#paige's improvements since 2018 is impressive

[darkwood-sleddog]

iditarod has me biting my nails this year:

-unusual race route (only musher in the field to take this route before is Mitch Seavey in 2003)

-Paige Drobny of Squid Acres Kennels has been holding a tight first or second place position within the race for awhile and has already completed both her mandatory rests. Paige's closest top placement so far is 5th place. If she were to hold on to her lead and win it would be the first time a winner has been a woman since 1990 Susan Butcher

-Quince Mountain racing in his first Iditarod, currently in last. Crossing my fingers he stays in the race.

-six mushers have scratched already.

[thesportssoundoff]

“What’s At Stake In St. Louis ?” The UFC Division Breakdown

(Gonna try this for a month or so. See how it goes)

Joey

Jan 11th

Middleweight Fights Booked: 1 (Vitor Belfort vs Uriah Hall) Fights This Year: N/A

What's At Stake? A torch passing.

Vitor Belfort has spent plenty of time in the UFC and while his value has dipped from being a potential title contender and bonafide numbers maker to being a guy who makes his bread as a dude who fights frequently and more often than not puts over the next generation of talent at the 185 lb division. Vitor is planning his retirement which is a big deal until you realize that he's basically retired about eight times now. Vitor is more than likely "retiring" to head elsewhere but in his place, he potentially could pass the torch to a new Vitor Belfort. If one truly wishes to think about it, Uriah Hall is basically what Vitor Belfort is. He's the ultra fast athletic striker who looks awesome in a highlight reel but has all of those dead spots in between Point A and Point B. Hall's best value to the UFC is what Vitor's value is; he fights frequently and is a name who more than not drags in viewers because of what MIGHT happen. There really isn't anything pertaining to relevance inside the division but there's a good shot that Uriah Hall is basically taking a good glimpse into his future when he faces Vitor.

Welterweight Fights This Week: 2 (Emil Meek/Kamaru Usman, Thiago Alves/Zak Cummings) Fights This Year: N/A

What's At Stake? Keeping Pace

There's something to be said for keeping pace with your cohorts as opposed to waiting for the perfect opportunity. For Thiago Alves, he's taking a serious step down in name value from the likes of Patrick Cote, Carlos Condit and Jordan Mein but at this point, he was losing steam compared to the other veterans in the division. After two straight losses, the popular Alves probably needed to get back in there ASAP or run the risk of being forgotten for good as this WW division develops and matures. This though is mostly about Kamaru Usman. The one major component to Usman's game that's prevented him from really having top 5 potential in my opinion were his hands. He took a big step forward in that regard vs Sergio Moraes en route to a decisive violent finish. Since then, Mike Perry has fought twice (once on Fox), Darren Till ruined Donald Cerrone, Yancy Medeiros had a war for the ages which has vaulted HIM into a main event spot, Stephen Thompson made Jorge Masvidal look as bad as he's ever looked in the UFC, Colby Covington has set the world on fire with his words and Tyron Woodley has flirted with big fights. I would probably pick Usman to beat most of those guys if not all of them but he sort of needs to force the issue and make this happen because otherwise he's not going to be getting many call to arms when it comes to getting those fights.

Lightweight Fight This Week: 2 (Matt Frevola/Marco Polo Reyes, James Krause/Alex White) Fights This Year: N/A

What's At Stake: Staying On The Track

If 2018 is anything like 2017 then at least once a month we're all going to have a brand new lightweight prospect to go crazy over. MMA's gone from being big and bulky to where 135 to 155 lbs produces prospects by the bushel and so chances are, these four guys are all competing just to stay in the conversation. James Krause is a local guy who has been in the UFC a good spell while Alex White is a top prospect from yesteryear who has sort of lost his way. He's from "the area" so it's basically Missouri vs Missouri for the fans. Matt Frevola vs Marco Polo Reyes is the battle between two dudes pitted through some UFC gimmickery. Frevola was  the final DWTCS signing and he's an ultra exciting prospect out of Serra-Longo while Marco Polo Reyes is a TUF LAM brawler who will forever have a gig in the UFC by virtue of the fact that dude throws hands consistently.  The likelihood is none of these guys have big money futures in the UFC as major stars but the key is to stay on the track the entire time.

