Midnight Mania! ‘Black Beast’ Says He’s Got a Million-Dollar Punch

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Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Derrick Lewis walked away from UFC 229 having banked a last-ditch knockout over Alexander Volkov– and as it turns out, a title shot to boot, with the UFC throwing him into a main event- despite his own reservations- at UFC against double champion Daniel Cormier. How much was that one punch worth? According to MMAFighting.com, a lot.

“It’s probably a million,” Lewis said. “Probably about a million.”

That’s more than Lewis has made in three fights so far this year, and the added pay is helping him to take this fight seriously, though he has less than a month to prepare. Incredibly, Lewis said he’s usually only in the gym for half an hour every day- but that has changed for this camp.

“Not just the title on the line, whenever I saw my contract and see the zeroes, I was like, ‘OK, I can start training now,’” Lewis said. “Before, like I told y’all before, I don’t stay in the gym like everyone else does, my opponents. It’s pretty obvious, after the fight I’m laying all over the floor, I’m tired. Ready to go sit my ass down somewhere.

“But this fight right here, I’ve really been training all day long. Drinking more water than I need to be drinking. Really taking it more serious. There’s not gonna be no excuses for myself — win, lose or draw.”

He also warned Cormier to take him seriously- which he doesn’t think Cormier is currently doing.

“Not really the UFC, just DC believes that,” said Lewis, who added that he will be 100 percent for the title fight, despite a hard bout against Volkov. “He’s thinking it’s gonna be an easy fight for his self. But go ahead and think that. It’s just crazy that I even made it this far with the type of training I’ve been putting in before each and every fight. I’m serious. I don’t stay in the gym all day like all my opponents do. I stay for 30 minutes, 35 minutes — and five minutes on my phone posting memes and stuff. But this camp right here, I’ve been really at the gym all day long.”

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Insomnia

Dustin Poirier will only be out three weeks! That’s great news for the lightweight division.

This might be of interest to some of y’all:

I’m not sure about this one

I know this feeling all too well. In Jiu-Jitsu, it’s a slap AND a bump, dangit!

Ha!

Poster has dropped for UFC 231 and I’m liking the color work the UFC has been doing lately with their posters.

Andre Fili’s face looks like a cartoon here.

Jonny Bones fan art

This might be Jon Jones’ most normie post.

Angela Hill is training that Anderson Silva-Chael Sonnen 2 knee

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Slips, Rips, KO Clips

A wrestling Jose Aldo was fun- I still wish we could see him fight Khabib Nurmagomedov at 155.

Alaska FC was entertaining

That doesn’t look fun

Ouch

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Podcasts and Video

Heavy Hands discusses what a 165-lb. division would look like

Josh Thomson breaks down Jones-Gustafsson and DC-Lewis, and offers insight into what fighters like Eddie Alvarez are thinking going to ONE Championship, and the kind of contracts fighters should push for. At about 25 minutes in he starts discussing competition vs. a union in terms of fighter pay, and offers some interesting insight.

McGregor might be the most famous, but to me the most savage trash talk in MMA has been when Jon Jones goes in on Daniel Cormier. His assured arrogance is unbelievable.

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Random Land

Places reclaimed by nature have this undefinable mystique.

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