Inside the UFC | Megan Olivi | Straight Outta The Lair Podcast - Straight Outta The Lair with Flex Lewis

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
You know, rock, this week has been crazy.
I am literally running on zeroTalking, of which zero sugar.
Monster Watermelon, it's myfavorite.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Yeah, it's like you know, I'm not the kind of guy
who's going to bow down tocorporate sponsorships, but this
Monster Delicious.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
Listen, J-Rock.
We all know you love Monster,but we gotta stay focused, Just
like the focus that MonsterEnergy gives me.

Speaker 2 (00:30):
All these podcasters these days bow down to corporate
sponsorships.
Flex.

Speaker 1 (00:34):
Yeah, we'll never do that.
These guys are living in afantasy, unlike this
ultra-fantasy Ruby Red.
It's delicious, mmm.
Today we have a very specialguest joining us.

(00:58):
She's a powerhouse in the worldof sports journalism, known for
her insightful interviews andunparalleled coverage of the UFC
, from backstage at fight nightsto hosting shows and bringing
us closer to our favoritefighters.
Ladies and gentlemen, meganOlivi, tell me I got that right.

Speaker 3 (01:19):
Yeah, pretty close.

Speaker 1 (01:20):
Oh my goodness, pretty close.
She said Now, I've been tryingto get your name right before
the show and I got it wrongagain, didn't I?

Speaker 3 (01:26):
No, no, you're good.
Olivi, yeah, olivi, yeah, olivi, it's easy, just let it roll
off the tongue.

Speaker 1 (01:31):
It's you that was messing up with me.
You got to let it roll off thetongue, Olivi.

Speaker 3 (01:40):
Hey, thanks for having me A real honor.

Speaker 1 (01:42):
It's a pleasure, thank you.
I've been watching you for mygosh double figures now.
I think the first time and thisis the truth, the first time I
seen you was maybe WEC days,when you were interviewing Joe,
your husband.

Speaker 3 (01:57):
Yep.

Speaker 1 (01:58):
And of course, listen , you've come so far from there,
but were you into journalismback then, or or is that was a
natural progression?
How do you get into it actually?

Speaker 3 (02:08):
well.
So it's kind of by accident, Iwent to college for political
science and I had an internship.
I went to school right outsidenew york city and I was
interning in new york and Iwould come to work every day and
talk to the guys about, likethe yankees and the new york
giants, the football team andyou know.
Finally they were like, listen,why don't you do something with
this for a living?
Like you're doing somethingtotally random, but you're
talking to us about sports everyday.

(02:30):
Um, and I never really put twoand two together.
I grew up in a sports household, I grew up playing sports and I
never realized that that couldbe a job and I kind of had like
a very, um, negative,preconceived notion about what
it meant to be a female on TV orfemale in sports.
And then when I started lookinginto it, I was, you know, a

(02:50):
junior in college.
I'm like, why don't, why don'tI at least try?
And so, yeah, I kind of pivoted.
I got my master's at FordhamUniversity, which is in the
Bronx, and I wanted to make surethat I had a degree to back up
what I wanted to do, becauselots of people want to do it,
and just tried to start at thevery bottom.
I mean, I was getting peoplecoffee for my internships and

(03:11):
printing scripts and just triedto learn every step of the way.
And so, yeah, I knew that Iwanted to work in sports.
But the whole MMA experience wascompletely at random.
I got offered a job to come toVegas.
My brother was a veryaccomplished wrestler.
I grew up in kind of like awrestling hotbed for the country
and so I knew a lot of peoplealready and they were like, why

(03:31):
don't you come, move to Vegasand cover MMA?
And I was like, well, I'm superpoor in New York City and so
this is like a little more moneyand it's way less expensive to
live in Vegas.
So I gave myself a year to tryand then I've never moved back.

Speaker 1 (03:45):
Wow, well, tell us about them first, opportunities
you had and breaking through asa female journalist into, you
know, a fight world.

Speaker 3 (03:56):
Yeah, I mean, I think you know, in the beginning it
was like a little difficult.
Here I am, I'm 23 years old andI haven't proven myself, and so
I think for me it was like youbetter know more than everyone
else and you better be moreprepared, and, yes, you have
these six interviews to do today, but you better be ready to
interview every person on thecard and all of their coaches

(04:18):
and their training partners andwhoever it is.
So for me it was about makingsure that no one could ever say
I didn't deserve to be there.
But I had, like, some reallygreat female advocates in the
space that were already thereEvelyn Rodriguez she she's from
Brazil but she does amazingcoverage Karen Bryant.
So we kind of held spaces forone another and then very

(04:38):
quickly, when people saw both mywork ethic and like the quality
of content I was trying tobring to things kind of those
maybe negative emotions thatwere surrounding my appearance
quickly went away.
So I can't really say thatthere was too much negativity
upon my arrival after a coupleof shows.

Speaker 2 (05:02):
Well we have.
I was just going to say it musthave been a bit harder, right,
because even on the female sidethe sport really hadn't taken
off yet, right, like?
I mean, we didn't see thatuntil Ronda Rousey, really kind
of came in and then we saw thisexplosion on the female side.
So it was like you were kind ofgrowing along with the sport at
the same time.
So it must have been difficultin that sense for sure.

Speaker 3 (05:21):
Yeah, 100%.
And like Ronda, I think, was intough enough a few years after
I had sort of started thiscareer.
And so there was, you know, yes, there were women in
Strikeforce, but they were notwomen in the WC, they were not
women in the UFC, and so thatwas like the status quo for us.
But it just kind of felt likewell, if you keep chipping away
at things like who knows what'sgoing to happen.

(05:41):
And then with Rhonda, I mean,not only did she open the gates
for a whole world of women andwhat they want to do, literally
a world of women and what theiraspirations could change to, but
she also opened the doors forwomen like me, because she liked
doing interviews with me.
So I got more opportunities towork with this giant star,
because I did quality work and Ithink she was somebody who

(06:03):
wanted to support women in thespace who had worked their way
up, and so I feel superfortunate to have worked in the
Ronda era for sure as well.

Speaker 1 (06:10):
That's awesome.

Speaker 3 (06:11):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (06:12):
With Ronda.
You mentioned her.
Any other female inspirationsyou've had through working with
UFC fighters?

Speaker 3 (06:18):
Yeah, literally every single athlete that comes
across our way is inspirationalto me, because I always say,
like you, don't get intofighting because everything in
your life was normal.
There's very few people who arefighters that are like, oh,
they had this like beautifulupbringing and a very easy life
and a great household just likeMarty Bliss so so I think that

(06:41):
there's something to be learnedfrom everybody.
But I mean Tat, mean TatianaSuarez, who is a cancer survivor
.
She was about to make anOlympic team and found out she
had thyroid cancer.
She's had all these injuries.
I mean she's just listening toher speak about her journey when
she's diagnosed at such a youngage.
People like Ioana Janjacek Iremember she didn't even barely
spoke English the first time wedid an interview and here she is

(07:02):
this like internationalsuperstar.
Yes, going into the hall of fameat the end of the month.
And so Amanda Nunes, like youknow, who defeated people when
everybody counted her out, likethere's just, there's no end to
the inspiration that you canfind, and whether it's the first
fight on the card with somebodymaking their debut and to
somebody that we all know andlove like, like a Ioana or an

(07:22):
Amanda, um, to me it's like I Ifeel so fortunate because I get
something every time I speak toone of our athletes.

Speaker 1 (07:30):
I know you have obviously relationships with a
lot of these athletes, personalones, outside of of work.
How hard is it for you to watchsomebody that you truly love
and care for take a loss?

Speaker 3 (07:42):
it's so hard.
Um, you know, I always say likeit doesn't matter to me the
outcome of any fight, unless youknow Joseph Benavides was in
there and that's when I cared.
Um, because you, you, for me, Itry to always be like as center
for everything as I can, but ingeneral, whether I know the
person really well or I don'tknow them at all and you might
hear like a really tragic storyor something, it's so hard

(08:06):
because, number one, there'snothing you can do to control it
.
Oftentimes they could just havean off night, or you know
they're dealing with somethingor you know it has nothing to do
with actual skill level, itjust wasn't their time, um, but
after they do not get their handraised, there's nothing you can
do to fix that heartbreak.
You can't give them medicine,you can't tell them to go to PT,

(08:28):
you can't like fix it, andoftentimes the fights they don't
win, that stays with themforever.
They could have the mostmonumental victories in the
world and historic moments andhave accomplished so many things
, but it's the ones that gotaway.

Speaker 1 (08:42):
That almost seems to define them within their own
brain, and that's what I try toreally change, whether it's in
the personal interactions I have, or the professional ones yeah,
I've seen a lot of guysbackstage, whether they won or
lost break down with you justgoes to show your rapport with
these guys and and what you'vebuilt off camera.
You know there's there seemsthat you you truly get like the

(09:03):
version of them, even in theworst of times.

