Laura Sanko wishes Cub Swanson committed to retirement after his UFC Tampa knockout because “it’s not going to get better than that.”
[autotag]Cub Swanson[/autotag] straddled the line of a retirement announcement after his knockout of Billy Quarantillo at UFC on ESPN 63 this month.
UFC commentator [autotag]Laura Sanko[/autotag] understands it’s no easy choice to make, especially after a highlight-reel finish in the Fight of the Night. But given how spectacular the moment was, and Swanson (30-14 MMA, 15-10 UFC) had his wife and family in attendance, Sanko would’ve liked for the longtime veteran to ride off into the subset.
“I’ll be honest: I wish he would’ve done it in the moment – In the octagon with the visual of putting his gloves down with the moment on the microphone,” Sanko told MMA Junkie. “I wish that because I want all of those things for him because he deserves all of that.”
Swanson was emotional in the aftermath of the win as he reflected on his career and what there may be left to accomplish. He is a UFC record holder in multiple categories and has done everything in the promotion short of competing for and winning a championship.
[lawrence-related id=2792852,2793601,2793468]
Given his ties to the sport through his training team and management company, Swanson will still very much be involved with MMA when his time as a fighter is officially over.
He is currently 41, and arguably already extended his career well beyond imagination after turning professional in July 2004. Putting together a 20-year career is almost unfathomable in this sport, and for Sanko, it’s all the more reason why Swanson should exit on this elusive type of high.
“When he came to the post-show desk, he seemed like he was closer to saying it,” Sanko said. “He was so, so close to saying it. We played like a little package of some of his greatest highlights and we were talking about his career overall and his life overall. Where he came from as a troubled teen and how the sport saved him. The sport not only saved him from a path he was going down in his young life, but then it brought him (everything).
“He met his wife and now he’s got his kids and he’s got students and he’s got a management agency. MMA literally is his life, and he built that. Talking about it he got pretty emotional and he all but said that he was retiring, but he didn’t quite feel like it could say it. I wish he would’ve said it in the octagon.
“It doesn’t get better than that. It’s only down. He could knock someone else out, I guess. I guess. But this is a crazy game. You can’t count on a better walk-off knockout moment than that. That’s why we love Cub.
“He can do what he wants. It’s not up to us. But it’s not going to get better than that.”
To hear more from Sanko, check out her complete appearance above on “The Bohnfire” podcast, hosted by MMA Junkie senior reporter Mike Bohn.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 63.
UFC commentator Laura Sanko names some of the most violent fighters and performances from each division in 2024.
MMA is a sport of controlled violence between two willing combatants, and few enjoy witnessing that more than UFC’s [autotag]Laura Sanko[/autotag].
Sanko is one of the UFC’s primary color commentators, and within that role she frequently gets to sit up close and personal next to the octagon. She sees the damage inflicted and dished out from inches away, can smell the stench of when blood is shed onto the canvas and everything in between that makes MMA such a raw and visceral form of sport.
“When I talk about MMA and everyone’s like, ‘Oh my God, it’s such a violent sport,'” Sanko told MMA Junkie. “My normal go-to is to say it’s not really true violence. Because true violence is when one person does not want to be there, and there’s a perpetrator and a victim. Right? And that’s not what this is. This is a sport. This is competition. Both men or both women want to be there.”
Violence is born out of the competition of MMA, and there are some who do it with more style, swag and impact than others. But who ultimately does it best in each weight class, especially based of their work in 2024?
Sanko joined MMA Junkie senior reporter Mike Bohn on “The Bohnfire” podcast to discuss who she currently views as the most violent fighter in each of the UFC’s 12 weight classes.
Here’s what you need to know to watch UFC 309 on pay-per-view, ESPNews, Hulu, FX and ESPN+.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
The UFC’s 13th and penultimate pay-per-view event of 2024 goes down Saturday in the “Big Apple.”
Here’s how to watch UFC 309 with the heavyweight title on the line at the top of the card at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Broadcast and streaming info
Jon Anik
UFC 309 has a main card that begins at 10 p.m. ET (7 p.m. PT) on pay-per-view (via ESPN+). The four-fight preliminary card airs on ESPNews, FX and Hulu at 8 p.m. ET. Three early prelims air on Hulu and stream on ESPN+ at 6 p.m. ET.
[autotag]Dan Hellie[/autotag] will host the official UFC 309 weigh-in show on Friday.
