Midnight Mania! Floyd Mayweather hangs out with Chechen dictator who threatened Fedor

Bringing you the weird and wild from the world of MMA each and every weeknight …

Welcome to Midnight Mania! Tonight we’ve got Floyd Mayweather running around with a Chechen dictator, Stone Cold Stipe Miocic, Michael McDonald among the latest fighters to leave the UFC, Chris Weidman and Kenny Florian going back and forth on Twitter, knockouts, analysis, podcasts, and much more.

Insomnia

Дорогие друзья! В Чечню по моему приглашению прибыл чемпион мира в пяти весовых категориях, легенда бокса, не знающий горечь поражений Флойд Мейвезер. Вместе с гостем мы посетили многофункциональный спорткомплекс клуба “Ахмат” в Гудермесе. Мейвезер ознакомился с тренировочным процессом, посмотрел показательные выступления боксеров и бойцов ММА, пообщался со спортсменами. Он высоко оценил условия, созданные для развития единоборств в Чечне. Гость остался под приятным впечатлением от общения с людьми и увиденной в Грозном, Гудермесе и Аргуне картины. Флойд намерен совершить в республику повторный визит и пригласить команду тренеров по боксу и ММА из США. Надеюсь, что наше сотрудничество будет носить долгосрочный и продуктивный характер. Уверен, опыт такого великого спортсмена будет бесценен для воспитанников клуба “Ахмат”. #Кадыров #Россия #Чечня #Бокс #Мейвезер #ММА

A post shared by Ramzan Kadyrov (@kadyrov_95) on Mar 16, 2017 at 1:05pm PDT

Undefeated boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, currently surrounded by growing rumors that he will box MMA darling Conor McGregor, recently found himself in Chechnya hanging out with dictator Ramzan Kadyrov (Kadyrov is perhaps best known to Americans for John Oliver’s segment making fun of his missing cat).

According to BloodyElbow.com, Mayweather was flown over to be present for the opening of a new boxing gym and was payed over $86,500 to teach a masterclass there. His driver was the guy who threatened Fedor Emelianenko after “Last Emperor” criticized Kadyrov for letting his kids fight in a full-contact MMA match.

Floyd Mayweather is meeting w/ Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov right now. Video shows him being driven by crony who threatened Fedor’s life pic.twitter.com/reLYFpe6B8

— Karim Zidan (@ZidanSports) March 16, 2017

Kadyrov has a list of humans rights violations longer than Jon Jones’ arms, but that hasn’t stopped many popular MMA fighters and kickboxers from taking his money to appear at his events, including Chris Weidman, Fabricio Werdum, Frankie Edgar, Frank Mir and Badr Hari.

More pictures surfacing of Floyd Mayweather w/ dictator Kadyrov at his palace in Chechnya. pic.twitter.com/GEvdTttkVt

— Karim Zidan (@ZidanSports) March 16, 2017

Mayweather apparently intends to continue collaborating with Kadyrov, with Kadyrov saying Mayweather “intends to invite a team of trainers in boxing and MMA from the US.”

As long as he doesn’t touch Kadyrov’s cat.

Bobs and Weaves

I had a dream last night that I was hanging out with UFC Heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic, asking him if those body jabs Junior dos Santos threw in their first fight slowed him down at all. I informed him I had watched that fight, like, four times (only a slight exaggeration) and offered to show him the counter Conor McGregor tried to time against Nate Diaz’ body jab. He was like, “you know I have coaches for this, right?” And I was like, “I know, man, this is more for my gratification than it is for you.” And then I woke up. Stipe is still cool though, and I’m happy to see he has embraced Stone Cold Stipe, Tommy Toehold’s vision of him.

Happy 3:16 day everyone. #drinkbeergivestunners

A post shared by Stipe Miocic (@stipemiocicufc) on Mar 16, 2017 at 10:53am PDT

The original video:

Former Bantamweight title challenger Michael “Mayday” McDonald has asked for his release from UFC … and it gave it to him. He is the latest in a long string of fighters exiting the world’s leading MMA organization. Some of them, such as Lorenz Larkin, are in Bellator now. It remains to be seen whether McDonald will follow that path.