Speaker 3 (09:06):
Thanks, yeah, for me.
I've always tried to approachit as if that's Joe standing
across from me.
What would I want people toknow about him?
What sort of platform would Iwant to give him to answer or
say what he wants to say?
For instance, dustin Poirier Ijust interviewed.
I've known Dustin forever.
I know his wife, I know hisdaughter, we have been friends

(09:27):
with them since the WEC days sowell over a decade and of course
you know my heart broke for himthat he was unable to
accomplish that goal.
But my job in that moment is tonot speak for him.
It's to allow him to say any ofthe things that he is thinking
or feeling and wants to get offof his chest.
So if they feel like it's asafe space where I'm not trying
to play a game of like I got you, we're stirring the pot, or

(09:49):
even just remind them of how badit might be, like well, you
never.
How are you going to get overthis?
You didn't accomplish your goal?
Like that's not the time for itand that's somebody else's job,
my job is to just give theseathletes a place where they feel
comfortable to speak from theheart, and sometimes they choose
not to do those interviews andI will never push it, because if
they don't, if they don't wantto speak after the most

(10:11):
heartbreaking moment of theirlife, who am I to tell them?
They have to like?
We all cope with things indifferent ways, but that's why
my admiration for everyone whodoes come talk to me after those
is just through the roof.

Speaker 2 (10:22):
Now does the UFC tell them that they have to?

Speaker 3 (10:30):
I mean they ask them, but you know, I think we
probably could push if we wantto.
And sometimes you know, we haveto say like you know they
really want to hear from you,but if they they don't want to.
And also sometimes there'snothing to say, right, like how
can you sum it all up whenyou're injured or you're dealing
with heartbreak or you're stillcrying and you can't pull it
together, like, if they don'twant to talk, in those moments,
that's totally understandable.

(10:51):
Now, when they get their handraised, that's very different.

Speaker 1 (10:53):
Like got to come give us a chat.
You know what I mean.
So yeah, it's a different vibe.
Has there been any times whereyou've gone and interviewed
somebody and they're just?

Speaker 2 (11:05):
you just.
You can't get anything fromthem, even though they were
voluntary there yeah and youknow, let's get into some, let's
get into some juice here.

Speaker 3 (11:08):
I mean, who are the dickheads?
yeah, there's no one I'm tryingto ease into this, no one but no
, I mean, there's definitely, Ithink, sometimes people who are
relatively new to the sport orto the media aspect of it.
Maybe they had a lot of localshows.
Sometimes that can be reallydifficult too, so for Maybe they
had a lot of local shows.
Sometimes that can be reallydifficult too.
So for me, that's where a lotof like reading the situation

(11:30):
comes into play.
Yes, I have a job and I have twoand a half minutes usually to
get as much information as I can, and whether it's the lead up
or the aftermath.
But if I know that they are notcomfortable or used to a million
cameras and a dozen people inthe room and or or more, and
depending on on the setup I willoftentimes like give them a
very easy first question thathas nothing to do with fighting

(11:53):
or the fight itself, and justtry and make them feel
comfortable and get them talking, and then we go into the things
that I need to ask, and so it'sall about like reading the
scenario.
No one one's a dick and I thinkthat, like they're aware of
what my actual job is.
I work for the promoter and somy job is to promote them and
make them, you know, look goodand have people interested in

(12:15):
both their story and their fightand their fighting style, and
so, yeah, sometimes it's justmore about like newbies or
people who aren't necessarilylike comfortable with the
cameras or um, and more thananything else yeah, right, you
mentioned joseph earlier.

Speaker 1 (12:29):
Have you ever worked an event whilst you were on the
journalist team and he fought,and if so, how were you able to
separate your emotions?

Speaker 3 (12:37):
more often than not, I worked his fights oh yeah
that's toughoh my god so when we, we were
dating back in the WC days andobviously you can tell when you
watch the interviews but, likeyou know, it wasn't really that
known.
And then we made sure that,like Lorenzo, frank and Dana
were well aware I didn't want to, you know, rock any boats there
, um, and they were supersupportive and great.
But yeah, I worked almost allof his fights, yeah, um, and it

(13:01):
was easier in the beginning daysthan it was in the later days,
just for me to deal with, like,the anxiety, because I also
didn't like people watching mewatch him.

Speaker 2 (13:13):
Like every time he gets hit hard, they're like, oh,
yeah.
And I'm like, are you OK?
Yeah, yeah, and no.

Speaker 1 (13:17):
I'm not OK.

Speaker 3 (13:19):
So I would.
It reminds me of a show we hadin Brooklyn which was the first
ESPN show ever.
Um, it was like Joseph andCowboy Cerrone and uh, there
were a ton of great fights onthat card and I was interviewing
I want to say it was Paige VanZandt and uh, the crowd, joe was
fighting and I heard the crowdgo nuts and my I was.

(13:42):
I just froze and everyonearound looked at me and they all
gave me a big thumbs up so Iwas like okay, he's doing great
so this is fine.
And then I think they broughtcowboy over to me and cowboy was
like, isn't your man fighting?
I was like yeah, and he's likewe're not doing this.
And so because I've knowncowboy also forever in wc days,
and so he like he thankfullylike put a pause on it.

(14:03):
And then then I don't, I didn'twatch probably Joe's like last
10 fights.
I would set a timer on my phoneand I would go pray and then,
um, they would just tell me whenit was over or I would hear
whatever it might be, and so,yeah, then I would continue the
interviews.
But it's the most anxietyinducing thing because again, I
can't do anything and I love him, him so much and I would give
up everything in the world forhim to have whatever success he

(14:26):
wanted.
So it was very, verychallenging but more often than
not he was victorious and so itwould be fun and a great night
of work.
But yeah, it was definitely.
I don't know how I survivedthose moments truly.

Speaker 2 (14:38):
And did you have to interview the guys that he was
fighting?
Yeah, I was going to ask theguys that he was fighting.
Yeah, I was going to ask, yeah,yeah.

Speaker 3 (14:43):
I had to interview them.
You're a jerk, yeah, no, butyou know what?
I have got to commend all ofhis opponents that I had
interviewed before they foughtor in the lead up to a fight
with Joe.
Even once he had like bigrivalries with like a Henry
Cejudo, like they were all veryrespectful to me.
Um, in that in those scenariosand I think it's because, you

(15:06):
know, joe was always like aconsummate professional, he's
kind of like beloved in thesport um with his, through his
colleagues, that they knew likeI wasn't ever gonna treat them
disrespectfully or not give thema fair shake either, because
when Joe beat them I wantedpeople to be like, oh yeah, well
, that was a really good guy andshe still did a great job, you
you know.
So, yeah, I have to commend allof them, but it still wasn't
like the most comfortable thing,right?

Speaker 2 (15:28):
It doesn't seem like it yeah.

Speaker 1 (15:29):
I know that's got to be tough.
I don't know if I might want mywife to be able to do that.
Well, no, she'd be like goingsome.
Yeah, she'd very lucky.

Speaker 3 (15:48):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly and one thing I've
really I've been enjoying isyour coverage of the walkouts.
I know that's relatively new.

Speaker 1 (15:51):
Yeah, first of all, what uh pressure?
Because you have one shot?
Yeah, you have the crowd aroundyou people already see trying
to get you distracted,distracted and everything else.
And then you've got thefighters literally walking past
you as you're, you know, talkingabout their accolades and
bringing them into the to theoctagon.
Is that something you enjoy?

Speaker 3 (16:10):
It is so fun, I think , because it's like a high wire
act.
We so I have to give all thecredit in the world to our
producers, zach Candido, and ourteam, michael LaPlante, who
they once the ESPN deal started.
They had these ideas of thingsthey wanted to start
implementing into broadcast andit was kind of like, hey, we're
going to try this, but if youmess up, we're not going to do

(16:30):
it again.
So I would try not to mess up,and so I think it was the first
pay-per-view um with the ESPNdeal in Australia.
It was um.
It ended up being Stylebenderversus Anderson Silva, where we
started doing a couple ofreports and a couple of things
here and there and then we builtupon it and built upon it and
now it's, I feel, so fortunate,it's become like a staple of
shows.
And and um.

(16:51):
So basically, how it happens iswe, we do a rehearsal, I'll
write, you know, I'll talk tothe athlete, I'll write what I
think is the most interestingstory I can fit into 36 seconds
or less and then, um, rehearseit, and sometimes I'll have to,
like, cut things.
Sometimes I'll I'll work on theverbiage that I use because I'm
like, oh, I can fit this betterinto this time frame, and then

(17:13):
it's just, we have one rehearsaland then it's, it's go time
later in the night.
And, yes, it is.
It is uh, very high pressure.
It's the people, it's thelights, it's the I do six of
them in a night, you know.
So they're all memorized.
People think I have ateleprompter.
There are no teleprompters.
Yeah, I was one of them peopleno, no, we have no teleprompters
at all in our live broadcast.
So, um, when john annick doeshis pay-per-view stand up?

(17:35):
All of the reports that I do,they are all written by us,
memorized by us and then recitedby us.
So there's no, there's noassistance there so that seems
tough.

Speaker 2 (17:43):
That seems tough for like getting the right fight
stats right, like rememberingthe fight stats specifically is
tough yeah, yeah.

Speaker 3 (17:50):
For 300, I had like a report where I did a ton of
stats, and then for 302, I didlike the history of New Jersey
and it was all about like adifferent number of fights in
different parts of Jersey andpercentages of what I think like
53% were finishes or whateverit might be.
And so yeah it is.
It is difficult and it memoryplays so like such a huge role
into what I do, because if Ican't memorize those things and

(18:12):
recite them off the top of myhead, then we've got an issue.

Speaker 1 (18:15):
When I can't like do my job, yeah.

Speaker 3 (18:17):
And then when you add in the people walking by,
that's another layer.
And you know it's.
I just got ran over at 302 atthe end of one of them and
thankfully it was by the time Iwas off camera.
But you just keep going, youknow it's live.

