Against the Cage: A New York Post Sports Podcast

Paddy "The Baddy" Pimblett joined The Post's Scott Fontana to preview his upcoming fight against Justin Gaethje ahead of UFC 324, in a bout that will headline the UFC's first event of 2026, as well as their landmark deal with Paramount Plus. Pimblett spoke about their matchup, what he expects after a win against Gaethje, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Justin Gaethje says while there's no animosity towards Paddy Pimblett ahead of UFC 324 next Saturday, it's a different story with some fans. "The animosity comes from all the doubters, you know. It's crazy how fickle these fans are, and how quick they forget who I am and what I do," the former interim lightweight champion told The Post's Scott Fontana. Gaethje also broke down his matchup with the...

UFC's lead play-by-play commentator Jon Anik joined Against the Cage to talk everything UFC 324 and 325, including Paddy Pimblett vs Justin Gaethje and the heartbreaking news of Kayla Harrison's neck injury. He also shed some light on what to expect at the UFC White House card, and gave some of his 2026 predictions. Scott Fontana, Erich Richter, and Jake Aryeh also break down the latest news of th...

Welcome to our inaugural annual MMA awards! 2025 is nearly all but set in stone as far as MMA is concerned -- and with that it’s time to dish out some trophies. Scott Fontana, Erich Richter, and Jake Aryeh talk the biggest moments of of the past 365 days, in and outside the UFC. See who we chose as the fighter of the year, the best knockout, submission, and more on this special edition of Against...

With UFC's last event until its broadcasting deal with ESPN ends in January, the era of UFC on ESPN is effectively over. Scott Fontana and Erich Richter evaluate what worked, what didn't, and what's left to be desired for what's next int he UFC's upcoming deal with Paramount on this episode of Against the Cage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Petr Yan’s performance on Saturday night has left fans stunned after he dominated Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 323. The now 2-time champion came in as a sizable underdog into his title challenge, likely due to the pair’s first encounter, in which he himself was dominated by Dvalishvili. So what did fans miss? Scott Fontana, Erich Richter, and Jake Aryeh break it down on this episode of Against the Cag...

Most Valuable Promotions CEO Nakisa Bidarian spoke exclusively with The Post's Erich Richter to preview Jake Paul's toughest test in boxing yet, former world champion Anthony Joshua. Bidarian also spoke about the promotion's efforts to grow women's boxing, and gave his thoughts on the controversial changes being proposed to the Ali Act. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoice...

Brandon Royval is ready to remind people who he is when he faces off with Manel Kape on Saturday night. The supremely entertaining flyweight spoke exlusively with The Post's Scott Fontana ahead of his bout on December 13th, in which he vowed to "beat the s--t" out of his opponent. Royval also spoke about the recent high profile pair of fights in his division at #ufc323 this past weekend, his title...

Merab Dvalishvili is setting out to conquer an achievement that no UFC champion has before: defending a title four times within a calendar year. Can the 135 pound champion beat Petr Yan once again at UFC 323, and cement himself in the history books? Scott Fontana, Erich Richter, and Jake Aryeh break it all down, and more, on this episode of Against the Cage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Merab Dvalishvili spoke exclusively with The Post's Scott Fontana ahead of his rematch against Petr Yan at UFC 323 this weekend. The Bantamweight Champion spoke about his upcoming title defense, what makes this fight different from the pair's first encounter, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After Arman Tsarukyan came away with an impressive submission win over Dan Hooker at UFC Qatar, the lightweight division and it’s champion Ilia Topuria are left at a crossroads. Should the UFC elect to start 2026 off with a bang by giving the title shot to Paddy Pimblett? Or let the ever impressive Armenian Arman Tsarukyan finally reclaim his title shot? Scott Fontana, Erich Richter, and Jake Arye...

Alexandre Pantoja spoke exclusively with The Post’s Erich Richter about why he’s taking his upcoming fight with Joshua Van as serious as any fight he’s ever had before. Ahead of his upcoming defense at UFC 323, the flyweight champion spoke about the matchup, as well as his aspirations to fight teammate Kyoji Horiguchi, who is coming off of a statement win in his UFC return. Learn more about your a...