Featherweight Fights This Week: 3 (Doo Ho Choi/Jeremy Stephens, Darren Elkins/Michael Johnson and Mike Santiago/Mads Burnell) Fights This Year: N/A

What's At Stake: The potential for a shake up.

Any division with the headliner on a card is in line for something big to change but this could be a much different scenario. Doo Ho Choi had the FOTY (and maybe top 10 fights ever) vs Cub Swanson, was booked for Renan Barao and pulled out due to injury. He spent the entire year rehabbing and recovering but he's back----just in time for his mandated military service to creep into the scene. It's worth pointing out that Choi's rising star power once rivaled the likes of the Korean Zombie and Brian Ortega prior to dipping out. Now we'll see if the fans still love him the way they did before he lost and took a year off. If Choi beats Stephens then it wouldn't surprise me to see him fast tracked just behind the likes of Ortega and Emmett as a potential title challenger. I don't think he'd GET a title shot but he'd at least have some weight to challenge for it. Another potential shake up? The arrival of Michael Johnson to 145 lbs. If he can make the weight and if his power carries then Johnson has the ability to really stick at the weight. With 145 losing some talent to surrounding weight classes then Johnson might be a bit of a mid level cure in the division. One last shake up could be Mads Burnell as an arrival at 145 lbs. Burnell is moving to his more natural weight class after pinch hitting at 155 lbs on short notice. The Dane is just 23 years old and is flush with athletic potential so you'd imagine he's got a great chance to stick if he can pick up some wins.

Bantamweight Fights This Week: 1 (Kyung Ho Kang vs Guido Cannetti) Fights This Year: N/A

What's At Stake: A dark horse returns at 135 lbs.

Kyung Ho Kang has a 2-1-1 UFC record which isn't overly impressive but it's not about the record its about how we get there. Kang took on Alex Caceres and give him fits en route to a split decision turned no contest. He gave Chico Camus fits in a frustrated/infuriating fight he lost by razor thin decision. From there, Kyung Ho Kang subbed  Shunichi Shimizu in Singapore and then beat Michinori Tanaka in a fantastic fight in Japan. From there? He also got hit with the mandatory military commitment. He's been gone for OVER three years now but he's still just 30, he's a frenetic grappler and he's got some upside as a pesky gnat at 135 lbs. Guido Cannetti is a TUF LAM-er who hits really hard.

Women's Bantamweight Fights Booked: 1 (Talita Bernado vs Irene Aldana) Fights  This Year: N/A

What's At Stake: "The Future Of WMMA"

That ill fated photo of Irene Aldana, Dana White and Alexa Grasso paints a picture of being a bit too overenthusiastic with some insanely talented women. Alexa Grasso for the most part has lived up to the hype with a 2-1 record in the UFC that could've/should've been 3-1 had she ramped up the tempo vs Felice Herrig. It's Irene Aldana who stumbled hard. She was overwhelmed by Tanya Evinger in Invicta and then eventually got to the UFC where she's amassed an 0-2 record. She's been game and put on great efforts in those losses BUT in both losses, she's either not done enough offensively or been too lax defensively. She's got a third shot against Talita Bernardo in what is, in my estimation, a more favorable matchup for her. A loss here and I don't think they'll be any rope left for her.

Women's Flyweight Fights Booked: 2 (Paige Van Zant/Jessica Rose Clark, Jessica Eye/Kalinda Faria) Fights This Year: N/A

What's At Stake: A Title Shot?