Speaker 1 (18:30):
TV.
Tell me some tips on that.
Actually this is an interest tome because trying to memorize
stuff without a teleprompterit's not my forte.

Speaker 3 (18:40):
Yeah, it's very hard.

Speaker 1 (18:41):
What kind of tips have you had from early
journalism days to now?
Yeah, that you've done to getto where you're at.

Speaker 3 (18:47):
It's a great question .
I would say I do have a hugebenefit that I'm memorizing
things I wrote myself.
So I do think when you'retrying to memorize something
somebody else created for you,it can be a little more
challenging.
But you know, I started veryrocky with this part of my job.
I would try and memorize itword for word and if I could get

(19:08):
it out without messing it up,it didn't sound natural at all.
It sounded like I memorizedsomething and that's what I was
then reciting.
So now I've realized, likenumber one, you always have to
be factual, so everything has toremain correct.
But people don't know how youwrote it.
So you know if you forgot aline and then you kind of you
remember, like that's reallyinteresting, I want to put that

(19:28):
back in, like fit it in, it'sfine.
And so for me it's about makingsure like I'm not so tied to
exactly how I wrote it, but it'sthe idea of it, making sure the
facts stay correct, but it'sit's the key points that you
need to hit that are in thereand then you fill it with your
personality and different thingsexactly because if you get so
nervous and so tied to thisparticular way things are

(19:51):
written, it's not going to workout.
And that was like a pretty hardlesson I.
It took me years to learn and Ifeel like just now, in the past
couple of years, I'm startingto realize, okay, it's more
about like the vibe of what Iwrote than, okay, every single
thing.
And so, for memorization, mynumber one tip is like no one at
home knows what you're going tosay.

(20:11):
Now, oftentimes the order I dostuff has to be particular.
We have graphics made, we havefootage that's going to air, so
I can't mess that up.
But if I don't say a word thatI really liked in my script and
I'm like, oh darn it, that wouldhave been a better description,
all right, well, it happens.
So it's just not putting toomuch pressure on yourself and
not being married to the exactwords, but being more married to

(20:31):
the idea.

Speaker 2 (20:32):
Flex likes to picture everyone naked when he's doing
his interviews.

Speaker 1 (20:35):
I hope you're not doing that right now.
Definitely not.
Jay Rock got a haircut and nowhe's like.
Everyone's picturing me nakedfirst of all, or maybe him.
Her husband is watching andhe's a fucking badass, so
nobody's being pictured anythingnaked exactly.
We're sorry but have you hadany like cringe moments where
you've done something live andyou're like literally every show

(20:59):
.

Speaker 2 (20:59):
No every time she talks to Sean Strickland she's
probably like oh no, I love Sean, we love Sean too.

Speaker 3 (21:05):
I think if you would ask any of us like myself, john
Inek, daniel Cormier there isnot a show that goes by where
there's not a moment where we'relike, oh, I want to take that
back.
It just happens, and so youknow they describe it perfectly.
We have yet to be perfect on abroadcast and we probably never
will be.
Every single show I have, I sayor do something where I'm just

(21:27):
like well, how do I even have ajob?

Speaker 1 (21:29):
There's no way.

Speaker 2 (21:31):
It does seem.
It does seem that you have agreat like.
All of you guys have this kindof great relationship.
John DC and all of you are likehave this good, positive energy
type of a thing happening and Ifeel like you guys feed off of
each other very well.

Speaker 3 (21:45):
We are so lucky, specifically the pay-per-view
team.
You know Anik DC Rogan and I,and you know Buffer Dean Thomas,
like we're actual friends.
And so we are involved in eachother's lives.
We talk outside of work, youknow, and so it is like a family
for us, like if somebody needsto run to the bathroom, we know
the other person can cover awalkout, or if Daniel's getting

(22:08):
snacks, he's going to save somefor me, because he knows I'm
always hungry, you know.
And so I feel so lucky becauseoftentimes people do say that to
us Like, wow, you're fun tolisten to, because it seems like
you're you all get along, andwe genuinely get along and like
would do anything for each other, and I think that that helps so
much.

(22:28):
Um, because none of that has tobe faked and because we're
often talking about these fightsnot on camera and not at work,
so it's it's very easy to then,when the camera turns on, keep
the conversation rolling.
That's great.

Speaker 1 (22:40):
That's how we do.
Yeah, listen, the friendshipsare.
You know again whether it'sbeen years or whatever.
Chemistry is chemistry, right.

Speaker 3 (22:48):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (22:49):
And many of the guys you mentioned.
I have personal relationshipswith good guys.
Many have been to the gym hereas well, but again to the gym
here as well, but again when wewatch the broadcast team and all
the small little jokes andstuff that go along and it's so
authentic and and organic.
You really have such a greatteam from the outside in and I
know from just hearing that nowtoo is uh, it's great yeah, no,

(23:13):
thank you, and it's.

Speaker 3 (23:14):
It's not.
A day goes by, not a broadcastgoes by, where I don't like
literally thank the lord that Ihave the opportunity to do it,
because I know it's a job that alot of people want, but I also
know the working environmentwith those colleagues that I
share the broadcast air with.
I know that that's not the norm, and so to be able to have that
and to have a safe space when Igo to work every time with John

(23:36):
DC and Rogan, there's nothingbetter than that.

Speaker 2 (23:39):
It's also amazing what you know, the, the
transition of what the UFC hasdone.
I mean it's just fastestgrowing sport in the world,
right, maybe pickleball now, Idon't know, right, that's
popping up everywhere.
But truly is the UFC from thetime of the WEC to where it is
today and being a part ofsomething like that and growing
that, right, because you're apart of that, your face, your,

(24:01):
you know, you've been therethroughout this entire thing,
that's really special.
You know football's been arounda long time.
A lot of these other sports butlike UFC kind of came in and
just really, you know theystarted moving and they never
they've never stopped and youcan just see the continual
growth.
So it's it's, it's gotta bereally cool just to be a part of
that too.

Speaker 3 (24:19):
It is so cool.
It's so cool because the growthhas been exponential and it's
worldwide, right Like we goaround the world and everyone
still knows everybody, and theyunderstand that we could not
speak a similar language at alland not have a similar way of
life, but they completelyunderstand what our jobs are and
you know what the athletes aredoing, and so that is like a

(24:39):
phenomenon to just go anywherein the world and have the
octagon and what happens aroundit and in it so embraced right
but what I think like was crazyfor us was the whole covid
period.
I meet so many people on a dailybasis who are like I started
watching in 2020 and now I don'tmiss a single one.
It's like, well, we've beenaround way longer than that.
But okay, yeah, really smart, sosmart Fight Island like

(25:02):
literally changed so much for somany people, for both viewers
and for those you know who workinside of the organization.
But it the growth is crazy.
But from you know the beginningto where you know where we were
in those in the early 2000s, towhere we are now, and
specifically with the COVID fanswho got a taste and then never

(25:22):
looked away.
It's wild man.

Speaker 2 (25:25):
Genius on Dana's part 100%.
Super smart.

Speaker 1 (25:30):
You're talking about the new fans that are coming in.
Myself and my wife, when we gotogether, first of all, I mean
I'm a massive fan, that is mysport.
I've got to say outside ofrugby, otherwise I'll get killed
if I went back to this.

Speaker 2 (25:41):
What about weightlifting, bro?
I'm pretty sure you.
That's my favorite sport tofollow.

Speaker 1 (25:47):
Many may argue that bodybuilding might be a sport.
So you know I've got a lot ofgray area there.
But my wife started watching it.
Oh my gosh, we've been together12, 12 years, 13 years.
So I was watching it breakfasttime.
She's like, babe, turn that off.
And now, because we lived inSouth Florida, she got to know
the guys personally.
Rumble Johnson was one of mybest friends RIP Total
sweetheart and he was in myhouse, you know, a couple of

(26:09):
times a week.
Then I'd see him.
Wouldn't see him for a coupleof weeks, then I'd be back every
day in my house.
But we never talked about MMA,we were just true friends.
And then, as many others HenryHoof's guys, all at Kill Cliff
now yes.
And my brother was a strengthand conditioning guy at ATT when
the wars were going on.
Oh my God, so I remember when itwas, you know, Jack Gore and

(26:29):
ATT, Obviously all the guys areall kind of you know, put it to
bed now, but she came into thissport and what really helped her
was the embedded, all the stuffthat you could truly get to
understand and empathize with afighter, things that weren't
taught and told Outside.
You've seen two guys gettinglocked in a cage and they're

(26:51):
going to kick the crap out ofeach other.
That's the perception when youput a storyline and empathy to
something.
People love that and that's howthe UFC have done an incredible
job of putting these guys andgirls storylines out there so
you can truly fall in love witha fighter and the fight in a
secondary yeah, that is 100.

Speaker 3 (27:08):
The goal of what I do every day is to try to give
people a reason to care, asidefrom someone's fighting style or
if they're tuning in for thevery first time, like, oh, I
like that guy's shorts or I likehis haircut.
You know what I mean, becausesometimes people will be at a
bar and it'll be the first timethey ever see a fight.
I want to give people a reasonto care and a reason to
understand the journey, whatfight week looks like, what

(27:31):
going home will look like.
So if I can give people areason to care about the human
being, then I have done my jobwell.
Yes, I could talk about theirfighting style.
I am married to a fighter.
I grew up in a wrestlinghousehold.
I'm very well versed in all ofthat, but that's not my job and
that's not my goal.
My goal is to make every singlefighter feel like they have had

(27:52):
a platform to share their story, share their ups, share their
downs, share their journey tothis point and what their
journey might look like after,but also give all those viewers
at home a better insight intowho these people really are
outside of competitors.

