November 12th, 2016: Conor McGregor put on one of the greatest performances in MMA history when he dismantled Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 to become the UFC’s first simultaneous double champ. After the fight, McGregor was livid that the UFC didn’t have a 2nd belt for him, that led to one of the greatest post fight interviews of all time. @TheNotoriousMMA (🎥 UFC YT)

Payton Talbott made it clear he wants Sean O’Malley next. Back in 2024, Talbott told Ariel Helwani he “hates that sh*t” when asked about the O’Malley comparisons, mostly because he believes a fight between them would show just how different their styles really are: “If you were to see me and him fight, it would be a very different stylistic fight. I’d be pushing the pace, and I’d be trying to be up in his face and make it a dogfight, and he would be drawing out reactions and feinting me and, you know, technically trying to outclass me.” That said, the only comparison he seemed okay with was his “spirit animal,” Dennis Rodman. “He just is 100% himself, like unapologetically.” “I’d rather people hate me for being who I am than to just feel indifferent about me. Indifference is the worst fate of all. I’d rather be hated by 90% of people and loved by 10%.” Now, two years later, after destroying former champs Henry Cejudo at UFC 323 and Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 332 in back to back fights, Talbott is calling for O’Malley himself. Would be one hell of a matchup. 🎙️: @arielhelwani 👊🏽: @PaytonTalbott

That’s a very scary finish between Raul Rosas Jr. and Raoni Barcelos. Barcelos looks to hit his head/neck against the cage during a takedown, leaving him unconscious in the fifth round of an absolute war. Aftermath did not look good. Hopefully Barcelos is okay 🙏🏼 x.com/nothinbutclipss/status…

If your teenage opponent goes to touch gloves and instead you scream "f*ck you" and throw a headkick, you better be 1000% sure you are going to win the fight. Raul Rosas Jr. finishes Ricky Turcios in the second round at UFC Louisville

Fresh off signing a DWCS-record six fighters Tuesday night through the UFC’s cheapest and most efficient talent pipeline, Dana White was asked about Paulo Costa’s contract situation 🤔 Dana reached for a variation of his favorite line over the last two decades: “We have to offer these guys three fights a year.” That line makes it sound like there’s some universal clause requiring the UFC to offer every fighter three fights a year, and like every “offer” is created equal. There isn’t. And they aren’t. A 5 round fight on six days’ notice on the other side of the world is not the same offer as a 3 round fight with a full camp. A 5 round fight at a purse negotiated for 3 rounds isn’t either. But once the fighter says no, the public framing seems to always become: “He’s been offered fights and turned them down.” Costa doesn’t really dispute that. But he says the offers were Doha, Abu Dhabi on short notice, and Salt Lake City. All five-round fights, despite a purse he says his contract set for three. And here’s the part almost nobody knows: saying no isn’t always free. In some UFC contracts, declining an offered bout can extend the contract clock. Refuse an offer, stay under contract longer. And the DWCS setting is fitting. A constant pipeline of inexpensive talent on multi-fight deals is part of what allows the UFC to remain indifferent when an established fighter pushes back. One contract standoff matters a lot less when another six fighters just walked through the door. So “he turned down fights” only tells you half the story. The more important question is: What exactly was Costa being asked to accept? That’s where the leverage lives. @BorrachinhaMMA

Respect to Jon Jones for taking the heat off Gable here, but “first time in this situation” is a little questionable. Jones has cornered fighters before, including when Renan Ferreira finished his fighter Maurice Greene in the PFL, with the corner cam literally locked on Jon. Looks like Jones and Greene were already out of the cage before the official result was announced. Granted, PFL may handle post-fight procedures differently, but fighters don’t automatically leave the cage immediately after a KO. So while the circumstances aren’t identical, this doesn’t appear to be Jon’s first time dealing with something pretty similar.

One would think, but here’s Arman Tsarukyan in December 2025 saying he gets paid “$300k” for a win and around “$100k” for a loss. He then explains ~30% ($90k) goes to taxes and then around 20% ($60k) paid out to his team, including: 5% to the gym, 5% to his coach, and 15% to his manager. So right off the bat, roughly “50%” of his purse is already gone between taxes and payouts to his team.

Jon Jones on oblique kicks and his mentality when throwing them: “I have zero mercy in the ring…I’m a fighter who stomps on other fighters’ kneecaps, and a lot of people find that to be slightly unsportsmanlike, and you could cause somebody a career-ending injury doing that. But the way I was trained was, if somebody’s punching you in the brain, your memory starts to subside, your ability to pronounce a word starts to subside. He’s trying to give you brain damage, so why not give him a limp for the rest of his life? So it’s a very dog eat dog world, and inside the octagon, I think you kind of have to have that mentality…After the event, you know, buy the guy a beer, wish him all the best, but during the event, it has to be eat or be eaten.”

Bilal Hasan taking a page out of Mcgregor’s book while watching Joshua Van get introduced at UFC 331. During the broadcast it was announced that Bilal will be fighting on the main card of UFC 334 at MSG. Big slot for the 25 year old flyweight with only one fight in the UFC. Van vs Hasan in 2027? 👀

And when Dana White sees fighters sign with a couple other managers, they probably “f*cking crack up laughing” too and add something like, “well we are going to get them for cheap.”

