Level Change Podcast

Hey, kids! No UFC event this weekend. We do have PFL and some other shows, but more than anything we focus on what was (as predicted) a very good event, the ramifications from it, and the interminable glazing of a fascist fan club masquerading as a government. But don’t worry, we also touched on Jake Paul looking to fight Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. , as well as the announcement of Kevin Holland vs Vic...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit levelchangepodcast.substack.com What a difference a week makes. From a drab and ho-hum card last week to a card that has some of the best and most exciting matchmaking we’ve seen in what feels like eons? This is the kind of card that reminds you of the good old days where you’d consistently get some consistently elite quality. Featherwe...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit levelchangepodcast.substack.com Awful. This upcoming UFC event is utterly awful, full stop. Great main event, though. We manage to talk about why it’s so bad but also celebrate the life of the great Val Kilmer and all the joy he brought us. But! We manage to discuss the latest on Conor McGregor’s antics and aspirations, plus a quick wor...

The Haru Basho ended yesterday and we already have a thorough review of all the action with our awesome friend, Tim Bissell of Sumo Stomp . Tim takes us through all the highs and lows of the tournament, including critiques of the winner’s performances, how the other wrestlers did and why our lone yokozuna pulled out of the basho. Tim also has a great contest running, so make sure you subscribe to...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit levelchangepodcast.substack.com Former welterweight champ takes on tough Philly talent Sean Brady in a lovely little card that starts midday for those of us on the East Coast, stateside. There’s a lot to love on this one with compelling matches that cater largely to the local crowd, but in a good way! Also, Conor McGregor is running for...

Hope you all got the fun you hoped for last week, because this one’s a dog’s breakfast of an event. Yes, even for an Apex card. Not much excitement here, as we’ve disowned Waldo. But Jeremy Stephens is coming back? Oh, and the potential BKFC drama is leaving us with a ton of questions. Enjoy the weekend and don’t forget to shake your fist at Mick Maynard. UFC Vegas 104 Main Card * Marvin Vettori v...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit levelchangepodcast.substack.com Not much to complain about this one here, kids. Alex Pereira aims to continue his dominant run as light heavyweight champion against a very eager Magomed Ankalaev in a great main event. Justin Gaethje may not get the fight he wanted against Dan Hooker, but instead gets a very good replacement in Rafael Fi...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit levelchangepodcast.substack.com Gotta keep it real with you, chief - this card is ugly. There’s a few bright spots, but the Apex is clearly not where you’re gonna get the best or most thrilling events. Manel Kape (20-7) faces surging fellow flyweight Asu Almabayev (21-2) in a decent main event between #6 (Kape) against #8 (Almabayev). I...

It’s a nice little weekend for slams and submissions in Seattle, and the UFC graces the city with a decent Fight Night card that does exactly what it’s supposed to in building up developing talent and advancing divisions. For that, we get former champ Henry Cejudo vs Song Yadong in a rather nice main event. And it’s a shame that this one was plagued with injuries and cancellations. There’s still s...

No nice way to say this: this weekend’s PPV is not good. No bueno. Just a lot of filler with a deluge of local talent and two title fights. At least the co-main is guaranteed to be something for the more dedicated fans. The rest? Lotta not-great matchups and a fair amount of talent that may not really be ready for the big time. Also, bad news from outside of the sport itself. You like being propag...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit levelchangepodcast.substack.com UFC Fight Night goes back to the desert for another Saudi event, and it’s packed with some excellent talent on the main card. We’ve got the breakdown you need in the bonus portion where we ponder if Israel Adesanya (24-4) will feel freed from the burdens of being a champion as he attempts to beat back sur...

Another cursed era begins, and we’re not shy to carve into why things suck and what happens next. First order of business? The inauguration this week, with special UFC guests and what this latest round of cozying up to government could lead to. But wait! We also discuss the odd case of Guilherme Cruz catching fire from Alex Pereira after a recent interview conducted with Alex’s sister Aline . And...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit levelchangepodcast.substack.com It seems it was not meant to be. We had a cracking main event for UFC 311 between Arman Tsarukyan and Islam Makhachev, but that fell apart the day before the fight. So, what now? Well, Renato Moicano was already on the card and will be fighting for the UFC lightweight championship instead! Yeah, it’s a bu...