So this MAY burn a few asses but here's an inconvenient truth; this division probably benefits more from PVZ fighting for the title ASAP. She brings notoriety and attention to this division that the likes of Valentina Shevchenko or even Joanna Champion couldn't bring to the discussion. It makes sense for the UFC to want to see Paige win and yes, as much as it might burn our collective asses, the division is better off with Paige fighting for the belt on free TV than it is with a more accomplished 125er or a bigger named 135er popping up to handle business. The problem is getting there and Paige Van Zant is no lock to win this fight. Jessica Rose Clark is the sort of fighter that Paige CVan Zant normally beats comfortably----but we haven't seen Paige in a year. She's changed camps during that time period and undergone shoulder surgery. She has squabbled with the battle to balance her entertainment career with her fighting career and at times squabbled with the UFC itself. Who knows where her head is at, if she's made any improvements and if she's just here to kill time until something better comes along.

Women's Strawweight Fights Booked: 1 (JJ Aldrich vs Danielle Taylor) Fights This Year: N/A

What's At Stake?  A streaker.

115 lbs is in a weird spot. The division seems to be a somewhat morphed version of the 135 lb division where there's a ton of fighters who can all beat one another but no definite dominant person to reign above all. Joanna may not be long for this division and even so, the problems she's suggesting about the weight class leave me no comfort in believing she can come back and beat Rose Namajunas in a rematch. As such, it's a collection of fighters who can all beat one another on any given week which in turn paints the picture where instability and chaos will reign until one rises to rule them all. That means that accumulation of wins is probably as important as the quality of competition. JJ Aldrich is coming off a win over Chin Mi Jeon while Danielle Taylor is living well after decision wins over Jessica Penne and Seo Hee Ham. In a division where I think a grand total of three women are on winning streaks, you'd assume Taylor going to three in a row could open up her up for potential big fight opportunities.

Off This Week

Heavyweight Fights Booked: N/A Fights This Year: N/A

Light Heavyweight Fights Booked: N/A Fights This Year: N/A

Flyweight Fights Booked: N/A Fights This Year: N/A

Women's Featherweight Fights Booked: N/A Fights This Year: N/A

[wherespacepooh]

ARTICLE: The Secret of Prestigious Champion Maker (TCC) where Hanyu Yuzuru Trains (2017.08.18 Yomiuri)

In-depth look into the Cricket Club as a training environment and what the team, the grounds, the rivalry all mean to Hanyu. Plus, a quote from Shae-lynn implying, perhaps, some new choreography? *-* *-* *-*

Translated by gladi. Feel free to repost with credit. Images belong to Yomiuri Shinbun and their respective photographers. Source: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/olympic/2018/feature/20170817-OYT8T50014.html

At the Olympic Games to be held next year in Febrary, figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu will face the colossal challenge of defending his Olympic title. As his training base, the Toronto Cricket Skating & Curling Club (TCC) was where Hanyu had announced his free program for the new season back in early August. The club is also home to Hanyu’s rival, Javier Fernandez of Spain. What is the secret of this prestigious club that has turned out star skaters one after the other? How did Hanyu’s strength come to be? 

(Text by Nagai Junko, Yomiuri Shinbun Sports)

(photo by Takedatsu Atsushi)

Hanyu receives guidance from multiple coaches

August 8. Appearing at rinkside, Hanyu chatted with other skaters and coaches and started to put on his skating boots. It is his 6th season since he first moved his training base to Toronto. The way he conversed with people around him in English, too, was also looking quite good.

Hanyu’s training session was in a class for top athletes. The ten or so skaters with the highest level of skills start the lesson together, and do their own runthroughs with music in order.

On the ice and around, Brian Orser, who coaches Hanyu, Calgary Olympics Ice Dance bronze medalist Tracy Wilson and other coaches watch over [the skaters]. The most significant feature of this club is the team coaching from multiple coaches.

Under Brian Orser, specialists such as skating coach Tracy Wilson, spin doctor Paige Aistrop are responsible for teaching their respective division. Hanyu stresses on the club’s merits, “It is great that the coaches bring a variety of opinions, watching my jumps. With regard to music too, everyone can share.”

One might think that in order to churn out star skaters with high levels of technique, [the club] would emphasize jump practices,  but that is not the case. At the end of the day’s training, everyone wraps up with 15 minutes of skating practice.

