The Ariel Helwani Show

Ariel Helwani kicks off the show with Lerone Murphy, who talks about his highlight-reel knockout of Aaron Pico at UFC 319, practicing the spinning elbow, champion Alexander Volkanovski’s callout for December, his weight cut, and more (07:53).Dillon Danis is back in studio with Ariel to discuss a variety of topics, including his upcoming Misfits fight, why he’s not facing Tony Ferguson, believing he can submit Khamzat Chimaev, the ongoing lawsuit with Logan Paul’s wife Nina Agdal, and more (31:37).Dillon’s upcoming opponent, Warren Spencer, drops in to respond and things get heated (1:13:53), then Ariel and Dillon continue their banter (1:26:22).Carlos Ulberg joins next to preview the Dominick Reyes fight, look back at his win over Jan Blachowicz and express disappointment that it didn’t lead to a title shot, break down the Magomed Ankalaev vs. Alex Pereira rematch, and more (1:58:42).Finally, BKFC opponents Mike Perry and Jeremy Stephens go face-to-face, with tempers flaring and both making the case for victory in October (2:21:42).

Ariel Helwani opens the show with a full recap of UFC 319, including a response to the chatter of Khamzat Chimaev being “boring” (02:28).Paulo Costa joins Ariel in-studio to react to Chimaev’s victory, talk about the UFC’s decision not to have him front row in Chicago, his game plan for a potential Chimaev fight, their past run-ins, making his acting debut, and his faith (1:01:00).Then, Paulo dusts off the clippers to give NewYorkRic another haircut (1:58:11).Francis Ngannou is next, reacting to recent comments by PFL Chairman Donn Davis about their first event in Africa and expressing his own vision for PFL Africa. He also discusses the status of his relationship with the PFL, Jon Jones’ retirement, still wanting to fight Deontay Wilder, details from April’s motorcycle accident, and more (2:14:47).Michael "Venom" Page returns after his victory over Jared Cannonier at UFC 319 to talk about the performance, whether he’ll go back down to welterweight or remain at middleweight, hanging out with Carlos Prates, potential fights against Jack Della Maddalena and Leon Edwards, and more (2:58:48).Tim Elliott, fresh off an upset win over Kai Asakura, makes his show debut to discuss his game plan for the fight, being vocal about wanting digital scales to be used for weigh-ins, returning from a long layoff, responding to critics on social media, and more (3:10:05).Bryan Battle is the final guest of the day and he’s back to discuss UFC 319 fight week, including his weight miss that led to his bout being cancelled, believing he can still make middleweight, hoping for the fight to be rebooked for October, dealing with the blowback from fans, and more (3:39:44).Ariel and the Boys in the Back close the show with more news and notes and your Super Chats (4:05:36).

Ariel Helwani is joined by Petesy Carroll for their immediate reactions to UFC 319, starting with Khamzat Chimaev dominating Dricus Du Plessis to become UFC middleweight champion (01:24).After breaking down the fight, they wonder who Chimaev could face next, including reactions to a real-time callout by Sean Strickland (13:01).Helwani quickly recaps the rest of the card (23:37), before returning to individual performances including: Lerone Murphy's masterful knockout of Aaron Pico (30:04), Carlos Prates' return to form against Geoff Neal (38:18), another win by Michael 'Venom' Page (43:26), and Tim Elliott's major upset against Kai Asakura (48:37).Finally, they touch on Alex Hernandez's brutal finish of Chase Hooper (52:06) and dive into some reactions from Dana White and others to a memorable card (54:22).

With UFC 319 right around the corner, Petesy Carroll joins forces with Ben Fowlkes to break down the card’s biggest talking points.After reacting to the weigh-in results (7:23), they dive straight into the main event. Is this Khamzat Chimaev’s coronation, or are fans once again underestimating Dricus Du Plessis? The boys tackle it all (11:03).UFC 319’s co-main event, Lerone Murphy vs. Aaron Pico, is another intriguing matchup. Petesy and Ben debate whether UFC debut jitters could affect Pico and if Murphy is being overlooked as a betting underdog (28:14).Next, the duo break down their favorite matchups from the rest of the card, including Carlos Prates’ bid to get back in the win column against Geoff Neal (35:30) and Michael “Venom” Page’s move up to middleweight to face Jared Cannonier (38:28).Wrapping up the UFC 319 talk, Petesy and Ben share their official Uncrowned picks (44:28) before shifting to how the UFC–Paramount deal could impact fighter pay (47:52).To cap things off, Petesy and Ben react to the highly anticipated announcement of Paul Hughes vs. Usman Nurmagomedov (01:04:28) and the news that Conor McGregor is back in the testing pool (01:09:17).

The Boys in the Back are here to preview UFC 319, including a full breakdown of the can't-miss championship fight between Dricus du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev (3:50).After previewing the rest of the card (41:15), the Boys briefly look ahead to the latest PFL championship fights (1:22:34) and make picks for the weekend (1:25:56).Next, they debut a brand new Fight Feasts, focused on food from the 'Windy City,' and deliver their P4P rankings of moments from the UFC on ESPN era (1:51:59), before closing with your voicemails (2:25:06) and Super Chats (3:03:07).

