Podcast/Interview Thread (MMA/Boxing etc) ?

[wandshogun09]

I actually gave that a go the other day despite my dislike of Tim. He’s not a guy you see much of these days so I guess that alone drew me in. Some decent stories in there, although it gets a bit silly/conspiracy theory-ish when he starts with the ‘you know Mayweather vs McGregor was fixed right?’ Then says the same about Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson. Can’t be that McGregor was just never gonna hang with Mayweather in a boxing ring or that Paul beat an ancient Tyson. The guys he wanted/thought were gonna win lost so it had to be a work in Timmy’s eyes.

That Rampage podcast is great though. Easily one of my favourite MMA ones now. The co-host really grates at times but I can live with it. They get some great guests on, guys who don’t usually do the podcast circuit, and I’m guessing a lot of that is because of Rampage and the connections he’s made over the years. A fighter from that era is almost always gonna be more up for going on his podcast than someone like Helwani who can be a snakey cunt and a right drama queen if things don’t go his way. Matt Serra’s is really good as well for similar reasons, I like the spin on his with a lot of his shows being him and a guest talking about their favourite movies of a certain genre or whatever. 

Come to think of it, Rampage, Serra and Luke Thomas are the only MMA podcasts I bother with at all now. Very occasionally I’ll begrudgingly watch a bit of Helwani’s if he’s got a guest I like but I never ever watch Rogan’s now. Just can’t stomach him or his bullshit at all anymore. 

[jimufctna24]

I skimmed through it. Thanks to Ebb for sharing a link.

Timmy kinda has the right idea about McGregor vs Floyd. I also don't believe it was a completely honest fight. However, I am in the camp of those who believe that Mayweather carried McGregor in the early rounds to put on a show, rather than what he claimed about McGregor taking a dive. 

The part where Timmy discusses his positive drug test in 2003 confirms what I have always believed about him and MMA PED use in general in the 2000s. More specifically, that Timmy failed that test because he was a daft sod, and that illegal PED use was rampant around that time, with the athletes and their associates several step ahead of the testers (we know through the Balco scandal that Conte made a mockery out of Nevada's drug testing, others will have too).

I really disliked Timmy when I first got into MMA in the mid 2000s I wasn't the only one. He was a whipping boy on the forums. He was often dismissed as merely being a "shitty boxer" and an example of how weak the UFC's heavyweight division was compared to Pride's. It also didn't help that he was a bit of a buffoon. Wearing his title belt in public, shitting his pants while fighting Assuerio Silva, being rejected on a dating TV show because he admitted that he couldn't handle his ale, daft comments in interviews, etc. 

That said, I did soften to Timmy as the years went on. Partially because of how mean Hughes was towards him (their relationship was covered in Hughes's book, which Hughes was an idiot to have let see the light of day), and also because there were characters in the sport far more deserving of hatred. 

That 3rd bout with Arlovski was fucking dire though.

Edited July 28, 2025 by jimufctna24

[wandshogun09]

8 minutes ago, jimufctna24 said:

That 3rd bout with Arlovski was fucking dire though.

And the Jeff Monson fight. And the Brandon Vera fight. The Monson fight was so bad Randy Couture decided to come out of retirement and begged Dana to let him put us all out of our misery. Always loved that Nog and Fedor got to finish him as well. Just in case any fools were still trying to argue with a straight face in 2008 that Pride’s Heavyweights were inferior to the UFC’s. And they weren’t even the prime versions of Nog or Fedor. 

[jimufctna24]

 

Oh aye, I remember the Monson bout being a stinker. 

Here is an interview with Timmy right after he tested positive for steroids in 03 for anyone interested - https://www.sherdog.com/news/interviews/Sylvia-Comes-Clean-122

[Egg Shen]

20 hours ago, wandshogun09 said:

I actually gave that a go the other day despite my dislike of Tim. He’s not a guy you see much of these days so I guess that alone drew me in. 

Yeah, these are the types of shows I like to listen too. Same with Wrestling and Music too, it always the more unheralded guys you dont hear much from that intrigue me.

