JNPO: The History of UFC in Boston, part 2
In part 1 of my look back at the history of UFC shows in Boston, special guest Jack Encarnacao (Boston Herald, Sherdog, Lapsed Fan) and I discussed how MMA was legalized in Massachusetts, the James Toney-Randy Couture fight, the night Joe Lauzon briefly became a god, and Conor McGregor’s big week in the city as he prepared to fax Max Holloway deep on the undercard.
We move ahead to two Fox Sports 1 events, one headlined by McGregor in his last stop before superstardom and the other headlined by a returning bantamweight star after a multi-year absence due to injury.
We talk about the feeling inside the building when McGregor jumped the cage to confront Jose Aldo, the change in Travis Browne’s demeanor after a controversial win over Matt Mitrione, and our talks with a Boston sportswriter who was relatively new to the sport.
After that, we look at Saturday’s UFC 220 show where Jack argues that heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic, and not Francis Ngannou, could be a bigger star in the sport with a win.
Since 2011, Josh has been a contributing editor to Wrestling Observer/F4WOnline.com and also hosts the Punch-Out podcast. He has also written for Fight Magazine, Bloody Elbow, Bleacher Report, and other websites. He's a 2000 graduate of the University of Maine, worked in pro sports, and once was an indie ring announcer.