He’ll be joined by UFC Hall of Famer [autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag], coach [autotag]Din Thomas[/autotag] and [autotag]Laura Sanko[/autotag].
Former UFC title challengers [autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] and [autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag], as well as retired lightweight contender [autotag]Paul Felder[/autotag] will serve as a desk analysts on the UFC 309 post-fight show and throughout the card, when necessary. [autotag]Brendan Fitzgerald[/autotag] will serve as the host.
Longtime UFC correspondent [autotag]Megan Olivi[/autotag] will conduct pre and post-fight interviews backstage with some of the athletes on the UFC 309 card, as well as report additional real-time updates for the event.
[autotag]Jon Anik[/autotag] will serve as the leading man on the mic from cageside at UFC 309.
He will command play-by-play alongside color commentators and UFC Hall of Famer Cormier and [autotag]Joe Rogan[/autotag].
(Mike Bohn, MMA Junkie)
Main event: Jon Jones
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 04: Jon Jones looks on during the UFC heavyweight championship fight against Ciryl Gane of France during the UFC 285 event at T-Mobile Arena on March 04, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 775947443 ORIG FILE ID: 1471352966
Record: 27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC Opponent: Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) Division: Heavyweight Key wins: Ciryl Gane Misc.: Won vacant heavyweight title with first-round submission of Ciryl Gane in March 2023. That was his debut at heavyweight after years as the light heavyweight champion. He’s been on the shelf with an injury till now.
Main event: Stipe Miocic
Stipe Miocic
Record: 20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC Opponent: Jon Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) Division: Heavyweight Key wins: Daniel Cormier (twice), Francis Ngannou, Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem, Fabricio Werdum Misc.: Lost the heavyweight title in March 2021 to Ngannou. Was set to fight Jones a year ago until Jones’ injury took him out. Miocic chose to wait for Jones’ return rather than fight, putting his current layoff at around 44 months. Prior to this, the longest Miocic ever had gone without a fight was 13 months.
Co-main event: Michael Chandler
Nov 12, 2022; New York, NY, USA; Dustin Poirier (red gloves) and Michael Chandler (blue gloves) during UFC 281 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Jessica Alcheh-USA TODAY Sports
Record: 23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC Opponent: Charles Oliveira (34-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC) Division: Lightweight Key wins: Tony Ferguson, Dan Hooker Misc.: Former Bellator champion has had mixed success in the UFC, including a knockout loss to Oliveira in a title fight that he’ll be trying to avenge as an underdog Saturday.
Co-main event: Charles Oliveira
May 15, 2021; Houston, Texas, USA; Charles Oliveira applies a hold against Michael Chandler uring UFC 262 at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Record: 34-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC Opponent: Michael Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) Division: Lightweight Key wins: Beneil Dariush, Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, Chandler, Tony Ferguson Misc.: Oliveira already has one win over Chandler – a knockout to win the vacant lightweight title in 2021. He defended it against Poirier and beat Gaethje – but in a fight for which he missed weight and was stripped of the belt. After a loss to new champ Islam Makhachev, he rebounded against Dariush, but lost a likely title eliminator to Arman Tsarukyan in April.
UFC 309 main card betting odds
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – FEBRUARY 03: (R-L) Viviane Araujo of Brazil punches Natalia Silva of Brazil in a flyweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on February 03, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)
Champ Jon Jones (-625) vs. Stipe Miocic (+455) – for heavyweight title
Michael Chandler (+205) vs. Charles Oliveira (-250)
Here’s what you need to know to watch UFC 307 on pay-per-view, ESPNews and ESPN+.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
The UFC’s 11th pay-per-view event of 2024 goes down Saturday in Utah.
Here’s how to watch UFC 307 with the light heavyweight and women’s bantamweight titles on the line at the top of the card at Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
Broadcast and streaming info
Jon Anik, Laura Sanko, Daniel Cormier | UFC 293 commentary team
UFC 307 has a main card that begins at 10 p.m. ET on pay-per-view (via ESPN+). The four-fight preliminary card airs on ESPNews and streams on ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET. A trio of early prelims stream on ESPN+ at 6 p.m. ET.
[autotag]Dan Hellie[/autotag] will host the official UFC 307 weigh-in show on Friday at 10:50 a.m. ET.
[autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] will serve as a desk analysts on the UFC 307 post-fight show and throughout the card, when necessary. The host and other analysts are to be determined.
Longtime UFC correspondent [autotag]Megan Olivi[/autotag] will conduct pre and post-fight interviews backstage with some of the athletes on the UFC 307 card, as well as report additional real-time updates for the event.