Ariel Helwani opens the show by reacting to PFL announcing the rematch between Usman Nurmagomedov and Paul Hughes (04:52) and recent comments by Dana White about how fighters will benefit from UFC’s new rights deal (19:57), before answering your On The Nose questions (34:58).Karrion Kross joins Ariel in studio to discuss his new best-selling book and address the conversation around his unexpected WWE departure. He talks about WWE’s contract offer, speculation that his departure is kayfabe, whether AEW made an offer, reports of fan signs being confiscated, revealing his viral WrestleMania promo was a work, advice he received from Paul Heyman, and more (1:00:07).Shayna Baszler breaks her silence about being released by WWE, touching on reports of her bring spotted at NXT, offers from other wrestling promotions, being satisfied with her time at WWE, what went wrong with Ronda Rousey’s final match, and more (2:13:54).BKFC President David Feldman is back to break some news: Mike Perry will defend his King of Violence title against Jeremy Stephens in New Jersey on October 4. He also talks about big money offers to Darren Till, Luke Rockhold’s lackluster performance against Perry, responds to Artem Lobov’s claim that he’s owed money, and more (2:54:12).Paul Hughes joins to react to his rematch against Usman Nurmagomedov being announced earlier in the day. He reflects on the first fight, states his intention to spoil Nurmagomedov’s plans, responds to comments by Nurmagomedov’s manager, and more (3:18:03).Darren Till is the final guest of the day, responding to David Feldman’s comments about their past negotiations earlier in the show. He also breaks down his boxing match against Luke Rockhold and Dillon Danis’ MMA fight against Warren Spencer on the same Misfits card (3:41:10).

Ariel Helwani and Ade Oladpio, joining from Riyadh, kick off the show with a discussion about Moses Itauma vs. Dillian Whyte (00:45), including Whyte confronting Ade about his prediction for the fight during their roundtable (01:11).Ade’s full sitdown with Whyte (08:28) is followed by quick reaction and then his chat with Itauma (24:24) and brief reflection on that conversation. They also discuss the other heavyweight bout between Filip Hrgovic and David Adeleye (44:27).Next, they touch on the Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn rematch being booked for November (47:03), Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis making his 154 pound debut against Uisma Lima (51:27), and the undercard fights added to the Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford card (54:35).Bouncing around the boxing world, the duo discusses Boxxer landing a broadcast deal with BBC (58:53), domestic violence charges against Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis being dropped (1:04:02), and the tragic deaths of Shigetoshi Kotari and Hiromasa Urakawa (1:10:09).Finally, they close the show by delivering the Parting Shot, including a spectacular feat by David Adeleye (1:13:23).

Ariel Helwani starts the show with further analysis of the UFC’s new rights deal, focusing on Dana White’s comments that fighters will benefit from the deal and a comparison between Paramount and ESPN’s distribution platforms (01:52).Carlos Prates joins ahead of his UFC 319 fight against Geoff Neal and talks about lessons learned from the Ian Machado Garry loss, his current smoking habits, the success of the Fighting Nerds, Neal predicting a first-round finish, and more (15:33).Former Miami Marlins president David Samson makes his show debut to discuss UFC’s blockbuster seven-year $7.7 billion deal with Paramount, including his doubts about the suggested timeline, potential involvement in the deal by President Donald Trump, whether the deal will benefit the fighters, his own experience in making major sports deals, and more (43:53).Chris Duncan is next, recapping his Fight of the Night-winning performance against Mateusz Rębecki, regularly crossing paths with Rębecki, who is an ATT teammate, finding purpose and motivation after overcoming his mother’s death, and more (1:16:30).Michael Chandler is our final guest of the day, describing his initial reaction to UFC leaving ESPN and heading to Paramount in 2026 and how it will affect the fighters. He also looks back at his loss to Paddy Pimblett and talks about still seeking the Conor McGregor fight, aiming to be on the UFC’s White House card, wanting to interview all of his past opponents, and more (2:01:16).

Ariel Helwani kicks off the show by reacting to UFC's massive seven-year $7.7 billion rights deal with Paramount, before the Boys in the Back and Petesy Carroll jump in to continue the discussion (05:30).Elijah Smith, fresh off his frightening KO against Toshiomi Kazama, joins the show to talk about the highlight reel slam, learning from his father, former UFC fighter Gilbert Smith, getting his start in MMA during the COVID-19 pandemic, and more (46:15).Anthony ‘Fluffy’ Hernandez returns to discuss his dominant win over Roman Dolidze, calling for a title shot, talking to Dana White and Daniel Cormier during the fight, planning to be front row at UFC 319, and more (1:11:14).Salt Papi himself joins to preview his boxing match against legend Tony Ferguson. They touch on his conversations with Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao, who he expects to win between Luke Rockhold and Darren Till, and more (1:32:26).UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall is the final guest of the day, giving his initial thoughts on UFC’s deal with Paramount and how it could affect fighters who previously shared in pay-per-view profits. He also explains how UFC 321 came together, facing Ciryl Gane in Abu Dhabi, and reacts to Jon Jones’ teasing a fight at the White House next year (2:17:30).Ariel and The Boys close the show with more on the UFC’s new broadcast deal and by answering your Super Chats (2:53:15).

The Craic is back! Petesy Carroll is joined by Craic regulars Chuck Mindenhall and Ben Fowlkes to break down the week’s biggest headlines.First up, Charles Oliveira’s return against Rafael Fiziev. The crew debates whether it’s too quick a turnaround for Oliveira after his KO loss to Ilia Topuria just three months ago (6:12).One fight fast approaching is Driccus du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev. With UFC 319 just a week away, the boys gauge excitement levels and share insights from DDP’s recent interview with Ariel earlier in the week (19:04).Next, the trio reacts to news of Artem “The Russian Hammer” Lobov’s return, and assess his chances heading into his bout against Zubaira Tukhugov on PFL Dubai (40:05).Petesy and the guys then shift to the recent news surrounding the TKO Ali Act amendments. They weigh in on the TKO’s statement addressing the controversial changes (54:19).To close the show, they look ahead to this weekend’s combat sports events, and answer your Super Chats (1:09:31).