Speaker 2 (28:07):
And it's really important because, like you know
, for me, you know, I rememberthe 24 seven.
Thing.

Speaker 3 (28:12):
Floyd Mayweather.

Speaker 1 (28:14):
I love that too.

Speaker 2 (28:15):
Love that and, honestly, those buildups for me
are just as good as the fight100.

Speaker 1 (28:19):
You know it's like sometimes it's almost better
sometimes I want to see themtraining.

Speaker 2 (28:24):
I want to see the, the trials and tribulations, and
I've, you know, obviously,through those shows and programs
I've, you guys have put me onto new fighters.
That's where I found conormcgregor, right, it was like on
one of these and I'm watching,I'm like I love this guy, like I
haven't even seen him fight yet, I've heard about him, and then
it's like that buildup when I'mfinally seeing him fight and
then go and I become a massivefan, right.
So those interest pieces Ithink are so important.

(28:46):
I think you guys have gotten itto a place where it's done
better than anyone else, likebetter than anyone else.
Boxing may have kind of starteddown some of those roads, but
like you guys have taken it toanother level.
The Ultimate Fighter even right,the Ultimate Fighter was like a
peek behind the curtain on withthese guys.
Obviously they're all stuck ina house, so it's a little
different, right, but there'sthose moments where they're

(29:07):
talking to their family andthey're about to go into a fight
and they're talking to theirkids and they're crying, right,
and you're seeing that these arereal people and look how many
guys have come through that the,the shawn o'malley's, etc.
Etc.
Right, yeah, and people forget,like you know, the.
The fight is the easiest part,right?
I mean the training up to thefight and the injuries and the
and all the sparring rounds andall these kind of things.

(29:27):
Like people think they justshow up and fight.

Speaker 3 (29:29):
Nah, like that, that training camp beforehand is
where you're really most likelyto get injured, right and so
like showing that struggle justto get into that ring, and a lot

(29:51):
of times these guys are walkingin 100%.
They call that the fight beforethe fight, the fight with the
scale, because they have toweigh a certain amount and
that's often what preoccupiestheir time.
You know, tuesday, wednesday,thursday, until they get into
the scale, and then they've gota whole fight to think about.
And you're right, no one everwalks into a fight healthy, no
one.
They might feel better thanthey felt other fights, but and

(30:12):
they're not going to makeexcuses they're still going to
walk in there and going to walkin there.
And whether the injury isphysical or whether it's
something they're carryingemotionally or mentally, you're
right, the challenges exist andgiving people a peek behind the
curtain doesn't just help thebrand.
It helps so much theindividuals, because then it
gives you a reason to care.
And these guys who have allowedthe cameras in or have allowed

(30:35):
the storytelling in, they'resome of our biggest stars today
because of it.

Speaker 1 (30:39):
Right, well, megan, he mentioned Conor McGregor.
What's going on with 303?
Come on, give us some news.
Come on, is he fighting or not?
I have no idea, but I'm likepraying that he is he has to.

Speaker 3 (30:50):
Yeah, because we've been waiting for this fight for
so long.
There's nothing like a ConorMcGregor fight Right and you
know it brings so many eyeballsto our broadcast so other
athletes get a huge shinebecause they fought the same
night as Conor.
It brings so much to Las Vegas.
Our city gets so muchconsumerism and people with

(31:11):
tourism who are coming in.
People want to spend money.
It's always a fun weekend whenyou get a Conor, fight it is, it
is, and personally working withConor McGregor, he's our
superstar, and so to be able towork with somebody like that,
you know it is a huge highlightas well, and so I am praying.
I have literally no idea.
So the last I heard is yes,everything's on, and hopefully

(31:32):
I'm interviewing him sometimebetween before 303 or before
fight week begins, but that'sall I know well, we all hope
it's gonna happen, because I'mthere's no bigger fan in this
room than me yeah, I gotpaintings back there in a corner
.

Speaker 1 (31:45):
I just didn't put them out he gets mistaken for
conor mcgregor.

Speaker 2 (31:47):
All the time.

Speaker 1 (31:48):
You won't believe it, and then and then, and when I
tell them it's not me and theyare this accent, they're like
yeah, okay, no, I know itdoesn't help if I go all places
and I'm with my friends at all,a lot taller than me and bigger
than me, yeah, and I'm kind oflike in the front walking like
you know.
They're like, oh, is that?
And all the guys?
Yeah, it is, wait.

(32:14):
And even if the guys watchinghim and I'd be sponsored by the
same supplement company andwe're two passing ships, we both
know of each other sure but uh,we've never.
We've never met.
I know hunter combo was tryingto put something together but,
interesting.

Speaker 2 (32:27):
How is he?
How is he on a personal side?
I mean, obviously he's got tokeep up with his public persona
right at times.
But, like when you have thosepersonal conversations, how is
connor?

Speaker 3 (32:37):
honestly, I can't say a bad word about him.
He, from day one, which was thevery beginning of his ufc
career, he has been nothing butkind, caring and truly
compassionate.
When it came to like joseph'stimes to fight, he would message
both of us.
He would message me likewishing him good luck and like
giving genuine, you know, adviceor um courtesies and things

(32:57):
that he cared about, and just hedidn't need to do that.
You know advice or umcourtesies and things that he
cared about, and just he didn'tneed to do that.
He, you know why would he evenknow that Joe was fighting?
You know he's, he's off on ayacht somewhere, but he, I can't
I literally cannot say a badthing about him.
He always asked about you know,me and and Joseph and and
things going on in life and hesees things that happen, like
when I got the, the, when Istarted doing the NFL, he knew

(33:19):
and congratulated me about itthe first time I saw him
afterwards and that was huge tome because, again, why you don't
need to know that, but the factthat you do and you remembered
it and you wanted to say it tome, that matters.
I I can't say a bad word aboutmy interactions with him in in
any capacity, personally orprofessionally.
He's he's great to me.

Speaker 2 (33:37):
It's great to hear.
Yeah, you know, because he'ssuch a big, he's such a big part
of the ufc and yeah I can'twait to see him fight.
I hope he does well.
I love michael chandler um, butI want to see a great fight
there.
You know him fighting.
I think it's just good for thesport in general I agree, I
agree and chandler.

Speaker 1 (33:51):
We actually sponsor at arsenal strength, so I have
to stay neutral there's aneutral, there's a neutral thing
happening.

Speaker 2 (33:57):
It happens a lot like that.

Speaker 3 (34:02):
Well, listen, nobody wants this fight to happen more
than Michael Chandler right.
Two years, yes, exactly.
So I hope for both of them, forthe sport, for everything, that
this comes together, and I alsohope that it comes together
without an asterisk.
You know like that there's notsomething wrong on either end,
or there's not going to besomething we find out later.
I hope it just comes together.
Everybody's healthy, everybodyis willing and ready to compete
and we get a great fight out ofit.

Speaker 2 (34:23):
It's a great point to make, because what I'm hoping
for is that Connor, in his lastfew fights, you know he's able
to, you know, really shine oryou know like the fights are
going in a way that he doesn'tend up like where Mike Tyson
started getting into these weirdfights biting people, or like
the fight would get stoppedbecause there's a low blow.
You know, like it wasn't likehis way out, didn't his way out

(34:45):
of the sport.
I felt like could have gone alittle better for him, right,
and I'm hoping that, conor, youknow, obviously he looks like
he's training hard and he justneeds to put a good performance
in for himself, which I think hewill.
But the knee or the leg injury,you know it's always a factor
as well, right, when these guyscome off these crazy injuries,
to tighten your shin, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 (35:06):
Well, yeah, cut it out.
I don't want to jump in your no, jump in, jump in, jump in.
I know you got that fuckingpretty haircut.

Speaker 3 (35:12):
I was only going to say oh, there's your compliment
there.
You go.

Speaker 2 (35:15):
I was only going to say and, as you, as you
mentioned the NFL right, likenow, you know, you didn't grow
up in an NFL house, right?
You grew up more in a fightinghouse and wrestling, so now you
got to jump into a new sport,right, and now you got to learn
about all these different thingswithin the NFL too, which I
feel like that's a giant task,yeah.

Speaker 3 (35:32):
Well, I watched football every single weekend of
my life.
So, like we, like, my familyparticipated in combat sports.
I played softball my whole lifeand then we watched football
and baseball every day.
So I had a great understandingof the game and big stars.
I grew up a New York Giants fanand so that was.
It was easy in terms of that.

(35:52):
But the world of NFLbroadcasting is so different
than what I do with the UFC, andeven just the rules of where
you can stand on the field,where you can go, what you can
do, what you can't do Most ofthat is audio.
You know you're hearing thereporter's voice.
You're not necessarily seeingthem a lot during the game.
So there was a lot ofadjustment, things I'm still
honestly adjusting to, and everyseason I'm like, oh yeah, okay,

(36:13):
we got to get back in the swingof it.
But it is unlike anything else.
Football is America's sport.
When I work a Fox NFL Sunday,it could be the worst game of
the week.
It's still an NFL game andthere's millions of people who
still very much passionatelycare, and so it is such a fun

(36:35):
balance between the world of UFCand what we do for our, you
know, eight hour broadcast andan NFL game where I'm not even
at the venue for eight hours.

