Welcome to Midnight Mania!
Let’s start the night off by taking a look back over the three biggest stories of Wednesday, July 16, 2025.
- Former BKFC fighter stabbed Yoel Romero with samurai sword in 2022, later acquitted for attempted second-degree murder: I’m a little surprised the blade of a samurai sword can actually pierce the skin of “The Soldier Of God.”
- ‘Butt naked’ UFC fighter battles shrinkage, angry Muslims in changing room transgression — ‘Six dudes about to fight me’: Bryce Mitchell cannot help but produce inadvertent hilarity. It’s part of his charm!
- UFC 318’s Max Holloway downplays historic title run from Ilia Topuria — ‘People just look at the name, not the record’: I’m unsure why Max Holloway seems unusually salty about his Ilia Topuria loss. It’s not a bad defeat, everyone (except Max) agrees that “El Matador” is a generational talent.
Insomnia
Shane Gillis has never been afraid to upset a few people and turn an audience silent.
Shane Gillis is never hosting the ESPYs again
“Donald Trump wants to have a UFC fight on the White House lawn. The last time he staged a fight in DC, Mike Pence almost died
there was supposed to be an Epstein joke here, but I guess it got deleted…” pic.twitter.com/7qyOEEF0lY
— Cook The Books (@CookTheBooks12) July 17, 2025
I hope Max Holloway can perform at Lightweight consistently on the level of UFC 300, because that was maybe the best boxing of his whole career.
Holloway feints the jab occupying Gaethje. Justin senses something is up and starts to pivot out but not before Max closes distance and rips the lead hook across his ribs. pic.twitter.com/e2dDqMTO4H
— Joanna Dangerfield ️️ (@joannadangerfd) July 16, 2025
“That is your own personal problem” is one of my all-time favorite MMA quotes. I use it as often as possible in real life.
More evidence for the “Alex Pereira is heading to Heavyweight” pile.
What are the odds on Dustin Poirier winning via guillotine this weekend? 1000 to 1?
Georges St. Pierre shows off his surgically repaired shoulder:
Matt Hughes is still recovering from his 2017 train accident.
Slips, rips, and KO clips
If, like me, you are an “El Cucuy” fan and wrongly assumed that Salt Bae and Salt Papi were the same thing, this video should be concerning.
Straight horsepower!
Day4
M1 Aonishiki 2-1 (L)
Sw Wakatakakage 2-1 (R)
They forgot to tell Ao that competing at this level for the first time is supposed to look harder. Okay he lost to Sato but who doesn’t? And he had a commanding kinboshi win over Hoss yesterday. #nagoyabasho2025 pic.twitter.com/fc0mUPzboL— Sumo Soul 相撲魂 (@TheSumoSoul) July 16, 2025
Those jabs were snapping the head back every time!
Random Land
Diction is important.
Midnight Music: Alternative, 2003
Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.