Bantamweight Michael McDonald (@MaydayMcDonald) has informed me he asked for and secured his release from the UFC. More on this soon.

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) March 16, 2017

Kenny Florian and Chris Weidman went back and forth on Twitter over Chris’ comments on Gegard Mousasi.

Former #UFC champ @ChrisWeidmanUFC shows full confidence in his experience and abilities w/ @SubmissionAus. QUOTES: https://t.co/T0hCeZ8Ypb pic.twitter.com/HjAHto2MVq

— FloCombat (@FloCombat) March 16, 2017

At first, Weidman seemed like he was being (jokingly) intimidating.

@kennyflorian lol it’s not the quote that scares u it might be the pic they put with it

— Chris Weidman (@ChrisWeidmanUFC) March 16, 2017

Then he turned the joke on himself. Kenny, who was the first UFC fighter to fight at Featherweight after fighting at Middleweight, empathized.

@ChrisWeidmanUFC nah, you should’ve seen me at 145!

— Kenny Florian (@kennyflorian) March 16, 2017

This moment is now one of the most iconic in the sport — Nate Diaz elevated his career from pocket change to millionaire in a moment of time, while McGregor faced his first humiliating UFC defeat in front of millions. It was a moment of truth for both men, giving us their epic rematch at UFC 202.

Coming on nicely…#natediaz #ConorMcGregor #notsurprised pic.twitter.com/vZWIqx1NYH

— Ross Baines Art (@RossBainesArt) March 16, 2017

Slick takedown from one of the United States’ best wrestlers.

1️⃣2️⃣

Number of takedowns in Kyle Snyder’s opening match. pic.twitter.com/ahTor5vAP4

— NCAA Wrestling (@ncaawrestling) March 16, 2017

This highlight makes Rampage look a lot deadlier than he is these days.

“@KingMoFH better be careful, he’s awoken a monster!” – @Rampage4real #Bellator175 pic.twitter.com/ibIpOrXjgv

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) March 16, 2017

Remember this? This was great.

Nice quick analysis of Edson Barboza’s stunning knee finish of Beneil Dariush

Edson Barboza figured out Beneil Dariush.

from Yoel Romero’s Facebook page. pic.twitter.com/VGjtX7g9Vg

— Flyin’ Brian J (@FlyinBrianJ) March 15, 2017

Brad Pickett packs some pop in his hands.

The KO of the Week comes from none other than @One_Punch, who will cap his career at #UFCLondon on Saturday pic.twitter.com/AXFptkNStm

— UFC (@ufc) March 16, 2017

Not as much as you might think, though, with a nickname like “One Punch”.

This is Brad “One Punch” Pickett’s only KO win in 17 UFC/WEC fights. #UFOTD https://t.co/b3RKwTsLPH

— Seán Sheehan (@SeanSheehanBA) March 16, 2017

Who else doesn’t deserve their MMA nickname?

@SeanSheehanBA Kenny Florian was named Ken flo, ain’t never heard dude spit any bars on the mic

— schwan humes (@blakjordanbreen) March 16, 2017

Maybe he should change his nickname to Brad ‘One Puppy’ Pickett.

Best UFC face off? Probably. #UFCLondon pic.twitter.com/2tDd9ANHDm

— Danny Segura (@DannySeguraTV) March 16, 2017

Quick Hits

Podcasts and Audio

BEERMOSAS!

Julie Kedzie joins the Joe Rogan Experience

The MMAnalyst breaks down head movement in MMA

Lee Wylie, the guy Kenny Florian plagiarized for his excellent breakdowns, does great film study, mostly on boxers. This is his most recent video, on Salvador Sanchez and counterpunching, and it’s a great watch for students of the game.

Stay woke, Maniacs!