“He ran out the ring like a little bitch. How you gonna embarass all motherfu**ing fighters. Like win or lose, we die by the sword.” Rampage Jackson has had some very strong thoughts after Forrest Griffin immediately left the cage after his KO loss to Anderson Silva. Tonight, Gable Steveson was KO’d by Sean Sharaf in 12 seconds and immediately walked out of the Octagon and backstage. Obviously, after a KO like that, Gable himself likely has no idea what is going on. I was more surprised nobody from his team stopped him and kept him in the cage until everything was officially wrapped up. Dana White called it “professional suicide” when Forrest later did it again against Tito Ortiz, leaving before the decision was even read. Leaving the cage early has long been one of MMA’s unwritten no-nos. Will be interesting to see what’s next for Gable.

No matter the result. Pantoja is a fucking legend. This dude is a damn dawg!

Arman Tsarukyan has been on Dana White’s ‘bad guy list’ for basically the last two years, and we all know how that tends to go. Over that same stretch, Arman has turned himself into one of the biggest stars in the sport, both inside and outside of the octagon. And that vicious KO of Mauricio Ruffy just put an exclamation point on it. Title shot next. ‘That’s it. Dot com.’ @ArmanUfc (🎙️: @arielhelwani )

Coach Jon Jones reacts to Gable Steveson being KO’d stiff by Sean Sharaf 12 seconds into the very first round 👀

Ki MMA bringing out plenty of legends for the launch of their new promotion 👀

Most boxing promoters usually try to protect the image and value of the fighters they have signed, even after a loss. Zuffa Boxing isn’t your normal boxing promoter… It can go from this… To this… Real quick.

“Since I’ve randomly decided to talk about fighter pay lately… You guys thought Kevin Holland’s ~$11 million over 29 fights was impressive when I told you last week? Well, Conor Benn just made ~3x that. In 2 fights. That’s more than the entire career fight earnings of almost every UFC fighter ever, outside of a handful of guys. That’s what we’re doing over at Zuffa Boxing.” - Dana White at the next DWCS presser, probably 😂

Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn (2026)

Tommy McMillen is an absolute dog with zero concern for his own well-being 😂 To come back from these shots is ultra impressive. Fascinating that he’s on O’Malley’s team under coach Tim Welch. You couldn’t find two more opposite approaches to fighting. McMillen: fight anyone, bite down, eat one to land one, go to war. O’Malley: precise and calculated in every aspect of the game, from what happens in the cage to making sure the opponent matches the value of the paycheck. Just my opinion, but unless McMillen’s style evolves and he starts taking less damage, it’s hard to see it carrying him to a title or a long career. Fun ride either way and McMillen is must-watch TV right now 💰 Two opposite philosophies of fighting under one gym’s roof. That’s part of what makes this sport great.

"Just don't sign an extension" isn't how UFC contracts work. Going just off the standard terms made public in the antitrust case: when a fighter turns down an offered fight the UFC can toll your deal a minimum of 6 months, repeatedly. And if you win the belt then it auto extends 1 year or 3 fights, whichever comes first. So yea, just sitting doesn't run out the clock. Ngannou's only guaranteed exit was the sunset clause, which was a hard 5-year end date that the UFC only added in 2017 because of the antitrust lawsuit. So Ngannou fought out his deal at UFC 270 vs Gane, absorbed the injury tolling and the champion's clause, and let the 5 year calendar expire in December 2022. The UFC knew the deal and waived its right to match. So Ngannou’s lawyers were for: navigating a contract engineered to be essentially inescapable. And then after Ngannou left, the UFC quietly weakened the sunset clause afterward so basically nobody does it again. That's not getting robbed. That's rarity of a champion who found an exit.

On 9/11/2001, terrorists attacked America and left Lower Manhattan in panic and completely cut off. The Coast Guard put out a call for any boat willing to help evacuate Manhattan. They had no idea who would even answer. “All available boats. This is the United States Coast Guard. Anyone wanting to help with the evacuation of Lower Manhattan, report to Governors Island.” What followed was a level of unity I’m not sure we’ve seen since. Ferries, tugboats, fishing boats, dinner cruises and private vessels came from all over NY and NJ, heading straight toward the smoke. In less than nine hours, around 500,000 people were evacuated by water. Before that day, Dunkirk was considered the largest maritime evacuation in history, with roughly 338,000 people rescued over nine days. The 9/11 Boatlift surpassed that in hours. No politics. No hesitation. Just strangers helping strangers. Growing up here and unfortunately knowing many who lost their lives that day, it is surreal to even write “25 years ago.” And now, all these years later, I still live on the same river where this unbelievable evacuation unfolded. It’s crazy to think about. And in a country today that feels more divided every day, maybe there’s something worth remembering in how quickly all the division and BS disappeared when our neighbors needed us most. Never Forget 🇺🇸