(photo by Takedatsu Atsushi)

Prestigious club boasts of close to 200 years of history

TCC is set on the corner of a high-end residential area about 10km north of the city centre of Toronto. Established in 1827, this prestigious, membership-based club boasts of nearly 200 years of history. Visitors are checked at the entrance. Stepping foot into the building, one is struck by the magnificent, lofty atmosphere that permeates.

The skating rink on the first floor is 57m long and 27m wide, a size smaller compared to international standards, but poses no concern for training. An entire side of the walls are decorated with plates engraved with the names of Olympic and World medalists that came from the club. Of course, that includes Hanyu, who won at Sochi, but former World Champion Fernandez and Orser, who had gotten the silver medal in both 1984 Sarajevo and ’88 Calgary Olympics, as well.

The two-storey building is fully equipped year-round with the skating rink, a gym, a studio, a curling rink and so forth. At the gym and the studio, one can take lessons, such as pilates and dance, offered by professional trainers. As a result of having kept up with pilates, the formerly frail body of Hanyu, who had struggled with skating his free programs to the end, has become quite sturdy.

Coming out of the building, there are swimming pools and tennis courts, and a wide spread of natural turf. One can even have his/her meal at the restaurant that looks out at the field. Just as Hanyu had said, “I am really benefiting [from the environment and facilities], to the extent––what do you want to do if it doesn’t work out with [all] this,” we were left with the impression that all necessary equipment and facilities were available at one’s disposal.

(photo by Takedatsu Atsushi)

2015’s SEIMEI created through sharing images

Not only coaches, [TCC] has assembled a group of top-notch choreographers as well.

Hanyu will perform to Chopin’s Ballade No.1 in his SP after two seasons for the third time. For the free program, he has chosen SEIMEI, arranged from the soundtrack of the movie Onmyoji, also after two seasons.

The SP’s choreographer is Jeffrey Buttle, and Shae-lynn Bourne was responsible for the FP. Both were formerly top skaters, currently flooded with requests from skaters all around the world to choreograph their programs. Because Orser has brought such popular choreographers into the team, skaters [at TCC] are able to have their programs prioritized.

To Hanyu, it is his fourth season working as a team with Bourne.

In the past, the two have produced such works as Phantom of the Opera (2014-15 season), SEIMEI (2015-16 season), Hope & Legacy (2016-17 season).

When they worked on SEIMEI in 2015, Hanyu and Bourne watched the movie’s DVD together, and approached choreography after sharing images from the story.

This time as well, regarding the new SEIMEI rearranged with a new program composition, Bourne gave such feedback, “Because we’ve come to reach mutual understanding, we were able to try various different movements.”

David Wilson too, who’d choreographed [Hanyu’s] free program at the Sochi Olympics, Romeo & Juliet, and the favorably reviewed exhibition program from last season, Notte Stellata, takes residence at the rink as coaching staff. Making tweaks to performances even during the season, the choreographers never slack to bring further improvements to the programs.

(photo by Kurihara Reiri)

Benefits of having Fernandez close by

It is also a huge advantage to have rivals near you.

“Because there are many top skaters here, I am able to train while being stimulated all the time. This is the biggest merit of TCC, I think it is its forte,” emphasizes Hanyu.

Especially significant is probably the presence of Fernandez, who’d won consecutive world titles in 2015 and ’16. The 26-year-old spaniard who’d knocked on TCC’s door one year ahead of Hanyu is “someone like an elder brother” to him, and also “someone he’d never want to lose to.” It is not hard to imagine that this high-level rivalry that begins from training has quickened Hanyu’s growth. Fernandez, too, recognizes the effect of having a world-class rival nearby, “Since training with Yuzuru, I have been motivated by his strict devotion [to his goals].”

The way the two spent their off-season were mirror-opposites of each other.

After appearing in ice shows in Japan from May to June, he has been undergoing “very serious training” (Orser) in Toronto for around 7 weeks. Meanwhile, Fernandez took time off in his home country, Spain, and had just started training in early August. Even though their ways of doing things are different, Orser respects skaters’ individual personalities, “The approach differs based on the skater. We talk with each of them and decide on separate ways of doing things.”

