Hey Not The Face! Podcast

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com It was hard not to notice that Rizin president Nobiyuki Sakakibara was a guest of Dana White at UFC 310. They were seated together, posed for photos, and even left together. At the post-fight press conference, White incurred more speculation when he expressed interest in bringing more of the Japanese promotion...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Boxing Esquire has been a staple podcast with fans of the sweet science for years, so it was a real treat to have its founder, Kurt Emhof f, join us for an extended interview. John and Kurt discussed a variety of topics that focused on the history and current iteration of both boxing and MMA. Follow along with...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Over the last few weeks, talks have really ramped up for a fight between Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones. There’s also been discussion of a potential boxing match between Francis and Deontay Wilder. We take a look at Ngannou’s options and how a bout with Jon Jones could get made if all the correct pieces fall in...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Since the high court trial of Nikita Hand vs. Conor McGregor saw its conclusion—McGregor was found civilly liable for the rape of Ms. Hand—the fallout has been enormous. Gyms filmed videos of owners painting over wall portraits of the former double champion, grocers and retailers pulled his branded spirits fro...

Our first Q & A was a hit—at least in our eyes. Not only did we get fantastic submissions, we can tell you guys and gals are paying attention and absorbing the information we provide. Your questions were outstanding and we hope to do these more often. Most accounts that submitted questions didn’t mind us using their social media handle to credit them, but a few preferred to remain anonymous. If yo...

Yesterday, the civil trial that Conor McGregor has been embroiled in came to its conclusion. The courts found that McGregor was civilly liable for the rape of Nikita Hand. Horrific details came to light during the case which had previously been withheld due to privacy reasons from the criminal trial that took place a few years ago. McGregor has been ordered to pay Ms. Hand around $258K. He has vow...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Earlier this year, UFC enacted some changes to their contracts, but recently, some bigger changes were implemented and unsurprisingly, they’re not in the fighters’ best interests. While we are unable to post screenshots of the contracts themselves due to confidentiality reasons, we will be providing the pertin...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com This past weekend saw a lot of action in the combat sports space. With Jake Paul fighting Mike Tyson on Friday night, then UFC 309 happening on Saturday night, Texas and New York saw some pretty big gates and record numbers of viewers for the Paul-Tyson fight. In this episode, we dissect the business side of b...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com PFL has been referred to as the Number 2 promotion behind UFC for the last couple years, but they lag so far behind that the idea of being second or dead last becomes virtually identical—to use Mike Goldberg’s terminology. So, what can they do to get that elusive win? Is it a mixed rules bout between Ngannou a...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com With UFC having the vast majority of top tier fighters, a lock on big budget sponsors and the best broadcast deals, it’s hard to imagine anyone at all giving them reasonable competition. But that’s what the GFL (Global Fight League) hopes to do. In today’s episode, we take a look at the promotional deck John w...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Tuesday night, we saw Donald Trump elected President once again. With his election will come sweeping changes to some government offices that have done remarkable work over the last four years for the workforce. In this episode, we look at what the election results will mean for the UFC and for the fighters un...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Tonight, after the polling locations are closed, the fate of the United States will be determined, as a new president will be appointed, barring anything extraordinary happening. Throughout this election cycle, we’ve watched UFC do a dramatic about face, going from once supporting Obama in his second bid for p...

In this episode, we were fortunate enough to have the lead attorneys from the UFC antitrust case stop by for a thorough, video interview. Eric Cramer and Michael Dell’Angelo (from the law offices of Berger Montague ) answered all our questions, clarified facts, dispelled misconceptions, and gave advice for UFC fighters from the Le class on how to get their settlement money. Follow along with our o...

In this episode, we were fortunate enough to have the lead attorneys from the UFC antitrust case stop by for a thorough interview. Eric Cramer and Michael Dell’Angelo (from the law offices of Berger Montague ) answered all our questions, clarified facts, dispelled misconceptions, and gave advice for UFC fighters from the Le class on how to get their settlement money. Follow along with our outline...

Yesterday afternoon, the honorable Judge Boulware gave his preliminary approval of the revised settlement offer in the UFC antitrust case. The latest offer was for $375M and earmarked for just one of the classes (Le v. Zuffa), with the second class (Johnson v. Zuffa) moving forward as a separate case. The Johnson case will be asking for damages and injunctive relief. In today’s episode, we provide...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com *Fighters interested in the status of their UFC antitrust claims should go to the official UFC antitrust site HERE . Francis Ngannou’s PFL debut was a success for him, considering his brutal knockout of Renan Ferreira, but was the event overall a success for the promotion? In this episode, we weigh in on that,...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Fighters interested in the status of their UFC antitrust claims should go to the official UFC antitrust site HERE . Today’s episode features analysis of Gegard Mousasi’s new lawsuit against the PFL and Bellator, where he has lodged several complaints and has a hefty price tag on the damages he’s asking for. Cl...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Last week, PFL head honcho, Donn Davis, gave an interview to the Sports Business Journal where he made some bold claims with some astounding numbers regarding the financial health of the promotion. We also discussed the latest wave of declarations from current and former UFC fighters pleading with Judge Boulwa...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com In today’s episode (our 100th!), we focus our lens on two of the biggest stars in MMA, Alex Pereira and Francis Ngannou. With one having fought last weekend—the fourth time in 11 months—and the other fighting his first MMA bout in more than two years, we’ve got quite a packed episode. You’ll want to be sure to...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com On Monday evening, the UFC antitrust case saw some activity in the form of a new filing and more than 50 declarations from fighters. In this episode, we break down the latest numbers, how much each fighter should be getting, how long it will take when/if the settlement proposal is approved, how the payments wi...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com In this episode, we conclude our history of pro-wrestling and how dirty the tactics were to keep wrestlers in line and keep other promotions from being able to find success or stay in business. We explain how the WWE rose to power and how AEW has managed to find success in the space with WWE ever looming. Catc...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com The combat sports community is ablaze with litigiousness, from the UFC antitrust cases to lawsuits filed in boxing, we have explainers for what’s happening in each of them. Today’s episode covers some points about the antitrust cases, Mark Hunt’s ongoing suit against the UFC and Devin Haney’s recently filed su...

We had some breaking news this morning when UFC, through a press release, announced they’d reached another settlement agreement with the Plaintiff (the fighters) in the antitrust case that’s been ongoing for the last decade. In this FREE episode, we break down what that all means, when we could have word on if the settlement is a go, and more. Follow along with our outline as you listen: Ep. 96 Ou...

In this episode, we bring you a detailed history of pro wrestling—specifically how it came to be, the four major eras and why it became such a corrupt enterprise that continues to this day. We discuss what “wrestling trusts” are, the way the industry beat court cases and more. This is a two-part series, with part two available next Thursday. Today’s episode is 100% FREE. Follow along with our outl...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com This past Saturday, we saw Anthony Joshua lose via massive knockout to Daniel Dubois in front of a crowd of 96,000+ fans in England. We discuss how it likely did financially, what we’d like to see for Joshua, whether his success and ability to command huge purses and crowds is comparable to Canelo Alvarez and...