[autotag]Jon Anik[/autotag] will serve as the leading man on the mic from cageside.
He will command play-by-play alongside color commentators, former two-division champion Cormier, as well as [autotag]Joe Rogan[/autotag].
[autotag]Din Thomas[/autotag] also will occasionally join the booth throughout the broadcast as the coach-analyst for the event.
He’ll be joined by UFC Hall of Famer [autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag], former middleweight champion [autotag]Chris Weidman[/autotag] and [autotag]Laura Sanko[/autotag] as analysts.
(Mike Bohn, MMA Junkie)
Main event: Alex Pereira
Jun 29, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Alex Pereira (red gloves) fights Jiri Prochazka (blue gloves) during UFC 303 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Record: 11-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC Opponent: Khalil Rountree (14-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) Division: Light heavyweight Key wins: Jiri Prochazka (twice), Jamahal Hill, Jan Blachowicz, Israel Adesanya, Sean Strickland Misc.: Pereira has become arguably the biggest name in the game. After he came over from a kickboxing career that included two wins over Israel Adesanya, he beat Adesanya to win the middleweight belt. Although he dropped it in a rematch, he quickly went on to win the light heavyweight belt and has defended it with two vicious bonus-winning victories.
Main event: Khalil Rountree
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – AUGUST 12: (R-L) Khalil Rountree Jr. punches Chris Daukaus in a light heavyweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on August 12, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Al Powers/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Record: 14-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC Opponent: Alex Pereira (11-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) Division: Light heavyweight Key wins: Anthony Smith, Chris Daukaus, Dustin Jacoby, Karl Roberson, Paul Craig Misc.: Rountree has been shelved for a bit due to a failed drug test – which left plenty of critics disenfranchised that he was given a title shot over other potential challengers. But he has five straight wins, four of which have come by knockout, and three bonuses in that stretch. Still, he’ll be by far the biggest underdog to go up against Pereira yet.
Main event: Raquel Pennington
Jan 20, 2024; Toronto, Canada, USA; Raquel Pennington (red glove) fights Mayra Bueno Silva (blue gloves) during UFC 297 at ScotiaBank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Record: 16-9 MMA, 13-5 UFC Opponent: Julianna Peña (12-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC) Division: Women’s bantamweight Key wins: Mayra Bueno Silva, Ketlen Vieira, Aspen Ladd, Macy Chiasson, Pannie Kianzad, Marion Reneau, Irene Aldana, Miesha Tate, Jessica Andrade Misc.: After 15 years in the sport, Pennington finally reached the pinnacle in January when she outworked Mayra Bueno Silva for the title vacated by former dual champion Amanda Nunes. The fight with ex-champ Peña will be her first attempted title defense.
Main event: Julianna Peña
Jul 30, 2022; Dallas, TX, USA; Julianna Pena (red gloves) fights Amanda Nunes (blue gloves) in a women’s bantamweight title bout during UFC 277 at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Record: 12-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC Opponent: Raquel Pennington (16-9 MMA, 13-5 UFC) Division: Women’s bantamweight Key wins: Amanda Nunes, Sara McMann, Cat Zingano, Jessica Eye Misc.: Peña submitted Amanda Nunes to win the title in late 2021 in one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. But she was dominated in the rematch eight months later and dropped the belt. She’s been on the shelf for more than two years.
UFC 307 main card betting odds
Kayla Harrison
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)
Champ Alex Pereira (-525) vs. Khalil Rountree (+360) – for light heavyweight title
Champ Raquel Pennington (-180) vs. Julianna Peña (+150) – for women’s bantamweight title
Jose Aldo (+145) vs. Mario Bautista (-175)
Kayla Harrison (-850) vs. Ketlen Vieira (+500)
Roman Dolidze (+145) vs. Kevin Holland (-175)
UFC 307 prelim betting odds
Marina Rodriguez
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPNews/ESPN+, 7:30 p.m. ET)
Joaquin Buckley (-200) vs. Stephen Thompson (+170)
Iasmin Lucindo (-175) vs. Marina Rodriguez (+145)
Cesar Almeida (-400) vs. Ihor Potieria (+300)
Alexander Hernandez (-215) vs. Austin Hubbard (+170)
“What do you say to a man with two black eyes?” the question goes. Nothing. He’s already been told twice.
“What do you say to a man with two black eyes?” the question goes.
