AFeldmanMMA

November 12th, 2016: Conor McGregor put on one of the greatest performances in MMA history when he dismantled Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 to become the UFC’s first simultaneous double champ. After the fight, McGregor was livid that the UFC didn’t have a 2nd belt for him, that led to one of the greatest post fight interviews of all time. @TheNotoriousMMA (🎥 UFC YT)

@Oakboi116608 @AudaciousSoulbx @Cerea1kira @KnicksMuse @BenStiller 🧾 Dumb mtfk.

@afeldMMA @AudaciousSoulbx @Cerea1kira @KnicksMuse @BenStiller Lyin bitch the 1st pic is from a season opening game before he knew they was going to be 🍑 and the 2nd pic was the Knicks 7th game of the 2018-2029 season… Now post pics from later on in those seasons

Have seen numerous images of the Sixers restricting tickets to anyone REMOTELY distant from Philly 😭

Can’t make it up is right. For me that night will always go down as an all-timer. I was in college in DC. Reports started spreading around 11pm that Bin Laden had been k*lled and within seconds I could hear people chanting “USA” outside my building. And somehow everyone just made their way to the White House. Within minutes, thousands were out there…all ages, all races, all religions, every political belief you could think of. And no one gave a shit. There was zero tension. Without a doubt one of the most united moments I’ve ever experienced. Everyone was just cool with each other, good energy everywhere. And It went on for hours into the early morning of May 2nd. Rules were basically out the window…people handing out drinks, people riding on the backs of cars, climbing trees, and the police just taking it all in. At the time it just felt like a massive celebration of unity, justice, closure, and a sense of safety. One of the coolest parts was also that no one was really on their phones either. People would snap a photo and then just put their phone away and embrace the moment. Different times. But yea, my photo looks like it was taken on a sidekick haha so I added another one that does the night a bit more justice.

Can’t make it up.

@Anthony29301694 Send the slips 🧾 👀

@afeldMMA I laugh like that cause I win everytime he fights 🤣

Tai Tuivasa’s FaceTime with a fan will forever live in the internet hall of fame 😂 No fight result will ever change that.

You can go after plenty of celeb fans, but Ben Stiller ain’t the one lol First photo: courtside in 2014 as the 2 win New York Knicks play the bulls and go on to finish 17–65 (tied for worst in franchise history) Second photo: March 2019, the 13 and 53 Knicks lose to the Sacramento Kings during another franchise worst 17–65 season. Just two examples of the many games he attended in both franchise worst 17–65 seasons in 2014 and 2019 He’s been there through all of it

@vxdomm @AudaciousSoulbx @Cerea1kira @KnicksMuse @BenStiller Where was he in from years 2013-2020🤷🏾‍♂️ he’s fake ass only popped up when they starting making the playoffs

@bill_kerrrrr Seems like they both had a good laugh. Think it was the entire interaction in general.

@afeldMMA Is he just laughing at his fan here? Or am I missing something?

@food_inquisitor @Nintendochamp12 I can tell you there’s not a single person’s look or appearance that would have me laughing like that 100 times on repeat. It’s Tai’s reaction, then the fan reacting to Tai, both losing it. The whole interaction.

@afeldMMA @Nintendochamp12 is it how the fan looks

@Nintendochamp12 Legit. One of the few videos I can watch 100 times and still lose it every single time.

@afeldMMA @arielhelwani Makes me laugh every single time

@john17173248 Yea if we expand outside of just UFC walkouts, there’s a handful of others that would have to be considered at the top of the list. Anderson Silva walking out as Michael Jackson is up there too 😂

@afeldMMA Fedor has some great aura entrances in pride and in affliction. Aldo had the entrance against faber. Alistair might have my favorite entrance against bigfoot(he lost 😭😭😭). Shogun coming out to sail with ninja rubbing his neck is another.

Anderson Silva. UFC 90. DMX “Ain’t No Sunshine.” Red Adidas tracksuit. The stutter steps. The pause to Harlem Shake. The shadow boxing. Aura of invincibility at an all time high. Even with the video quality, it’s the one I go back to the most. It’s gotta be number 1 for me. Another one that’ll always be up there is Mark Hominick at UFC 129. So many good options. Too many to pick from. That said, if we’re talking live in the arena, nothing matches a Conor McGregor walkout. A different level of energy than anything I’ve ever witnessed or felt.

@daKingballa06 Strictly going based on walkout for this one haha

@afeldMMA Also, does the fight play into it? Wasn't this like a terrible fight

@LfGBrowns Good call. One of my favorites as well; title defense in Cleveland vs. Overeem 🔥

@afeldMMA Stipe walking out to Till I Die in Cleveland is a all time great walk out

@DevNotClark UFC 244 with Diaz and Masvidal was an epic one. Nate demanded to walk through the streets from MSG to the fighter hotel after the ceremonial weigh-ins. But yea, no doubt, Conor walkouts are a whole different level, especially in the arena each one having a different vibe.