Speaker 1 (36:44):
Right.
With all these new feathers youadd into your heart, how do you
balance personal life?

Speaker 3 (36:49):
Yeah, I prioritize that.
Like nothing comes before mymarriage and so if Joe can come
with me, if I have extra time,whatever it is like, I'm
devoting that to my personallife, my household, um, and you
know, I, my job is very timeconsuming, but it's something we
do together.
We watch all of the gamestogether, we watch fights
together.
Um, I'll run a lot of things byhim in terms of, like my notes,

(37:12):
or hey, I'm going to, I'm goingto interview him and I, I want
to say something like this youknow, and so we'll.
It's, it's very collaborativesometimes, yeah, um, but I don't
have a ton of personal time,but I try to make the most of it
.
My family and friends are all inthe East coast.
I try to do everything I can tosee them as much of the year as
I can.
I call them every day, I textall my friends all the time and,

(37:34):
um, but nothing.
I don't prioritize anythingLike Joseph comes first, my
household comes first, my familycomes first, and then after
that I get to do all theseamazing professional things, and
for me, that's like the perfectbalance.

Speaker 1 (37:46):
So you guys travel together.

Speaker 3 (37:48):
Yeah, yeah, he comes with me all the time.
If I have, like an NFL game ina cool city, I'll be like, hey,
I have to go to Chicago or Miamior whatever it is you want to
come, it's not like.

Speaker 2 (37:57):
you.
Don't have a cool job Rightexactly I have to, man.

Speaker 1 (38:04):
And then he'll go play pickleball in whatever city
we're in, for like five hours aday and then maybe go to a
museum and we'll have dinnertogether.

Speaker 3 (38:08):
So it's not like you know, there are days where I
can't really spend a ton ofhours with him, but we start the
day together and we end the daytogether more, far more often
than not and that is like what'smost important to me Can we
have coffee together in themorning and can we have dinner
together at night.

Speaker 2 (38:23):
I love that, you know , cause I think it's such an
important balance and you know,finding that, like I tell Flex
all the time, he's a great dad,you know, and that's that's
admirable for me.
You know, I don't have any kidsyet, only only the dogs.
But, like I appreciate, youknow, people who can push
themselves to the max but alsomake sure that they're they're
they're doing these things intheir life, that they need to to
have real fulfillment, becauseI've been around a lot of guys

(38:46):
who've been very successful andthey they left all those other
things in the past and nowthey're trying to go back and
figure those things out Right.
So it is a balance that has tobe carried and you know,
obviously you're carrying itvery well thanks, I try.

Speaker 3 (38:57):
To me it's like I don't, and I mean, I know I
could devote like more time tosocial media or all these extra
things, and it's something thatpeople I work with or you know
my representation or whatever,will be like oh, you could do a
little more.
That's going to take more timeaway from the things that are
important to me like I I'm suremy pocketbook would like it if I

(39:17):
did a little bit more, but likethat's not what's fulfilling me
everyday and I'd rather makethe sacrifices on those ends
than like do a poor job at workor do a poor job within my
household.

Speaker 2 (39:28):
I agree completely that's what's going to fulfill
you.

Speaker 1 (39:32):
I was going to ask your relationship with Dana.
I have a fantastic relationshipwith Dana.
He in fact, when I moved here,when I was building this gym out
, he found out him and HunterCampbell found out that I was
here in Vegas and I was watchingthe fights at the Apex during
COVID.

Speaker 3 (39:48):
I love it.

Speaker 1 (39:49):
So I seen you, but you were running around.

Speaker 3 (39:50):
I was going to say running around like a psycho.
I'm sorry, and we had to keep,you know, no-transcript.

(40:26):
You know, within the buildingthere was not a reason to give
me even a chance.
There really wasn't.
And he gave me a chance.
He gave me enough rope, youknow, to hang myself with if I
was going to, but I didn't, andyou know he allowed.
He believes in his people and healso believes in young people,
which I think is not usually thenorm with a business of that

(40:51):
size and of that profitability.
You know, our staff is veryyoung and the leaders of certain
departments or certain projectsare often very young and it's
not frowned upon.
Now there are people who havebeen with the company for a very
long time, and rightfully so.
But you know, I came in therein my early 20s and was given a

(41:11):
chance and I, you know, as longas I didn't squander it, then it
would be fine.
But that's not necessarily thesame opportunity I would have
been given with the NFL or with,you know, tennis coverage or
whatever it might be.
They're going to wait for amore seasoned veteran.
But he's very much aboutbuilding, you know, within and
getting somebody in there andbeing able to shape them and

(41:32):
help them learn while they'rethere.
But oftentimes some of the bestideas come from our youngest
staff members, and for me, Ithink that's always been huge,
because I've worked officiallyat the UFC for over 10 years now
, been an employee for over 10years, and not only am I so
blessed to have that longevitythere and fortunate that they've
kept me that long, but also,you know, I started young, and

(41:53):
everybody else pretty much didtoo, and we're able to grow and
adapt with the company and thechanging times, and I think he
deserves a lot of credit forthat too.
For for not like placing an agerequirement on people who are a
prejudice of like well, they're24, what could they know?
Well, actually, like withtiktok.
They know a lot and they'regonna grow.
So, yeah it, it is, uh, it'sreally cool and I a lot of the

(42:15):
very like neat ideas that yousee come especially on social
media or YouTube or whatever itmight be that is oftentimes the
foundation of that is built withsort of a younger generation in
the building.

Speaker 1 (42:25):
We can all see what he's done with Power, slap right
and the people that are in thecrowd there a very younger
generation and how that's beenable to propel itself through a
different view and thinkingpoint of having influencers,
athletes in the earlier powerslaps, you know, not open to the
public just to promote it.
Everybody's got a phone right.

(42:45):
Every scene is connectingculture right the way I see it,
he's got.

Speaker 2 (42:49):
he's got entertainers , he's got athletes, got UFC
fighters, and it's really likehe's he's blasting a wide
demographic of people to showthese people like, hey, blasting
a wide demographic of people toshow these people like, hey,
check out my new thing and it isdifferent right, like power
slaps, really different right.
And some people, you know, it'slike it's like they love it and
some people hate it.
But whether they hate it,they're still watching the clips

(43:09):
, right, but he's done a greatjob getting that in front of the
people yeah, absolutely, he'ssuper creative with all of that
any cool stories you want to sayabout Dana, or am I putting you
on the spot?

Speaker 1 (43:19):
I?

Speaker 3 (43:19):
wish I could.
I mean, he paid for myrehearsal dinner, my wedding.
He showed up, he was to beclear.
None of them were invitedbecause I didn't want to invite
Lorenzo, and obviously Lorenzo'snot going to come to my wedding
, but I didn't want him to feellike I invited him to get a gift
.
Do you know what I mean?

(43:43):
So I cause I, I, I just hateany of that.
I'm not here to ask for favors,I'm not here to like try and
get something out of you.
So they were all like sosupportive and so wonderful.
But my rehearsal dinner was atRed Rock and halfway through
Dana walks in with one of hiskids to sit down and have dinner
.
And I don't think it was acoincidence, I think that he
knew.
And then I was told, hey, yourbill's covered.
And then he had paid the bill.

(44:03):
So yeah, unbelievably generous.
Um, in no way, shape or formwould I have ever expected that.
And it was so kind and and hedidn't.
He didn't have to do that.
He didn't have to, but he choseto.

Speaker 1 (44:23):
Yeah, so many stories like that in this town with
dana's just come in and you know, uh, on one circumstance that
you heard that dana was in theright place right time and
somebody's getting married andyou give him five thousand
dollars, just for you know.

Speaker 2 (44:28):
good luck yeah, there's a lot of those.
I mean just literally this week.
You know I have a good friendof mine who's a veteran combat
veteran that connected with danaearly on.
He was like a guy in the crowdthat had a sign like I want to
come to the UFC, I want to meetDana, and Dana saw him in the
crowd and picked him out andthey built this relationship.
And you know this guy we justdid a veteran charity event

(44:50):
recently and he's been havingsome struggles ran into Dana you
know the VA check hadn't comeand he was just explaining some
of these things to Dana.
And next thing, you knew, danatook care of all the bills, you
know, took care of him at RedRock and and set the family up
and, like you know, there's nocameras around for that right,
it's, it's, it's a real thingthat he wants to help people and
and like for me, I like toalign myself with humans like

(45:11):
that right, even the way thecompany, the direction's moving.
I know sometimes there can be alittle political stuff that
kind of gets involved as welland I try to stay away from
politics and business, but thereis times you got to stand up
for the things that you believein, and Dana is that guy, you
know, and he does what he feelsis right and whether people like
it or they don't like it, youknow he pushes forward.

(45:33):
Unapologetic, yeah.
Yeah, I think that's really setthe tone for the company too,
Like getting through fightIsland, getting through some of
these other things you know, andforging ahead.
So it's like you know you havea company that is also, you know
, pushing forward, no matterwhat political.
We got a lot of differentthings happening in the country,

(45:54):
and it seems as though Dana ison the right side of those
things in my opinion.

Speaker 1 (45:56):
Yeah, it's a wild journey, man yeah, uh, I know,
obviously with the inclusion ofwwe.
Are you guys, you get involvedwith anything with the w?