Hanyu looked back on the Sochi Olympic season four years ago. “During the time of Sochi, in response to Brian's do this, do that, I would only add a little bit of my own thoughts on top of his.” Now, Hanyu believes that “I think this way, Brian thinks this way, Shae-lynn thinks this way… combining all these views and discussing, we are able to arrive at a good direction. Instead of 1+1 = 2, we can now get 3, or even 4.” More and more, he appears to be actually feeling the benefit to this club.

Would a 2-time-successive Olympic champion––for the first time in 66 years in men’s figure skating––be born from the grounds in Toronto, where Orser calls “the best club in the world”?

The seeds have been sown. (fin)

(photo by Hayashi Youichi)

[mancitynoise]

Reputational rehabilitations in sport are rare but not unheard of. In the eighties Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon was an unpopular figure, disliked for his brash and cocky demeanour. But then health issues, including dementia were made known post-retirement and the public notably softened their stance. Australian cricketer Steve Smith, meanwhile, will never be fondly regarded in the UK but after a summer in which he has taken the sport to exalted heights it can be said that he has reclaimed substantial respect following last year’s ball-tampering scandal that saw the team captain ostracised for a year.

Perhaps the most famous example is David Beckham, who underwent a remarkable transformation from sinner to saint in the late nineties. His sending off at the 1998 World Cup resulted in an effigy being hung outside a pub in south London, so strong was the vitriol at the time. But hard work, trophies, and subsequent memorable moments with England saw the Manchester United midfielder turn things round, to such an extent that his pop star wife later admitted that she called him ‘Goldenballs’.

Then there is Raheem Sterling, of course, the most unique instance of this phenomena.

In Sterling’s case his vilification – described as a ‘persecution’ by the Times late last year – was unique because, unlike the others, he had not actually done anything wrong to trigger it. It should be stated here that ‘wrong’ is such a subjective word. After all, Beckham merely flicked out a leg in instinctive petulance.

Watch Manchester City Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

In the summer of 2015 the then 21-year-old winger was one of 27 players who switched from a Premier League club to another. The manner in which he agitated for a move understandably riled Liverpool supporters but quite why this aggrieved other fans and the media at large remains a mystery given that it is commonplace these days for footballers to deploy such tactics to secure a transfer.

Nevertheless, the fee was sufficiently high enough to gain headlines and attention for a good while and the odd jibe that he wasn’t worth the money could be heard down your local watering hole simply because Sterling was not yet a finished article. On the international stage, meanwhile, the player was one of several to under-perform at consecutive major tournaments for England.

That’s it really. That’s what Raheem Sterling had in the debit column. It’s not a lot and especially when it’s balanced out by other realities, namely that Sterling was clearly a shy and decent lad – that was plain to the naked eye and to any fair interpretation. He was also improving season on season at the Etihad and it was only a matter of time before he transferred that improvement to the England set-up. Furthermore, he never once hid on the pitch and always gave 100%; character traits that are usually highly appreciated in this country.

Alas these truths were of no consequence and very quickly Sterling found himself the poster boy of all that is deemed wrong with modern football. His move from Liverpool had him caricatured as a ‘snake’. Beneath the headline ‘Obscene Raheem’ his purchase of a house for his mother had The Sun using up their entire thesaurus of trigger-words in faux-outrage.

He was a ‘shamed’ winger. He was ‘flaunting’ the ‘blinging’ house (the latter description there being deeply troubling) all the while ‘boasting’. Soon it was open season. Soon we were venturing into some very weird territory. Sterling was castigated for taking an Easyjet flight. He was mocked for eating a Greggs pastie. The ‘penny-pinching’ winger was taunted for driving an unwashed car. He was slammed as a ‘love-rat’ when proposing to his ‘long-suffering fiance’ Paige Milan, a stark contrast to the regal celebration of ‘Posh and Becks’ engagement.

