Episode 644: Somehow Belal Muhammad is still fighting for respect
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Belal Muhammad said he doesn’t care what you think anymore. He knows he’s good, even if you don’t. Well, I mean, yeah, he is the UFC welterweight champion, so there is some evidence to suggest he’s pretty good. Somehow, though, it still feels like there are constantly a lot of doubts. You doubt he’ll win his next fight. You doubt it’ll be exciting, if he does. You doubt he’ll sell many PPVs, you doubt he’ll get in the UFC’s good graces, you doubt he’ll hang onto that belt for long … and on and on and on …
So far, for the most part, he’s proved you wrong. Still, that makes this weekend’s title defense at UFC 315 against Jack Della Maddalena all the more important. It’s the first time in a long while that Belal isn’t the underdog. So … gotta win this one, right?
Plus, what now for Bo Nickal? That’s up to him.
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1:10:26
Episode 643: What are we gonna do with you, Ian Garry?
The CME’s 13th birthday is coming up, and you know what that means: It’s pledge month! Now through June 1, GET 50% OFF A NEW MONTHLY OR ANNUAL PATREON SUBSCRIPTION when you use the code CME13 at checkout! Get on it! Join the team! Support the community! Stick it to the man!
Ya boi Ian (Machado) Garry commands a lot of attention in MMA. If the most difficult thing a UFC fighter can do in the year of our lord 2025 is make people care about your fights, well, Garry's got that part down. Take Saturday’s scrap with Carlos Prates, for example. What otherwise might have been a fairly run-of-the-mill Fight Night main event felt like appointment viewing with Garry and Prates involved. As it turned out, it was pretty much a cakewalk for Garry … except those last five minutes.
Plus, Anthony Smith had the classiest retirement possible when you’re bathed in your own blood and flipping off some rando in the crowd.
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1:05:47
Episode 642: Dana White got booed at Wrestlemania. What does it mean?
The two-night extravaganza that was Wrestlemania 41 went down over the weekend in Las Vegas, much to the delight and consternation of marks and smarks everywhere. Yeah, yeah, we know the CME ain’t a rasslin’ podcast, but one thing caught our attention that may be of interest to the combat sports audience: Dana White got booed. Yep. They showed Dana White on the broadcast and on the big screen inside Allegiant Stadium, and they booed that man. Twice! In his hometown! And the face Dana made as it was happening? Clearly a guy who didn’t love that it was happening, but was trying to be cool about it.
So, what gives? Dana White is used to being received as the conquering hero and No. 1 big swinging dick by MMA crowds. And yet here he is at Wrestlemania — probably doing a solid for the TKO brass just by showing up — and the live crowd ain’t having it. What, if anything, does this tell us about the difference between the UFC audience and the WWE audience?
Plus, the Netflix CEO doesn’t sound OVERLY thrilled about the idea of landing the UFC, and Ian (whispers: Machado!) Garry fights Carlos Prates this weekend in a fight with some actual stakes for both dudes.
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1:05:47
Episode 641: Volkamania runs wild once again!
Your boy Alexander Volkanovski is champion again, besting a fairly valiant effort by Diego Lopes at UFC 314 Saturday to claim the vacant UFC featherweight title. Volk looked pretty good, too, beating Lopes at range and mixing up the takedown attempts en route to the unanimous decision win. For The Fall Out Boy, well, it seemed like he just got started too late — spent too much time fighting Volk’s fight early on. Maybe if this one had been eight rounds instead of five, things might have been different. Alas.
Wait, though. Now that Volk’s 36 and has already defeated most of the bankable top contenders in the division, what’s left for him to do? Is he really gonna fight Movsar Evloev? That seems … anticlimactic.
Plus, Paddy Pimblett beat the shit out of Michael Chandler … and other listener mail questions!
Also, right now through May 1, get 15% off a VOLKAMANIA T-shirt by using the discount code VOLKBACK at: https://comaineventshop.bigcartel.com/
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1:10:34
Episode 640: Will Volk be champ again at UFC 314?
Look, we’re just being honest. After back-to-back KO losses to Islam Makhachev and Ilia Topuria, and a 1-3 record dating back to 2023, we couldn’t help but wonder if we’d already seen the best of Alexander Volkanovski. Then, lo and behold, Topuria moves up to lightweight, and suddenly Volk is right back in the mix — going off as a slight betting favorite against Diego Lopes in their 145-pound title unification bout at UFC 314.
And yet, the former champ is 36 … and we all know what happens to guys in these lighter weight classes once they hit 35. So we’ve gotta ask: How long can Volkamania really be expected to run wild?
Oh, and Michael Chandler vs. Paddy Pimblett? Yeesh.
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An irreverent and unscripted look at the week's mixed martial arts news from longtime MMA journalists Ben Fowlkes and Chad Dundas. Topics include the latest happenings in the UFC, Bellator and other promotions.
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