Welcome to “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly show that takes a quick spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts. This week, Simon Head hosts the panel of MMA Junkie Radio’s “Gorgeous” George,” as well as MMA Junkie’s John Morgan and Mike Bohn. Let’s get after it!
SHOW TOPICS
- UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo needed less than two minutes to submit Alex Perez, and the promotion has wasted no time in booking his next title defense. Figueiredo will take on fellow UFC 255 winner Brandon Moreno on Dec. 12 at UFC 256, marking a 21-day turnaround for both men. Is this a good idea? And which fighter stands to benefit the most from the short lead time?
- The other title fight this past Saturday saw UFC women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko defend her title against Jennifer Maia. After her victory, UFC president Dana White mentioned three potential matchups next, with Jessica Andrade, Zhang Weili and, possibly, Amanda Nunes all mentioned. Which bout makes the most sense, and where does the in-form Lauren Murphy fit into all of this?
- UFC 255 also saw the return to action of “Platinum” Mike Perry, who lost out on the scorecards to Tim Means after an entertaining back-and-forth battle. Perry is now 7-7 in the UFC and missed weight by 4.5 pounds last week. Given all that’s gone on with Perry, how do you assess his status in the UFC right now, and what should come next at this stage in his career?
- Business is picking up once again in the UFC lightweight division, with Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor officially set to rematch Jan. 23 at UFC 257, while Tony Ferguson returns to fight Charles Oliveira on Dec. 12 at UFC 256. It means some of the big guns of the division will be facing off, but what’s going on with the title? Khabib Nurmagomedov says he’s retired, but White is hanging on to the possibility that the champ might come back for one more fight. How will this all shake out in the coming months?
- And finally, we had a ton of non-UFC action on the slate last week, with outstanding performances delivered by the likes of A.J. McKee (Bellator 253), Alex Pereira (LFA 95) and PFL champ Kayla Harrison (Invicta FC 43). To wrap things up, who among those three impressed the most?
For answers to all of those questions, watch Episode 54 of “Spinning Back Clique” above.