Speaker 2 (46:03):
I am not personally and I don't think that the two
are mixing too much but there isa little bit of crossover, I
think, like marketing andsponsorship, I think a little
bit of production is gonna crossover yeah I just went to that
event the other day the apexright yes, and honestly, the
girls, the females, thewrestlers, like they, they were
impressive, like they did thischair or a ladder, a ladder

(46:25):
thing, and like I'm just like,look, I know that like this,
they're rehearsing these thingsand but they're still like yo,
you could break your arm rightthere.
And like the girl got thrownoff a thing onto a, onto a, a
table, and I'm like that tableis still a real table.
Yeah, I didn't you know.

Speaker 3 (46:41):
And I'm like, no, that yeah I went to a wwe event
a few years ago at at teammobile, and I think cm punk was
in it.
Because, because, we're reallyfortunate to have a great
relationship with him and hiswife.
I adore them as human beings,um.
But we went and I was like, oh,okay, and then the match
started.
I'm like, wait, is that a real?
Is that real?
Is that metal?
Right and then I startedgetting so scared for them.

(47:03):
I'm like what are we doing?
yeah, you know what I mean.
And I realized like, oh, all ofthis is real, they're.
And then I would ask, um, youknow punk and his wife about
like how well, how do you dothis?
And like, will you flex yourback like this to try to like
take the hit different you'restill taking, taking the hit
though.

Speaker 1 (47:17):
Yeah, you're still taking it.

Speaker 3 (47:17):
I had no concept of that.
I did not grow up watching WWEso I didn't know that.
Like everyone says, that's fakeright.

Speaker 2 (47:25):
I cried when I heard it was fake.
I know you probably did too.
It ain't fake.

Speaker 3 (47:29):
But they're right, because they're still very much
hurting themselves.

Speaker 2 (47:32):
Yeah, 100% they are.

Speaker 3 (47:33):
And so yeah, that makes me very nervous.

Speaker 2 (47:35):
It's still a lot of skill involved.

Speaker 3 (47:36):
Absolutely, absolutely.

Speaker 2 (47:38):
I imagine they must practice so much just to get,
because there's so many timeslike their heads come in this
close.
No, I can't handle it Togetting hit here or this and
it's like it is impressivebecause that was actually the
first time I've ever actuallygone to one in person who do you
think would be a great wrestlerfrom coming out of the UFC.

Speaker 1 (47:53):
Good question, so many of our guys.
Well, yeah, conor would begreat, chael would be good.

Speaker 3 (47:57):
Chael would be amazing.
I think so many of our rosterwould be great because so many
of them are actually like veryfunny, very witty, very smart.
You kind of like have to be tobe in a gym full of bros right
and fight each other every day,and so I do think that there
could be so many great crossoverstars.
I wish I knew the WWE rosterwell enough to know, like, who

(48:20):
could come from that worldpotentially into ours, um, but I
think that that would be reallyfun to see.
I just don't want it to blurthe lines of people
misunderstanding, like ours arevery much not predetermined.

Speaker 2 (48:30):
I want to see these guys start crossing over into
power.

Speaker 1 (48:32):
Slap like I want to see so she's like no, I like
these guys too much.

Speaker 2 (48:37):
She says I think the crossover stuff is interesting
right like what do you feel likewith these ufc boxing thing?
That's kind of happening yeah,jake paul, right like he's, he's
been doing this thing like doyou like that?
Do you think it's good for thesport?

Speaker 3 (48:51):
I mean, I don't particularly watch jake paul
fights, but I have nothingagainst them.
Like, if people are gettingpaid and they want to be doing
the thing they're getting paidfor, no one's forcing them, it's
.
It's a fun adventure for them.
More power to you.
Make your money.
The the lifespan to uh create aa large, you know, bounty of
wealth in this particular formof work is not huge.

(49:13):
You can't do it forever andnever.
So if you have theseopportunities that excite you
and you want to do it and you'regetting paid, well, like, go
for it.
Why?

Speaker 2 (49:21):
Why not?
I agree.
I feel like he's opened up.
You know, a lot of people don'tlike him, you know whatever,
but when people don't like you,they still watch.

Speaker 3 (49:28):
Right, sure, I mean people 50, 50 were with Floyd
Mayweather Right.

Speaker 1 (49:31):
Exactly, but they watch or they're watching for
you to win right, and they'restill in the comments too.
Spiking the algorithm.

Speaker 2 (49:39):
But like now it's opened up this lane and we're
seeing maybe a Ryan Garcia who'slike in his prime now coming
into the UFC, because we've seena lot of boxers in the past
come who were past their primeand you know some things like
that.
But it would be interesting tosee guys at the top of their
game.
Sugar Sean is talking aboutfighting a boxing match, right.
So like, those are interestingto me, you know, but like I

(50:01):
don't know if, like in yourcommunity, it's like eh, we
don't like it.

Speaker 3 (50:04):
I think there's a lot of differing opinions with that
and I, you know, I think it alldepends, right, Like, if Sean
goes over there, does thatimpact how he comes back for a
fight, his health, all of thosethings?
I think that's it can muddy thewaters a little bit, but in
terms of like the actual justidea of it, if Sean can do it,
he's allowed to do it and canget paid and it's something he
wants to do.
But come back because he wantsto do that too.

Speaker 2 (50:25):
Sounds entertaining as shit, right.
Like to see Sean and RyanGarcia box sounds entertaining.
You know even Jake and NateDiaz and I know it's BFL, but
like them fighting in MMAmatches interesting, you know
it's entertainment, right.

Speaker 3 (50:38):
Yeah, but to be fair, I don't think we need it.
I think we have got like plentyof very interesting matchups,
storylines, things to unfold.
I mean, we just had a flyweightworld title, pantoja versus
Steve Erseg, and I think peoplewere like, who's Steve Erseg?
And they were kind of like notreally into it because they're
like there's no more flyweightcontenders right now.

(50:58):
Um, and then it was like anincredibly close fight that was
so entertaining and he learnedso much about steve ursic
through that performance, whereit's like, even if you think
that there's not somethingnecessarily to be made, that's
like very interesting, there'salways something to be made
that's very interesting is thereany fighter that you've
interviewed in the early stages?

(51:19):
that has blown all expectationsI mean all of them, uh, off the
top of my head.
I mean I think, like seano'malley is a great example of
that, because oftentimes peopledo tell me, um, their hopes and
dreams, and they do talk aboutwhen I'm champion or when I'm on
the top, and that is such asmall percentage that it ever

(51:39):
comes to fruition, for, butsean's a guy that, like he
always could get there.
So he, off the top of my headyou know Islam always kind of
thing, knew he was going to bechampion.
And now not only is he championbut he's like a massive star
and he, for me, is such a funinterview.
If I can get Islam to laugh orto crack a smile, I'm like, yes,

(52:04):
I've done my job.
But yeah, even guys like LeonEdwards I interviewed him back
in the day and he has such suchan interesting story and so now
to see him become champion andget like the recognition that
you know he so rightfullydeserves and has earned, has
been really cool as well can Ijump in with a question for you?

Speaker 1 (52:20):
let's have voice.

Speaker 4 (52:21):
I know so when, I started producing these podcasts
for Flex, I ran into a lot ofbodybuilders that I was never
expecting to meet, and one ofthe things that I took away from
it was this immediaterecognition for how reps changed
their life, whether that wasbusiness or working out or
whatnot.
And the people that yousurround yourself really change

(52:41):
who you are.
And I'm curious if you have anyparticular lessons that you've
seen by hanging out with some ofthese massive freaks of all
freaks, these fighters.
What's like the lessons thatmight pertain to other people's
lives that you've learned fromthem?

Speaker 3 (52:53):
I mean just the fact that the background so many of
them have come from and wherethey have never gotten
distraught or given up andthey've just pressed forward,
and where they are now and a lotof people who have found levels
of success that a lot of ourfighters have found could rest
on their laurels.
But they don't.
I mean my own husband.
I very much like findinspiration from every day, from
the way he he grew up to.

(53:14):
You know he should have nevereven made it, let alone, you
know, creating a weight class inthe UFC to where he is today,
and and every day he gets up andhe is motivated to do things
for our family and for himself.
And so I think like surroundingyourself with people who make no
excuses and who don't let theircircumstances define who they
are, whether those circumstancesare terrible or whether they're

(53:37):
unbelievably great.
That is something that I'vereally learned.
Like you have got to earn yourjob every single day, and so
that's like what I try to dowith every single broadcast I am
a part of, but it's also justhow I try to live my life,
because I've watched it work forso many people, but I've also
watched it maybe not work forpeople and they still don't give
up and they're still greathuman beings, and so that's like

(53:59):
that's what I've learned fromthe people that I'm around a lot
Is that part of your narrativeCause you came from like humble
beginnings.

Speaker 4 (54:05):
You wanted to be a gymnast and then, like you know,
those beginnings didn'tnecessarily go in the gymnastics
route and I think part of thatwas resources.

Speaker 3 (54:11):
Oh yeah, no, we couldn't afford to gymnastics.
It's super expensive.
Um, yeah, and I was very.
Yeah, I was very good.
Uh, because I'm not large, asyou pointed out.

Speaker 1 (54:21):
Oh my gosh, Wow, I was the last one in the seat.
No, I love that.
I love that.
Just for the viewers to know,tyus called Megan short when she
jumped on, was she short orsmall?

Speaker 4 (54:32):
I think I said she's the smallest person that's sat
on the chair.
Also compliment I appreciate it.

Speaker 3 (54:37):
I will take it, but anybody else who's sat in?

Speaker 1 (54:39):
that chair.
That's the worst word they canuse.
No, give it to me, the smallestperson to be here.

