Midnight Mania: Power Slap Invades UFC 290 Weigh-Ins!

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Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Despite wildly negative reception since its genesis, UFC President Dana White’s Power Slap League continues to keep on keeping on. Getting booted off cable television didn’t kill the concept, and White continues to tell anyone who will listen that the alleged sport is a massive success that’s crushing the ratings game.

Fans, meanwhile, are in active revolt against the continuous Power Slap promotion. UFC social media accounts are constantly advertising slap fighting, sometimes more than the actual UFC events themselves! Thus far, however, the two have otherwise remained separate products.

That’s going to change tomorrow morning. According to Fan Sided’s Amy Kaplan, slap Heavyweights Nate “The Buffalo Soldier” Burnard and Stevie Ray Payne will face off during the early morning UFC 290 weigh-ins ceremony. The match is expected to conclude the event, meaning at least the dehydrated fighters won’t have to delay their fluids because of slap silliness.

Predictably, the replies to this news revealed a great deal of anger amongst the UFC fan base:

Dana is never gonna let power slap die.

They’re getting desperate for fans.

Say slap league is not doing well without saying slap league is doing well.

Why is Dana pushing this nonsense so much?

If Slap is thriving as much as Dana claims it is, he wouldn’t have to attach it to the UFC name. Keep it separate. Nobody cares about this s—t.

This is so f—king embarrassing.

Perfect time for a bathroom break.

As for the actual UFC 290 event, which will feature closed fists and athletes allowed to defend themselves, the action will go down this Saturday (July 8, 2023) from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Two titles are on the line, as Alexander Volkanovski will seek to defend his Featherweight crown opposite interim king Yair Rodriguez, and Flyweight champion Brandon Moreno seeks to avenge his earlier losses to submission ace Alexandre Pantoja.

Insomnia

Charles Oliveira has the moves.

Islam Makhachev shouts out a former (and future?) foe:

Speaking of the Lightweight champion of the world …

Arman Tsarukyan is not impressed by Dan Hooker.

Sean Strickland’s JRE appearance is sad but unsurprising.

Ryan Garcia seemed to handle his first professional loss pretty well in my eyes, but he’s facing a lot of heat regardless.

Center column has my bet.

Brendan Schaub is confidently wrong more than almost anyone I’ve ever seen.

The frame-by-frame of the Conor McGregor push feels like Renaissance art.

Slips, rips, and KO clips

Robbie Lawler really knocked Ben Askren unconscious with punches (very bad for you) then nearly got choked out (not bad for you), then still lost the fight. All-time weird MMA moment!

Flying guillotine is more cool than high percentage, but damn, it’s so cool.

Successful ax kick alert!

Random Land

Wacky!

Midnight Music: I’ve been on a Black Sabbath kick for the last week.

Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.