UFC 250 Freedom Fight Picks

I’m back just in time for UFC 250 and I'm dropping the script. Listen in for these key topics: 
• The 7 fight total event
• how the $25,000 performance bonuses and $400,000 fight of the night bonus could affect risk and pace 
• Diego Lopes vs Steve Garcia through footwork, aggression, and consistency 
• Kyle Daukaus  vs Bo Nickal and why I predict an upset
• My biggest issue with Chandler’s career decisions 
• Josh Hokit vs Derrick Lewis and the “new breed curse” when hype jumps rankings too fast 
• Sean O’Malley vs Aiemann Zahabi fight IQs and sequencing matchup 
• Alex Pereira vs Ciryl Gane is a composed heavyweight chess match 
• Ilia Topuria vs Justin Gaethje and how press conference behavior signals mental edges 

Transcript

Shay Returns And Ditches Scripts

SPEAKER_01 0:14

Well, hello everyone. What's up? Welcome back to the Clinch Podcast. If you don't already know, my name is Shay, and I am so happy to be back. I truly could not think of a better time to come back than now, now that UFC 250 is here. I have been so excited for this fight for such a long time, or this fight card for such a long time. I was curious to see how it was going to look, how everything was going to play out. So this is so exciting for me and so many people. And I wanted to just go ahead and jump in because you guys know that's what I like to do. I tried a bit to, you know, follow the whole algorithm thing, and I just really couldn't do it. I really felt like following a script that was markable and all of that was just not authentic to me. And it was really discouraging, I'm not even gonna lie. So we're gonna go back to doing things how we've always done them. Weaving me and you listening. I'm just gonna talk fights. I'm I'm gonna put a lot of emphasis on the styles of the fighters because that's my favorite aspect. I'm gonna be pretty hard on some people, one in particular. So just stay listening, stay tuned. We're gonna jump right in and have some fun.

White House Card And Monster Bonuses

SPEAKER_01 1:37

So, right away, I of course just want to point out there are only seven fights. I know we all know that, but it's just really interesting to see that kind of card happen. But of course, it's UFC White House, so of course we're gonna have so many things that are different than our usual events because this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, so you gotta do once-in-a-lifetime things. So I kind of see it, and it makes me wonder what they're going to fill the time with. I know it's still pretty standard for a uh main card, but I know, like I said, this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. So I'm sure we're gonna be seeing a lot of ceremonial segments, and hopefully it's not too political, but if it is, I mean, who who's gonna be surprised, honestly? But another thing I wanted to really draw attention to is what Dana White announced at the press conference, and that is that the performance of the night bonuses will be $25,000 each, and there'll be two fighters, and for the fight of the night bonus, each fighter will get four hundred thousand dollars. That is incredible, that is amazing. I am so happy. Those fighters are really gonna be putting it on and turning it up. The actual press conference was gorgeous at the Lincoln Memorial, it really was beautiful. Everyone looked so sharp, and honestly, I am kind of glad that my last episode was scratched because I was able to record this episode obviously after the press conference happened. So I just kind of tweaked my notes and everything, and it I feel like it was supposed to happen. Everything happens for a reason. I kid you not, I cried for like three hours on and off about this. It was ridiculous, but you know what? I'm over it. Re-recording it now. Hope you guys like it.

