The Level Change Podcast · Combat Sports news variety show usually previewing or reviewing the latest UFC event while covering the latest news in combat sports.

Conor's wild weekend, new MMA rules, UFC 292 picks

·1 hr 3 min·4 clips

Aljamain Sterling says, "I just want to get ahead of it before it gets ahead of me."

1. The Level Change Podcast episode 258 covers UFC 292, UFC Vegas 78, and several MMA headlines. 2. Steffi Haines hosts with Victor Rodriguez, and both are central because they react to fight news and rule changes as analysts. 3. The episode exists to sort through ABC rule updates, UFC roster news, and ringside chaos from recent events. 4. The first rule discussed lets a cut man enter immediately after a foul or accidental headbutt and work on the cut during a five-minute recovery window. 5. Victor compares that change to open scoring in Invicta because both alter fight behavior while the action is still unfolding. 6. The second rule gives fighters more time after an eye poke before a doctor checks vision, including a cold compress for one to 90 seconds. 7. Steffi argues that the referee should have a more active role in stopping eye pokes, while Victor says the rule is the most net positive of the new changes. 8. The third rule concerns how referees restart stalling fighters after a foul, warning, examination, or point deduction. 9. Victor brings up Paul Guantello and Cheick Kongo to explain how fighters sometimes try to game positional resets. 10. The Aljamain Sterling segment centers on his line that there is a "99" chance he vacates the belt after the fight. 11. Sterling says he walks around between 165 and 170 pounds and is "a little bit over cutting weight," which makes the move feel practical rather than dramatic. 12. He also says it is Merab Dvalishvili's time, linking his own title decision to his teammate's career path. 13. The UFC 292 portion explains that Cody Garbrandt was removed from the card and replaced by Daman Blackshear on one week's notice. 14. Steffi and Victor frame that switch as good news for Garbrandt because Mario Bautista would have been a difficult matchup in Garbrandt's recent form. 15. A UFC Vegas 78 broadcast graphic claimed Tufan Chukwi was the only Cameroonian fighter in UFC history, which prompted pushback from Francis Ngannou. 16. The hosts correct the record by naming Judo Terry Sokuju as the first Cameroonian UFC fighter and note that Francis Ngannou was actually the second. 17. The episode's tone is conversational and opinionated, with Steffi and Victor interrupting each other, laughing, and reacting in real time to the headlines. 18. The format moves quickly from rules to roster updates to media drama without a long interview segment. 19. MMA fans who follow UFC rule changes and fighter-news updates will get the most out of this episode. 20. Listeners looking for a tightly focused single-topic breakdown may skip it.

As heard by us

Fight-week MMA talk that turns selective history into the main event.

Episode 258 of the Level Change Podcast, with Steffi Haines and Victor Rodriguez, covers UFC 292, looks back at UFC Vegas 78, and runs through a stack of MMA headlines.

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Why you'd press play

You want a UFC 292 check-in with fight-week churn and the sport's memory problems.

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