Midnight Mania! ‘Suga’ Returns Vs. Almeida At UFC 260

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Like it or not, “The Suga Show” is back.

Controversial Bantamweight knockout artist Sean O’Malley announced on his YouTube channel that he would make his return to competition against fellow striking specialist, Thomas Almeida, at UFC 260 on March 27, 2021.

It’s been about six months since O’Malley suffered the first defeat of his professional career, falling to the calf kicks and heavy elbows of Marlon Vera … though O’Malley himself doesn’t quite remember it that way. Prior to the loss, O’Malley had won four straight fights inside the Octagon, including two knockouts in 2020 over Eddie Wineland and Jose Quinonez.

Almeida may be able to relate to O’Malley’s current position a bit, as the Brazilian was once an undefeated knockout artist on the rise. Since Cody Garbrandt sent him from the ranks of the unbeaten, however, Almeida has struggled to right the ship. He’s fought less and less consistently, and he enters this bout following three straight defeats. If there’s a silver lining for Almeida, he remains just 29 years old, young enough to turn things back around.

Who ya’ got?

Insomnia

Alexander Volkov looks more built than ever ahead of this weekend’s main event:

For perhaps the first time, I’m genuinely excited for the next PFL season. They seemed to have used COVID-19 delays as a chance to build up the roster, and it should be fun!

UFC fighters, they’re just like us! Here’s hoping Joe Lauzon’s ankle injury is minor.

A very slick jab counter:

This is not encouraging.

Yair Rodriguez’s athleticism is pretty incredible.

I won’t claim to have ever been a huge James Vick fan, but respect to “Texecutioner” for achieving quite a bit in his career. A 9-1 run in his first 10 Lightweight fights is no joke, and it wasn’t long ago that Vick was favored over Justin Gaethje — Fight game is brutal!

Slips, rips, and KO clips

Alexandre Pantoja returns to action this weekend opposite Manel Kape, and it’s one of the very best fights on a solid card.

Opening with a power kick from the open stance is rarely a bad idea.

Too many punches, not enough stacking pressure!

Random Land

Want to read the ramblings of an insane person? This Twitter account makes absurd speculations about masculinity and weakness based on posture and even genital positioning. It’s bizarrely stupid, definitely f*cked up, and absolutely hilarious.

Midnight Music: This track popped up on a playlist and instantly sent me back to high school.

Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.