Lopez Vs Garcia Style And Consistency

SPEAKER_01 3:43

So let's go ahead and jump into the fights. We have Diego Lopez, who is the minus 148 favorite versus Steve Garcia, who's plus 124. I think this is a wonderful matchup. I think it's it's really good. I never really paid too much attention to Steve Garcia, as horrible as that sounds. But of course, with these episodes, I do some research. And when I was doing that research, I was really impressed. Like I've seen him win before, but when it's all stacked up on paper, it really puts it into perspective when you have to do fight math because we obviously don't know what's gonna happen. So when we're trying to decide what happens, we gotta do some fight math, and what that entails is going online, looking at videos, looking at stats. So when I put all of that together, it really painted a scary picture for Diego, in my opinion. Not like terrifying, like it's gonna be a total wash, but it's gonna be a challenge, especially with him kind of being exposed to that new breed curse that happens at times. And I know that he has had really good fights where he's proven himself, and there have been other fights where he has shown that new breed curse where they kind of jump up a little too high a little too soon and fall a little too hard. And so with this fight, it'll be good to see someone who is more his caliber and more realistic. Not that his previous fights weren't, it's just, you know, if you move a fighter up the ranks at a specific pace, then I mean you're liable to see their downfall, especially because the system works, but there are anomalies and fighters that will come through and just blow through divisions as soon as they as soon as they are signed. But with Lopez, he unfortunately was not one of those fighters, and he's on a journey to build himself back up. So this is a very good challenge. It is a make or break, in my opinion. I'm sure a lot of people will disagree, but I just say that because the UFC is really amping up to set the bar even higher, of course, higher and higher, higher every year. But this year just feels the energy feels different. I feel like now that Dana is in a different position where he's more of like a I would say just like a marketer. He's still on the promoting side and less on the back end. So now that we've got like a new shift in the dynamic, I feel like there are going to be not so many chances for fighters to make the UFC some money. They're basically gonna be like, you are gonna show out, show up and show out, or you're gonna get buried. That's the energy I'm getting. I know that sounds negative, but I don't mean it in like an overly negative way. It's just that the organization seems to be lifting itself up. And if the fighters aren't really following that, then they're liable to be left behind. And if Steve Garcia does beat Diego Lopez this Sunday, I am not sure what's gonna happen with Diego going forward. But I think it could be likely that this will happen. Diego, of course, is brilliantly talented, and I initially felt like he would win, and then now I'm a bit torn. I honestly am very torn because Steve Garcia, he does have one thing I love, which is a low decision percentage. You guys know that decision fighters are not my vibe, even if they're great, grand decisions, which I do love, a good five-round war. But I'm just not a fan of people who consistently deliver decisions. I just don't feel like that is a great indicator of the level of competition you should be at in a division. But back to the fight, he also, in addition to having a lot of low percent uh a low decision percentage, he also has quite a few uh first-round knockouts and TKOs. So that coupled with the I guess more inconsistent nature of Diego's record, granted, he did lose against Volkonovsky, and that is a huge name to fight. And you know, he did go to decisions with him. So, you know what? I can't be too hard on him. I'm not trying to be hard on him at all. It's just that when you're looking at the fight math, I think one of the most important things is consistency in a fighter's record. That to me paints a more accurate picture of what we're to expect in a fighter's upcoming fight, as opposed to a fighter who has more of a volatile record and it's just kind of all over the place. You know, they've got super high highs and then super low lows. It to me is an indicator of a fighter whose fight IQ is low. And so Diego is not in that arena. I don't think he has a low fight IQ. I just think that he would do well to win this fight and then show consistency and take the more maybe longer but sturdier route back to belt contention. That's just my opinion. I I think that the edge that he has is that he and Steve have a bit of an aggressive way of moving. They both have very dancey footwork, but the difference that I notice is that Diego is uh he's more free. He flies a little better in there, whereas Steve is more planted. So that really works either way. It just depends on who whose niche or whatever works better. So I'm interested, I'm interested to see how the footwork compares to one another once they are in the octagon. So let me know what you guys think about this fight. I think that Diego moves better and thrives in those really thick and violent exchanges, whereas Steve Garcia, he can create those really thick and violent exchanges. So we'll see. I'm super excited for that one. And I

Dawkins Vs Bo Nickal Upset Case

SPEAKER_01 10:20

wanted to go ahead and move on to Kyle Dawkins versus Bo Nickel, with Bo Nickel being the minus 310 favorite and Kyle Dawkins being the plus 250 underdog. I think that this you could stand to make some money here. I am not sure Bo has this one. I'm just not really convinced. I think that Kyle does get it done here. He, these are pretty good matchup for Bo Nickel. I think it's pretty even. But just like with the last fight, I think that Bo Nickel is just a little more inconsistent. And with Kyle having that progression and maintaining like a steady streak, I feel like he might have it just by a hair. I mean, they both have records that, you know, are a little tainted here and there, but I just feel like Kyle's is a little more precise and a little more consistent. So we'll see. I'm gonna go tile a tile. I'm gonna go Kyle Dawkus here. Let me know what you guys think for that one.