Speaker 3 (54:44):
Yeah, no.
So I think resources are a hugething, and oftentimes I think
that's what draws people tocombat sports, because you don't
really need a lot right Like.
You can learn to box withouteven boxing gloves.
You can learn on you know justshadow boxing.
Or you can learn by somebodyelse.
You can learn to wrestlewithout really anything.
Maybe you get a pair ofwrestling shoes and you're good,

(55:05):
and so I think that is whatdraws people to certain sports,
even things like soccer.
You don't need much to be ableto accomplish it, and so I think
watching all those journeys orwatching people being drawn to
certain things and findingsuccess in them, regardless of
their circumstances, to me isinspiring every day day.

Speaker 1 (55:24):
Yeah, pushing past pain and just overcoming
obstacles right and using, youknow, your, your pastor's trauma
to get you through a lot ofstuff I think, that that's a a
transcending thing that we seein bodybuilding, in strongman,
which we've had the privilege ofinterviewing the best, the best
in that that exec chair, jellyRoll, was one of them.
Guys too, you know, sticking tohis vision, his morals.

(55:46):
And again, it's been the longroad and I knew him way, way
back 15 years ago To see him gofrom rap to country and find his
voice.
Everybody's got a story rightand if you want to control the
narrative, just put your heartback to front and work yourself
out of any situation so you canbe a success story to tell
anybody else and tell everybodyelse on a podcast or friends

(56:10):
around you to motivate them.
And the UFC are full of themstories and the majority of them
, if not 99%, they're all humblebeginnings and not coming from
any silver spoon and wanting tochange their life.

Speaker 3 (56:21):
A hundred percent and still kind of like sticking to
those thoughts that got them towhere they are.
So they might have all thesuccess in the world now and
they might have their ownfamilies, but they're still very
much that person from 20 yearsago and that's instilled in them
as as they move forward.

Speaker 1 (56:36):
And that's what I love about Connor, because he
still has the same circle offriends that he had from his
very early days.

Speaker 2 (56:43):
And also he doesn't need to fight anymore.

Speaker 1 (56:45):
That's what I was getting at.
He doesn't need to fightanymore.

Speaker 2 (56:48):
He can go be on his yacht, right, but there's
something inside him.
He's a fighter at heart.
That's who he is and he mighthave got away from that a little
bit shooting movies.
He beat the game, but he'scoming back to fight, doesn't
have to.
He wants to prove something andI respect that, like that's who
he really is at heart.
He's he's.
He's helped his family but it'sstill in him and I love that

(57:10):
about him.
And all those guys are likethat right, it's like they're
pushing through pain.
You know they just lovefighting right After the careers
are over.
They're missing that crowd,they're missing some of those
things you know.
And so you, like you said youonly have so much time that you
can.

Speaker 1 (57:23):
You can capitalize and make money in the sport yeah
, in wrapping up, this, tie uswhile we have a time.
We're at an hour.
Oh we go.
Cool, you kind of landed inthis ship.
You can have one more questionone more.
Okay, I have I have a good one,okay, and I go.
One more too is I have two, onefrom the fans, oh my God.
And then, and and this ispersonal, is there anybody that

(57:45):
you've seen that you thought, ohman, I wish you stayed retired.
I wish you retired a long timeago.
Or am I putting you on the spot?

Speaker 3 (57:53):
No, I think, Put her on the spot.
No, no, no, I.
I think that more often thannot, if someone starts speaking
about retirement, it's probablytime to retire.
There are so many athletes andI just want to say athletes,
because it's not just aboutfighters it can be football

(58:14):
players, baseball players,whoever it is, who will be able
to compete with the best, orwith most of the best, for a
really long time, with most ofthe best for a really long time,
and I think that is alwaysappealing to athletes to be like
well, I can still hit this manyhome runs, or I can still get
this many sacks, or I can stillbeat this many guys in my
division.
I think that will be there.
I mean, they could be 50 yearsold and probably find some level

(58:37):
of success if they want to.
But I think that to not makethe sport retire you and to
choose to retire is such abeautiful thing, because not
generations before this haven'treally had that pleasure of
being able to retire before.
The sport does it for them, andso for me, I always feel like

(58:57):
if they are thinking aboutretirement, if they're grappling
between the decision ofretirement or not, I hope that
they have the real conversationwith their family and choose the
path that's right for them.
And I think when people retire,it's probably in their best
interest to always stay retired.
I think that there's success tobe found, of course, in these
opportunities that may come out.

(59:18):
Hey, come out of retirement forone more fight.
Joseph retired and literallywithin three hours had a very
big boxing offer in our, in hisinbox and I'm like hey, I love
you, but like you came out inone piece, you might not come
out in one piece after atraining camp and another fight,
and that's where I feel like wewere so lucky he got to choose

(59:41):
when he retired, he made theright financial decisions while
he was fighting to be able toretire and we could have a
conversation together.
I know that's not the case formany athletes.
I think it is a lot more movingforward, but you know,
previously I don't think thatwas huge, so the temptation
could be there.
But it's like what are yousacrificing potentially to come

(01:00:03):
out of retirement, as opposed towhat the benefits are for what
you could get?
So I do think retirement is avery, very delicate topic.
I think it is a struggle forall athletes.
They probably need a lot moreresources in terms of mental and
emotional help for thattransition of life, because you
go your whole life being anathlete to not you can't just

(01:00:24):
turn it off.
Right and crowds and what's mypurpose now and what am I good
at now?
And I would love like genuinelylove to try and figure out a
way I could put togetherresources and even workshops and
stuff for athletes to figureout, like what their next paths
are, and preparing people forretirement, which Joe does now
in his post-retirement life.
He helps guys figure out how toinvest in properties and how to

(01:00:47):
have income while they're stillfighting and then how to build
equity, because that's whatallowed him to retire.
But I think retirement is sucha sensitive topic that they need
more abilities and tools tocope and make that transition
easier so they don't have tocome out.

Speaker 1 (01:01:00):
There's nothing worse than seeing an athlete that
retires in my eyes and goes outin style.
Everybody makes a big fuss andthen he's coming back.
It's like oh.

Speaker 3 (01:01:10):
Remember we did that whole thing for you for seven
minutes in the broadcast.

Speaker 1 (01:01:14):
Dana was like you're not getting it.
Somebody put their gloves down,we won't have to mention the
input.
Somebody's like we're not doingthat all over again.
I feel like dustin is at thatcrossroads where he's spoken
about it briefly and and I canonly attest because I went
through so many injuries for somany of them titles.
Not once did I think aboutretirement, but to your point,
the moment it popped in my head.
It was a hard fight for me toto put at bay and I tried.

(01:01:39):
I thought it was a test fromgod and I kept fighting and
fighting, and fighting, monthsand months and months, and then
in the end it was like now maybethis is the sign for me to exit
.

Speaker 2 (01:01:48):
And it was and it's also tough.
I mean, you were seven time MrOlympia, you know, so you had
already gotten to the top of themountain.
You know, I just really wantedto win that title.
I'm still in.
Dustin is a great example.
He's still competing at thehighest level and he almost beat
Islam.
Yeah, right, so it's tough tolike walk away.
I feel like at that point andsome of the guys who just never

(01:02:11):
made it to their, to that, tothat moment that they've always
wanted it's hard to walk awayfrom that.
Right, and maybe financiallythey didn't build themselves
during that period of time aswell, right, so Financially they
didn't build themselves.

Speaker 3 (01:02:24):
You know during that period of time as well.
Right, so that becomes a factorin life.
Yeah, what are you fighting for?
You know, and you have toreally have those honest
conversations with yourselvesand your loved ones to figure
that out.

Speaker 2 (01:02:31):
Yeah, it's tough.
Well, I was actually just goingto bring up a point because you
know I've been a fight fan along time and Joseph right,
scrap pack.
We have a suit for you withStitch, and I don't know if
that's something that he stillhas going on.

Speaker 3 (01:02:45):
Oh, Dapper Scrappers.

Speaker 2 (01:02:47):
Yeah, dapper Scrappers right, Dapper
Scrappers.

Speaker 3 (01:02:49):
I messed it up.
No Scrap Pack is like GilbertMelendez and the Diaz Brothers.
Okay, yeah, you're right.

Speaker 2 (01:02:54):
So the Dapper Scrappers and I remember this
from back in the day becauseI've been with Stitch now it's
11, 12 years, right, and so theDapper Scrappers was a thing
that was around early on andI've always paid attention and I
know Joseph was the guy whostarted that whole thing?

Speaker 3 (01:03:07):
Yeah, he created it.
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:03:07):
So I'm just wondering if he's still stylish, if he's
still doing all that stuff.

Speaker 3 (01:03:10):
I first of all, best question.
I love this because, no, I'mfrom J-Rock best guy.

Speaker 1 (01:03:17):
No.

Speaker 3 (01:03:18):
I love this.
So Dapper Scrappers.
It was amazing the way theathletes would be like Megan, is
Joe coming, is Dapper Scrappershere.
I got the best outfit and itwas so cool because they fight
in a uniform or they fight, youknow, guys are just wearing
these little shorts.
They don't get to show who theyare, even on their walkout
clothes and it's not like reallythe NFL, where you know, when

(01:03:43):
they come in for game day we'redisplaying, displaying their
outfits and you know, or and thenba this, their pre-game fit,
um, and so the way the athletesembraced it was so awesome and
joe has just always lovedfashion.
He's always um expressed himselfthat way.
That's what I do on broadcast.
We are very much like clotheshogs, um, but he loved it.
So the reason it kind of sloweddown or stopped was during
covid.
They couldn't come and getaccess.
You know that everything wasclosed off media days where
people were just wearing theirprovided fight kits to stuff

(01:04:07):
because there was nobody able toreally be there.
It's funny that you bring thatup because somebody just asked
him to kind of revive it andwant to do all this stuff.
So maybe Stitched and DapperScrappers can figure a plan out
because the way the athletesembraced it was so beautiful
that it's like that that wastheir platform for it.

