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.

Juliana Miller discusses surgery recovery, sponsors, training at Sikjitsu

·55 min·3 clips

Miller says a left-arm pop in the cage led to a full labrum tear confirmed weeks later by MRI.

1. The Level Change Podcast centers on Francis Ngannou's fight with Tyson Fury and Juliana Miller's recovery after shoulder surgery. 2. Steffi Haines hosts with Victor Rodriguez, and Juliana Miller appears as the bonus interview guest after winning The Ultimate Fighter 30. 3. The episode asks what Ngannou's performance against Tyson Fury changes for boxing, the UFC, and PFL. 4. Haines says she watched the Fury fight four times and still thinks Ngannou won because of the knockdown and the bigger moments. 5. Rodriguez says he only saw the fight once, missed round one, and understood why Fury got the decision even though he disagreed with it. 6. The hosts read reactions from Roberto Duran, Chris Eubank, Mike Tyson, Eddie Hearn, Lennox Lewis, Claressa Shields, Rosie Perez, and Canelo Alvarez. 7. They argue that calling Ngannou a 'novice' ignores his boxing base and his years of mixed martial arts development. 8. They discuss Dana White's reaction, the UFC's resistance to co-promotion, and the claim that Ngannou should have gone back to fight Jon Jones inside the UFC. 9. Rodriguez and Haines say PFL, ESPN, and Saudi money change the leverage because Ngannou can now negotiate from a stronger position. 10. They suggest boxing matchups like Deontay Wilder, Tyson Fury, Oleksandr Usyk, and Andy Ruiz would keep Ngannou in higher-paying fights. 11. Don Davis says only Jon Jones is a compelling MMA opponent for Ngannou, while the rest of the PFL heavyweight roster is less marketable. 12. The hosts say that makes the UFC look worse if co-promotion happens and Ngannou keeps calling out Jones publicly. 13. Miller reads a quote about fighting for people with emotional trauma and says she was at rock bottom about three and a half years ago. 14. She connects that message to a rough childhood and to The Ultimate Fighter, where she was still climbing out of that period. 15. Miller describes a recent left-arm injury during a cage clinch, including a pop, loss of function, and an MRI showing a full labrum tear. 16. She says the injury forced her into fight-or-flight mode and led her to swing with limited defense before the referee stopped the bout. 17. Miller says her doctor told her not to throw a punch for six months because the shoulder labrum is difficult to heal. 18. She says recovery has been mentally harder than physically, and she is using the bike and wearing a sling almost all day. 19. The interview is direct and personal, with Haines asking follow-up questions about the injury, sponsors, and Revgear support. 20. Fans of MMA recovery stories and fighter sponsorship paths will get the most from it; listeners wanting only fight-card picks may skip it.

As heard by us

A blunt fight-week episode that ties Ngannou and Jones contract talk to a fighter-focused finish on Juliana Miller.

Level Change spends this episode on combat sports business and labor, moving from Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones to antitrust fallout and the UFC contract issue before landing on UFC Vegas 82.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want fight-week chaos, UFC leverage talk, and an episode that still makes room for Juliana Miller.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from The Level Change Podcast