Ruffy Vs Chandler And Career Choices

SPEAKER_01 11:28

And next, of course, we have Morne Seo Ruffy versus Michael Chandler. And if you have listened to my previous episodes, you know that you are about to get a big old mouthful from me about Mr. Freaking Chandler. Okay, I'll s I said it once or twice, maybe even five times in my previous episodes, and I'll freaking say it again. I do not care. Michael Chandler is a poor decision maker when it comes to his career. I admire anyone who adopts a child. I I am not talking about anyone's character. I I really respect him, but as far as his career is concerned, he comes into the UFC from Velator, right? He was a big name coming through. There was so much talk. He was gonna be the all-American champ. And then he comes in, and the only two wins on his record are Tony Ferguson and Dan Hooker. Be so for real with me. Dan Hooker, that's the best we can do. Not ever too much on our guy Tony. I'll never say anything bad about Tony Ferguson because I love the crap out of that guy, and I think he needs a strong team around him to tell him to freaking retire. Uh I mean, a little grappling isn't bad. He has like a wrestling match coming up with I think Armand. Yeah, Armand. And that's fine, okay. But Dan Hooker? Dan Hooker, come on. And it wasn't even Prime Dan. Like, I when I when I when you guys hear the eye roll in my voice when I'm talking about Dan Blondehead Hooker, I'm not talking about OG Hooker, okay? I'm not talking about Tatuless, you know, nice normal guy from New Zealand. No, I'm talking about the crazy, like whacked out, bleach blonde hair, inconsistent ass record. Looks like he's drunk when he's in the octagon hooker, okay? That's who I'm talking about. And this is who Michael Chandler beat. Granted, the names that he lost against, of course, they're they're OGs, okay, really truly. However, we expected a lot from Michael, correct? So that is not even entirely my issue. It's a bit of my issue because I was excited to see this, you know, little guy come in here and you know do his thing, but I was so let down, and I hate being let down. So that is one thing. But my bigger issue is the issue with Connor McGregor. I do not understand who was around him and what was in his own mind that made him think that seriously pursuing Connor McGregor at the level of toxicity he was at the time. He seems to be reformed. I I'm waiting to see how it plays out if it's legit. I do wish for it to be because I do believe in redemption, but I do also believe in consequences and punishment. And just because you find God doesn't mean that you neglect your consequences or you run from them. However, different topic for a different time because I could talk about that forever. As we're talking about Michael Chandler here, at the time that he was pursuing Connor and promoting this fight with him, Connor was out, drunk out of his mind, sticking in every hole that's ever existed in mankind. So I really just don't understand what his thought process was there. I would think that if I was like a fighter's manager, right, I would hope that the conversation would be hey, I know that this is a big name, but is this a legitimate big heyday? And the answer is that it wasn't. And I don't know if these conversations were had on his team because he was legit. It wasn't just like, you know, two people calling each other out. Like the fight was booked. Do you think that Connor was training for him? No, Connor was training for the Guinness World Record of who can drink the most and who can, you know, fancy the most midgets. Like that was what Connor was doing at that time. And so it just baffles me that he even pursued it for so long. Because given how his trajectory was going at the time, you would think that he would be like, you know what? No, I need to show up how I said I would when I got signed, and I need to ignore this person until they are ready to fight, until they're ready to get paid. And I'm gonna pursue some real money. I'm gonna pursue some real fights right now. He could have had like what, two, three fights in the whole time that he was promoting this fight with Connor. I think we can all agree as a community that the level of competition in the UFC is not like it was before. And it's exciting, it's it's amazing. Like there are fighters that are really showing up and showing out, but it's just different, right? So I would have loved to see that level of star power again in the UFC. There are other people who are giving us that, but like any fighter that can give it to us is a good thing, right? Like we want to see that energy. And I feel like it was just such a waste. And not because I don't think Michael Chandler is not talented, obviously he has a lot of hyper on him for a reason, but when he came into the UFC, he just didn't show it. So I would have loved to see him embody that and make it even more grand and put that energy into building the division. He probably would have had a belt by now had he not pursued Connor. Because I think he's a man that can adjust. I absolutely think so. I think that he, for some reason, wasn't able to, and he he took a while to adapt to the level of competition that was in the UFC. But I think it would have happened eventually. I I don't see him as having a low fight IQ. I see him as someone who will identify a problem and train the crap out of himself to perfect something and master something. So that's why it was just so shocking to me that he did that. And I think that the momentum is lost right now. And I hope that he can gain it with this fight. And I did call this fight. If you listen to my previous episode or the one before, I said that Michael Chandler coming back, he would have to fight most likely Mauricio Ruffy. I think that would be the best name for him at this at this time. And so I know that this is a good matchup, and it's definitely something I'm looking forward to. I just still feel like it's a no-brainer. I would even dare say that Roofy knocks him out. I mean, if we're just going based off the information that we have available to us, based on his previous fights, it's possible. And so I think that Roofy has it Sunday night. If you disagree, definitely let me know. I know that there are a lot of Michael Chandler fans, and I'm not trying to, you know, crack all over your boy, but these are these are just facts. Like he had a whole entire fight booked with someone who is clearly not in fight shape. And I just I don't mean physically, I mean everything, the whole package was tainted. So uh I don't know. Let me know what you guys think. I think that it's gonna be a slam dunk for for Roofie, and I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think I am.

