Ariel Helwani’s 11 MMA thoughts, including why Newell’s win was key
Nick Newell submits Corey Browning halfway through the first round with an arm triangle at Bellator 225. (0:48)
Ariel Helwani is an MMA reporter at ESPN. Follow him on Twitter at @arielhelwani.
It’s Monday — time for another edition of Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show, which airs live at 1 p.m. ET on Twitter and YouTube. After it ends, you can listen to the show as a podcast.
The UFC makes its debut in Shenzhen, China, this weekend with a very interesting main event.
Jessica Andrade will be making her first strawweight title defense against Zhang Weili in what could be a massive moment for the company should Zhang win. A Chinese fighter winning a UFC title in China? Priceless. I’m not suggesting that the UFC is hoping Andrade loses, but there’s no denying that a win for Zhang will be a huge coup for the UFC, which recently opened a Performance Institute in Shanghai.
And guess what? In my opinion, she has a great chance. Zhang might not be a household name, but she has won 19 in a row and has had three impressive showings in the UFC. I’m curious to see how this fight pans out.
Before we get to that, here are some thoughts on the week that was in MMA:
The UFC’s return to China features a strawweight division championship fight, one that fans in Shenzhen have been anticipating for several months.
Zhang Weili, who is 19-1 and fights out of Beijing, will look to take the title from Jessica Andrade in Saturday’s main event.
UFC Fight Night: Andrade vs. Zhang
• Saturday, Shenzhen, China
• Prelims: ESPN, 3 a.m. ET
• Main card: ESPN+, 6 a.m. ET
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1. If you decided to skip Bellator 225 for whatever reason, you missed one of the most entertaining cards of the year. For starters, all 14 fights ended in a finish. That had never happened on a UFC or Bellator card with that many fights.
2. Some highlights included: Aviv Gozali, the son of Bellator fighter Haim Gozali, submitting Eduard Muravitskiy via leg lock submission in just 11 seconds. That’s the fastest submission in Bellator history and the fastest leg lock submission there has ever been on a major card. Gozali was criticized by many afterward for ignoring Muravitsky’s attempt to touch gloves before the fight, which I think is ridiculous. There’s no rule that states you must touch gloves before a fight. If your game plan is to attack right away — much like Jorge Masvidal did versus Ben Askren last month — should you completely alter your plan because your opponent decided to touch ’em up? Heck no. That’s laughable. When the fight starts, it starts. Now, if you bait your opponent into touching gloves only to fake them out and attack, I can see why that would rub people the wrong way, but Gozali did absolutely nothing wrong here.
1️⃣1️⃣ seconds of wizardry by @aviv_gozali leads to the fastest submission in Bellator history (via @BellatorMMA) pic.twitter.com/PPyKg3aOeA
3. In the next fight, former UFC fighter Sabah Homasi scored a 17-second knockout. He then called out Austin Vanderford, Paige VanZant‘s husband, who fought and won later on the undercard in his middleweight debut. Solid callout by Homasi, playing up the angle that Vanderford is using PVZ’s fame to get over. I was wondering how long it would take for someone to run with that angle.
4. The biggest story of the night was Nick Newell‘s Bellator debut. Earlier this summer, Newell signed a one-fight deal with Bellator for a fight at a venue 10 minutes from his house, and this could have been his last chance to sign a long-term deal with a major promotion. The truth is they were giving him a shot on the undercard because he is a strong local draw who would sell tickets. Well, Newell, a congenital amputee with a left arm that extends just past his elbow, rose to the occasion with a first-round arm-triangle submission of Corey Browning.
I would now be shocked if he doesn’t get a multifight deal with Bellator. He’s exactly the kind of guy they need: an amazing backstory, compelling to watch, attracts media, and he sells tickets in Connecticut, which is a state they go to a lot. What’s not to love? Knowing how much was at stake for Newell, especially after he lost his chance to fight in the UFC last year following his loss on Contender Series, I couldn’t help but feel really great for him. He is the very definition of perseverance.
5. The Bellator 225 main event — Matt Mitrione vs. Sergei Kharitonov — was supremely bizarre. Over the course of the fight, which lasted a little more than a round, Mitrione’s mouthpiece fell out four times. This was clearly bothering and distracting him, and after the fourth time, he was so distracted that he allowed himself to get caught with a vicious uppercut and then a knee, which led to a TKO finish for Kharitonov. It was uncomfortable to watch because it was clear that he was rattled by the mouthpiece. Mitrione tweeted this afterward: “Me losing was not because of my mouthpiece, it was because of my response to the situation. I always use the same one & lost it Thursday before fight week. Had an impression done at a West Lafayette dentist. It was shipped to hotel. First time I ever wore it was tonight.”
