This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com As if last week’s news wasn’t enough, this week we were treated to another healthy dose of media shockwaves. From the supposed asking price for UFC’s broadcast rights to their future partnership with the Saudis to run boxing, there was no shortage of hot gossip this week, and we’ll be breaking down the bigger stories from it. Follow along with our outli…...
Jan 14, 2025•23 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com The year is just getting started but we’ve already got big news for Dana White, a litany of excuses from Donn Davis, and DraftKings is launching a subscription service. We’re just seven days into 2025! Join us for our discussion on those topics and more. Follow along with our outline as you listen: Ep. 122 Outline * Donn Davis posted to his Linked In a list…...
Jan 07, 2025•24 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com 2024 was a big year for combat sports news. We saw everything from the first UFC antitrust case being settled to boxing’s changing landscape. We discuss our own coverage as well as what ended up being the biggest stories overall. We also tell you who made the most this year in both MMA and boxing and we look at which promotions were the most profitable.…...
Dec 31, 2024•43 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com The PFL has been notably tight-lipped about the increasing volume of complaints coming from the Bellator sector of their fighter stable. Patricio Pitbull has been the most vocal, posting numerous times to X about his plight. But what can he do to get some relief? In this episode, we discuss his issue and possible solutions. We also spark up a conversatio…...
Dec 27, 2024•21 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com In today’s episode, we have two major topics. In the first section, we take a look at this past weekend’s Usyk-Fury 2 card, from what we thought of the event to whether it looks to be profitable. In the bonus section, we discuss a typical financial career arc of a UFC fighter. The purse tiers, image rights, merchandise rights, sponsorship…all of it. Bel…...
Dec 24, 2024•22 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com The Global Fight League went public last week, unveiling their loosely laid plans on Ariel Helwani’s podcast. Back at the beginning of November, we provided exclusive details from their promotional deck, and now, we’re revealing more exclusive details of the newly formed entity, this time in the form of their fighter contract, of which John has acquired…...
Dec 17, 2024•35 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com It was hard not to notice that Rizin president Nobiyuki Sakakibara was a guest of Dana White at UFC 310. They were seated together, posed for photos, and even left together. At the post-fight press conference, White incurred more speculation when he expressed interest in bringing more of the Japanese promotion’s stars over to the octagon. In this episod…...
Dec 13, 2024•37 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Boxing Esquire has been a staple podcast with fans of the sweet science for years, so it was a real treat to have its founder, Kurt Emhof f, join us for an extended interview. John and Kurt discussed a variety of topics that focused on the history and current iteration of both boxing and MMA. Follow along with our outline as you listen: Ep. 116 Outline * The…...
Dec 10, 2024•56 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Over the last few weeks, talks have really ramped up for a fight between Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones. There’s also been discussion of a potential boxing match between Francis and Deontay Wilder. We take a look at Ngannou’s options and how a bout with Jon Jones could get made if all the correct pieces fall into place. Finally, we look at whether PFL ca…...
Dec 06, 2024•29 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Since the high court trial of Nikita Hand vs. Conor McGregor saw its conclusion—McGregor was found civilly liable for the rape of Ms. Hand—the fallout has been enormous. Gyms filmed videos of owners painting over wall portraits of the former double champion, grocers and retailers pulled his branded spirits from their shelves, and even Proper No. 12 whis…...
Dec 03, 2024•31 min
Our first Q & A was a hit—at least in our eyes. Not only did we get fantastic submissions, we can tell you guys and gals are paying attention and absorbing the information we provide. Your questions were outstanding and we hope to do these more often. Most accounts that submitted questions didn’t mind us using their social media handle to credit them, but a few preferred to remain anonymous. If you didn’t state the condition of anonymity, we cited you. Once again, thank you all so much for l...
Nov 28, 2024•1 hr 31 min
Yesterday, the civil trial that Conor McGregor has been embroiled in came to its conclusion. The courts found that McGregor was civilly liable for the rape of Nikita Hand. Horrific details came to light during the case which had previously been withheld due to privacy reasons from the criminal trial that took place a few years ago. McGregor has been ordered to pay Ms. Hand around $258K. He has vowed to appeal the decision. Now that the verdict has been issued, we decided to examine the business ...
Nov 23, 2024•21 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Earlier this year, UFC enacted some changes to their contracts, but recently, some bigger changes were implemented and unsurprisingly, they’re not in the fighters’ best interests. While we are unable to post screenshots of the contracts themselves due to confidentiality reasons, we will be providing the pertinent language from them relating to the new c…...
Nov 22, 2024•22 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com This past weekend saw a lot of action in the combat sports space. With Jake Paul fighting Mike Tyson on Friday night, then UFC 309 happening on Saturday night, Texas and New York saw some pretty big gates and record numbers of viewers for the Paul-Tyson fight. In this episode, we dissect the business side of both events, as well as what we think will ha…...
Nov 19, 2024•23 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com PFL has been referred to as the Number 2 promotion behind UFC for the last couple years, but they lag so far behind that the idea of being second or dead last becomes virtually identical—to use Mike Goldberg’s terminology. So, what can they do to get that elusive win? Is it a mixed rules bout between Ngannou and Deontay Wilder? A co-promotion with ONE C…...
Nov 15, 2024•14 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com With UFC having the vast majority of top tier fighters, a lock on big budget sponsors and the best broadcast deals, it’s hard to imagine anyone at all giving them reasonable competition. But that’s what the GFL (Global Fight League) hopes to do. In today’s episode, we take a look at the promotional deck John was sent to determine if we think there’s any…...