Hokeit Vs Lewis Plus New Breed Curse

SPEAKER_01 19:34

Sorry, but uh let's go ahead and move on to uh I feel like in my head, Josh Hokett is my arch nemesis. He I don't know why I take his corniness so personally. Like during the press conference, I felt it in every ounce of my soul when Ilya Taporia was telling him to shut up. Like he wasn't just doing it to like like we all wanted homie to shut up. Like, who asked you? Who's talking to you? Is it the Hulk? Shut up, but yeah, I have learned, despite all of that, that I cannot discount him. I cannot doubt him because every time I do, I look silly, and so I know it's possible he could win. I know that Derek Lewis is not the most consistent man and he can fall as hard as he punches. And I love Derek Lewis, it feels disgusting for me to even utter the words hook it by knockout. Oh, guys, guys, my stomach. Oh like ew, I really just got so nauseous. That is really rough. Okay, and oh, by the way, if you don't know, I'm not sure if the odds have changed by the time you hear this, but Josh Hoke is minus 410 favorite, and Derek Luce's plus uh 320 underdog. Uh, I really think that because Derek is not exactly indestructible, it is highly likely that this man could win. I I think that that's likely what will happen. I think he's very oh, it's really hard for me, guys. This is so hard for me. He's talented. Talented, I guess. I guess he's okay, but I mean, he's just not likable, and you know what? People can disagree with me on that. There are plenty of people people on TikTok right now that I posted a video of just like me rolling my eyes. I wasn't saying anything, I didn't say anything negative about Joss. I just posted that reaction to an audio uh from him at the press conference when he made the comment about Ilya Taporia's uh. X. And like, you know what? Trolls are gonna be trolls. Like, I'm not saying that it should be illegal for him to be annoying. I'm just saying that he is annoying. That's my opinion. And I feel like that's fine. People are so rude, and they're like, oh, you know, you're a casual, and you know, like um he's the most exciting thing to happen to the heavyweight division, and you know, he can like guys calm down. Like, this is why he's so annoying to me. Because he brings out people like you who are complete imbeciles, like you guys are absolutely ridonculous in how you proceed to defend behavior that no one actually cares about. It's a joke on the internet. I find him annoying, sweep it under the rug. You find me annoying, sweep it under the rug. I don't care, you know. But like people on Instagram are thankfully, you know, just being normal and laughing about it, you know, because it's a joke. Like he's annoying. So what? I mean, if you ask Josh Hokett if he thinks he's annoying, he's going to say yes. You know, he's not going to be like, man, no, like I'm picture perfect and I'm tasteful and tolerable.

SPEAKER_00 23:21

No, he's gonna be like, ugh, yeah, I'm annoying, but the hulk is making me this way, you know, like he's a freak.

