Cageside with John Morgan

Combat sports legend and Philadelphia’s own Eddie Alvarez is predicting bad things for opponent Jeremy Stephens when the two meet in the main event of BKFC Knucklemania V on Saturday, January 25 at Wells Fargo Arena in “The City of Brotherly Love” and streaming live on DAZN. Ahead of that matchup, Alvarez joins Grind City Media’s John Morgan to preview the matchup, including the surprisingly tense...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan start 2025 by surveying the MMA landscape and seeing what the future might hold for the unified PFL and Bellator brands, the upstart Global Fight League, and of course the industry powerhouse that is the UFC. Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Paul Hughes looks like it might just be one of the best fights lined up for any promotion in January. Can the PFL and Bell...

Veteran combat sports analyst and commentator Robin Black joined Grind City Media’s John Morgan to help preview the upcoming series “Dark Side of the Cage,” which premieres January 8 on VICE TV, as well to discuss the continued growth of Karate Combat, Black’s own personal media channels, and more. Timecodes 0:00 – Introduction 1:20 – The evolution of Karate Combat, a combat sports alternative 3:0...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan take advantage of the brief UFC off-season to discuss the matchups they’d most like to see booked in 2025.Who should Jon Jones fight next? What’s going on with middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis? Is there a spot on the UFC roster for Patricio “Pitbull” Freire? Islam Makhachev, Belal Muhammad, Kayla Harrison, Justin Gaethje – all this and more ......

UFC flyweight contender Manel Kape spoke with Grind City Media’s John Morgan to recap his incredible UFC Tampa win over Bruno Silva, his thoughts on his new spot at No. 6 in the official UFC rankings update, his conversations with UFC CEO Dana White, teases what’s coming next, and more. 0:00 – Was UFC Tampa Manel Kape’s best performance ever? 1:23 – UFC, Dana White “going to give me what I want” 4...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan recap UFC on ESPN 63 from this past weekend. Joaquin Buckley looked spectacular in his main event vs. Colby Covington – but could Covington have turned it around heading into rounds 4 and 5?  What is next for both headliners? Meanwhile, the 41-year-old legend Cub Swanson does it again with a walk-off KO in the co-main event. Is this his last fight? Loo...

Ahead of her UFC 312 title shot against current champion Zhang Weili, No. 1-ranked strawweight contender Tatiana Suarez joined Grind City Media’s John Morgan to discuss the journey she’s faced ahead of this long-awaited title fight, preview the much-anticipated matchup, and discuss her preparation for the event, which takes place Feb. 9 at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia (and airs one day ea...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan recap a fun UFC 310 pay-per-view from Las Vegas. Alexandre Pantoja remains the dominant flyweight champion after beating two-time Rizin FF champion Kai Asakura.  What is left for Pantoja at 125 pounds? Shavkat Rakhmonov was heavily tested in a high-level matchup vs. Ian Machado Garry. Even in defeat, Machado Garry should have earned everyone’s respect....

Longtime UFC welterweight contender Michael Chiesa admits his fighting career was likely hanging in the balance ahead of his August win over Tony Ferguson, but that’s no longer the case heading into his UFC 310 clash with Max Griffin. Ahead of Saturday’s event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Chiesa spoke to Grind City Media’s John Morgan to preview the matchup, discuss his continued passion for fi...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and and John Morgan look back at a spectacular victory for Dakota Dicheva this past weekend for PFL. What is next for this rising superstar?  Plus, it’s UFC 310 fight week, and the guys are more excited than most about this sneaky good card. Flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja may not be fighting a household name, but that doesn’t mean that Kai Asakura doesn’t have one-...

UFC flyweight contender “Custom Made” Cody Durden is fired up ahead of his UFC 310 clash with Joshua Van and told Grind City Media’s John Morgan to expect fireworks from start to finish. Durden and Van will collide at UFC 310, which takes place December 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ahead of the fight, Durden recounts his incredible “Performance of the Night” win in September, what he...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan reflect on an incredible Jon Jones win at UFC 309, and perhaps an unfortunate final sendoff for Stipe Miocic. What is motivating Jones now? Will it be Alex Pereira, or could a Tom Aspinall fight deliver the type of cash “Bones” wants to take the matchup? Plus, the guys talk about the predictable matchup between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson that streamed li...

