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Welcome to Midnight Mania!
The ongoing UFC anti-trust lawsuit continues to reveal interesting tidbits, including that Dana White very much takes credit for Conor McGregor’s rise. He stated the following in a deposition.
“Four years ago, Conor McGregor was available to everybody. Bellator, ONE FC, UFC, everybody out there. Do you know who went out- he was- he was 7 and 2, Okay? Guy’s record was 7 and 2. There’s a zillion of them, right? I went out and got Conor McGregor. I saw him, I liked his personality, and I turned him into a star, one of the biggest stars on earth right…”
From his deposition White taking credit for McGregor’s success. pic.twitter.com/qAbABVMwR2
— John S. Nash (@heynottheface) February 21, 2018
This is factually incorrect as well as misleading; McGregor was already a two-weight champion in Cage Warriors with considerable hype, and his record was 12-2 when the UFC signed him.
Other details include how the UFC used anti-competitive practices to prevent free agency of fighters. Jon Fitch can certainly attest to this (as he does below).
The Plaintiffs tale of negotiating with Zuffa pic.twitter.com/OK1Mg18gtw
— John S. Nash (@heynottheface) February 21, 2018
Zuffa also retaliated against fighters if they turned down a fight offer from Joe Silva.
White on turning down a fight offer by Joe Silva. Can’t tell if this from a deposition or some media interview pic.twitter.com/qMgYCT8U2Q
— John S. Nash (@heynottheface) February 21, 2018
Fight Pass subscribers have reportedly gone from 140,000 subscribers to nearly 400,000.
So if report is accurate the UFC went from avg 140k subscribers in 2015 to 330k by mid 16 and now approaching 400k. https://t.co/9erSAD1jtw
— John S. Nash (@heynottheface) February 21, 2018
Insomnia
TJ Dillashaw landing a couple late punches on K1 Kickboxing champion Takeru
Dominick Cruz’ dog is adorable
It’s cold in San Diego… ?????? pic.twitter.com/ihGOQpIidQ
— Dominick Cruz (@DominickCruz) February 22, 2018
Al Iaquinta (officially) joined Project Spearhead to serve as it’s interim secretary/treasurer
Project Spearhead is proud to announce that Al Iaquinta (@ALIAQUINTA ) has volunteered and will serve as the Association’s Interim Secretary/Treasurer, along with Interim President Leslie Smith (@LeslieSmith_GF ) & Interim VP Kajan Johnson (@IamRagin). #ProjectSpearhead
— Project Spearhead (@ProjSpearhead) February 21, 2018
Claudia Gadelha is training with… Joe Benavidez?
Dexterity
Artem Dalakian at the media training looking very sharp for #SuperFly2 this Saturday at @theforum on @HBOboxing #ViloriaDalakian pic.twitter.com/LKgO0s14hc
— Tom Loeffler (@TomLoeffler1) February 21, 2018
Donald Cerrone and his inimitable grandma.
This was one of the coolest moments of the fight night last weekend
I see you, Angela Hill. Black History month, amiright?
Waiting on my ride to see the #BlackPanther like.#Orlando #AfrocentricAF #BlackPantherMovie #KenteCloth pic.twitter.com/tbQHblkqw1
— Angela Hill (@AngieOverkill) February 22, 2018
I also see you, Mackenzie Dern.
Bob Knuckles has a message for all the haters
Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier
Nate Diaz’s incredible cardio doesn’t just happen.
I would hate this.
Eddie Alvarez taking his daughter to Disney is still adorable.
Cody is right. This is very funny.
Don’t mess with Elvis
I believe this is 545 pounds… Jon Jones used to pull 575 off the blocks like this (I went back on his Instagram to check), but with sumo deadlifts. Presumably traditional is more difficult for someone of his height and long arms.
Chad Mendes has words for the anti-hunting folks on his timeline. He’s right in that, if you eat meat, you can’t have a moral issue with people hunting for their own meat.
Good Reads
- As far as mindset articles go, this one on predator vs. prey is pretty good. If you compete, it’s worth the read.
- This Combat Press article by Schwan Humes probably gives the UFC too much slack for exploiting it’s fighters, but the point is valid: the UFC won’t fix the problem of low fighter pay on their own. It’s up to the fighters to organize.
- Can the UFC still land a knockout TV rights deal? Should they go purely digital or stick with linear?
Slips, Rips, and KO Clips
Lethwei is brutal
It was a nasty fight with multiple headbutts
Soe Lin Oo > Hareruya pic.twitter.com/5jqvGEpHJN— Jolassanda (@Jolassanda) February 21, 2018
Chang Hwan > Taiki Fukuda (Lethwei7) pic.twitter.com/h15FeyuuiU
— Jolassanda (@Jolassanda) February 21, 2018
This step-around KO is just gorgeous
Chris Weidman’s first MMA fight
Nice
#RungvisaiEstrada #SuperFly2 pic.twitter.com/3jqeICkusM
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) February 21, 2018
That’s quite the incredible trip/throw
Big Move From Day 4 Of The “Granma y Cerro Pelado” Tournament (CUB) pic.twitter.com/3LqnrFABbn
— World Wrestling (@wrestling) February 21, 2018
Podcasts and Video
The top three can’t-miss fights on the Stephens-Emmett fight card this weekend! Follow MMA Mania on Youtube
Jeremy Stephens’ counter punching
Random Land
That’s a big boy
Adorable small horses
I thought this was a painting for a second
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