SPEAKER_01 23:34

He's a freak. So yeah, I don't care. I I might even turn the T Fee off. I'm I just want to move on. Uh, but before I do, I just want to bring up one more point on Josh Hoket, and it's actually not it's not bad. I'm not gonna keep going, I'm not gonna keep like laying into him, but uh a lot of conversation is being had about him fighting Alex Pereira next at heavyweight if you know Alex decides to stay there. And even Alex himself will tell you when he's asked, like he's not taking it seriously. This is not someone that he's actively worried about, and I I I really don't think that people should take it seriously either. Because when I mentioned earlier the new breed curse, that absolutely applies to people like Hokett, and he's in the spotlight right now, and even though I find him annoying, just like with Chandler, no, I you know, I'm not like a super fan of the guy, but I was excited for the star power. You know, Josh Hokett brings the star power, he brings it so gross. I'm literally having like nauseous reactions every time I say something semi nice about him, but um he is uh he's exciting, he can deliver, and he has the character, and that makes it exciting. Uh is it exciting for everyone? No. Is it exciting to some? Exciting to some? Yes, absolutely, annoying to others. Like he's another polarizing figure, that's all he is. And at the end of the day, it's it's fun to have these like opinions and you know act like I have huge feelings about it, but I but like honestly, he I do want to see him progress. I do want to see him have that longevity in his career and have a way to really solidify himself instead of getting caught in that newbreed curse trap, whatever you want to call it, of these fighters who come in super hot and heavy, knocking people out left and right, submitting people left and right, and then you jump them up the rankings, and then boom, they have that much farther down to fall. And the psychological and mental aspect of the fight game is so underrated, and I feel like uh people don't just you know go from the super highs to the super lows in the in MMA and you know just get over it. Some people can, and that's amazing, but that has to do with your mental health and how you're able to process that kind of drop. And it it affects the mind, it affects everything, it affects the body, it affects everything. And so when you take a fighter who's gone all the way to the top and then falls all the way down to the ground, it can mess them up mentally, and that will affect how they train, you know, how they perceive themselves, their confidence level. We've seen it time and time again, and it's really unfortunate. And I really hope that that's not what happens with Josh Hokett and the UFC doesn't just make these ridiculously insane matchups that don't make sense, and they build it in a way that's authentic to the rankings, which I do think that's what's gonna happen because they did just announce that they are changing the rules for the pound-for-pound rankings. I'm not exactly sure what the rules were before because the rules that I saw were pretty standard or seemed like they should be pretty standard for a professional organization. You know, so if you know how the rankings were determined before, let me know because now they're saying it's you know going to be based on performance, you know, intensity of a of the competition, you know, so on and so forth. Things that you would think would be no-brainer. So I'm not sure how they were being ranked before, but now it seems to be outlined more clearly, at least for the fans. And so I guess before it just wasn't outlined very clear for us. I couldn't find much anywhere, and then now it's like, okay, this is how we are going to judge and build these rankings. And so I hope that they, since they're doing that, they're committed to growing the rankings authentically and not doing all this jumping around in craziness. So I'm hoping that's the case, but we'll see.

O’Malley Vs Zahabi Fight IQ Debate

SPEAKER_01 28:19

I really hope that they do not make that fight because you guys will not see much more of Josh Hoket if they make that fight. So that's how I will end that, and we will go ahead and move on to Shawn O'Malley versus I'm on Zahabi, and Shawn O'Malley is the minus 440 favorite, and Zahabi is the plus 340 Hughie. I I've seen quite a few people call Zahabi on this, like pretty much everyone I've talked to is calling Zahabi, and I am just gonna have to disagree. I I see where everyone's coming from, however, I think they're looking at the downfall of Sean instead of the consistency of Zahabi. I I do think that it's a good matchup, but the reason why I think that Sean actually has it is he processes faster and he's sharper. Most of the time he is a pretty sharp tool. And I feel like in the octagon, um, you guys have heard me talk about you know chess in the octagon before, you know, probably since the podcast began. That's one of the aspects that I really enjoy seeing between fighters. I love fight IQ, and I love seeing how fighters process in the moment. It's it's such a marvel to me. So, you know, uh with this fight, I think that he plays chess better when he is on like a winning momentum. And I think that he strikes with intention of a longer game plan in mind, where whereas I see Zahabi is a more moment-by-moment striker, and he acts almost like per combo instead of per sequence. I don't know if that's making sense. So, like what I see Sean do often is uh execute a game plan that is maybe like two or three moves ahead, uh like you know, as far as just setting up something, and whereas Zahabi, he he he thinks, I don't know how else to say, he thinks in sequences. If you don't get it by now, then I'm sorry. But yeah, like, you know, he'll throw a combination and then he'll be like, okay, next combo. Whereas Sean is like, all right, if I do this, then they might do this, and then I'll be able to do this. So when Sean is in there and he is at the top of his game, I think that he plays a beautiful game of chess in the octagon. And so I think that's probably what's going to happen because Sean may have issues with fighters who are, you know, a little more elite and have a equally or you know, even better fight IQ than he may have. But I feel like he is adaptable and he learns and he has faced some really tough competition. And so with Sahabi, I think it's uh more mild. And I feel like he'll be able to express himself more in there and show us those sequences that we really loved. Because whether you realized it or not, you know, that's one of the reasons, you know, we all really enjoyed watching Sean because he was super exciting, of course, but he had those sequences that was like, one, two, three, boom, you know, instead of being a fighter who's just like, you know, la la la la la boom knockout, you know, which is still fun, but like I love seeing like a all right, all right, he's doing that, so he can do, you know, like I love that. It's one of my favorite styles of fighting, and you know, someone else who does that so often is Valentina Shevchenko. Um, of course, uh Anderson Silva, um obviously Habib Nummer. Um, John Jones, he is one of the biggest examples of fighters who fight that way. So yeah, I think that I want a I want a heated exchange. I'm hoping that it's it's fast paced and it's it's hungry and gritty. Obviously, with $400,000 on the line, you know, someone's gonna get something popping. So yeah, I'm super excited for that fight. And I really just don't see Zahabi giving Sean a bigger problem than Marab did. I feel like Marab uh gave Sean a run for his freaking money, and uh he was tough, you know, he's super tough, but like Marob's tough for a lot of people, you know, Zahabi's not Marab. So we will see. We shall see.