Speaker 2 (01:04:27):
So yeah, I was just a fan and it stood out to me,
obviously, I was in fashion too,and I was like, oh, I love this
, you know, and I always kind ofwanted to understand, you know,
if that was still going,something he's still passionate,
oh yeah, no, still loves it Imean he, he owns the website and
the instagram and the, thetrademark and all that.

Speaker 3 (01:04:43):
It's still like super important to him.
I think it was just about likethe access and then he retired
and it was like figuring out hislife before we went back to
that.

Speaker 1 (01:04:50):
Yeah right yeah, we got one question from the fans
and I kind of fall in jayrock'sbest question.
Anyways, it's not as good ashis question, but nonetheless,
do you have any hidden talentsor skills that people might be
surprised to learn about you?

Speaker 3 (01:05:08):
Oh, I mean, I'm a good cook.

Speaker 1 (01:05:10):
I've seen you cooking , yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:05:11):
Italian.
Yes, yes, I'm a good cook.

Speaker 2 (01:05:14):
What's your dish?

Speaker 3 (01:05:15):
Well, I make all my pasta from scratch.

Speaker 2 (01:05:17):
She does.

Speaker 1 (01:05:17):
She posts it on Instagram.

Speaker 3 (01:05:18):
Yeah, yeah, I pretty much make.
Every meal is pretty much fromscratch in my household and I
usually make three meals a day.
So yeah, no, I'm like a bigcook, I'm an alright baker, I'm
pretty good.
I have this weird okay, this isa weird hidden talent.
I wish Joe was here to at leastattest for me.
But when people sample a songin their I'll know right away

(01:05:39):
like oh, that's this old song,joe will be like how do you do
that?
But my brain just kind ofoperates that way.

Speaker 2 (01:05:44):
I get it because I'm a dude, that I have a lot of
handshakes.
People are always like how doyou remember that handshake?

Speaker 3 (01:05:48):
Yeah, you guys have the craziest handshake.

Speaker 1 (01:05:51):
It's evolving too.

Speaker 2 (01:05:53):
I wish I was good at math, but handshakes, I'll take
it.

Speaker 1 (01:06:03):
Yeah, I don't know where, how many times and where
we've been, but people will comeup to him that he's known for
all these years.
Sometimes he hasn't seen herfor a long time.
And it's this guy and I'm likewhat the heck is?
It's so impressive.

Speaker 3 (01:06:14):
You guys threw.
I had no clue that was coming.
When you gave each other thehandshake today, I was like what
is happening?
I feel like I shouldn't be here.

Speaker 2 (01:06:21):
Ty is the voice from God over here.
He gets nervous every time Iput my hand out.

Speaker 4 (01:06:25):
Yeah, I'm just afraid to bring it.
I don't want to embarrass you.

Speaker 1 (01:06:30):
Before we break.
I was actually intended to dothis at the beginning of the
show, but big day.

Speaker 2 (01:06:36):
This is coming off, there we go.

Speaker 1 (01:06:38):
Take it off.
I can't believe it.
It's about time.
Look at that.
I had the clearance yesterday.

Speaker 2 (01:06:45):
It's been messing with our PPP time.

Speaker 1 (01:06:46):
It's been messing with our training session.
So I have this incredible gym,but we still end up training in
the garage in the house.

Speaker 3 (01:06:52):
Yeah, yeah, believe it or not.

Speaker 2 (01:06:54):
Believe it or not, does it?

Speaker 3 (01:06:54):
feel free.
I mean it's 105 degrees, soalone that has to feel great to
have off.

Speaker 1 (01:06:59):
To be honest, that thing is a pain in the ass.
It's not meant for anybody withoversized forearms and biceps,
so this thing would go up anddown and up and down and up.
It served a purpose in public,so nobody would come and
manhandle me, right?
I got a lot of wild fans thatagain lose all inhibitions when
they see me, so that kind ofgives them the stand back.

(01:07:20):
And the doctor basically saidto me me, you can start taking
it off now, but I got to wear itaround the gym, so I put it on
for us to walk around.
I forgot I had it on, butnonetheless it's a.
It's a brand new day looksfreeing looks very freeing good
for you.

Speaker 3 (01:07:31):
I can't believe I got to witness it yes, yes, it was
all for you.

Speaker 1 (01:07:33):
Thank you, even though you have the best
question, uh, but nonetheless,uh, it's, it's been an absolute
pleasure.
Thank you guys for you guys,thank you for your time.
And before I go, I have to saywe have somebody who's very near
and dear to me, okay, and amutual friend, ryan Loco.

Speaker 3 (01:07:48):
Oh my God, I love Ryan Loco and I have known him
since before I even worked inthe.
Mma space.
I met him at a party, which isessentially how it ended up
taking the steps that I workedin MMA and moved to Las Vegas,
and Ryan has always been Ryan.
He is the best guy in the wholeworld, he's the most genuine
human being ever and I just Iabsolutely adore him and I love

(01:08:09):
that you guys have that incommon.

Speaker 1 (01:08:11):
So we met South Florida through again.
What is that the Jackal?
When did he went to whatever hewent to before Kill Cliff, all
the other things, whatever itwas, when, oh my God, glenn
owned Jacko?

Speaker 3 (01:08:24):
And then he went somewhere else.

Speaker 1 (01:08:25):
So I met him there because I loved his photos,
because he was taking highimpact photos.
So I said to him and I don'tlike to follow the sheep.
So I said, hey, can I hire you?
At the time I had a privatefacility which ended up morphing
into what you see now, and meand Ryan met.
We drove again, we met in amutual area and it was at that

(01:08:50):
way.
Actually, we're gonna havedinner, that's right.
So I pull up.
I meet Ryan for the first time.
We've spoken on Instagram andtext and I went to buy food.
I left my freaking wallet.

Speaker 3 (01:08:59):
No, so the first time I know, I know.

Speaker 1 (01:09:04):
The first time we meet, I didn't have my wallet to
buy him dinner.
And then I'm like, I promiseyou if this relationship is not
a piece of shit.
Yeah, yeah but myself and ryanum have a fantastic relationship
and it, you know, grew intosomething really much more than
that, obviously.
Now we met holly and everythingelse, um and we.
I would say this ryan was theonly photographer I around I

(01:09:29):
allowed to be around me in myolympia prep, because everybody
else had an mo.
Ryan would come in and Ihonestly this guy is so talented
, bro you tick and then he'd beon his phone tweeting and that
would drive me nuts.
But it was Ryan local, but heknew when to pick up the camera
and when not.
And Ryan came out of retirementto shoot video for me.

(01:09:50):
He said I'm not doing this foranybody, don't fucking tell
anybody, but I'm doing it justfor you.
So he came out of retirement toshoot something, going into the
Mr Olympia for me.
So Ryan has captured some of mybest black and white photos in
the moment unstaged.
And again, you've been to SouthFlorida many times and Ryan
tried to connect all of us atone point in time.

(01:10:10):
Obviously, it never happened.
I had to wait another six oreight years to meet you in the
flesh, but nonetheless, he is agent and I know that you have a
great relationship with Ryan too, so shout out to.

Speaker 3 (01:10:22):
Ryan yes, he deserves all the best things in life.

Speaker 1 (01:10:25):
I love him, yeah well , I think, uh in, uh, in closing
this episode, my producer juststepped out the door.
Here he is, he's back, he isback, he is back, he is back.
And and we are at the door uh,I know, anyway, I'll ask that
question later but I hope that'sa beautiful suit out there.
Or they've come to the gym.

Speaker 2 (01:10:45):
They have come to the gym.

Speaker 1 (01:10:46):
I think that was the knock, actually, wasn't it?
All right, Okay.
Well, on that note, while youhave something arriving for you
outside the door, again, just topick up what I said pleasure,
Looking forward to seeing you inmuch more UFCs.
Know that you recognize asConor.

Speaker 3 (01:11:00):
McGregor from Wish yes, I'll see you, hopefully at
303.

Speaker 2 (01:11:04):
Good 303.
As long as Conor's there, we'llbe there.

Speaker 1 (01:11:08):
I haven't cashed our favoritism with Hunter until you
know, but I'm going to messagethem and say Megan told me to
hit you up and say oh, no, no,no.

Speaker 3 (01:11:23):
Oh no, we were good.
I don't know.
Megan said we're good.
She said press passes.
I don't know what she's talkingabout.
She's got no, you're like, whyisn't Megan on the 303?

Speaker 1 (01:11:27):
broadcast.
Well, she did a podcast.
Well, exactly, exactly.
Well, on that note from myself,j-rock and Megan, we are out.

All Episodes

Inside the UFC | Megan Olivi | Straight Outta The Lair Podcast

Episode Transcript

Popular Podcasts

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

The Breakfast Club

The Joe Rogan Experience

.css-15opob5{left:0;position:absolute;top:0.8rem;} All Episodes

.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Inside the UFC | Megan Olivi | Straight Outta The Lair Podcast