On and on it went, drip, drip, drip into the nation’s psyche; from the vicious to the ridiculous and it shouldn’t be under-estimated how much of a damaging reputational effect this had with the mainstream populace beyond football. I recall my own mother – a person who has no interest in or knowledge of the game – telling me last year: “I see that Sterling is at it again.”

At it. Again.

What she was referring to was the hyperbolic and hysterical coverage of the England star’s gun tattoo, perhaps the nadir of the entire Sterling media obsession and more importantly the one that turned it into a national conversation where sense eventually entered the fray.

Before we move on to the dramatic change in perception that has occurred this past year as a result of that sense it is worth staying momentarily with that tattoo farrago. People lost their minds. Think of the children. He was a role model after all.

Yet nobody talks about that tattoo anymore, despite the fact that by virtue of being indelible ink it is still there on Sterling’s lower right leg. Nobody frets that an impressible child is going to seek out a real, actual weapon and run amok. To believe so would be utterly ludicrous.

The tattoo is still the same. We are not.

On the pitch this past year – as he was last year but let’s take our victories where we can – Raheem Sterling has been brilliant. Since the start of 2018/19 he has scored 31 times for Manchester City. For his country he has scored eight times in his last eight appearances. He has become a pivotal figure for both.

Off the pitch he has undertaken a media offensive, making himself available for more interviews with the intention of highlighting what a thoroughly nice guy he is while a number of public responses to the plight of racism in our game have been greeted with widespread admiration.

Such positivity has been mirrored. Respected writer Daniel Storey recently called him a ‘cultural leader’.

Given what he went through at the hands of people who should know better, Raheem Sterling being consistently brilliant makes me proud in a unique way. He has become a cultural leader.

— Daniel Storey (@danielstorey85) September 10, 2019

Trevor Sinclair said last week that Sterling was ‘up there with Messi and Ronaldo’. The Daily Mirror insisted he is a ‘national treasure’. Concerning the Three Lions, where once he was a hate-figure he is now a symbol of hope. Concerning the man, where once he was pilloried he is now loved.

Even as a Manchester City fan who adores Raheem Sterling, I must confess that I find comparisons with Messi a touch far-fetched. Just as I find the elevation of him as a ‘national treasure’ a little silly. Sir David Attenborough is a national treasure.

Perhaps though this lavish acclaim is over-compensation for the treatment he previously received – to go from one extreme to the other – and if that is so it’s an intriguing scenario.

It suggests remorse; it hints at an attempt to redeem ourselves.

Raheem Sterling deserves all the credit in the world and more for how he has turned things around, to go from zero to hero, but regarding the remarkable change in his perception that is on us.

And we don’t deserve any credit for that. None whatsoever.

Instead, there is only a lesson.

[mikemortgage]

Innovation Nation: What Canada’s cutting-edge health tech startups need to get to the next level

Mark Taylor has a front-row seat to the development and launch of some of Canada’s greatest health-tech innovations as the leader of the licensing and commercialization team at Toronto’s University Health Network (UHN), the largest health-care and medical research organization in North America.

Gene therapy to treat rare diseases in a single dose, devices that recognize brain tumours using artificial intelligence and a simple blood test that accurately diagnoses if you have cancer and, if so, what type are just some of the medical breakthroughs that are being developed and fine-tuned in the country’s biggest city.

“It generally takes lots of money and risk mitigation to get these kinds of products to market, but our approach is to develop and test internally in the hospital setting before we license product or start companies,” Taylor said. “We’ve been very lucky to have some world-leading wins here and we’re glad to be able to share our successes with the community.”

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For example, Avrobio Inc., which develops gene therapy to treat cancer and rare diseases, has gone from startup to a public offering on the Nasdaq in just three years with the help of the team at UHN’s Technology Development and Commercialization office.

But even outside of programs such as UHN’s, Canada has amassed an impressive list of health-tech companies with global appeal. There’s Vancouver-based Stemcell Technologies Inc. — a biotech firm that develops cell cultures and cell isolation systems for researchers — which ships its products to more than 70 countries and has been growing by at least 20 per cent annually since its launch in 1993.