Pereira Vs Gane Heavyweight Chess Match

SPEAKER_01 33:07

And up next we have Alex Pereira versus Cyril Gunn, and this one's super interesting. This was a minus 105 versus Cyril Ghan's minus 115. And I I can see why, obviously, this is a very even matchup, and I love how you know both of these men carry themselves in this fight camp, you know, especially at the press conference. It was such good energy. This is really just like a warrior spirit fight, like these men genuinely have their head in the game, they're not concerned about anything else but what's happening in the octagon, and they're very respectful. And you know what? That's my taste. And for some people, people have tastes like for fighters like Josh Hokett. Oh, I hope you guys like the thunder sound. That's a cool little background noise. Just roll with it, but yeah, um, I think that we're in for a treat with this fight. Both men are very composed in and outside of the octagon, and I I think that's super important. And it it excites me to see a fight where another fight where you know there could be a huge chess match. And I think that both of these men are just so brilliant. It's a grand matchup, and I think it'll be a real nail biter. I I don't doubt Alex at all. And I think of like that's probably who I'm gonna go with. I probably go Alex, but I do love Cyril Gahn. I think he composes himself so well, and he's such a respectable person. So I I can see this really, like I said, being a real chess match between two very brilliant men, and I've seen um a lot of curiosity regarding, I guess, Alex's weight. Uh, he is heavier than Cyril Gon. So everyone's kind of not everyone, but I I see a lot of comments about his cardio possibly being a factor. And I I just don't think so. And I, you know what? I don't think Syro Gunn, actually, I know Syro Gone doesn't think so either, because at the press conference he was asked a question about Alex's cardio. And even he was saying that he knows that Alex is a professional and that it's not really going to be a factor. I think that Alex looks like a conditioned heavyweight, he doesn't look like a uh a sloppy heavyweight. None of them look sloppy. That's such a mean word, and it that was just the first word that came to mind. But honestly, I think that he looks great at heavyweight. I think he weighed in uh 250 something and uh Cero Gone wing in at 248, I believe. So not too much of a difference, but uh definitely a difference. You know, this is heavyweight, so there can be more of a discrepancy between weights, obviously. But I think that Alex will perform just as he has been. I'm curious to see if the weight plays a factor in his striking. Um, of course, we're gonna be seeing if it plays a factor in his speed, and but at the same time, he's fighting another heavyweight, so it's not like you know, he's slowing down for a lighter, faster guy. He's well, technically he is lighter, but you know, not too much. So he he's fighting a sturdy guy. He's fighting a sturdy guy, and he himself is sturdy, and I feel like we could see a knockout. I I obviously don't hope it goes to the ground. I don't know if anyone thinks it will, but I I think someone will get knocked out. This would be epic, absolutely epic to happen on the White House lawn. And if it goes to a decision, I'm sure it'll be a war. Most likely will be a contender for that $400,000 bonus for the fight of the night. So I'm super excited for that fight. Let me know what you guys think.