Joshua Van is coming into his UFC 323 title challenge against Alexandre Pantoja with an already impressive 2025, at just 24 years of age. The up and coming flyweight spoke exclusively with The Post's Scott Fontana about his championship fight next Saturday, and why he's prepared for anything when the Octagon closes behind him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Islam Makhachev and the UFC welterweight division just entered a whole new era on Saturday at UFC 322. The night at Madison Square Garden saw three matchups at 170 completely shake up the title picture as a whole, as Islam Makhachev, Carlos Prates, and Michael Morales came away with impressive wins. The welterweight shakeup continues this weekend in UFC Qatar, and Scott Fontana, Erich Richter, and...

Fatima Kline's win at UFC 322 was special in more ways than one for her. Not only was she able to fight in her home state of New York, in Madison Square Garden, no less, but she was also able to compete alongside her friend and training partner, Erin Blanchfield. Fatima spoke exclusively with The Post's Scott Fontana about the 'once in a lifetime' night. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit meg...

After a turbulent 2025, Arman Tsarukyan is finally set to get back into the octagon against Dan Hooker at UFC Qatar this weekend. The #1 lightweight contender spoke about his upcoming matchup, the health of his back ahead of his weight cut, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dan Hooker spoke exclusively with The Post's Scott Fontana -- injury free this time, from what we could tell -- to talk about his upcoming fight with Arman Tsarukyan in Doha, Qatar. The UFC lightweight spoke about his recovery from his previous hand injury, how the feud began with Tsarukyan, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

UFC 322 being headlined by two superfights is nothing to scoff at, but did the promotion miss out on a golden opportunity? With Islam Makhachev relinquishing his lightweight title to move up and challenge Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight strap, and Zhang Weili doing the same to vie for flyweight gold, do the two title fights still feel like champion vs champion? Scott Fontana, Erich Richt...

UFC Welterweight Champion of the world Jack Della Maddalena stopped by The Post to chat with our very own Scott Fontana about his upcoming title defense against former 155 champ, Islam Makhachev. The welterweight king spoke about his crowd pleasing performance against Belal Muhammed, his upcoming matchup at Madison Square Garden next weekend, and more on this episode of Against the Cage. Learn mor...

What should have been the biggest story of Saturday night’s UFC Apex card would have been David Onama getting defeated by Steve Garcia, however the card ended up being marred with controversy in a few ways. Most notably by far are the serious allegations regarding fight fixing and a betting scandal amid Isaac Dulgarian’s performance. After the betting line moved drastically against the favorite ju...

The heavyweight division has been cast once again into a state of uncertainty following the main event of UFC 321, which culminated in a brutal eye poke of Tom Aspinall by challenger Ciryl Gane — and resulted in a no-contest. As Aspinall’s health is to be determined, could Jon Jones and Alex Pereira be the fight to save the division? Jake Aryeh and Scott Fontana break it all down, and more, on thi...

Erin Blanchfield and Fatima Kline are ready to fight on the biggest UFC card of the year together at UFC 322, right in their backyard at Madison Square Garden. The two teammates spoke exclusively with The Post's Scott Fontana about how they became friends and training partners, each of their upcoming fights, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ciryl Gane faces a tall task in defeating UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall on Saturday night. Aspinall has never seen the 10th minute of a professional fight, and presents a very high competency in the grappling department, something that Gane has struggled with in his past two title challenges. But if the fight drags on, who will it benefit? Can Ciryl Gane survive Aspinall’s attacks early on...

Veteran combat sports journalists and die-hard MMA fans Scott Fontana and Erich Richter along with producer Jake Aryeh talk the biggest news in Mixed Martial Arts and exclusively interview some of the most notable athletes across UFC, boxing, and everything in between. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After 15 months away from the Octagon, Tom Aspinall is finally set to fulfill his dream of competing as the UFC heavyweight champion on October 25th. Aspinall spoke about the hidden 'advantage' he found from his time away from competition, how he plans to be active as champion, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices