The Brit Pack MMA Podcast

Welcome to the first episode of a new spin-off show, “The Brit Pack: United Nations,” as MMA Junkie Radio’s Gorgeous George and Goze join Simon to shoot the breeze on everything from upcoming MMA events to other sports and pop culture.

On the inaugural show, the trio chat about the upcoming Bellator double header in Hawaii, including the start of the Bellator bantamweight grand prix, as they offer their tournament predictions, and look ahead to Cris Cyborg’s latest title defence against familiar foe Arlene Blencowe.

The lads also chat about the upcoming World Cup, next year's Las Vegas Formula 1 Grand Prix and ask why Simon still hasn’t made an appearance at the MMA Junkie Radio studios at Mandalay Bay…

Enjoy the show!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

Welcome to the first episode of a new spin-off pod, “United Nations,” as MMA Junkie Radio’s Gorgeous George and Goze join me to shoot the breeze on everything from upcoming MMA events to other sports and pop culture.

On the inaugural show, the trio chat about the upcoming Bellator double header in Hawaii, including the start of the Bellator bantamweight grand prix, as they offer their tournament predictions, and look ahead to Cris Cyborg’s latest title defence against familiar foe Arlene Blencowe.

The lads also chat about the upcoming World Cup, next year's Las Vegas Formula 1 Grand Prix and ask why Simon still hasn’t made an appearance at the MMA Junkie Radio studios at Mandalay Bay…

Enjoy the show!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

Welcome to the first episode of a new spin-off pod, “The Brit Pack: United Nations,” as MMA Junkie Radio’s Gorgeous George and Goze join Simon to shoot the breeze on everything from upcoming MMA events to other sports and pop culture.

On the inaugural show, the trio chat about the upcoming Bellator double header in Hawaii, including the start of the Bellator bantamweight grand prix, as they offer their tournament predictions, and look ahead to Cris Cyborg’s latest title defence against familiar foe Arlene Blencowe.

The lads also chat about the upcoming World Cup, next year's Las Vegas Formula 1 Grand Prix and ask why Simon never quite made it into the MMA Junkie Radio studios at Mandalay Bay…

Enjoy the show!

Subscribe at thebritpack.substack.com

UFC 273 was another stellar pay-per-view, with two enthralling title fights that saw both champions retain their titles, while the welterweight bout between Khamzat Chimaev and Gilbert Burns delivered a Fight of the Year contender.

On this week’s show, Simon looks back at the big fights, and the big talking points, from Saturday night in Jacksonville as Alexander Volkanovski and Aljamain Sterling defended their belts in very different ways.

Volkanovski was a class above “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung as he finished his man early in the fourth round to extend his winning streak to 21 fights, while Sterling edged Petr Yan in a closely-contested title unification battle in the co-main event. Some complained about the scoring – Simon has his own take on the scorecards…

The show also bids a fond farewell to Sandhu, who is stepping away from the pod to focus on other projects. With increasing scheduling and work commitments making it increasingly difficult to get both lads behind the mic at the same time each week, running a “two-man booth” became untenable, and the show will now continue in a slightly different format, with Simon at the helm. And, who knows? Maybe the pair will reunite with Sandhu as a special guest at some point down the line…

We’ll have more news about what’s to come in the days and weeks ahead, but for now, make sure you subscribe to our Substack to make sure you don’t miss a thing. As always, thanks for supporting the show. Enjoy the fights this weekend!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

After a relatively quiet week for MMA last week (check UFC Fight Pass to catch up on two stellar Cage Warriors cards, if you missed them) the UFC is back with a bang as it brings two title fights to the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena for UFC 273.

Reigning featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski headlines the card as he looks to make it 21 wins in a row with victory over “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung, who will be hoping the second time’s the charm as he gets a second chance to capture UFC gold, eight years after his first.

The co-main features a bantamweight title unification battle between reigning champ Aljamain Sterling and the man whose disqualification gifted the title to “The Funkmaster,” Petr Yan. To say there’s some heat in this one would be an understatement, but who will come out with bragging rights, and the belt?

Remarkably, despite the two title fights at the top of the card, the welterweight contender clash between Gilbert Burns and Khamzat Chimaev has already threatened to steal the show. The level of anticipation for this one is right up there, and may even be higher than the two title fights in terms of sheer fan interest.

It’s the acid test for Chimaev, who has looked every inch a title threat without ever actually facing elite-level opposition. That will change on Saturday when he faces No. 2-ranked Burns, who briefly had reigning champ Kamaru Usman on skates before eventually losing out to “The Nigerian Nightmare.”

It’s a big night in Florida, and ahead of UFC 273, Simon flies solo to mark your card ahead of fight night as he previews the big matchups, along with some pre-fight comments from reigning champions Volkanovski and Sterling, plus Burns, as The Brit Pack MMA Podcast sets the scene ahead of the UFC’s latest pay-per-view extravaganza.

Enjoy the fights, and don’t forget to like and subscribe!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

It’s not often we talk about ONE Championship on this show, but this week, it was more than justified, as Asia’s biggest martial arts promotion put on a bumper card of fights to celebrate its 10th anniversary.

ONE X was a 10-hour, 20-bout marathon of fight action that would have tested even the most avid of fans, but (after missing the first few bouts, which started VERY early in the morning, UK-time) Simon watched all three cards of action, and was gripped by what he saw.

Sandhu is over in Dallas, Texas, for WrestleMania, and he’ll bring us bang up to date with his travels upon his return. It means that, on this week’s show, Si flies solo to recap ONE X’s huge card, then takes a look back at UFC on ESPN 33 as Curtis Blaydes picked up a big win in the main event in Columbus, Ohio.

Simon also marks your card ahead of a Cage Warriors double-header in Manchester as the UK-based promotion takes centre stage on a relatively quiet weekend for live MMA.