There is another podcast called The MMA History Podcast (think it was formerly The Lytes Out Podcast, Chris Lytle co-hosted). I've yet to listen to one, but they pump the content out, 250+ episodes, and it's literally a who's who of past fighters. I need to start listening to them.

[wandshogun09]

Nice I’ll give that a go. 

[wandshogun09]

Jardine’s doing the rounds. Haven’t got around to his appearance on Rampage’s podcast yet but here he is on Matt Serra’s. 

Good stuff. Great to see Jardine. One of those fighters whose personality seems to be a complete contrast to how they look. Always seems really chill. Love that Serra’s got this podcast going as well. It’s perfect for him. With the news that Poirier is gonna be joining the commentary team at UFC 319, we were on about fighters doing colour the other day. Serra’s a guy I always thought would be just the right balance of knowledge and being entertaining for that. But honestly, he’s probably too loud and boisterous for that role and I don’t think they’d be able to rein him in. This podcast is a great outlet for him though. Always genuinely seems over the moon to see other former fighters doing well after fighting as well. 

[Egg Shen]

Ahh hadn't realised Serra had his own solo podcast going. I thought he was still just doing the UFC one. Sit down in-person interviews are so much better than zoom calls.

[wandshogun09]

The Serra podcast is fun. Some are just straight one on one interviews like that Jardine one. But others he’ll sit down with a fighter and they’ll rate movies of a certain genre or series. There was one where him and Longo rated their top mob movies that was a laugh. He did one with GSP on Star Wars I think as well. Serra’s podcast isn’t too long either, usually an hour tops, unlike some which drag a bit. Probably my favourite fighter podcast at the moment. 

[wandshogun09]

Couple of bits worth watching/listening to here.

Haven’t seen this yet but I know it’s gonna be interesting. Matt Serra’s interview with the producer of The Smashing Machine. Not the movie, this guy produced the original documentary…

Haven’t seen the movie yet but I love the doc. I think any old school MMA fan does. Probably seen that and Choke ten times over the years. Smashing Machine is due a rewatch anyway, I think, before I catch the movie. But definitely gonna be giving this interview a go when the kids are in bed later.

And while I’m here, didn’t really wanna link to Helwani, I’ve soured on him so much, but Raven was on the Helwani Show this week promoting his new documentary and they started talking MMA. Apparently Raven’s a big MMA nerd these days. Well, he says he’s watched since about 2002 here. He’s not bullshitting either. He starts rattling off names and certain fights here and it doesn’t seem like some rehearsed shite, it’s off the cuff in response to Helwani’s questions. He actually knows his stuff. Cracked up when they mentioned the recent PFL show and the Usman Nurmagomedov vs Paul Hughes fight and Raven enthusiastically blurts out “Oh, ‘Big News’ Paul Hughes!” He even named dropped fucking Reug Reug! ?

Around 23 minutes in for the MMA talk but to be honest the whole thing’s worth a listen. Didn’t know about him having Parkinson’s. 

 

Edited October 11, 2025 by wandshogun09

[jimufctna24]

I recall Raven arguing in 2007 that Couture vs Sylvia was a great fight because it had such a strong story behind it. So he probably isn't bullshitting about his MMA fandom.

I haven't watched Smashing Machine in years, but it wasn't just one of my favourite MMA documentaries, but one of my favourite sporting documentaries period. I'm due a rewatch too. 

[wandshogun09]

Dominick Cruz is the latest to jump into podcasting. Not usually a fan of listening to Cruz talk but I’ll give this one a go just because his first guest was his career rival and arch nemesis Urijah Faber…

Only around an hour or so as well which helps. 

[Dai]

Cruz talking constantly for a hour? You must be crazy to listen to that

[wandshogun09]

Well I’ve listened to multiple hours of him chatting shite on commentary over the years. What’s another hour? 😂

It’s not a podcast I can see me checking into regularly. It’s gonna depend pretty much entirely on who the guest is. And given their history, him and Faber is one I’m interested in. 

Edited November 5, 2025 by wandshogun09

[jimufctna24]

These short videos with Monte Cox from a few years back are really interesting. In one video he talks about how Matt Hughes didn't take steroids and fell in love with his striking late in his career, in another he talks about Fedor and Finklestein's relationship. In the video below he discusses the decline of MFS.