Podcast
The Co-Main Event MMA Podcast
Hosted by Chad Dundas and Ben Fowlkes · EN
An irreverent and unscripted look at the week's mixed martial arts news from longtime MMA journalists Ben Fowlkes and Chad Dundas. Topics include the latest happenings in the UFC, Bellator and other promotions.
31episodes
Episodes
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Episode 695: Is this a make-or-break summer for the UFC?
1w ago01:03:15Tap to summarizeThe UFC is coming off a fairly anonymous Fight Night in Macau last weekend and is headed into a fairly anonymous Fight Night back at the Apex this weekend. And yet, we’re just two weeks away from the big White House spectacular, and the UFC also has Conor McGregor’s alleged return scheduled for later in the summer. Look, it’s no secret there has been some fairly vocal discontent among a significant portion of UFC fans lately. Does summer 2026 shape up as a make-or-break season for the UFC? And if so, will the guys who own the company even notice? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 694: Dana White makes the (actual) media rounds
2w ago01:02:10Tap to summarizeDana White’s everywhere right now. Time Magazine. Rolling Stone. NPR. The New Yorker. Wait, what? The New Yorker? Believe it. Leading up to the UFC’s Big Boy Birthday Bash at the White House, Dana’s on a media tour with the actual, legitimate mainstream media. Not surprisingly, he's spent a LOT of that time talking about himself and his very special relationship with ya boi D-Tiddy, and not much time at all talking about the actual fights or the fighters. No surprise there. But, wait, did Dana seriously just find out THIS WEEK during his talk with New Yorker editor David Remnick that there had previously been sexual abuse allegations against Michael Jackson? That might be the wildest part of this whole thing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 693: Really, Gina? Breaking down MVP’s first MMA event
3w ago01:05:38Tap to summarizeMost Valuable Promotions put on its inaugural MMA event on Netflix last weekend. If we’re being honest, it was a lot. The mismatch-filled main card played out exactly according to chalk. Mike Perry beat Nate Diaz into a living death before their fight was stopped due to cuts. Big Fran KOed a puffed-up light heavyweight in Philipe Lins after a few minutes of toying with his food. And that much-ballyhooed main event between Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano? Hoo boy. We kinda knew it was going to be bad, but we didn’t know it was gonna be THAT bad. But perhaps what mattered more than the outcome of the actual fights was the event itself. A lot of people seemed to watch, and while the live broadcast was certainly not without its flaws, it also wasn’t terrible. Dare we say it suggests MVP MMA has a positive future? You know, if they ever want to do another show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 692: Is Sean Strickland UFC’s best worst fighter?
4w ago01:07:52Tap to summarizeHe did it again, brother. This crazy MFer Sean Strickland once again went out there in a championship fight he had no business winning and walked away with the belt. This time, he took the UFC middleweight strap off the previously undefeated Khamzat Chimaev. Strickland needed a little help from Chimaev himself to pull it off, as the now former champ fought one of the weirdest title fights we’ve seen in a long time, following up an absolutely dominant first round with a disastrous second round before bouncing back to spend the rest of the fight failing to utilize his best skills. Anyway, Strickland is now a two-time, two-time UFC champion, which leaves us all at a bit of a loss about how to even think about the guy. Now, Joshua Van and Tatsuro Taira? That was a fight. That was a fight right there. Plus, Ronda Rousey is gonna fight Gina Carano at MVP this weekend on Netflix. We’re gonna watch. Are you? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 691: Sean Strickland stays strapped at UFC 328
May 501:05:58Tap to summarizeWe’re not totally sure how, but Sean Strickland plans to bring a gun to New Jersey for UFC 328. I mean, is he driving? Does he know a guy he can call when he lands in Newark who will meet him on a darkened street corner and hand him a suspiciously heavy-looking brown paper bag? Anyway, if he does manage to keep that thang on him in Brick City, he says he'll use it to shoot UFC middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev if Chimaev should try any shady shit outside the cage. For Strickland, it’s probably either that (commit cold-blooded, premeditated murder) or attempt to jab his way to a professional but underwhelming unanimous decision victory while trying not to let Chimaev crush his fucking face like he did Bobby Knuckles. Look, we’re not saying Strickland is the UFC’s answer to Travis Bickle from “Taxi Driver,” but we’re not NOT saying that either. Plus, Carlos Prates did terrible things to Jack Della Maddalena. Were they terrible enough to cut the line for a welterweight title shot? And could we be witnessing the emergence of the THIRD kind of UFC heavyweight division? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 690: Can JDM recapture … whatever he had?