Enjoy the fights, and enjoy the show!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

Oh, what a night!

After three years away, the UFC returned to London, where a card packed with the cream of British fighting talent, backed by 18,000 raucous fans, blew the roof off the O2 Arena on a memorable night in the English capital.

The Brit Pack was on the ground at UFC London, with Sandhu working as part of the BT Sport team, and Simon covering the event as part of a packed media corps – and the event surpassed all expectations to deliver an event that might just have been the best UFC show ever staged on these shores.

With the dust finally settled on a spectacular night, and with Sandhu somewhere over the Atlantic on his way home, Simon got behind the mic to fly solo for a bumper UFC London post-fight recap as he shares his thoughts from his experience watching the action from cageside at the O2 Arena.

We also hear from some of the night’s big winners, with post-fight press conference audio from Tom Aspinall, Arnold Allen, Paddy Pimblett, and Paul Craig. By way of a bonus, we’ve also tacked Dana White’s croaky, but happy, post-fight presser onto the very end of the show.

It means this week’s edition is a biggie. But, after the biggest night of fights we’ve seen in the UK for years, we think it’s worth it.

Don’t forget to subscribe, either via our Substack, or via the podcast provider of your choice, and please hop over to your YouTube channel and hit the subscribe button so you’re all prepped and ready for when we flip the switch and go to video.

Enjoy the show!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

We’ve been waiting for three long years, but finally the UFC octagon has returned to the UK.

UFC London is all set to go down on Saturday night, with a capacity crowd of 20,000 fans expected to pack the O2 Arena for a fight card stacked with the cream of the UK’s fighting talent.

Both Simon and Sandhu will be in London to work the event, and ahead of fight night, Simon flies solo to bring you a whistlestop preview of the fight card as he breaks down the key fights on the bill, and highlights some of the most interesting storylines that underpin the matchups on Saturday night’s card.

* Will Tom Aspinall announce himself as a legitimate heavyweight title contender with victory over Alexander Volkov in the main event?

* Can Arnold Allen extend his win streak by handing Dan Hooker a defeat on the Kiwi’s return to the featherweight division?

* Will Paddy Pimblett deliver another show-stealing performance?

* Can Molly McCann add another win to her resume and edge closer to a shot at the UFC women’s flyweight championship?

* And can Paul Craig continue his impressive run of form at light heavyweight to move towards a shot at the title at 205 pounds?

We’ll learn the answers to these questions, and a whole lot more, on a packed night of fights this weekend.

Enjoy the show, and enjoy the fights!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

It takes something a little bit special to headline a UFC pay-per-view. Usually, that something special is a UFC championship bout. But sometimes, very rarely, there’s a fight that captures the imagination to such an extent that a belt isn’t even needed.

Colby Covington vs. Jorge Masvidal is one of those fights.

The two former friends and American Top Team training partners have been an integral part of each other’s successes inside the octagon earlier in their respective careers. But the pair have drifted apart following issues within the team at Coconut Creek, Florida.

Both were banished from the gym but, while Covington went out and found a new home at MMA Masters, Masvidal eventually returned to the fold and resumed his position as one of the most senior fighting figures at the famed gym.

With the two very much separated, the bad blood started to simmer, as they took aim at each other in interviews and on social media over the last few years – all while the pair took separate roads to the top of the UFC’s 170-pound division.

But now, the pair are set to face off with a lot on the line. Each man had two separate cracks at Kamaru Usman’s undisputed UFC welterweight title, and each man fell short on both occasions as they failed to find a path to victory against the pound-for-pound No. 1.

It means that the two bitter rivals are battling not only for bragging rights, but for real championship relevance at the top of the welterweight division. Big fights will undoubtedly remain for the victor, but for the loser, things may start to look a little uncertain.

On this week’s show, we chat about that fight, as well as the fascinating situation surrounding the status of the co-main event (which has probably changed by the time you’re reading this!).

We also look ahead to the featherweight bout between undefeated grappler Bryce Mitchell and veteran striking ace Edson Barboza, and we also take a look back at Gegard Mousasi’s virtuoso performance at Bellator 275 in Dublin, and UFC Fight Night 202, where Islam Makhachev continued to build a case for a title shot at 155 pounds.

It’s a packed show, and we hope you enjoy it as part of your fight week festivities.

Enjoy the show, then enjoy the fights!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

Jamahal Hill’s fighting moniker is “Sweet Dreams,” but his punch power was anything but sweet for his light heavyweight rival Johnny Walker this past weekend.

Hill delivered a stunning one-punch knockout at UFC Fight Night 201 to announce his arrival as a legitimate threat to the division’s top names at 205 pounds, and immediately found himself in a social media war of words with former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir.

On this week’s show, we take a look back at Hill’s star-making performance in his first UFC main event, and consider just how close he might be to a title shot at 205 pounds.

We also take a look back at Bellator 274, where Logan Storley put himself in pole position to fight the winner of the upcoming title clash between Yaroslav Amosov and Michael “Venom” Page, and recapped the action from BKFC’s “KnuckleMania” event, where UFC stars Chad Mendes and Mike Perry took centre stage with big performances.

We also discuss the big all-British boxing clash in Manchester as Kell Brook stopped Amir Khan in a bout that the boxing fans on Simon’s side of the pond had been anticipating for almost a decade.

Then we turn our attention to a packed weekend of fights, as Bobby Green makes a two-week turnaround to step into the main event spotlight and face the surging lightweight contender Islam Makhachev, while Dublin’s 3Arena prepares for another big night of Bellator action, headlined by Gegard Mousasi’s title defence against the undefeated contender Austin Vanderford.

It’s a packed show, as we rip through all the big talking points in a big week for combat sport. Enjoy the show, then enjoy the fights!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com