Welcome to Midnight Mania!
Let’s start the night off by taking a look back over the three biggest stories of Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025.
- Mackenzie Dern no longer ‘petite girly-girl’ ahead of UFC 321, able to ‘grow muscle to fight for the championship’: Mackenzie Dern has definitely grown to be a better athlete across her UFC career, it’s just the striking defense that remains so mediocre.
- Bo Nickal returns after first career loss versus BJJ ace Rodolfo Vieira at UFC 322: Is it odd to anyone else UFC books Nickal against so many jiu-jitsu guys? Give him a kickboxer and let’s see what happens!
- UFC Paris odds: Best betting props, parlays and picks | Imavov vs. Borralho: Who is your favorite underdog on the UFC Paris card?
Insomnia
Is there any chance of a Zabit comeback or is this a simple case of wolf tickets?
“6 years have passed, but my hands are still reaching out” – Zabit Magomedsharipov via Google Translate
I’ve seen several sources claim that UFC is targeting Arman Tsarukyan vs. Dan Hooker for UFC Qatar, and several other rumors have Justin Gaethje
receiving the next title shot. This is still all speculation, but where would that leave Paddy Pimblett?
I hope Jack Della Maddalena’s juicy new contract includes the cost of flying out his corner team.
Paulo Costa has officially figured out how to game the system … at least in regards to his next fight!
Can you identify the fighters in this clip? As an aside, my personal favorite way to punish stance switching always involved blasting a kick as soon as the opponent moved into their “secondary” stance.
Jalin Turner is staying active in retirement.
Song Yadong is working on his Judo.
Slips, rips, and KO clips
Breaking the clinch with punches:
Punches, hooks, and the choke attempt — van Rooyen gave his opponent a lot to think about from a bad position.
Throwing the spinning elbow while nearly being pushed out of the ring is incredible.
Random Land
Metallurgy is so cool.
Midnight Music: Dream pop, 1988
Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.
