Book Review: ‘The Weigh: The Ultimate Weight Cut Protocol for MMA’ Paul French February 7, 2015 Spotlight Disclaimer: Your humble writer is here more humble. In fact, he’s just a shrug shy of total ignorance regarding this whole weight cutting thing--whose battle camps & academic tangles he encountered...
No Spin is Good Spin: Reebok, Dana White, and Cocaine Paul French January 9, 2015 News This past week we heard news of Jon Jones testing positive for cocaine in a pre-UFC 182 drug test, resulting in an admission from Jones bound to a promise to undergo rehabilitation before he returns to the...
UFC 182 Aftermath: Boos for Bones Paul French January 6, 2015 Spotlight The brightest phrase in sports begins to blink near his name. With his eighth title defense against Daniel Cormier, light-heavyweight champ Jon Jones can feel the halo of “Greatest of all Time” half-formed...
UFC 179: Aldo defends belt against Mendes in epic 5 round war Paul French October 24, 2014 Events, News, Recaps, Spotlight, Video On Saturday, October 25th the UFC will hold UFC 179: Aldo vs. Mendes II from the Maracanazinho Gymnasium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In the night's main event Jose Aldo will defend his featherweight title...
Battle of the Beige: UFC 179’s Co-Main Event Paul French October 23, 2014 Spotlight Last week, I wrote about how the scenery-eating antics of characters like Conor McGregor are a necessary evil in the big top world of fight media. The stage and mics are made for posture and audacity, civil...
Notorious Notoriety: On Conor McGregor’s Title Shot Paul French October 17, 2014 News Dana White’s recent statement concerning the future of the featherweight title proves what many fight commentators and fans already know: publicity can trump meritocracy. After only four wins in the UFC, the...
Selling Sex: Should The Ring Girls Go Away? Paul French August 21, 2014 Spotlight A round begins and again we hear commentator Mike Goldberg say, “the beautiful Arianny” as a woman holding a round card approaches our low angle shot to blow a kiss. Right afterward, Ronda Rousey, female...
A Narrative of Near Glory: Former UFC Champion Lyoto Machida Paul French August 7, 2014 Spotlight “Welcome to the Machida Era.” Joe Rogan’s hasty prophecy at UFC 98 remains a dream deferred for fans of Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida. And after Machida failed to unseat middleweight champion Chris...
The Life of Team Fighting Championship: Nasty, Brutish and Short Paul French July 31, 2014 Spotlight A group of five black-clad women appears in a room of rope, cheap mat-pads and tires. A vaguely Eastern musical intro thumps and whines, and the women dance erotically. There is no audience present, but the...