage in the headliner. The main card features plenty of fun fights bound for action and probable highlight reel finishes. Finally, a worthwhile and impactful event. HUZZAH! Now, le…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is back at the Apex and does it ever show. Our boys behind the mic dubbed it “Not even good enough to be an LFA card”. Hearing Zane—the most optimistic fight analyst alive—say that was the first nail in the casket for this event. Looking at the stats and the actual matchmaking, then seeing how many losing skids are gracing the bout sheet hammers…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is keeping the show on the road, this time traveling back to the United States with their Seattle event. While it’s not the on-the-road show we used to get treated to years ago, it’s a pretty good offering nonetheless. And the hope that Israel Adesanya doesn’t follow in the footsteps of Tony Ferguson is ever present with fans and pundits alike. …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is back at the O2 Arena in London to give fans a heaping helping of local talent. The card is absolutely nothing to write home about, though. Outside the main event and a match here and there, Londoners won’t be getting their money’s worth with this offering from the multi-billion-dollar promotion. That MVP-Patterson bout does look mighty intrig…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is back at the Apex with another mid to low-tier card for fans to sink their teeth into (or ignore). There are some good fights to consider, but rather than feature them on the main card, the matchmakers have decided to spread them out, forcing watchers to either watch the subpar matches to get to the good ones, or to plan out their evening arou…

UFC 326 started with a bang when Rodolfo Bellato stopped Luke Hernandez via TKO after a spirited first 90 seconds. Hernandez, who was touted as being a great prospect, didn’t manage a great look for very long. Alberto Montes subbed Ricky Turcios with a D’Arce choke to grab the only other finish on the undercard. And Cody Garbrandt, who was definitely on his way to a 29-28 loss, ended up getting fouled multiple times with kicks to the pills (the second one even made poor Cody vomit right in the octagon), resulting in Xiao Long losing two points and the fight.The main card saw Gregory Rodrigues waste very little time in sending Brunno Ferreira to the land of wind and ghosts, KO’ing the man in under 2 minutes. Drew Dober would follow with a TKO of Michael Johnson in round two. Raul Rosas Jr. dominated Rob Font to take a lopsided unanimous decision, and Caio Borralho followed suit with a lopsided unanimous decision of his own over Reinier de Ridder.In our final bout, we saw an absolute blowout by Charles Oliveira

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is back in Vegas this weekend at the T-Mobile Arena for UFC 326. The card, headlined by Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira, will once again highlight the dumbest belt in MMA, the BMF. Yet another title in the lightweight division which is already standing room only with the undisputed title and the interim title. Dana White once famously said “We…

UFC Mexico didn’t look great on paper but we did get some great moments in reality and it started with the very first bout on the card. Damien Pinas stopped Wes Schultz in opening stanza, showing fight fans that Aruba isn’t just for vacations in the sun. Francis Marshall would submit Erik Silva in the first round, and Javier Reyes would make quick work of Douglas Silva de Andrade via TKO.Lacy Chiasson would take her third, straight defeat, this time at the hands of Ailin Perez, a much smaller woman who bullied her for most of the fight. One has to wonder if Lacy has hit her ceiling. Ryan Gandra finishing Jose Medina was a pretty easy prediction for many, and Gandra did it in just 41 seconds to round out the prelims.The main card saw Imanol Rodriguez stop Kevin Borjas late in round two via TKO, and King Green scored a second round TKO over Daniel Zellhuber. One has to wonder if Daniel has also found his ceiling, as this marks his third, straight loss. Finally, in a surprising twist, Lone’er Kavanagh soundly de

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is once again on the road this weekend, with Mexico as the destination. However, this card is a sad reminder of what the UFC has become, a content mill. Never mind that the stats are abysmal, just look at the matchmaking. Giving Lone-er Kavanagh a step up in competition of this magnitude while coming off such a devastating loss is complete madne…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is on the road this weekend, with Houston, TX as the destination. However, this card reads more like an Apex event than a premium fight night. There are three ranked fights, but not all ranked fights measure out equally. The main card is where the better quality bouts are, but we’ve seen better. Strickland vs. Hernandez is the most intriguing an…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWe are here this week to celebrate the legacy of Sean Strickland—and by “legacy”, I mean the ties that bind him to fight nights at the Apex and occasionally on the road events. Yes, yes, I know he’s headlined a PPV here and there, but it seems that wick has burned its way down the candle into the dregs. To celebrate him jabbing and teeping his way into …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC has created magic at the Meta-Apex—a real feat for those that have been down on fight cards that take place there. This event looks more like an on-the-road event than a Pandemic House show. The main card is where the largest concentration of talent lies, as expected. And let’s not overlook the best part of it, the return of the Gooch to action.…