Topuria Vs Gaethje Mind Games And Focus

SPEAKER_01 37:16

But for now, we are going to move on to our main event, which is Ilya Taporea versus Justin Gagey, who is our plus 390 underdog, with Ilya being the minus 520 favorite. So I'm so happy that this fight is finally happening. I I do love Justin so much, and I can see where he's coming from when he is talking about like Ilya's cockiness. I just personally don't take offense to it. I I think it's I feel like it's warranted. I mean, you all have seen, you know, who I became a fan of when I first became a fan of the UFC. I was a freaking Rhonda Rousey fanatic. I was absolutely obsessed with her. Still am. I love her so much. So yeah, I obviously don't have a problem with cockiness. I may have an issue with cockiness when it's not warranted, but in the cases that it is, I think that that adds a lot of fun to the promotion of a fight. I love seeing, you know, cocky little freaking freakies. I love seeing, you know, people just boast and act like they're kings and queens of the world. Like that's the kind of promotion I like. And you that's why the stuff with fighters who are, you know, just kind of annoying or gimmicky, it doesn't land right with me. And that's okay. There's what's the saying? There's 32 flavors in an ice cream shop for a reason. You know, my flavor just so happens to be like refined and you know proper, and other people are dumpster divers, and that's fine. Go eat your friggin' marshmallow flavored ice cream, you weirdo. I am okay over here with my cocky fighters because they show up and they show out, and as does Dustin, he is one of my favorite fighters to watch. Um, but I think that Ilya, his fight IQ and his sharpness and his speed is just gonna be such a problem. I mean, it really is sad to say, you know, I like, well, I mean, I don't know. I don't know if I hope Justin wins. You know, I don't hate the guy or anything like that. I just, you know, I really like Ilya Tapore. You know, I would like to see a champion reign for a while. You know, I've been talking about that with, you know, some of my MMA friends, like there hasn't really been a consistency that we are used to seeing from the olden days of the UFC, you know, when we had people who, you know, reigned over a division and held guard on the belt, you know, now it seems to change hands a lot. And so I feel like Ilya Taporia is our hope in seeing that again. And so I'm really excited for this fight. If if Ilya wants to fancy himself the MMA Messi, you know, by all means, let's let's let him if he keeps performing, you know, how he's performed. It of course broke my heart to see him do what he did to Max, you know, but at the same time, it was good. Oh, that feels so naughty to say. I take it back. I take it back. Uh but I I think that you know, Justin has the interim title for a reason, and it did feel good to see him get that, but Ilya is just so brilliant in there. He's really smart and he's well-rounded, obviously confident, and as of now, he's super focused. Uh, I'm not sure if he'll be at all impacted by all like the drama in his personal life, but I tend to think he's more of someone who is a type to like even more aggressively pursue their careers and their passions and their crafts during uh personal turmoil. He just kind of seems like that kind of person. So I would assume that's not going to be the case, but I mean, you don't know really what what how people are until they show you. But I do know just from observation that with Justin during the press conference specifically, it was really chess press. It was really press-chess all the way around. Ilya kept interrupting Justin, he kept antagonizing him, you know, just being a just being a heckler. And, you know, Justin was engaging, and I think that was a display of how deep Ilya is into Justin's head. It was very evident that he maybe wasn't bothered, but what's a better word? Maybe I don't, I'm not quite sure, but it was just really bizarre to see him engage because that's not really behavior of someone who is focused, is not bothered by their opponent's antics. I I personally think what it would have looked like if he was focused is uh when he was asked a question by an interviewer instead of engaging with Ilya and his antics. I I feel like he should have just kept answering the question. You know, you've got Ilya in this here, you just ignore and answer the question, raise your voice if needed. But you know what? That's just my personal opinion. I who's to know if if he is actually like, you know, being bothered by anything Ilya is saying, but I just I kind of observe, and my opinion from observing is that Ilya's in his head. I mean, I've said it three times. Long story short, Ilya's in his head, and that really sucks because I would love to see a completely 100% focused Justin. But Ilya is smart, he knows what he's doing, and that's a good way for him to gauge uh Justin's mental state so he knows how to toy with him in the octagon. You know, this is classic, you know, chess match in the octagon. There are some fighters who play it and there are some fighters who don't, and usually the fighters who are playing it are the ones who come out on top. You know, you have to be able to know what game you're playing before you play it. You can't just go in there thinking you're about to get into a fist fight. If you know, if you should know how intelligent your opponent is, you should know how their mind works. And you should act accordingly and not engage. But but also it could just be uh him, you know, just further promoting the fight, you know, just kind of making a making a show of things, but it looked very authentic and it looked very uh legitimate. So I don't know. I I guess we'll find out Sunday night. I'm super excited for these fights, and I know that it's going to be a definite spectacle, and I'm excited to get back on here next week and just rehash how everything went. I'm super excited. That is all I have

