The April 17 boxing event headlined by former Bellator and ONE Championship welterweight champion Ben Askren and internet sensation Jake Paul is starting to be finalized as the musical acts and broadcast team has been announced.  As is expected from Triller boxing events, the fights themselves are only part of the attraction as musical performances are also part of the pay-per-view broadcasts.

Earlier in the week, it was announced that a group featuring Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Too $hort and E-40 would be part of the festivities.  The night will also feature performances from Justin Bieber, The Black Keys, Doja Cat, Mt. Westmore, Saweetie, Diplo, and Major Lazer.  If the first Triller event is any indication, it is expected that all the artists will perform multiple songs from their catalog in-between the bouts throughout the night.

It was recently announced that the broadcast team will see the return of Snoop Dogg to the commentary booth.  Anchoring the play-by-play action will be veteran boxing experts Al Bernstein, Mike Coppinger, and Ray Flores.  The boxing pundits will be joined by several entertainers in SNL veteran Pete Davidson, TikTok stars Dixie and Charlie D’Amelio, and Victoria’s Secret Angel Taylor Hill.

The main event has drawn the intrigue of the combat sports world as it awaits to see if the younger and faster Paul can overcome the older and previously grappling focused Askren in a pure boxing match.  Furthermore, the card will see former UFC champion Frank Mir take on Steve Cunningham.

The current fight card is as follows with possible preliminary bouts to be announced:

Jake Paul vs. Ben Askren
Regis Prograis vs. Ivan Redkach
Steve Cunningham vs. Frank Mir
Joe Fournier vs. Reykon (Music Artist)

The post New Details for Askren vs. Paul Broadcast Team Announced appeared first on Cageside Press.

On the heels of the highly successful Tyson vs Jones pay-per-view event on Saturday, Triller and platinum selling recording-artist Snoop Dogg have announced “The Fight Club” boxing league.  A press release announced that the league, whose event on Saturday was their first, would continue to hold events featuring stars from social media, professional sports, and music artists.

Per the release:

“The epic event was one of the most-watched fights of all time, garnering hundreds of millions of views across the globe. The series will be a trailblazer in connecting celebrities from various backgrounds, from breakout social media stars and professional athletes renowned for their athletic abilities to celebrated musicians and well-known actors and other stars willing to tackle a new venture and enter the world of boxing, as well as pro boxers making their way up. “The Fight Club” will feature a never-before-seen production quality and element, as showcased this weekend in the Tyson Jones event.”

Saturday’s event, that has reportedly done over a million pay-per-view buys, stood out amongst traditional combat sports events in that the broadcast heavily featured lengthy musical acts in-between matches and had an eclectic broadcast team.  While unconventional, the musical acts were praised for both the performances and production values that made for a unique event.

The release went on to say that events like Saturday’s were expected be the norm, stating:

“Inspired by the wild success of Saturday night’s event, “The Fight Club” fights will follow professional boxing rules and feature various sources of entertainment. With award-winning musical artists taking the stage to deliver show-stopping performances, as well as celebrity guests and commentators, the events will continue to be of the highest-caliber production.”

Mike Tyson frequently spoke in the lead-up to the event that while his future inside the ring in the league may be short-lived, the purpose was to give athletes past their prime a platform to continue performing for a fan base that still wished to see them display their skills.  Following the success on Saturday, there has already been talk of future potential bouts such as a fight between Tyson and former foe Evander Holyfield or a boxing bout with former UFC champion Anderson Silva and Roy Jones Jr.

Ryan Kavanaugh, the Principal of Proxima (the company that produced Saturday’s event and is owned by Triller) and the co-founder of the “The Fight Club” said:

“Up until this weekend, boxing was about the experience of one small group of elite individuals who attended the fight in person. What we wanted to create with the Tyson vs. Jones event was an experience for all of the viewers at home, combining the highest-end production and lighting and a production quality never before brought to a fight. Today marks a paradigm shift as Triller and Proxima’s ‘The Fight Club’ dedicates itself to delivering top-notch immersive experiences in the comfort of your home.”

Currently, there have been no further events announced from the company.

The post Triller and Snoop Dogg Announce “The Fight Club” Boxing League appeared first on Cageside Press.

Finding the proper response to much of the news finding its way into our social media feeds is becoming a tougher task every day. Nothing is surprising, and there’s always more to the story. Leaving us with one reply: “huh?”.

Last week, Cortney Casey’s fight with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) finally ended, UFC President Dana White continued his fight against Demetrious Johnson and the flyweight division, and Snoop Dogg was announced as a commentator on the UFC’s new Dana White Tuesday Night Contender Series.

The reason “huh?”, in its various forms, is such a quality reply is simple. The word is as versatile as a response gets, and while it may require some explanation, “huh?” is sometimes the only way to react to the news of today. Defined by Merriam-Webster as an interjection that’s “used to express surprise, disbelief, or confusion, or as an inquiry inviting affirmative reply”, “huh” or “huh?” can mean a lot of different things.

Despite some of the follies of human evolution (see: Fox Sports Digital), the development and growth of “huh” is something we should embrace. To be the change we want to see in the world, here are a few MMA stories last week that made us go “huh?”.

Cortney Casey gets justice

More than a month after having her unanimous decision victory over Jessica Aguilar at UFC 211 overturned to a no-contest, strawweight Cortney Casey has her win back. After doing nothing wrong, and getting a suspension and potential fine, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation took it all back. Huh.