UFC 325 wasn’t built the same as its predecessor, sacrificing quality to ensure local favorites were featured prominently on the card, and having a main event that kind of makes no sense. But that doesn’t mean the event was a bust—quite the opposite. The undercard saw an even mix of finishes to decisions, and some fresh ROAD to UFC talent to keep our eye on in the future.The main portion of the card bore witness to Quillan Salkilld embarrass Jamie Mullarkey in about three minutes flat, proving the gigantic gulf in the odds was justified. Tai Tuivasa took his sixth, straight loss at the hands of Tallison Teixeira, and it was as depressing as you might assume, for those that didn’t watch. UFC has to let Tai go and stop embarrassing him in front of his people.Mauricio Ruffy took Fiziev nearly to the end of round two, then decided he would end Rafael’s suffering, scoring the TKO and sending the Azerbaijani back to the L side of the column. Benoit Saint-Denis put a whooping on Dan “Prostituta” ← (IYKYK) after a fi

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comThe UFC is giving us back-to-back numbered events to kick off their second event of the year and under the Paramount umbrella. It’s a solid affair with some fights built for action (Hello Rafael Fiziev vs. Mauricio Ruffy!) and the latest ROAD To UFC finale. We’ve got lots of fresh faces to see, and plenty of veterans for those that don’t care for new ta…

UFC 324 was ravaged by injury before it ever got off the ground. A few weeks out, we lost Kayla Harrison vs. Amanda Nunes. On weigh-in day, after successfully making weight, Cameron Smotherman stepped off the scale, took a few steps and then faceplanted, busting open his chin which ended up requiring stitches. This morning, just hours before the event’s kickoff, we lost yet another bout, this time due to suspicious betting activity which later revealed Alexander Hernandez was injured, so his bout vs. Michael Johnson was canceled. Rocky start to a billion-dollar-per-year deal.The card itself was pretty good, with the prelims seeing four straight finishes. Considering that the bonuses have doubled now, and there’s added incentive ($25K bonus for all finishes that didn’t already earn a standard bonus) to get a finish, perhaps a fire has been lit under our modern day gladiators. And may I just say that the old guys really do find some magical reserves because Nikita Krylov certainly did.The rest of the fights, sa

The UFC is finally back for their first card of 2026 and the first card of their Paramount+ broadcast deal. It’s a good show, worth investing the time to watch it, with a main event that pits the aging slugger against the more youthful grappler. All the fights on the main portion are solid and should appeal to a wide range of fans—even without the Nunes-Harrison title bout. Now, let’s take a look at all the fights from the main card and the rest of the alternative stats.UFC 324 Main Card* Justin Gaethje vs. Paddy Pimblett 155 lbs* Sean O’Malley vs. Song Yadong 135 lbs* Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Derrick Lewis 265 lbs* Natalia Silva vs. Rose Namajunas 125 lbs* Arnold Allen vs. Jean Silva 145 lbsUFC 324 Alternative Facts* Ranked Fights: 7* Ranked Fighters: 15* Fighters coming off losses: 7* Contender Series Alumni: 8* TUF Alumni: 3* Road to UFC Alumni: 0* Debut: 1Make sure to tune in immediately after this Saturday’s fights for breakdowns and analysis on our 6th Round Post-Fight Show. Thank you for reading this ar

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWe are finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, guys & gals. Next week, you’ll be getting a certified Vivisection—no filler! If you missed our last episode, the guys broke down the first half of their 2025’s Worst, so you should definitely have a listen. This week, our crack team of analysts are all here to give you a look back at the…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC is in week 562—at least it feels that way—of their extremely long winter break. If you missed our last episode, the guys watched another laughable MMA movie called Cagefighter: Worlds Collide, so you should definitely have a listen. This week, our crack team of analysts are all here to give you a look back at the very worst bouts of 2025 (part 1). L…