Chris Weidman breaks down Merab’s title run & Gaethje-Paddy; Coach John Wood previews Merab–Yan II

Jim and Matt kick off the week with former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman, who checks in ahead of his trip to Las Vegas to support Merab Dvalishvili before the bantamweight champ’s fourth title defense of 2025. Weidman shares what he expects from Merab’s continued dominance, and also weighs in on how Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett match up in next year’s interim lightweight title fight — the first numbered event of the new Paramount deal. Then, Syndicate MMA head coach John Wood joins the show to talk about life inside one of the busiest gyms in the sport. Wood breaks down Merab’s one-of-a-kind approach to fight week and explains whether he foresees anything different in the champ’s rematch with a resurgent Petr Yan in this Saturday’s UFC 323 headliner. Order UFC PPV on ESPN+ ➡️ (U.S. only) Order UFC PPV ➡️ (Non U.S.) Subscribe to get all the latest UFC content: Experience UFC live with UFC FIGHT PASS, the digital subscription service of the UFC. Visit 👉 Shop official UFC Gear, visit 👉 Shop official UFC Memorabilia, visit 👉 Shop official UFC VIP Live Event Experiences, visit Connect with UFC online and on Social: 🔴 Website: 🔵 Twitter: 🔵 Facebook: 🔴 Instagram: 🟡 Snapchat: 🟣 Twitch: ⏯️ UFC Video Archive: Connect with UFC FIGHT PASS on Social: 🔵 Twitter: 🔵 Facebook: 🔴 Instagram: #UFC #UFCunfiltered