Share this article
Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.
This week’s panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, Mike Bohn and Nolan King will join host “Gorgeous” George Garcia live at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate:
- The light heavyweight title continued its game of musical chairs Saturday when Alex Pereira won it against former champ Jiri Prochazka in the UFC 295 main event. Jon Jones, Jan Blachowicz, Glover Teixeira, Prochazka, Jamahal Hill, and now Pereira – all since 2020. So what makes sense as the next move for Pereira? Is it Hill, or should an Israel Adesanya trilogy fight happen for him?
- Tom Aspinall became the interim UFC heavyweight champion. In theory, now he’s supposed to wait for champ Jon Jones to fight ex-titleholder Stipe Miocic, and then he’ll get the winner. But that’s a long ways off thanks to Jones’ injury. Should the UFC change its mind and keep Aspinall active? If so, how will that work with titles and interim belts and all the craziness?
- Highly decorated grappler Mackenzie Dern came to the UFC with tons of promise, but it hasn’t panned out the way she likely hoped. The up-and-down nature of her UFC career continued Saturday when she was knocked down four times by former women’s strawweight champ Jessica Andrade and eventually was pounded out for a TKO setback. Has the ship sailed for her potential, or can she bounce back and live up to the expectations? And what of Andrade? Is she a gatekeeper now, or can she contend for a title again?
- The UFC announced three big title fights for 2024: Sean Strickland vs. Dricus Do Plesses at middleweight; Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria at featherweight; and Sean O’Malley vs. Marlon Vera at bantamweight. Did the UFC get those bookings right, and which one is the most intriguing?
- Alex Pereira is the ninth fighter to win titles in two divisions in the UFC, and he did it faster than anyone else. Does that make him the best of the two-division title winners all time?
F/U — Of the nine fighters to accomplish this feat, who did it best? - … and much more.
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
This story originally appeared on MMA Junkie