Merch Store Plus Jacksonville Community Mission

SPEAKER_01 44:42

for today. I do want to take a second and announce that I am finally opening a merch store. So yay! I will have that site up and running very soon. And on there will just be some really cool stuff. We'll have t-shirts, uh, hopefully try to get some mouth guards in and you know, just some cool fun stuff so you guys can represent and uh help in my like bigger mission with this podcast, which is, you know, just to reach this community. I of course would love to be able to do this full time. And, you know, with you guys continuing to listen and share and engage, you know, really does help me be able to get closer to that dream. But my goal of this podcast, you know, will always come first. And I have a vision in mind of how I would like to help my community. And of course I would want that to spill out, you know, anywhere that and like anywhere this podcast podcast reaches. But I've just noticed in my own community in Jacksonville, we we have an issue of, you know, I I feel like the issue just comes down to kids and and teenagers not having enough to do that nurtures their mind and and fulfills them and really allows them space to express themselves. So we in turn have, you know, events where you know kids are showing up places and guns are going off and lives are being lost, and it breaks my heart, you know, because as much as I go hard on people on this podcast, you know, on people's characters, you know, I have a character on here too. It it's pretty close to who I am, you know. But I I would never really go out in public and you know tell someone that they're corny or go behind their back and say, like, oh my god, this person is so corny. Like I I love people so much. And it's it's my everything, you know, seeing people happy and enjoying themselves is one of the best things that I could experience. I feel like there's so many of us who have so much love to give and not sure what to do with it. And uh same with a lot of these kids who who need something to show themselves their worth, uh if no one else is telling them or if people are telling them and and they don't really understand it themselves. Like I I would really love to impact even just a small community of kids in in my town of Jacksonville. Uh, but my my uh mission is to one day open a facility where every day of the week there are two or three classes that are uh held by volunteers in the community of teachers, uh jujitsu instructors, just anyone in the MMA community or beyond. And we'd hold two or three classes a day of jujitsu, muay thai, wrestling, all of that MMA community stuff. But I also want like a nail tech class and a painting class, drawing class, a financial literacy class, because that is something that I really have been trying working or I've been working so hard to educate myself on because it's just not something that I learned a lot about growing up. And as a as a adult, I really uh struggled because of that. And so that's something that I know the community, you know, could benefit from because I definitely could have benefited from it. You know, I'm still, you know, trying to clean up my own mess. And I want to be able to reach kids and have them be filled with these skills and and this creativity, like everything that you can think of, not just fun stuff, but stuff that prepares them for life, you know, cooking classes, everything. And it would all just be run by people who want to volunteer their time for these classes, you know, that obviously is gonna take a lot of work. And if that's something that I want to do, I want to keep my eyes on that mission. And I also want to bring a lot of awareness to, you know, suicide profession because my cousin has a brand and and uh clothing store and as well, um, only good things can happen. And, you know, he speaks so eloquently about you know suicide prevention, is super passionate about it. He and I both lost our fathers to suicide. And it's just something that is is so important to us and our entire family. And I feel like even though these may be separate, you know, uh fields of philanthropy or whatever, but I absolutely feel that if you nourish a child and nourish anyone, anyone, and show them how much they're worth, show them how talented they can be, and really push them to embody that version of themselves that can prevent suicide. You know, we have to love each other as a community and we have to create atmospheres where people can thrive. And so that's my mission. I could go on and on on my website. I will have an entire mission statement. Um, but for now I just wanted to give you guys a little bit of a glimpse of what my intention is going forward. Um, I will have a segment on my website for sponsors if you would like to sponsor my podcast. I'm excited to work with some really lovely businesses. So if you're interested in doing that, please send me a DM at Shay MyName M M A that's C H E Y M Y N A M E M M A. And I will be happy to respond. And I look forward to working with you all. And I'm so excited for everything that's to come. Thank you guys so much for sticking with this podcast. I am still getting downloads every single week and you know, emails about all the stats for the podcast, and that just means that you guys are loving my content and sharing it with people, and people are discovering it for the first time still. And I am just so so thankful for that. But I will wrap it up now. We are almost at an hour, and I'm so excited to talk to you guys about UFC 250 next week. But that's all for now, and I will catch you guys next week.