Welcome to Midnight Mania!
Let’s start the night off by taking a look back over the three biggest stories of Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025.
- Gordon Ryan says sabotaging CJI 2 was ‘baller move by UFC,’ Craig Jones reacts: Gordon Ryan and Craig Jones will continue feuding until the steroids implode Ryan’s heart for good.
- Jake Paul vs Tank Davis odds return heavy favorite for Nov. 14 boxing match in Atlanta: If Jake Paul somehow size bullies his way to victory, I’ll feel truly confident that I don’t understand boxing at all.
- Rampage Jackson reveals his son, Raja Jackson, ‘hasn’t been the same since his mom was murdered’: Every day, there’s a new sad and unfortunate angle to this story.
Insomnia
UFC 321 has found its co-main event, as Mackenzie Dern will rematch Virna Jandiroba for the newly vacant belt after Zhang Weili left the division to challenge Valentina Shevchenko. Headlined by Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane, UFC 321 is scheduled for Oct. 25 in Abu Dhabi.
What do we think of this Strawweight booking? Dern has won two straight and looked good in the process,
but it wasn’t that long ago that she lost three of four. Jandiroba, conversely, is undeniable after five-straight quality wins. When the two faced off in December 2020, Dern was victorious via unanimous decision!
With respect to Merab Dvalishvili and his “Machine” status, I would imagine the idea of fighting until 50 grows less appealing after the losses and knee/back/neck injuries begin to pile up.
UFC Perth already has 16 bouts. Can we not afford to let a couple fall away to the injury bug?
The UFC’s bizarre mismanagement of the Heavyweight division continues! Brzeski loses much more than he wins, but the promotion won’t keep the actual ranked fighters around.
Question: is “haha you had sex with a famous actress/singer” an effective bit of trash talk?
Carlos Diego Ferreira has still got it and keeps an insane pace, which feels like a recipe for a classic late fight Hernandez collapse.
I love that Jan Blachowicz can sign a contract with a giant sword yet it feels authentic.
There are many, many liars in the world of combat sports.
Slips, rips, and KO clips
Elbows are an underrated way to finish the triangle choke. Ask “El Cucuy!”
Touch, pull, return!
Tap the lead leg and fire the overhand, a classic and uniquely MMA strategy. Merab is great at it lately, but Johnny Hendricks absolutely bombed people with it back in the day.
Random Land
The single drop of blood at the end …
Midnight Music: Indie, 2016
Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.