Bringing you the weird and wild from the world of MMA each and every weeknight …

Welcome to Midnight Mania! Tonight we’ve got Floyd Mayweather running around with a Chechen dictator, Stone Cold Stipe Miocic, Michael McDonald among the latest fighters to leave the UFC, Chris Weidman and Kenny Florian going back and forth on Twitter, knockouts, analysis, podcasts, and much more.

Insomnia

Undefeated boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, currently surrounded by growing rumors that he will box MMA darling Conor McGregor, recently found himself in Chechnya hanging out with dictator Ramzan Kadyrov (Kadyrov is perhaps best known to Americans for John Oliver’s segment making fun of his missing cat).

According to BloodyElbow.com, Mayweather was flown over to be present for the opening of a new boxing gym and was payed over $86,500 to teach a masterclass there. His driver was the guy who threatened Fedor Emelianenko after “Last Emperor” criticized Kadyrov for letting his kids fight in a full-contact MMA match.

Kadyrov has a list of humans rights violations longer than Jon Jones’ arms, but that hasn’t stopped many popular MMA fighters and kickboxers from taking his money to appear at his events, including Chris Weidman, Fabricio Werdum, Frankie Edgar, Frank Mir and Badr Hari.

Mayweather apparently intends to continue collaborating with Kadyrov, with Kadyrov saying Mayweather “intends to invite a team of trainers in boxing and MMA from the US.”

As long as he doesn’t touch Kadyrov’s cat.

Bobs and Weaves

I had a dream last night that I was hanging out with UFC Heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic, asking him if those body jabs Junior dos Santos threw in their first fight slowed him down at all. I informed him I had watched that fight, like, four times (only a slight exaggeration) and offered to show him the counter Conor McGregor tried to time against Nate Diaz’ body jab. He was like, “you know I have coaches for this, right?” And I was like, “I know, man, this is more for my gratification than it is for you.” And then I woke up. Stipe is still cool though, and I’m happy to see he has embraced Stone Cold Stipe, Tommy Toehold’s vision of him.

Happy 3:16 day everyone. #drinkbeergivestunners

A post shared by Stipe Miocic (@stipemiocicufc) on

The original video:

Former Bantamweight title challenger Michael “Mayday” McDonald has asked for his release from UFC … and it gave it to him. He is the latest in a long string of fighters exiting the world’s leading MMA organization. Some of them, such as Lorenz Larkin, are in Bellator now. It remains to be seen whether McDonald will follow that path.

Kenny Florian and Chris Weidman went back and forth on Twitter over Chris’ comments on Gegard Mousasi.

At first, Weidman seemed like he was being (jokingly) intimidating.

Then he turned the joke on himself. Kenny, who was the first UFC fighter to fight at Featherweight after fighting at Middleweight, empathized.

This moment is now one of the most iconic in the sport — Nate Diaz elevated his career from pocket change to millionaire in a moment of time, while McGregor faced his first humiliating UFC defeat in front of millions. It was a moment of truth for both men, giving us their epic rematch at UFC 202.

Slick takedown from one of the United States’ best wrestlers.

This highlight makes Rampage look a lot deadlier than he is these days.

Remember this? This was great.

Nice quick analysis of Edson Barboza’s stunning knee finish of Beneil Dariush

Brad Pickett packs some pop in his hands.

Not as much as you might think, though, with a nickname like “One Punch”.

Who else doesn’t deserve their MMA nickname?

Maybe he should change his nickname to Brad ‘One Puppy’ Pickett.

Quick Hits

Podcasts and Audio

BEERMOSAS!

Julie Kedzie joins the Joe Rogan Experience

The MMAnalyst breaks down head movement in MMA

Lee Wylie, the guy Kenny Florian plagiarized for his excellent breakdowns, does great film study, mostly on boxers. This is his most recent video, on Salvador Sanchez and counterpunching, and it’s a great watch for students of the game.

Stay woke, Maniacs!