“After reexamination of the documents in our possession and careful examination of the Sample B results, your 90-day suspension is lifted effective June 29, 2017, the enforcement case dropped with no further action taken, and the bout “win” reinstated on your record.” – Letter to Casey, via Bloody Elbow

It’s always nice when state commissions and regulatory boards ultimately come to the right decision after a mistake. That’s not always the case, and thanks to the likes of Bloody Elbow’s Iain Kidd (and even the UFC), the TDLR was under constant pressure to do the right thing. Unfortunately, they still could’ve, and should’ve, done more.

In a country supposedly driven by an “innocent until proven guilty” mentality, the announcement of fighter’s potential violations is a direct attack on their integrity without the basis to do so. The result is immeasurable and irreparable harm, which no commission or regulatory body is ever held accountable for.

The least they could do is publicly apologize, and the TDLR made sure they avoided that. It may not change much, but if you’re going to ruin people’s reputations, you should have the ability and approach to apologize when you do.

Dana keeps saying stuff

UFC President Dana White was busy last week, giving his thoughts on a wide variety of topics as we head into International Fight Week later this month. We don’t hear from White as often, or in the same ways, as we used to. But the long-time promoter knows how to share his side of things, especially when he feels he (or the promotion) has something to say.

Last week, White managed to get everyone riled up about the potential of a title-fight between current professional boxer and UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov in Russia at the end of the year. Then, he once again placed doubt on the return of the Diaz brothers to the Octagon, while even admitting that the promotion made some mistakes surrounding the situation with Cris Cyborg over the last year-plus.

That’s right. UFC President Dana White admitted a mistake, on the record! While a collective mistake, he played a role as much as anyone, and it’s nice to see someone take responsibility for the disaster that is the women’s featherweight division. But, while he was busy sharing these thoughts, White still found time to sarcastically support flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson’s wishes to fight Ray Borg later this summer.

“You want Ray Borg, we’ll give you Ray Borg,” White told MMAjunkie. “I’m sure the fans will be clamoring, and ticket sales will be through the roof and pay-per-views will be off the charts.”

Huh. That’s a helluva way for a guy who is literally paid to promote fights to get fans interested in a bout. Regardless, watching the boss throw his toys out of the pram when he doesn’t get exactly what he wants is never a good look for White, or the UFC. Especially when it’s blantatly disrespectful to one of the best fighters in the business and degrading your own product.

“So I’m not thrilled about it, but guess what? You want Ray Borg, we’ll give you Ray Borg. I don’t want to hear any (expletive) if it’s not the blockbuster event you expect it to be.” – White via MMAJunkie

Deal, Dana. But we don’t want to hear any (expletive) if it’s an awesome fight which draws well, either.

Over there, in the women’s featherweight division, the UFC is stripping Germaine de Randamie of her title for not being willing to face the top contenders in her weight class. While over here, that’s all that Demetrious Johnson is trying to do. Johnson-Borg may not be a “superfight”, but the argument that it’s a significant step-down from Johnson-Dillashaw is being overblown by White, to the promotion’s detriment.

Snoop Dogg is a UFC employee

A week after MMA fans were treated to the Bellator debuts of both Mike Goldberg and Mauro Ranallo, the UFC announced the signing of Snoop Dogg as a commentator for their upcoming Fight Pass show, Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series. The rapper will feature alongside fellow Californian Urijah Faber as an alternative audio commentary for the series, dubbed “SnoopCast”. Huh?

On the surface, it’s a weird move. Snoop Dogg providing commentary, in a world where fans are treated to the likes of Dominick Cruz, Brian Stann, and more, doesn’t exactly fit the bill. Which is exactly why it could work.

Flexing their WME-IMG muscles, someone at the promotion is recognizing that there’s a market for commentary that doesn’t focus on the intricacies of MMA, of which there are many. The success of part-time UFC commentator Joe Rogan’s Fight Companions are one major sign, and it’s nice to see the promotion embrace that aspect of enjoying their product.

As an alternative option, there’s no way anyone can be mad or get annoyed by Snoop and Faber’s take on fight commentary. How well they do covering five-fights each week remains to be seen, but if there’s a duo that could get the job done it’s Snoop and Faber. They’re two talented, intelligent, and successful guys. While that doesn’t always translate into further success, count us among those interested to see how it goes.

At the very least, the UFC has a huge, mainstream superstar attached to their new show, which happens to feature exclusively on their online streaming service. The coverage and notoriety Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series has gained and will continue to gain from Snoop’s involvement can’t hurt, even if his commentary does.

Anytime a fighter gets a win, it’s a big deal. When that fight comes against a state commission, that win is even bigger, and we’re glad Cortney Casey finally came out on top in her battle with the TDLR. We are sick of the fighting between Dana White and Demetrious Johnson, but are looking forward to the champions return to the Octagon. Depending on how things go with Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series, maybe we’ll be able to enjoy Snoop Dogg calling a Mighty Mouse bout in the future. Huh.

Huh? For the Road

If it comes back positive @DinThomas is for sure the father. We already talked about this and he promised to step up if so. @JoshCohenRadio pic.twitter.com/5ltdNJmvVR

— Amanda Nunes (@Amanda_Leoa) July 1, 2017

The post Three “Huh?” Moments in MMA Last Week: July 3 Edition appeared first on Cageside Press.