@afeldMMA Anderson 🐐 Conor vs Nate 2, went full samurai mode, completely different attitude than the 1st walkout Masvidal vs Nate at MSG with the Scarface sample 🔥

Legendary event. Those are still some solid enough shots, especially for back then. This is all I had from UFC 128 eight months after 117. Then somehow I ended up cageside for UFC on Versus: Cruz vs. DJ later that year in DC and don’t think I took a single photo lol Different times haha Social media clearly wasn’t what it is now…now you look around and phones are out basically the entirety of every event

@afeldMMA Yo seriously! Video reactions to that would have been crazy. I remember my friends at university telling me how crazy the local B-Dubs reaction was. That was so long ago, these were quality of iPhone shots from the lower bowl.

Hominick’s was definitely an all-timer. Thats epic! Been to some big cards, but being at 117 would’ve been a dream and a damn rollercoaster haha As a diehard Silva fan, I’ll never forget me and my friends’ reactions throughout that fight. Thought the reign was over and then the triangle of all triangles. I wish I had recorded our reaction or that streaming was a thing back then…that moment would’ve gone viral in every way haha

@afeldMMA Just brought up Hominick’s entrance yesterday from 129. So good!! Easily top 10, if not top 3. This era of Silva was really something else too. Got to see him live at 117 (first Sonnen fight) and it was insane.

Knicks in 5.25 📼

@AJKinOHIO Appreciate the feedback. Definitely a lot of information that I tried to squeeze onto two pages. Maybe going 3 or 4 graphics would have been the better move.

@afeldMMA hard to read those posters man... so tiny

Let’s not forget: Manny Pacquiao made $2.25 Million from trunk sponsors in one night. A UFC champion today makes $42,000 whether 100K people watch or 5 million. Nick Khan just testified in front of Congress on the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act and slipped in a quick sales pitch to young boxers for Zuffa Boxing. Part of his message: “If you want exposure…trading card deals…merchandise deals…video game deals…all of which the fighters would participate financially…come this way.” That all sounds great! ‼️But if history tells us anything, here’s what Zuffa and the UFC actually did: They saw the opportunity in fighter sponsorships and centralized fight week and fight night revenue. A massive shift. Sponsorships that were once fighter owned became promotion owned and it happened right as fighters gained the tools to truly monetize themselves. Today’s UFC fighter is: 👤 Audience owner 🏢 Monetization tenant They can build millions of followers, drive engagement, sell products on social. But the moment that matters most for every combat sports athlete, fight week and especially fight night, when the most eyes are on them, isn’t theirs to capitalize on. That’s the gap. Now imagine what a company would pay to be on a UFC superstar’s fight shorts today. Because in the creator and entertainment economy: 📈 Peak attention = peak revenue In the UFC model: 📉 Peak attention = fixed pay No matter the viewership No matter the value generated That upside flows to the uniform, the canvas, the broadcast. Not the fighter. That’s why the UFC is the outlier. 🌍 In every other category, creators own their biggest moment 🥊 In the UFC, the promotion does Which is why pressure is building: 📱 Fighters have portable audiences the UFC doesn’t control 🤝 Brands are routing around the system, working directly with fighters off platform 👊🏼 Other promotions allow fight night monetization 📊 The gap between what fighters generate and what they capture keeps widening The market has already moved. But the model hasn’t. So when the pitch to boxers is “come here for financial opportunity” outside of the ring The real question isn’t whether the opportunity sounds good. It’s whether fighters will actually financially participate in the value they create Or just create it for someone else to own…like they already do in the UFC. And this goes much deeper than just fighter sponsorships. 📊 Full breakdown in the graphics below.

@A2Fenix Yea and the most bought PPV of all time. Which is exactly why the comparison in the graphic is being made to the 4th highest-selling PPV in combat sports history and the highest buy rate in MMA history. $30k is 1.3% of $2.25 million.

@afeldMMA Yeah well that is Manny Pac one of the best to ever do it. Ever. Smh

@Cogan_454 For real. Some outrageous ones, some dope, but either way it put money in the fighters pockets.

@afeldMMA Back in the good days fighters were allowed to wear their own sponsors on their shorts and were paid well for it.

Nick Khan: “If you want that exposure… trading card deals…merchandise deals… video game deals—all of which the fighters would participate financially. If you want all of that, plus more, come this way.” Sean O’Malley: “Reebok made over a million dollars on all my merch, and I got like $3,000.” 🧐 (🎥: Food Truck Diaries - June 2020)

@xxcjxx15 Damn, I really thought it was a true masterpiece.

@afeldMMA @TheMMAlien @FunkHarborRum @funkmasterMMA Ai slop

How things actually went down at Aljamain Sterling’s UFC media day… @FunkHarborRum @funkmasterMMA