The MMA Vivisection Shows: 'Main Card Preview' & 'Prelims Card Preview'

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 87 is the antithesis of last week’s Fight Night card. There are reasons to celebrate (albeit few), and there are reasons to be annoyed, of which there are plenty. Jairzinho Rozenstruik, a ranked heavyweight with an extensive UFC resume, is taking on Shamil Gaziev, an athlete signed to the largest promotion in the world who doesn’t even have a …

UFC Mexico City is a solid card overall, even if the prelims are a hodgepodge of who’s-whos hoping to separate themselves from the pack. The opening fight aka the curtain-jerker, would be more fitting in the featured prelim spot as Naimov is looking like a real deal prospect with a fairly high ceiling. Alas, we get Cristian Quiñonez vs. Raoni Barcelos, which is fine, I guess, but Barcelos has been looking pretty shopworn lately, so we’re giving this one a partial side eye.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber today.There are a couple themes going on with this event. First, it is a night of rematches. Both the main and co-main events are rematches. Buried inside those rematches are others dotting the resumes of all four men featuring in the top two bouts. This card has three rematches on it, which seems like a lot. I’m making a mental note to go back and find out what the record is for rematches on a single UFC card. I’m willing to bet that this event is pretty far up the list.Edgar Cháirez vs. Daniel Lacerda is the third contest featured in that aforementioned trio of rematches. Their first bout ended in a no contest after the referee in their bout jumped the gun and stopped the fight prematurely. This was back in September. The two were scheduled to run it back in October, but Lacerda pulled out prior to the card citing a medical issue. They will finally get their opportunity at a full fight tomorrow.There is one more contest on this undercard that looks interesting, though. Claudio Puelles vs. Fares Ziam Pits the well rounded skillset of Ziam against the explosive grappling of Puelles. Claudio was made to look like a one-trick pony against Dan Hooker, but perhaps he took some lessons from that one. Either way, that one definitely has our attention. Let’s take a look at the undercard as well as some fun factoids.UFC Mexico City Prelims* Cristian Quiñonez  vs.  Raoni Barcelos 135 lbs* Jesus Aguilar  vs.  Mateus Mendonça 125 lbs* Edgar Cháirez  vs.  Daniel Lacerda 125 lbs* Claudio Puelles  vs.  Fares Ziam 155 lbs* Luis Rodríguez  vs.  Denys Bondar 125 lbs* Victor Altamirano  vs.  Felipe dos Santos 125 lbs* Muhammad Naimov  vs.  Erik Silva 145 lbsUFC Mexico City Fun Factoids* Ranked fights: 2* Ranked fighters: 4* Fighters coming off a loss: 15* Contender Series alumni: 12* TUF alumni: 3* Debuting fighters: 1* Combate alumni: 6Don’t forget to check out the bonus section for a great review of the UFC 298 preliminary card. Make sure to tune in immediately after this weekend’s fights for breakdowns and analysis on our 6th Round Post-Fight Show.Thank you for reading this article and listening to the podcast. Please consider subscribing to the Bloody Elbow Substack to enjoy our daily premium content. Your paid subscriptions are helping build our new site and keeping hope alive that our staff will remain intact. If you haven’t already, please pledge with a paid subscription today. If you have, please share this post far and wide.Follow us as @BloodyElbow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram, and at BloodyElbow.Substack.com & BloodyElbowPodcast.Substack.com.Thank you for reading and listening to the MMA Vivisection. This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Mexico City is almost here! Just a couple more days until the Battle of the Brandons as the promotion heads back to Mexico City for the first time since 2019 when Yair Rodriguez and Jeremy Stephens headlined UFC Fight Night 159. The bout would end in a no contest just 15 seconds in due to an accidental eye poke. They would run it back less than a mo…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 298 is just a couple days away and with it comes a very stiff test for our featherweight champion. Alexander Volkanovski is coming off another loss to Islam Makhachev, a rushed bout where Volk let the UFC pressure him into replacing an injured Charles Oliveira on short notice. Now, Ilia Topuria looms ahead of him, a stout fireplug of a man with exce…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 86 is the most Apex card that ever was…until the next one. They’re all starting to look the same to us. This week’s card is packed with 185-pounders, as if we needed yet another middleweight-led show. And just in case you missed our main card episode, here’s a few facts for you to get started:UFC Vegas 86 Factoids* Ranked fights (meaning both at…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comDid you know that since 2020, more than 50% of all UFC cards have been held at the Apex? And we all know that every time an event is held there, an angel loses its wings. UFC Vegas 86 is no different, as many already know, simply by looking at the name of the event. These days, having “Vegas” in the title is a signal that the matchmakers did their level…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 85 is kind of a mixed bag. The main card is solid—not great, but solid. However, the prelims are a whole other story. From the ultra softball match the promotion is giving Molly McCann to the lack of any name value aside from Molly’s, this undercard is a stinker.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and the fans. If you share ou…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC Vegas 85 might not be everyone’s cup of tea but it’s got several ranked fighters and an important main event, even if it’s not really a fight that will hit the casual fan’s radar. And since it’s at the Apex—where only the cameramen will clap, and the lone heckler that paid a small fortune to sit cageside and shout how the athletes are losers—it happ…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comWe were pretty happy with the main card of UFC 297, but the preliminary portion leaves a lot to be desired. We can’t figure out how this undercard was paired with the five fights that will come after it. From the lack of ranked fighters to the dearth of name value, we think it’s kind of a stinker.Bloody Elbow is fighting for the sport, the fighters and …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit themmadrawpodcast.substack.comUFC 297 is here to kick off the promotion’s first PPV of the year and they’re doing it in Ontario, Canada. While the main card has an almost weird vibe, it’s a very good lineup of fights. The top two contests are title bouts, but both belts on the line are from two of the three weakest divisions, the third being heavyweight.Bloody Elbow is fighting for …