Episode 51: Kavanagh in studio, Poirier, Danis, VanZant, Theodorou, Loughnane, Willis & more

Ariel Helwani's MMA Show starts off with some thoughts on the futures of Conor McGregor and Dillon Danis from John Kavanagh (in studio), who trains the two fighters at SBG Ireland (4:30). UFC interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier then talks about preparations for his UFC 242 headliner against Khabib Nurmagomedov and explains why he's confident he'll win (1:01:23). Next, Dillon Danis reflects on his Bellator 222 performance after providing an update on his injured knee (1:16:10). Justin Willis then explains his beef with UFC's Tai Tuivasa and the UFC's decision to release him (1:32:00). An emotional Macy Chiasson joins the show next to open up about the June 9 construction accident that destroyed her Dallas apartment and left one person dead (1:44:25). Then, after discussing her gruesome arm injury, Paige VanZant talks about her modeling career and the dominance of Valentina Shevchenko (2:06:10). Next, former UFC fighter Elias Theodorou speculates about his plans for his post-fighting career (2:21:37). Brendan Loughnane, who fights tomorrow night on ESPN +, makes his debut on the show to discuss his road back to the UFC (2:35:30). After that, rising middleweight contender Jared Cannonier talks about his love for fighting before calling out one of the UFC's best (2:49:20). Lastly, Ariel speaks from the heart about the retirement of his friend and colleague, Chael Sonnen (3:04:50).