John McCarthy News
John McCarthy discusses how a Brock Lesnar vs Fedor Emelianenko super-fight would have played out: “The results would not have made Dana happy”
Harry Kettle - August 5, 2022
John McCarthy has said that he believes Fedor Emelianenko would’ve beaten Brock Lesnar if the two had fought. For many years now fans have talked about great fights that we never quite got the chance to see. Anderson Silva vs Georges St-Pierre is one, Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Tony Ferguson is another, and one of the other big ones is the heavyweight showdown that never was between Brock Lesnar and Fedor Emelianenko.
John McCarthy explains why he “did not agree” with the Derrick Lewis - Sergei Pavlovich stoppage at UFC 277: “It’s not like these are new, young guys”
Susan Cox - August 3, 2022
John McCarthy is explaining why he ‘did not agree’ with the Derrick Lewis vs Sergei Pavlovich stoppage at UFC 277. It was Derrick Lewis (26-10 MMA) vs Sergei Pavlovich (16-1 MMA) in a heavyweight bout last Saturday night, July 30th. It was just 55 seconds into the 1st round where Pavlovich finished Lewis to win the match. Pavlovich handed his opponent a barrage of shots and Lewis eventually fell to the canvas wherein referee Dan Miragliotta quickly jumped in to stop the fight.
John McCarthy clarified his previous remarks about Nick Diaz lighting up Kamaru Usman
Harry Kettle - June 7, 2022
MMA analyst John McCarthy has clarified his previous comments regarding a match-up between Nick Diaz and Kamaru Usman. Over the course of the last few decades, ‘Big’ John McCarthy has served as one of the most recognisable faces in all of mixed martial arts. He spent many years as a referee, most notably under the UFC umbrella, and was therefore part of many iconic moments throughout the history of the sport.
Chase Hooper scolds John McCarthy for suggesting Kamaru Usman would get “lit up” by Nick Diaz: “Probably one of the worst MMA takes I’ve seen”
Susan Cox - May 31, 2022
Chase Hopper has scolded John McCarthy for suggesting Kamaru Usman would get ‘lit up’ by Nick Diaz. During a recent interview with ‘TMZ’, Nick Diaz (26-10 MMA) indicated he’s targeting an end-of-year return and he’d like to challenge Kamaru Usman (20-1 MMA) for the title.
John McCarthy weighs in on last weekend’s UFC Vegas 55 main event result: “I don’t think it was a robbery”
Susan Cox - May 24, 2022
John McCarthy, former MMA referee, has weighed in on last weekends UFC Vegas 55 main event result. UFC Vegas 55 took place on Saturday May 21st, 2022 inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
John McCarthy believes poor corner advice is partially to blame for the performance of Rose Namajunas at UFC 274
Susan Cox - May 10, 2022
John McCarthy is weighing in on the performance of Rose Namajunas this past Saturday night at UFC 274, believing poor corner advise is partially to blame for the loss. It was Rose Namajunas (12-5 MMA) vs Carla Esparza (20-6 MMA) in the strawweight co-main event. Carla was to be the victor by split decision, stripping the title from Rose. While anticipation leading up to the fight was great, the outcome proved to be so lacklustre that some media reports are saying it just might have been the worst UFC title fight in history.
John McCarthy says he went back and watched Yan vs. Sterling 2 as a judge: “It’s razor close. It could have gone either way”
Susan Cox - April 18, 2022
It seems that John McCarthy is walking back comments he previously made concerning the Yan vs Sterling 2 battle that occurred at UFC 273 on April 9th of this year. It was Aljamain Sterling (21-3 MMA) vs Petr Yan (16-3 MMA) at the co-main event bout where the UFC bantamweight champion kept his belt by defeating Yan in a split decision victory (48-47 48-47,47-48).
John McCarthy responds to Aljamain Sterling's recent comments: "Name calling? Champions are above that"
Josh Evanoff - April 14, 2022
‘Big’ John McCarthy has responded to Aljamain Sterling throwing shade at him on Twitter. Last Saturday night, ‘Funk Master’ faced off against Petr Yan for the second time. 13 months after their first encounter ended in a disqualification, Sterling captured his second victory over Yan via split-decision. The win didn’t come without controversy, as many thought ‘Mercy’ should’ve won the bout.
John McCarthy weighs in on the UFC 273 co-main event: “No way in the world you're gonna tell me that Aljo won that first round”
Susan Cox - April 12, 2022
John McCarthy, 59, a retired referee, is best known for officiating numerous bouts promoted by the UFC. Currently John co-hosts the MMA and combat sports podcast ‘Weighing In’ with Josh Thomson. McCarthy weighed in on the UFC 273 co-main event between Aljamain Sterling (21-3 MMA) and Petr Yan (16-3 MMA) this past weekend in Jacksonville, Florida. It was Sterling who succeeded in defending his bantamweight belt by defeating Yan with a split decision victory.