Apr 2801:05:57Tap to summarizeA little less than a year ago, Jack Della Maddalena was riding high, fresh off scoring the UFC welterweight title from Belal Muhammad at UFC 315. Unfortunately, like they used to say in VH1’s Behind the Music: it was all about to come crashing down. After getting summarily handled by Islam Makhachev in his first title defense at UFC 322, Della Maddalena heads home to the Land of Oz this weekend for a Fight Night main event in what promises to be a good-ass scrap with Carlos Prates. If you’re Jackie Flat Nose here, this seems like one you want to win in order to preserve … your status as an elite welterweight? Your good name? Any chance of ever working your way back into a title fight? Something or other. Plus, Aljamain Sterling refuses to give the UFC what it wants. And Tai Tuivasa is *rubs eyes in disbelief* a FAVORITE this weekend?!?! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 689: TKO loves money, hates fun
Apr 2101:08:26Tap to summarizeThey put on WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas over the weekend, and the reaction from at least some wrestling fans has been: “Fuck TKO.” As in, we mean they were actually, literally chanting “Fuck TKO” in the arena during the post-show. Yeah, it seems like the parent company of WWE and the UFC isn’t super popular with either fan base. And maybe they deserve that. Maybe they’re sucking all the life out of both these products on some soulless cash-grab shit, without any thought for the future, and where the only barometer for how things are going is how much money the already super-rich ownership group can shove in their pockets. But, you know, who are we to judge? We’re just the people whose money that is. Plus, Brock Lesnar left his gloves in the ring at WM42. That could be a wrap for The Beast. And does Mike Malott need the help of CME Consulting Services? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 688: UFC 327 was wild (some might say wooly)
Apr 1501:04:51Tap to summarizeSomehow, Carlos Ulberg won the UFC light heavyweight title on one goddamn leg. Not sure we’ve ever seen anything quite like that. It was an all-time great championship finish. Now, however, at least some of the public discourse has pivoted to whether Jiri Prochazka basically let him off the hook, taking it easier than he should have right up until he very generously walked face-first into a left hook. That doesn’t totally feel fair to Ulberg (winning the belt on one bum wheel should probably earn you more credit) but also, yeah, he’s clearly hurt and even as we speak Dana White is almost certainly sticking the “Interim Title Fight” magnet to that big whiteboard on the wall of his war room. Plus, Cub Swanson got the rare storybook ending and, sigh, seems like Josh Hokit is totally a thing now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 687: LHW tries to reinvent itself yet again at UFC 327
Apr 701:01:18Tap to summarizeSix different dudes have held the UFC light heavyweight title since Jon Jones vacated it for the last time (well, the last time so far) back in August 2020. Friendly-ass Jan Blachowicz, old-ass Glover Teixeira, weird-ass Jiri Prochazka, off-putting-ass Jamahal Hill, boring-ass Magomed Ankalaev, and legendary-ass Alex Pereira. Yes, that’s a lot of ass, which is mostly what 205 has been since Jones’ recidivist-ass messed around and left the sport. And now, this weekend, Jiri P. and Carlos Ulberg are gonna go out there at UFC 327 and see if we can’t reinvent this division one more time. Are either of them up for it? Time will tell. Oh, and speaking of Jones, what’s he up to these days … oh, right, getting involved in petty road rage incidents in ABQ. Perfect. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Episode 686: Breaking News: UFC puts on good event
Mar 3101:02:56Tap to summarizeThe UFC went to Seattle and put on an event many are calling the best of the year so far, where Joe Oliver Pyfer defeated Israel Adesanya in a main event bout that might make ya boi BODYBAGZZZZZZZZZZ somebody in the middleweight division. In other action, Michael Chiesa got his soft-filter retirement celebration (while Niko Price most certainly did not), and Alexa Grasso did some absolutely horrific stuff to Maycee Barber — which, of course, was awesome. Plus, Dana White came to the postfight press conference and answered several pertinent questions about the UFC product by telling us, “Who gives a fuck … just watch the fights.” Who gives a fuck, sir? Clearly not you… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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