Alright, kids - 2025 isn’t starting off great. It’s filler, through and through. Some good fighters, some awful matchups, but it’s mostly a matter of shoveling a bunch of fighters into the Apex to keep the execs happy. The era of low-effort check-cashing is only getting more intense. Mackenzie Dern (14-5) headlines against Amanda Ribas (13-5) in a rematch that is only kinda necessary due to schedu...

We have returned, and we’re capping off a rocky and strange year with a very special episode. We’ve racked up our pseudo-awards for different categories in the combat sports world, and you’re not gonna want to miss this. The categories are: * Event of the year * Fight of the year * Person of the year * Story of the year * Dipshit of the year * Genius of the year * Comeback of the year * Influencer...

Ho! Ho! Ho! The end-of year holidays are upon us, so we had to have Tim Bissell come back for a year-in-review episode for the 2024 season. We talk about the highs and lows, unexpected retirements, standout wrestlers, those that didn’t shine quite so bright and more. Take a trip down Sumo memory lane with us this Christmas. Make sure to check out Tim’s website, Sumo Stomp . It is so worth the visi...

In our latest episode, we look at the best fights from UFC Tampa, but fair warning, the pickings are slim. We look at all the things wrong with the last card of the year, as well. But the best part of the episode is Matt Brown stopping by for a quick interview with Stephie. Check out the fight card, fun factoids and our topic list for Matt’s segment. UFC Tampa Card * Colby Covington vs. Joaquin Bu...

Alright, kids - big content warning at the top as we start with an impromptu conversation regarding the UHC shooting in NYC and the Daniel Penny case. But we move on to fight stuff, we promise. Once again, the pathetic spectacle that is the decline of Conor McGregor’s fighting career makes itself seen against our wishes. He’s now been involved in yet another back and forth with Michael Chandler we...

UFC 310 has enough juice when it comes to really good action fights, even if there’s a few odd mismatches here and there. But man, you’d be forgiven for forgetting there was even a PPV event at all this weekend. Worse still, it’s a guy making his UFC debut in a title challenge in the most challenging division to move ahead in: the dreaded flyweight division. Also, former champ Aljamain Sterling is...

The Kyusho Basho has wrapped and what an exciting tournament it was. We had photo finishes, high flying moves, matches that had to be repeated…in short, it had a little something to whet all Grand Sumo appetites. Of course we had Sumo Stomp ’s Tim Bissell over for a pre-Thanksgiving celebration, and we put him to work straight away with all the fine points of the Basho. Make sure to check out Tim’...

Conor McGregor once again in hot water as the civil trial against him in Ireland has led to him losing his case . He’s now got to shell out some cash, and we ponder the potential consequences and ramifications of it all. We also look into this weekend’s early morning Macau card, with some excellent talent on deck and some surprisingly great matchups. A great little card to watch with your Saturday...

Mike Tyson went out sad against influencer Jake Paul, and it was a depressing spectacle despite being bonkers business . on the MMA side, UFC 309 is over, and Jon Jones was able to deftly dispatch of Stipe Miocic. Does that really help his status as heavyweight champion? Stipe handled it all with grace , but the heavyweight landscape remains murky despite a clear-cut contender in interim champ Tom...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit levelchangepodcast.substack.com Here it is, kids. We break down the prelims for UFC 309, plus our mainest man Tim Bissell is back with more Sumo action. The UFC prelims are an odd mishmash, with Chris Weidman facing Eryk Anders as a middleweight bout. But we do get some quality matches with Jonathan Martinez facing Marcus McGhee, for ex...

Time for the UFC to return to Madison Square Garden for a major heavyweight title fight that has pretty much lost all of its steam. But we still wanna see it! We break down the main card for UFC 309 and make our predictions, but we also look at a few headlines related to the event. Does it make sense for Jon Jones to fight for a BMF title ? No. No it doesn’t. But he thinks it does! And Matt Brown...

It’s that time again—time for us all to wait with baited breath to find out if Terunofuji will compete in the Kyushu Basho, and time to see if Onosato will keep on his upward trajectory. In case you’re new here, we’re big Sumo fans, so when there’s a new tournament about to drop, we bring out the big guns aka Tim Bissell from Sumo Stomp . In this episode, we take a look at what’s happened in the i...