John McCarthy and Josh Thomson discuss how PRIDE tried to sway the odds in favor of their favorite sons
Susan Cox - April 1, 2022
John McCarthy and Josh Thomson discussed how PRIDE tried to sway the odds in favor of their favorite sons. PRIDE Fighting Championships began as a Japanese MMA promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Arguably PRIDE was the most popular MMA promotion during the early 2000’s. PRIDE over the years, held more than sixty mixed martial arts events, broadcast to an estimated 40 countries worldwide.
John McCarthy weighs in on Colby Covington: “He’s never going to be an exciting fighter”
Susan Cox - March 9, 2022
John McCarthy has shared his on his thoughts on former UFC interim welterweight champion Colby Covington. McCarthy, 59, is a former MMA referee and current broadcaster for Bellator MMA. Arguably best known for officiating numerous bouts in the UFC.
John McCarthy shares his thoughts on a potential Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic matchup: “Stipe is getting older”
Susan Cox - February 8, 2022
John McCarthy weighed in on what a Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic matchup might look like. McCarthy, ‘Big John’, is a former professional MMA referee and currently a broadcaster for Bellator MMA. Co-hosting the ‘Weighing In’ podcast with former world champion Josh ‘The Punk’ Thomson the two provide listeners with forty plus years of experience and lots of insight and banter.
John McCarthy slams Francis Ngannou’s former coach for breaking “code” and leaking sparring footage: “Shame on you”
Harry Kettle - January 12, 2022
John McCarthy has slammed Fernand Lopez for threatening to release sparring footage between Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane. Later this month at UFC 270, Francis Ngannou will defend his UFC heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane in one of the most highly-anticipated heavyweight bouts in years. The two men were formerly teammates under the guidance of Fernand Lopez, until Ngannou left the gym in search of pastures new.
John McCarthy says Nick Diaz is not who fans perceive him to be: “He’s not a thug. He’s very intellectual as far as what he cares about”
Harry Kettle - December 28, 2021
John McCarthy believes Nick Diaz isn’t the man that fans perceive him to be as discussion regarding his potential retirement continues. Back in September, after more than six years away from mixed martial arts, Nick Diaz returned to the UFC with a highly-anticipated rematch against Robbie Lawler. Diaz came up on the losing end and while he did have some nice moments in the first few rounds, he ultimately didn’t look like himself in there.
John McCarthy says Jose Aldo is 'that guy' and he could beat Aljamain Sterling
Andrew Whitelaw - December 22, 2021
John McCarthy has lauded Jose Aldo and believes that the Brazilian could beat the current UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling. Aldo has looked revitalised recently. The former featherweight champ has put together an impressive run of three straight victories including a unanimous decision win against Rob Font earlier this month.
John McCarthy criticizes Vyacheslav Kiselev for controversial non-stoppage at UFC 267
Adam D Martin - November 3, 2021
Veteran mixed martial arts official John McCarthy criticized referee Vyacheslav Kiselev for his controversial non-stoppage at UFC 267. In one of the most prolonged beatings we have ever seen inside the Octagon, Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos emptied the clip against Benoit Saint Denis over the course of a brutal 25-minute battle between the two welterweights at UFC 267. There were numerous points where the referee could have stepped in and stopped the contest, but he refused to do so, which led the fight to go the full distance. It was an incredible show of heart and toughness by Saint Denis, but he also took unnecessary punishment and damage during this bout.
Daniel Cormier responds to backlash from Fedor Emelianenko comments: "I don’t understand how this ruffled so many people’s feathers"
Christopher Taylor - October 25, 2021
Former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier has responded after receiving a ton of backlash for his comments about Fedor Emelianenko. Prior to ‘The Last Emperor’ earning a stunning knockout over Tim Johnson at last weekend’s Bellator 268 event, Cormier had suggested that Fedor would have been “average at best” in the UFC.
John McCarthy rips Daniel Cormier for his comments on Fedor Emelianenko: 'You’re sounding like you're being a homer for the UFC'
Cole Shelton - October 25, 2021
John McCarthy has ripped Daniel Cormier over his comments about Fedor Emelianenko. The former UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champion, Cormier, recently said on his YouTube channel that he thought had Emelianenko signed with the UFC, he would’ve been average at best. Those comments took many by surprise, including John McCarthy, who proceeded to rip ‘DC’ for for his controversial take.