Welcome to Midnight Mania!
Well, that didn’t take long.
Just a couple days ago, Israel Adesanya traded some trash talk with Kevin Holland, but it was not “Big Mouth” who landed in hot water. “Bro, I’ll (expletive) rape you,” Adesanya replied since-deleted Instagram story, one that had New Zealand media and government abuzz with anger.
Today, Adesanya posted a statement in response on Twitter. I would call it an apology, but well … there’s no apology.
“Last weekend fight talk escalated to a point in which I crossed the line,” Adesanya wrote. “I understand the gravity of this word and how it can affect and hurt other people apart from my opponent, although that was NEVER my intention. I am still (learning) to growing under the spotlight, and I take this as a lesson to be more selective with words under pressure.”
This is not the first time Adesanya’s trash talk has crossed into the realm of the unsavory. Adesanya previously promised that Yoel Romero would “crumble like the Twin Towers,” and afterward, public outrage saw him apologize and promise more careful word selection. That all happened in February 2020, so it seems that the lesson simply did not stick that well.
It remains to be seen if Adesanya will suffer any disciplinary action from UFC.
Insomnia
I have nothing against Stipe Miocic, but it’s hard not to root for Francis Ngannou — his story is incredible (click through the Tweet for the full thread).
Francis Ngannou is fighting for the UFC heavyweight belt this weekend.
His life story >>> Any movie that exists
It’s criminally overlooked.
THREAD…
— George Mack (@george__mack) March 22, 2021
Belal Muhammad with the fire photoshop skills!
Michael Chandler gives his thoughtful take on Khabib’s career and retirement:
Jessica Rose-Clark working on changing directions en route to recovery from her ACL surgery:
Darren Till memed his way into the Dagestani crew.
Georges St. Pierre is more athletic in retirement than the rest of us can ever hope to be at our peaks.
Slips, rips, and KO clips
A big thanks to The Sumo Soul for hooking us all up:
Day12 Ōzeki Takakeishō (L) seems like he got a gimme for his chance at KK and shaking off his kadoban bugaboo here as foe Okinoumi is not himself this basho, but at least I got to use bugaboo in a tweet, so there’s that. ☺️ #harubasho2021 pic.twitter.com/o4B6VjTbxV
— Sumo Soul 相撲魂 (@TheSumoSoul) March 25, 2021
Yeah, that low kick looked like it really hurt.
This brutal flurry begins with a series of quick, accurate jabs.
Random Land
This slow-mo, ultra close footage is really neat!
Midnight Music: Earlier today, I read the Rolling Stone interview with Louisville post-rock band Slint regarding the thirtieth anniversary of their master piece Spiderland, so it seemed appropriate to link a track off that LP. One of the best album closers ever:
Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.