Me losing was not because of my mouthpiece, it was because of my response to the situation. I always use the same one & lost it Thursday before fight week. Had an impression done at a West Lafayette dentist. It was shipped to hotel. First time I ever wore it was tonight.
Mitrione has always been a straight shooter, but that explanation is a bit confusing to me. He says the loss wasn’t because of the mouthpiece but then goes on to explain why the loss of the mouthpiece led to the loss. A bizarre explanation to a bizarre main event.
6. Here is my biggest takeaway from my interview with Conor McGregor on Thursday:
He has a lot of work to do with the fans — perhaps more than I originally thought. McGregor has always brought out intense passion — good or bad — from the fans, but this time it feels like they don’t trust him anymore. They are mad at him. They feel let down. A win can help repair a lot of that, but he needs to win his next fight badly, which is why I would suggest not fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov in his return fight (if Nurmagomedov beats Poirier in two weeks). Fighting someone such as Tony Ferguson, the winner of Justin Gaethje vs. Donald Cerrone or even Nate Diaz makes a lot more sense to me because those are good style matchups for him.
7. As for his apology and general demeanor, I sincerely believe he feels bad about his string of controversies. He understands that he is ruining his reputation. The question is, can he get back on track? Can he get back in the good graces of the fans? Can he stay out of trouble? Can he make the Irish people proud of him again? Can he be the superstar he once was? Only time will tell, but one thing is clear: Conor McGregor is at the crossroads of his career. He needs to figure this out quickly, before it’s really too late, and saying sorry isn’t enough. He needs to stay out of trouble and win fights again as soon as possible. Nothing else matters at this point.
8. Of all the fighters we spoke about, I thought McGregor’s comments on Max Holloway were most interesting. He seemed somewhat perturbed by Holloway’s trip to Dublin in January, and I liked the subtle “Young Max” jab. I don’t think that fight is next for either man, but I would like to see that rematch at some point.
9. Speaking of Holloway, he’ll fight Alex Volkanovski next, but the date isn’t set yet. Both sides would like for it to be Dec. 14 in Las Vegas, but that isn’t finalized.
10. The big question right now is can the UFC get Nate Diaz vs. Jorge Masvidal done? If they can, will they be able to get it done by the end of the year? The MSG card is less than 10 weeks away. I know they wouldn’t mind having it there, but I think that might be too soon. There might also be too many title fights on the Dec. 14 card. This fight needs to be a main event. Does that mean it happens in 2020? Maybe. Also, both fighters have said they will be asking for pay raises for this one. Will the UFC be OK with that? It should be interesting to see how it plays out.
The best insider in the sport, Ariel Helwani, and best personality in the sport, Chael Sonnen, break down the MMA weekend and look ahead to the biggest cards.
Watch on ESPN+
11. Daniel Cormier‘s biological father was murdered on Thanksgiving Day when Cormier was 7 years old. He doesn’t have many memories of his father because he died when Cormier was so young. Cormier’s mother remarried when Cormier was a child. Her husband, Percy Benoit, raised Cormier as his own, and Cormier considered him his dad. He loved him dearly.
“Pop,” as Cormier called him, was present cageside at most of Cormier’s big fights. He wasn’t at UFC 241, though. He was sick. Pop passed away Saturday morning after a battle with cancer. As I mentioned last week, we all know Cormier has a hard time handling losses. This one is no different and would have been hard enough to handle on its own. But now he’s dealing with losing his Pop, and I know he is hurting big-time. My condolences go out to the Cormier family on their loss.
1 p.m. ET: Weekend recap
1:05 p.m.: Nick Newell
He will reflect on his successful Bellator debut.
1:20 p.m.: Paige VanZant and Austin Vanderford
They will join us in studio.
2:05 p.m.: Cat Zingano
She will talk about her sudden release from the UFC and what the future holds.
2:25 p.m.: Brok Weaver
He will discuss his memorable Contender Series win and what’s next for him.
2:45 p.m.: Germaine de Randamie
She will preview her UFC 245 title fight against Amanda Nunes.
3:00 p.m.: Bret Hart
The WWE legend will talk about his career, MMA and more.
3:30 p.m.: Jan Blachowicz
He will talk about his desire to fight Jon Jones next.
3:45 p.m.: Matt Brown
Brown will talk about his return fight against Ben Saunders at UFC 245 after tearing his ACL.