Nov 12, 2024•24 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Tuesday night, we saw Donald Trump elected President once again. With his election will come sweeping changes to some government offices that have done remarkable work over the last four years for the workforce. In this episode, we look at what the election results will mean for the UFC and for the fighters under its banner, especially since the second …...
Nov 08, 2024•20 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Tonight, after the polling locations are closed, the fate of the United States will be determined, as a new president will be appointed, barring anything extraordinary happening. Throughout this election cycle, we’ve watched UFC do a dramatic about face, going from once supporting Obama in his second bid for presidency back in 2012 to becoming one of Tr…...
Nov 05, 2024•27 min
In this episode, we were fortunate enough to have the lead attorneys from the UFC antitrust case stop by for a thorough, video interview. Eric Cramer and Michael Dell’Angelo (from the law offices of Berger Montague ) answered all our questions, clarified facts, dispelled misconceptions, and gave advice for UFC fighters from the Le class on how to get their settlement money. Follow along with our outline as you listen. *This is the video version of our earlier post* Ep. 105 Outline * Who is a mem...
Oct 29, 2024•54 min
In this episode, we were fortunate enough to have the lead attorneys from the UFC antitrust case stop by for a thorough interview. Eric Cramer and Michael Dell’Angelo (from the law offices of Berger Montague ) answered all our questions, clarified facts, dispelled misconceptions, and gave advice for UFC fighters from the Le class on how to get their settlement money. Follow along with our outline as you listen. COME BACK IN 3 HOURS FOR THE VIDEO DROP OF THE INTERVIEW Ep. 105 Outline * Who is a m...
Oct 29, 2024•55 min
Yesterday afternoon, the honorable Judge Boulware gave his preliminary approval of the revised settlement offer in the UFC antitrust case. The latest offer was for $375M and earmarked for just one of the classes (Le v. Zuffa), with the second class (Johnson v. Zuffa) moving forward as a separate case. The Johnson case will be asking for damages and injunctive relief. In today’s episode, we provide a short explainer that answers questions fighters may have about when and how their money will be d...
Oct 23, 2024•24 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com *Fighters interested in the status of their UFC antitrust claims should go to the official UFC antitrust site HERE . Francis Ngannou’s PFL debut was a success for him, considering his brutal knockout of Renan Ferreira, but was the event overall a success for the promotion? In this episode, we weigh in on that, whether Ngannou is a bona fide superstar, wh…...
Oct 22, 2024•17 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Fighters interested in the status of their UFC antitrust claims should go to the official UFC antitrust site HERE . Today’s episode features analysis of Gegard Mousasi’s new lawsuit against the PFL and Bellator, where he has lodged several complaints and has a hefty price tag on the damages he’s asking for. Claims of monopsony, contract term violations a…...
Oct 18, 2024•18 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com Last week, PFL head honcho, Donn Davis, gave an interview to the Sports Business Journal where he made some bold claims with some astounding numbers regarding the financial health of the promotion. We also discussed the latest wave of declarations from current and former UFC fighters pleading with Judge Boulware to accept the promotion’s settlement offe…...
Oct 15, 2024•19 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com In today’s episode (our 100th!), we focus our lens on two of the biggest stars in MMA, Alex Pereira and Francis Ngannou. With one having fought last weekend—the fourth time in 11 months—and the other fighting his first MMA bout in more than two years, we’ve got quite a packed episode. You’ll want to be sure to follow our written post as it will contain …...
Oct 11, 2024•22 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com On Monday evening, the UFC antitrust case saw some activity in the form of a new filing and more than 50 declarations from fighters. In this episode, we break down the latest numbers, how much each fighter should be getting, how long it will take when/if the settlement proposal is approved, how the payments will be divided up and more. We also go over s…...
Oct 08, 2024•16 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com In this episode, we conclude our history of pro-wrestling and how dirty the tactics were to keep wrestlers in line and keep other promotions from being able to find success or stay in business. We explain how the WWE rose to power and how AEW has managed to find success in the space with WWE ever looming. Catch part 1 here . Follow along with our outline…...
Oct 03, 2024•17 min
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heynottheface.substack.com The combat sports community is ablaze with litigiousness, from the UFC antitrust cases to lawsuits filed in boxing, we have explainers for what’s happening in each of them. Today’s episode covers some points about the antitrust cases, Mark Hunt’s ongoing suit against the UFC and Devin Haney’s recently filed suit against Ryan Garcia. We also touch on a c…...
Oct 01, 2024•17 min
We had some breaking news this morning when UFC, through a press release, announced they’d reached another settlement agreement with the Plaintiff (the fighters) in the antitrust case that’s been ongoing for the last decade. In this FREE episode, we break down what that all means, when we could have word on if the settlement is a go, and more. Follow along with our outline as you listen: Ep. 96 Outline * UFC released a statement this morning regarding the antitrust suit. What was it? * How much ...
Sep 26, 2024•19 min
In this episode, we bring you a detailed history of pro wrestling—specifically how it came to be, the four major eras and why it became such a corrupt enterprise that continues to this day. We discuss what “wrestling trusts” are, the way the industry beat court cases and more. This is a two-part series, with part two available next Thursday. Today’s episode is 100% FREE. Follow along with our outline as you listen: Ep. 95 Outline * Why are we talking about this and what exactly are we going to b...
Sep 26, 2024•39 min
