The MMA Vivisection Shows: 'Main Card Preview' & 'Prelims Card Preview'

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com The UFC is on an unprecedented roll—at least for this current era of mostly miserable cards. Why, you ask? For the third week in a row, we’re getting a really good show. And once again, all the components of what make an event great are contained in this one. The matchmakers did well, the stats look good a...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com It’s been ages since we got a card at the Apex that had more than a single ranked fight on it, but this week, we’ve got one with three. That has to be a milestone, right? And get this, they’ve split them up so that we at least get one of them on the undercard. Are we looking at a new era being formed? Doub...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com It’s time for the monthly pay-per-view and UFC 321 should be a good one, considering they’ve packed it with 14 fights, two of which have titles on the line. Did Mackenzie Dern find out her fight was for a belt via social media? Yes, she did, but that’s just how the UFC does things these days. The other cha...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com Well, we are looking at another horrendous card with stats so bad, even the most staunch UFC advocate couldn’t possibly defend it. The main event is okay, I guess, but Allen is just one fight removed from being on a two-fight skid. Manon Fiorot vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius is a legitimately great matchup, but...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com If last week’s card was a mess on paper, this week’s show is the remedy. The alternative stats are terrific, the fights look exciting, and matchmaking is sensible. I don’t know why people are pushing for Ankalaev to be traded, he’s some such a long way and continues to be more impressive with each contest....

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com The stats are speaking volumes of UFC Perth this week. A sprawling, 14-bout card only has a single ranked fight gracing its lineup and only three ranked fighters in total. When you factor in how much the Aussies are likely paying in site fees—let’s just say I’d be asking for a steep discount. The main even...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Noche has 14 fights but only two are ranked. That’s how we’re going to start you off today. This year’s Noche event had its “PPV” moniker removed thanks to Canelo-Crawford taking center stage with TKO’s best efforts at promotion and the event’s lineup absolutely show it. The main event is good. The co-...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Paris is what an on-the-road fight night should look like. It has thoughtful, meaningful matchmaking (at least on the main card), a main event that looks like a title eliminator, and the potential for action. We don’t know what Bukauskas-Craig is doing on there, but aside from that contest, the premium...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Shanghai is your classic mixed bag with a few good fights among a sea of regional level fodder. The main event should actually be Ortega vs. Sterling but we get why it’s Walker vs. Zhang. Why Kavanagh vs. Johnson isn’t on the main card is the card’s greatest mystery and just seems wrong on every level....

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com Guess what? UFC is finally giving us a decent card. Is it a PPV? Of course it is. But the important thing to remember is that it’s got relevant matchups, great stats and the potential for a lot of fireworks. And let us not forget we also have a belt on the line with the main event. Will Dricus be able to f...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC is making its way back to the Apex for the second time this month with UFC Vegas 109, and it’s only slightly better than last weekend’s awful-on-paper-but-decent-in-actuality card. Once again, the stats are pretty bad, and the matchmaking seems only incrementally better. At the top of the card is one o...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC is returning home to the Apex this weekend, and boy oh boy does it show. Not only are the stats terrible, the matchmaking seems off, as well. Why pair Neil Magny with Elizeu Zaleski, rather than have a young gun use one of them as a springboard to get spotlight on their climb upwards? Why not wait to f...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Abu Dhabi looks pretty good on paper with four ranked fights and several ranked fighters. But more importantly, we got sensibly booked matchups, and some really interesting pairings. Are there some contests that could (and should) have been left to an Apex event? Absolutely, but there are still some ve...

UFC 318 might have the hallmarks of a solid PPV—four ranked fights and 10 ranked fighters—but when you get to the alternative stats, that’s when the whole thing falls apart. Fifteen fighters are coming off losses! And a 16th went to a draw. Fifteen fighters hail from the Contender Series. This seems an unacceptable sendoff for the Diamond, even if it is happening in his back yard. We have a genuin...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Nashville has the distinct odor of the glue factory, and the stench of forced rankings. Being that this event is an on-the-road Fight Night, it tracks that they’d want to fluff out the card in some way. Does this show have a hidden gem here and there to break up the monotony of a below-mid card? Sure,...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC 317 is a solid pay-per-view event. In this current era, the promotion puts forth very little into their shows, but this particular one seems to have been crafted with at least some level of care. The main card is obviously where most of the meat is centered, and four of the five ranked fights are cramm...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Baku seems to still be on, despite the conflict that rages on in the Middle East. Looking at the card on paper, it leaves a lot to be desired. Lots of fighters coming off losses and just a single ranked fight for this on-the-road Fight Night. There are some match-ups that look promising from an action...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Atlanta is not as bad as the alternative stats would suggest. Let me tell you why. We have three former champs on the main portion. It doesn’t matter that none the trio is likely to end up with a strap again, but we do have some recognizable talent for this on-the-road card. The other, more obvious rea...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC 316 is blessed relief from the constant grind of the Apex and lackluster Fight Nights that happen outside of it. If one thing has been driven home, it’s that UFC is going to give us slop and somehow, people still love it. This weekend doesn’t have a wealth of great fights, but it has two titles on the...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Vegas 107 is not giving what it needs to give, stat-wise. A whopping 12 fighters are coming off losses—on a card that only has 11 fights. Fourteen of the athletes hail from the Contender Series. Could it provide a bunch of action? Sure. Will it matter to the advancement and growth of the competitors ou...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Vegas 106, much like last weekend’s UFC 315, looks okay on paper. It’s got a couple ranked fights—which is amazing for an Apex card—as well as fairly low stats for fighters coming off losses. There is a downside because a lot of the fighters with losses have some problematic losing streaks. Gilbert Bur...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC 315 has great stats and two title fights, but the big PPV feel of it all is severely lacking. And if ticket sales are a true indicator, the Canadian fans aren’t feeling that big card vibe either. Or maybe they’re showing the UFC that they don’t appreciate the close affiliation with the Trump administra...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Des Moines is the ghost of Christmas past. They’ve gone and drafted Jeremy Stephens back into the comforting embrace of the octagon, fresh off his success at BKFC, but not very mindful of his MMA bouts outside the promotion where he went just 2-1 in the PFL. There are other picked-over, near-demise old...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Kansas City is what I like to call a good, old-fashioned mixed bag. It has a terrific main event and some fun matchups overall. So where’s the problem? That lies in the stats, and there’s one that’s really putting a wet blanket on the whole event: 15 fighters are coming off losses. If this were an Apex...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC 314 is a terrific card, full stop. It’s got all the elements we hope for: ranked fights, plenty of ranked fighters, and we’re not overrun with fighters coming off losses or from the Contender Series. The bouts are matched well and are compelling, with plenty of room for advancement. The main card is qu...