Or Toronto-based Newtopia Inc., the fourth health-tech startup launched by chief executive Jeff Ruby. Multiple Fortune 100 companies in the U.S. now use the company’s software to promote employee weight loss and substantially reduce employer-paid health plan costs.

With an abundance of clinical talent, hospital support and a current government keen to keep investing in innovation, it seems Canada is creating the perfect ecosystem for continued health-tech growth. The question plaguing many industry leaders, however, is whether the country has the infrastructure and skillset needed to sustain this branch of innovation.

The medical devices industry alone was valued at US$6.2 billion in 2015 and is projected to grow to $8.6 billion by 2020, according to Emergo, a regulatory consulting firm that specializes in global medical device compliance.

On the surface, Toronto, in particular, provides the ideal launching pad for health-tech innovation because it has a highly educated and skilled workforce collaborating within a network of world-class hospitals willing to test technologies in real-world practice, said Cameron Piron, chief executive of Toronto-based Synaptive Medical Inc.

“The talent here is unique and highly diverse and when you’re tackling problems (in health care) you need the best and the brightest,” he said.

The city’s talent base has enabled Synaptive’s founders to launch several Canadian-based medical startups over the past 10 years, the latest of which develops robotics to provide better ergonomics and visibility for surgeons while operating.

Avrobio co-founder Christopher Paige, a senior scientist at UHN, said the research hospitals and their strong association with top universities across the country create ideal synergies for innovation.

“The research hospitals put researchers and top clinicians together in an environment where unmet clinical needs of our patients are pretty obvious — a highly motivating environment to make a difference,” he said.

But industry veterans say this isn’t enough to sustain the growth of health-care technologies over the long term.

They point out that even though Toronto is among the top biotech hubs in North America (along with Boston and San Francisco), it has nowhere near the commercial recognition of those two U.S. cities.

“Collectively as an industry we’ve started to do some of the biggest deals in the world here, but we don’t publicize these wins as much as we could,” Taylor said. “Our science is top notch, but it’s underrepresented from a commercialization perspective.”

Organizations such as UHN are helping to change that, he said, but there’s still a long way to go.

As well as the lack of local recognition, Taylor said there is a lack of local talent who have the necessary management skills to bring innovative startups into the big leagues.

“We never saw the lack of C-suite as a potential problem, but now, generally speaking, people who are coming in to lead these companies are Americans or Canadians who left decades ago and are coming back,” he said.

An even bigger issue may be the lack of overall understanding that the rules of typical tech innovation — that is, develop a product and rush it to market before the competition — don’t necessarily apply to health tech.

“As we see talent moving into this space from the tech market, they are shocked by the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes,” Synaptive’s Piron said.

Piron said the industry is more like aviation or automotive, where products are thoroughly tested before launch and governed by myriad regulations.

“This is a very serious industry that leverages technology, but needs a solid infrastructure behind it,” he said.

Case in point, Synaptive in November voluntarily recalled its neurosurgical guidance system due to a software defect that could raise the risk of brain damage during surgery. Fortunately, the recall happened before any patients were impacted.

Adding to the challenges that health-tech startups face are patient privacy issues that don’t apply to other sectors to the same degree.

“Starting a health-tech company comes with a firm appreciation of health first, including adhering to privacy laws and regulations and being radically transparent throughout the process,” Newtopia’s Ruby said. “The ‘move fast and break things’ approach just doesn’t work in health tech.”

A lack of long-term capital investment is yet another key issue.

“There’s a lot of support for startups, but a lot less for those of us who have proven ourselves,” said Stemcell’s chief executive Allen Eaves, who adds that just four per cent of his company’s sales are in Canada.

“We need health care to be profitable, yet we keep focusing on cost containment in provincial (health-care) budgets — if everyone works hard to save money, then we need to get engaged in the application of new innovations.”

