Welcome to Midnight Mania!
One of the biggest narratives surrounding Conor McGregor’s absence and return from injury has been his height. McGregor has amassed so much muscle that there’s been endless discussion about Instagram’s thirst traps, potential use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), and possible photoshop. As a result, it was widely speculated that McGregor would make his expected comeback in 2023 at 170lbs.
For what it’s worth, McGregor has even talked about making the jump to middleweight.
His recently confirmed opponent and opposing coach on The Ultimate Fighter (TUF), Michael Chandler, has no problem building muscle. The wrestler and knockout artist promises to match McGregor’s size and strength without issue, claiming to weigh up to 190 pounds months out from the fight.
However, the two may want to drop off the steaks and pick up some salads. During an appearance on the Pat McAfee show, UFC President Dana White changed course from previous reports, saying the fight would take place at 155 pounds instead.
As for whether or not the winner will receive a title shot at Lightweight? White is less convinced than Michael Bisping, but he hasn’t confirmed one way or the other.
“I don’t know,” White said (via Cole Shelton). “What we do with this is like when everyone was talking about Conor coming back who is he going to fight, you have to look at the landscape, who already has fights, who doesn’t. Chandler’s fight is a fight that people love. This fight is going to be absolutely violent.
The fight is still a long way off, so it’s not unreasonable to expect that the weight class could be negotiated one way or another. Regardless, Chandler and McGregor enter the fight in must-have storylines if they are to stay in contention. McGregor has lost back-to-back fights to Dustin Poirier, while Chandler has just two wins in his five trips to the Octagon.
Insomnia
Dan Hooker vs. Jalin Turner, a surefire piece of a ranked lightweight matchup, unfortunately caught fire.
Bad news: Dan Hooker is out of his #UFC285 match with Jalin Turner after breaking her hand, the sources say. Turner is expected to remain on the card, but no opponents yet.
—Mike Heck (@MikeHeck_JR) February 8, 2023
Grant Dawson chose violence in an unexpected way.
It’s a very Alex Pereira response to all the snowy 205-pound selfie videos.
Does Rafael dos Anjos vs Belal Muhammed make much sense? No, but it would be very watchable anyway.
I’m in for a fight… not because of your position in the leaderboard but because I see you want to fight. If you need a partner, I’m here. https://t.co/uAApo5j8La
— Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) February 8, 2023
THIS HAPPENED AGAIN!
Xtreme Couture head coach Eric Nicksick has a unique strategy for keeping things calm in his bedroom.
People ask me all the time what I do to keep order in a gym full of Alpha when things get out of hand. Well, you guessed it, have them hold hands until everyone smiles. pic.twitter.com/6hJcpD6axU
— Eric Nicksick (@Eric_XCMMA) February 8, 2023
FLY WEIGHT BANGER ALERT!
Bobby Green has been in the game forever, so if he does indeed retire, it’s more than well deserved. Still, it would be hard to see ‘King’ walking away given his performance.
Slips, tears and KO clips
Surviving a bunch of slams then subduing his tired enemy was PEAK Sakuraba!
Alexander Volkanovski hasn’t lost since 2013 in a fight where he was comically oversized.
Escaping a deep submission like this can really break an opponent’s will.
Random terrain
The man ran in place like Wile E. Coyote.
Midnight Music: I had already heard and liked several singles from JID’s 2022 rap album The Eternal Story, but I listened to the whole thing today for the first time. It’s very solid!
Sleep well fools! More martial arts madness is always on the way.
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