The Ariel Helwani Show

Dan Canobbio and Chris Algieri open the show discussing Oleksandr Usyk’s late-round stoppage of Rico Verhoeven, including the controversy, Verhoeven’s outstanding performance, and whether Usyk has finally lost a step. Will we see a rematch or will Usyk finally face Agit Kabayel (00:28)?

Frank Sanchez scored an emphatic knockout over Richard Torrez that left the boxing world stunned. With the win, Sanchez became the mandatory for Usyk’s IBF belt. Where does Torrez go from here (34:30)?

The boys also break down the rest of the main card, which saw Hamzah Sheeraz capture his first world title against an overmatched Alem Begic and Jack Catterall’s dominant win over Shakhram Giyasov, which lines up some big future fights (44:28).

Finally, on Friday night, fast-rising prospect Amari Jones scored a quick knockout of Vincenzo Gualtieri, which puts him one step closer to a middleweight title shot (52:32).

Petesy Carroll, Chuck Mindenhall, and Ben Fowlkes are back on The Craic.

Following Scott Coker’s announced return to MMA, the crew discuss the future of emerging promotions and what it could mean for industry-leading UFC (05:18).

One of those promotions is MVP. Attention turns to what the company’s record-breaking numbers actually mean given its Netflix collaboration (43:43).

Colby Covington has hung up the MMA gloves. They reflect on the timing of the retirement, just one month out from the UFC White House card (49:50).

Another recent annoucement is the return of Conor McGregor. Did the UFC fumble the reveal of his comeback? (58:15).

One fight flying under the radar is Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven in Giza. The lads preview the crossover matchup (01:02:10).

After a quick preview of PFL Brussels (01:10:30), the boys close the show by answering your Super Chats (01:21:35).

Dan Canobbio and Chris Algieri kick off the show breaking down the heavyweight title fight between champion Oleksandr Usyk and kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven. Why is this fight happening? Does Verhoeven have any shot at all (01:03)?

We introduce a new segment to the show and lay out the odds for the Usyk-Verhoeven fight as well as the co-main event which features Richard Torrez Jr. stepping up to face veteran Frank Sanchez (28:42).

The rest of the undercard features the return of Hamzah Sheeraz fighting for the vacant WBO 168-pound title against unknown German Alem Begic. Could Sheeraz fight Jaime Munguia or Canelo Alvarez next? The other notable undercard fight is a WBA interim title fight between Shakram Giyasov and Jack Catterall (38:01).

Finally, Ryan Garcia recently appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and announced his next fight against Conor Benn. Do we believe Ryan? Will Zuffa and Golden Boy play nice and do business together (52:28).

The Boys in the Back kick off the show by reacting to Scott Coker re-entering the MMA world (06:19), Khabib Nurmagomedov pushing back against Dana White's claims about his retirement (10:12), the arrest of wrestler Ludwig Kaiser (20:20), and trash talk between Ilia Topuria and Ryan Garcia regarding a hypothetical boxing match (24:22).

Then, they discuss Conor McGregor's return and speculate on his next few fights (28:56) and preview a weekend that includes Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven, PFL Brussels, and Brandrisk 014 (51:33).

Ariel Helwani joins the show to give further details about Coker's plans for his new promotion (1:18:52).

The Boys debut video from their California training sessions with UFC fighters (01:35:59), then deliver a particularly convoluted P4P list (02:04:04).

The show closes as always with voicemails (02:33:30) and Super Chats (02:45:36).

Ariel Helwani kicks off with a recap of last night’s spectacular win by his New York Knicks and Arsenal winning the Premier League title (23:47).

Most Valuable Promotions CEO Nakisa Bidarian is back to address fan criticism of the promotion’s MMA debut on Netflix, then discuss the event’s viewership numbers, UFC announcing Conor McGregor’s return during Francis Ngannou’s walkout, how many events they plan to do in the future, Jake Paul’s return from the jaw injury he suffered against Anthony Joshua, and more (31:21).

Old friend Alistair Overeem returns to the show to talk about a potential comeback, his role as an analyst for Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven, and then break down the heavyweight clash (1:04:49).

Nico Ali Walsh, Muhammad Ali’s grandson, makes his show debut to discuss all things related to the proposed Ali Revival Act, including Zuffa Boxing’s role and intentions, the Congressional committee hearing, the narrative that boxing needs to be fixed, and more (1:30:53).

Phumi Nkuta joins Ariel in-studio, reflecting on his controversial loss to Adriano Moraes, talking about the sequence leading to the submission attempt, Moraes holding the choke after the bell, the referee’s decision to grant Moraes the win, appealing the result and what he hopes to achieve, why he hasn’t been offered a UFC contract, and more (2:05:33).

The show closes with some news and notes (2:55:14) and Super Chats (3:28:29).