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 UFC Paris has arrived for 2024 and as you probably guessed, it’s a decent card, as they tend to be when on the road. Have to make sure those seats are sold at a premium, right? At the top of the card is an excellent bout between Number 11 ranked Renato Moicano (Moicano wants MONEY!) and Number 12 ranked Be...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC 306 week is finally here and with it, a solid card. Is it worth all the hype and huge production budget the promotion has invested in it? Absolutely not. Will it be a fun watch considering the match-ups? Yes it will. Maybe we see Sean O’Malley be the one to stop the Dvalishvili juggernaut, or maybe the...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Vegas 97 isn’t where all the action is happening, or even part of it, but it does have a fight here and there that is worth the watch. It gives that deja vu feeling, though, like we’ve already seen it before. Such is the way of all Apex cards. Who knows, maybe we’ll get better quality cards once the ex...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC 96 isn’t just a raggedy Apex card. This time around, it also bears the distinction of being a TUF finale event, as well. And before you ask, yes, TUF is still a thing. The show is headlined by a middleweight contender matchup between Jared Cannonier and Zane’s favorite fighter, Caio Borralho. Will the...

We’re just a day away from a pretty solid PPV with UFC 305, and even the undercard has a little razzle dazzle. Once again, I can’t help but laugh to myself when I stop to think what you all are guessing the title means. It would be pretty great to see some of you came up with before you listened to the show. The comments are right there, just in case you want to share. MMA Vivisection & 6th Round...

I bet you guys are wondering what the title means and it tickles me to death to tell you to listen to the show to understand why. Also, quick reminder that this week’s Vivisections will be FREE in their entirety. One of our hosts has a family obligation this weekend, so there won’t be a 6th Round Post-fight Show. To make it up to you, our loyal listeners, we’ve decided to make our bonus content fo...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Vegas 95 is terrible. Full stop. We don’t think we’ve seen a worse card in the history of the sport, and if there was, it’s escaped our memory. It’s like the UFC threw darts at their roster and wherever the dart landed is how the matches were made. Just an absolute mess. Don’t let the alternative stats...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Abu Dhabi is here and surprise, surprise, it’s a good card. Generally, the on-the-road fight night events usually are pretty good. UFC wants to make sure they maximize their gates by saving the better fights for these shows and it appears to be working. That and jacking up the rates of the tickets, but...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com Hold onto your hats! The UFC has given us a very solid card with this coming Saturday’s offering. UFC 304 bears all the hallmarks of a great event. Not one, but two title fights, name value, ranked talent…it has it all. Thank you matchmaking brass for finally getting on the ball. We are most definitely wor...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Vegas 94 is almost here and boy is it a really meager card. We’re sure the old platitudes of “these crappy-on-paper cards always deliver” will be there, but it’s about getting the butt in the seat first. How are we to do that if only the hardcores are the ones willing to watch, and they aren’t always p...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com The UFC is back to business after a brief, one-week respite. We return with a card on the road, to the mile-high city where Tracy Cortez will be able to let us all know if two days really is enough time to acclimate to that altitude. And Thug Rose will be able to answer the question of where her flyweight...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC 303 is here, sans Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler headling. In their place, we get a rematch between the two dynamos known as Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka—not a bad replacement at all. As a matter of fact, there’s quite a few matches we like on this card. All in all, it’s a very solid card, and...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Riyadh is here and while it’s not terrible, it’s nothing to write home about either. But it is infinitely better than the originally planned March card that was ultimately postponed to this weekend. That card was so bad the Saudis sent it back. This current iteration was so much better before it was ra...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com If you thought UFC might reward you this week for making it through last weekend’s UFC Louisville card, you’ve got another thing coming. If it is even possible, this Apex event is worse than the last one and that’s saying something. You’ll understand when you get to the alternative stats portion. MMA Vivis...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Louisville is such a bad card. It’s like the matchmaking brass threw darts to set the bout sheet. At the top we have a nothingburger middleweight bout—our only ranked fight on an “away card”—between No. 4 ranked Jared Cannonier and No. 7 ranked Nassourdine Imavov. There’s nothing wrong with this fight...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com It’s UFC 302 fight week and perhaps the last hurrah for lightweight living legend Dustin Poirier. It’s hard to believe the longtime fan favorite has been in the promotion for nearly 14 years, the vast majority of his adult life. As Zane so aptly put it, “He’s been fighting his whole adult life. It’s all he...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com Hi. Stephie, the producer here. Just wanted to drop a quick note that this week’s written portion is going to be super brief, consisting of just the bout sheet and the alternative stats. Since I just got in from the airport a couple hours ago, this seemed like the best plan. Hope you all enjoy the shows an...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC St. Louis is here and unsurprisingly, it’s a decent enough card. Why did I say ‘unsurprisingly’? Well, that’s because it’s not being held in the Apex Center. Of course it’s going to be better. Are we getting a fairly meaningless heavyweight main event? You bet your caboose we are. Derrick Lewis will be...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC 301 is here, and while it’s not a terrible card, it’s certainly not worthy of the PPV moniker, nor the hefty price tag associated with the promotion’s numbered events. There is a title fight resting atop the main card, but it’s not the type of scrap that’s going to encourage new eyeballs to settle on t...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Vegas 91 is almost here and with it, we return to the doldrums that are associated with Apex cards. This one at least has a solid enough main event between Matheus Nicolau and Alex Perez. Nicolau had looked pretty, pretty, pretty good over six fights and then Brandon Royval decided to put a stop to tha...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com It’s here! It’s finally here! After what seems like an eternity of terrible cards (we’re looking directly at the Apex), we’ve finally arrived at a worthwhile event. Is it “00” quality? For the most part, yes. The main event could’ve been a little juicier, but we’re here and we’re excited. With 2.5 title fi...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Vegas 90 just wrapped and Brendon Allen has taken his revenge. Chris Curtis, in true Chris Curtis fashion, ended up writhing in pain at the end of the fight and will no doubt have a detailed dissertation on why he lost. Allen somehow received a 49-46 score, completely undeserved, but the fight was by n...

UFC Atlantic City’s main card is a pretty good offfering even if that portion only has a single ranked fight on it. The same can be said for the prelims, as they carry the only other ranked fight on the card, and it is also a women’s bout, this time between Virna Jandiroba and Lupita Godinez. Both women have been enjoying successful runs over their last few fights, so it gets no complaints from us...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com UFC Atlantic City is a pretty good looking card, even if the stats don’t back it up much. The headliner alone is worth the price of admission and will undoubtedly set up the next contender for the women’s flyweight belt. Both Erin Blanchfield and Manon Fiorot are powerhouses in their own right, both incred...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com Are you thirsty for another watered down, subpar Apex card? Well good, because the UFC has got one for you. If you thought last week’s show looked abysmal, you may want to reset your excitement barometer because UFC Vegas 89 is even more paltry, with a pretty lackluster headliner supported by a very forget...