Nothing. He’s already been told twice.
And in that vein, The Blue Corner will do its best to set editorial commentary to the side to just say this:
We don’t need to point out to [autotag]Jamie Varner[/autotag] that doubling down on an out-of-left-field mansplaining social media post calling [autotag]Laura Sanko[/autotag] a “clown” for her color commentary skills on the UFC on ESPN 53 broadcast Saturday night left him with not one, but two visible black eyes, at least in terms of how his comments went over. He no doubt knew the attention he was trying to stir up in a day and age that rewards polarizing hot takes.
It was Sanko, naturally, who landed the biggest punch of all with a classier rebuttal than Varner deserved.
Varner ripped Sanko for being a “try hard” and saying she doesn’t know about fighting and should “stay in your lane.” In a doubled-down second post, Varner said Sanko, who broke the glass ceiling as the first woman color commentator on a UFC broadcast in the so-called modern era, should “leave the commentary to the people that have actually fought.”
Problem is, Sanko has fought as an amateur and pro. She was sure to remind him of that in her response. She trains and is around the sport regularly arguably more than some of her male UFC commentary colleagues.
Varner did not announce to his fewer than 50,000 Twitter followers (Sanko has more than three times as many) what he thinks of UFC play-by-play voices Jon Anik, Brendan Fitzgerald or John Gooden, none of whom have fought professionally.
He later deleted the tweets and their overwhelmingly critical and negative comments toward him from his timeline.
@jamievarner you and I actually fought on the same card in 2011 for Titan FC. We warmed up next to each other in the basement of the Memorial Hall building in KCK. My best friend braided your hair because you couldn’t find anyone to do it. I remember thinking how cool it was at…
Varner had been quiet on Twitter since the Super Bowl, when he tweet-stormed his takes about the NFL being rigged, people who like Taylor Swift being a “p*ssy,” the NFL’s decision to have the Black National Anthem performed at the Super Bowl as “trash,” and more.
Varner has not fought since December 2014, when he tapped out to Drew Dober less than 2 minutes into the first round in front of his home fans in Phoenix. It was his fourth straight loss and one of five losses in six fights to end his career. That final loss was just three days removed from Varner’s 30th birthday.
The UFC’s lead commentary team of Jon Anik, Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier will call its first card of 2024 at UFC 299 in Miami.
The third numbered UFC event of 2024 is rapidly approaching with UFC 299 on Saturday at Kaseya Center in Miami.
As always, some marquee on-air talent will be there to help guide viewers through the experience.
Details of who will be working as commentators and analysts for the show have been acquired by MMA Junkie through a person with knowledge of the plans – and you can see the scheduled broadcast team below.
The commentary team of Brendan Fitzgerald, Dominick Cruz and Paul Felder will call the action at UFC Fight Night 237 in Mexico City.
The UFC continues its February schedule Saturday with UFC Fight Night 237, which goes down at Mexico City Arena in Mexico.
As always, some marquee on-air talent will be there to help guide viewers through the experience.
Details of who will work as commentators and analysts for each event have been acquired by MMA Junkie through a person with knowledge of the situation, and you can see the scheduled broadcast team below.
Daniel Cormier won’t be on the call for UFC 298 and instead Michael Bisping will join Jon Anik and Joe Rogan as cageside commentators.
The second numbered UFC event of 2024 is rapidly approaching with UFC 298 on Saturday at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.
As always, some marquee on-air talent will be there to help guide viewers through the experience.
Details of who will be working as commentators and analysts for the show have been acquired by MMA Junkie through a person with knowledge of the plans – and you can see the scheduled broadcast team below.
The commentary team for UFC Fight Night 235 on Saturday is set, including Laura Sanko’s first appearance cageside this year.
The UFC opens its February schedule Saturday with UFC Fight Night 235, which goes down at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
As always, some marquee on-air talent will be there in “Sin City” to help guide viewers through the experience.
Details of who will work as commentators and analysts for each event have been acquired by MMA Junkie through a person with knowledge of the situation, and you can see the scheduled broadcast team below.
The commentary A-team of Jon Anik, Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier will unite to call the final PPV of 2023 at UFC 296.
The 14th and final numbered UFC event of the year is rapidly approaching with UFC 296 on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
As always, some marquee on-air talent will be there to help guide viewers through the experience.
Details of who will be working as commentators and analysts for the show have been acquired by MMA Junkie through a person with knowledge of the plans – and you can see the scheduled broadcast team below.