Mississippi’s Brandon Davis earned his way into the UFC on the first season of Dana White’s Contender Series and went on to fight nine times in the promotion’s famed octagon. Now, he’s headlining Jorge Masvidal’s Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 9, which takes place Friday, November 15, from Biloxi’s Mississippi Coast Coliseum and streams live on the Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA YouTube channel. “Killer B” jo...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan take an intense look at UFC 309's headliner, where reigning heavyweight champion Jon Jones faces the man with the record for most UFC heavyweight title defenses, Stipe Miocic, including why previews of this matchup have been unfairly dismissive. What comes next if Jones wins? Should it be Tom Aspinall or Alex Pereira? What kind of chaos would ensue of...

Nine-time UFC veteran has long been known as one of the most exciting athletes in combat sport, and he returns to action next at Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 9, which takes place Friday, November 15, from Biloxi’s Mississippi Coast Coliseum and streams live on the Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA YouTube channel. “The Kid” joined Grind City Media’s John Morgan to preview the matchup, discuss a challenging roa...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and Jon Jones look back at UFC Fight Night 246 and Brandon Moreno’s spectacular performance. Is a title shot next, or perhaps a No. 1 contender title eliminator fight? Erin Blanchfield gets the biggest win of her career, taking out former champ “Thug” Rose Namajunas. It’s only two weeks until UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden, and what could really be on the line in th...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan look back at the undisputed, undefeated Ilia Topuria and his spectacular knockout of Max Holloway. How high is the ceiling for Topuria, and is Holloway’s next move back to 155 pounds? Khamzat Chimaev dispatches of Robert Whittaker in round 1 of their co-main event scrap. Will Chimaev get the next crack at the UFC middleweight title, and does Dricus Du...

UFC Hall of Famer Frankie Edgar joined Grind City Media’s John Morgan to discuss life as a UFC Hall of Famer, his growing gym at Iron Army Academy and a weekend celebration, preview this weekend’s UFC 308 headliner, look ahead to Division I college wrestling visiting New Jersey on November 17, and more. 0:00 – Joining the UFC Hall of Fame 1:58 – Champ and the Tramp Podcast 3:51 – Growing the Iron...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan look back at the incredible scenes that unfolded at “PFL: Battle of the Giants,” including a powerfully emotional win for Francis Ngannou over Renan Ferreira in Saudi Arabia. The two also discuss where Cris Cyborg stands in the all-time GOAT talk, before it’s time to begin looking forward to Saturday’s UFC 308 event in Abu Dhabi. Can Ilia Topuria retai...

UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad is set to face undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310 on December 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. With that main event announced this week, Muhammad joins Grind City Media’s John Morgan to talk life since winning the belt in July, his willingness to take on an undefeated challenger, the success of Chicago’s Valle Flow Striking Academy, his plans to get o...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan recap an incredible performance from Brandon Royval and discuss what it means for the UFC’s flyweight division. How far did Tatsuro Taira’s stock fall in defeat? Additionally, the two look ahead to this weekend’s big PFL pay-per-view, where Francis Ngannou finally returns to the cage to take on Renan Ferreira. Are the betting lines for this one a littl...

On this episode, Eric McMahon and John Morgan break down UFC 307 from Salt Lake City Utah, where Alex Pereira retained his light heavyweight title in fun  fight vs. Khalil Rountree Jr. Is “Poatan” now in the conversation for best combat sports athlete of all time? Also, who is next for Pereira? Could he challenge either Jon Jones or Tom Aspinall for the heavyweight title? Julianna Peña takes a con...

Two-time Olympic gold medalist, two-time PFL champion, and current top-ranked UFC contender Kayla Harrison joined Grind City Media’s John Morgan to recap her hard-fought win over Ketlen Vieira at UFC 307, react to Julianna Peña’s razor-thin win over Raquel Pennington to claim the UFC women’s bantamweight title, as well as Peña’s post-fight callout of Amanda Nunes, and more. Harrison makes it clear...

Renato “Money” Moicano, the UFC’s No. 11-ranked lightweight contender, spoke to Grind City Media’s John Morgan ahead of his headlining bout Saturday’s UFC Paris event, which streams live on ESPN+. Moicano previews his main event matchup with No. 12 Benoit Saint Denis – where he’ll be playing the role of villain against a French opponent – and looks to the future, as well, which he hopes included a...

On this episode, John Morgan takes us back to the chaos from this past weekend’s CFFC 135 main event in Tampa, Florida. The guys look ahead to the matchup between Renato Moicano and Benoit Saint Denis from Paris, France. Meanwhile, is everyone overlooking Khalil Rountree Jr. when he takes on Alex Pereira at UFC 307, or is Eric McMahon crazy for calling this a pick ’em? All this and more ... Timeco...