Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
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Welcome to Midnight Mania!
Even after a number of successful events in the couple months since UFC has returned to action, the future still appears very uncertain for combat sports. With COVID-19 cases rising across the country, there’s a real risk past event locations like Florida and Las Vegas, Nevada will once again stop allowing UFC to hold fights.
Fortunately, “Fight Island” seems much more stable, and thanks to their tight screening process, it’s able to host American and international athletes alike. Given the ever-changing landscape, UFC President Dana White expects many return visits to Fight Island and Abu Dhabi, even heading into 2021.
“These guys have been our partners for over 10 years,” White said at today’s media scrum. “We’ve been doing business with these guys for over a decade … The reason we did the deal with Abu Dhabi is because Abu Dhabi adds value. These guys actually add a lot of value … Look at the way they do things: who does sh*t like this? I seriously think when you talk about hospitality, nobody’s better than Abu Dhabi. These guys are incredible.
“We’re going to be doing a lot of things over here. I’m looking at houses here. I’m buying a house or a condo or something. I’m looking this weekend while we’re here. We’re going to be doing a lot of things with Abu Dhabi; we’re probably going to be doing things with these guys for the rest of my career. So yes… This place is amazing.”
White also confirmed another visit — or potentially, series of visits — in September or October. “Fight Island” could really continue for quite a while, as White explained, “Listen guys, they just shutdown Las Vegas again. All the bars just got shut down again, like today. California shut some stuff … I don’t see any time soon where we’re going to be flying people in from all over the world to the United States. We’re going to be here easily into next year.”
We’ll see what exactly “Fight Island” looks like from a viewer’s perspective tomorrow night, but either way, we had all better grow accustomed to it!
Insomnia
I have a number of UFC 251/Fight Island fan art posts saved up that have yet to make the column, so get ‘em while they’re hot!
New UFC clothing sponsor Venum seems open to special requests.
You’re not the only one waiting for camo shorts in the octagon!
— Venum (@Venumfight) July 10, 2020
Canelo shows Steph Curry some moves!
Damn it Mike!
Some of the stats ahead of Jorge Masvidal vs. Kamaru Usman:
A look back into Petr Yan’s fight camp — “No Mercy” looks ready!
Slips, rips, and KO clips
UFC released a retrospective of all Masvidal’s finishes inside the Octagon, which is essential viewing before tomorrow night.
This uppercut is straight up nasty.
10-Second KO – Back in 1996, “Half-Man, Half-Amazing” Jeremy Williams scored this incredibly quick 1st round TKO over Arthur Weathers in Long Beach, California #boxing #history pic.twitter.com/dqMq8tn6sD
— Boxing History (@BoxingHistory) July 11, 2020
Liam Harrison proves that knees are not real, just throw a left hook!
Random Land
The pitching deck of a ship at sea is a bit unnerving.
Midnight Music: Kamasi Washington, Robert Glasper, Terrace Martin, and 9th Wonder are some of the bigger names in modern jazz music, and the lot of ‘em grouped up and released a short debut album. Check it out!
Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.