Full Blown MMA

WHY DID CONNOR SEEM SO DIFFERENT ON FIGHT NIGHT? My sense is that well over half of viewers perceived the Conor that came out on fight night to be different from the version who talked up the fight all week. My group of friends thought Conor's whole crew was acting weird. I believe McGregor had down regulated his neurotransmitters so much through high-risk activities and fighting that he just could not get psyched up for the fight and his corner did not know to react to his (non-)behavior. That, combined with the factors in my pre-fight article, "Conor McGregor Can't Win" (they are very much consistent), constitute⁰ my explanation. It also suggests a reason for Conor starting the fight with such high-risk, low-reward techniques. Thoughts?

WHY DID CONNOR SEEM SO DIFFERENT ON FIGHT NIGHT? My sense is that well over half of viewers perceived the Conor that came out on fight night to be different from the version who talked up the fight all week. My group of friends thought Conor's whole crew was acting weird. I believe McGregor had down regulated his neurotransmitters so much through high-risk activities and fighting that he just could not get psyched up for the fight and his corner did not know to react to his (non-)behavior. That, combined with the factors in my pre-fight article, "Conor McGregor Can't Win" (they are very much consistent), constitute⁰ my explanation. It also suggests a reason for Conor starting the fight with such high-risk, low-reward techniques. Thoughts?

WHY DID CONNOR SEEM SO DIFFERENT ON FIGHT NIGHT? My sense is that well over half of viewers perceived the Conor that came out on fight night to be different from the version who talked up the fight all week. My group of friends thought Conor's whole crew was acting weird. I believe McGregor had down regulated his neurotransmitters so much through high-risk activities and fighting that he just could not get psyched up for the fight and his corner did not know to react to his (non-)behavior. That, combined with the factors in my pre-fight article, "Conor McGregor Can't Win" (they are very much consistent), constitute⁰ my explanation. It also suggests a reason for Conor starting the fight with such high-risk, low-reward techniques. Thoughts?

🚨🤼‍♂️ Khabib says he is in PRIME now in his wrestling skills and he's far better than he was when he retired back in 2020: “People think my prime was between 2018 and 2020, but I wasn’t in my prime back then. I turned 32 in September 2020, and I retired in October. So I hadn’t even really begun yet. My grappling has improved tremendously since then. In 2026, it’s much better than it was in 2020. I watch my old fights now and think, ‘How could I have made that mistake here?’ Meanwhile, people watching from the outside say, ‘Wow, what a level.’ But to me, that’s not the level. My grappling is far better now. And the guys who trained with me in both 2020 and 2026 say the same thing." 🎥 Smol Talk

NEW: Justin Gaethje is the heavy favorite to win "Best Fighter" at the ESPYS tomorrow. 81% — Justin Gaethje 17% — Terence Crawford 2% — Gabriela Fundora Who else deserved to be nominated?

Paulo Costa reveals the UFC contacted him yesterday about replacing Khalil Rountree Jr. against Magomed Ankalaev after Rountree's withdrawal for UFC Abu Dhabi: "It's less than 14 days to get a flight to Abu Dhabi. It's a 16-hour flight, five rounds, for the same money, and not even for an interim belt. I don't think that makes sense right now."

Max Holloway asked Conor McGregor why he came back to fight again 💔

Hot take: Conor McGregor was never the best fighter, he just had intense grit and a VERY marketable personality and people can only see him with Nostalgia colored glasses 🙇🏽‍♂️.