The four-year-old Council of Canadian Innovators (CCI) wants to clear the often rocky path from startup to scale that currently plagues some of the most innovative tech firms.

Made up of more than 100 CEOs from the fastest-growing technology startups (18 of whom, including Eaves, come from health-tech companies), CCI is working with governments to ensure its members have a seat at the table when it comes to decisions around strategic standards, regulations and certifications.

“There are a lot of regulatory pain points in how health-tech companies get their products to market here compared to other jurisdictions,” said Dana O’Born, CCI’s director of strategic initiatives. “Our health-tech companies are keen to work with government to work out these kinks and all our members want to play a role in the development of policy.”

But even with all the growing pains, industry leaders say they are optimistic that things are improving every year, especially given the desire for better technologies while cutting costs.

“Long ago, the public sector thought they had to be the owner of innovation, but now they see the value in renting it from sectors like ours,” said Patrice Gilbert, chief executive of PetalMD, a Quebec City-based company that digitizes hospital schedules for 48,000 users across 150 health-care facilities. “The private and public sectors are getting better and better at finding common ground.”

Inherent in moving the dial forward in health care has to be an overall change in mentality around what health care in Canada should be, Newtopia’s Ruby said.

“We want to keep people healthier longer rather than perpetuating the sick-care system we currently have,” he said. “That should be our ultimate goal.”

Ruby, too, expects health-care costs to be increasingly offloaded to employers and insurers, because “there is no way” Canada’s current system will be able to sustain itself for much longer.

Since 2014, health spending per capita has increased by an average of 1.7 per cent annually to an estimated total of $253.5 billion in 2018, with no signs of slowing.

“As that happens, there will be more and more economic motivation to invest in companies like ours,” he said, “I absolutely see the tide changing in the years to come.”

Financial Post

from Financial Post http://bit.ly/2WYNzr0 via IFTTT Blogger Mortgage Tumblr Mortgage Evernote Mortgage Wordpress Mortgage href="https://www.diigo.com/user/gelsi11">Diigo Mortgage

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San Diego Brewers Guild Welcomes 2018 Board of Directors

January 26, 2018

San Diego, CA – America’s finest craft beer community had a thriving 2017. To drive awareness for the importance of independently owned beer, the San Diego Brewers Guild (SDBG) executed various educational initiatives, which included revamping sdbeer.com and launching a research partnership with the College of Business Administration at California State University San Marcos. Enter 2018: the nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting San Diego’s more than 130 independent craft breweries is pleased to announce its president and leadership team as well as preview what’s in store for the current year.

Annually, all incoming board of directors are voted in by SDBG brewery members, and officers are appointed by the previous year’s directors. The goal is to build a team that is representative of the varying brewery sizes and beer barrel production (i.e. 90 to 380,000+ barrels) found in San Diego. Paul Sangster, co-founder & brewmaster of Rip Current Brewing Company, will have a one-year term as president. Sangster, whose brewery produced 1,050 barrels of beer in 2016, is succeeding Jill Davidson from Pizza Port Brewing Co. as she transitions into the role of president emeritus.  

“I’m thrilled to be serving as president for 2018 and continuing the momentum that Jill, the leadership officers and all SDBG members have helped create in past years,” explains Sangster. “As the ‘Capital of Craft,’ we have much to celebrate in San Diego, ranging from medal-winning breweries to our international reputation and commitment to independence. This year, we’ll be building on our existing programs that help consumers know the importance of independent breweries while also introducing completely new features.”

Comprised of an executive director, six leadership positions and seven board of directors, SDBG events, programs and other initiatives are spearheaded by the following individuals:

Leadership Team:

President – Paul Sangster, Co-founder & Brewmaster,Rip Current Brewing Company

Vice President – Terry Little, Co-founder & CEO,Bear Roots Brewing Co.

Secondary Vice President – Lee Doxtader, Co-founder,San Diego Brewing Co.

President Emeritus – Jill Davidson, Sr. Sales & Brand Development Manager, Pizza Port Brewing Co.

Treasurer – Bryan Carpenter, Senior Audit Manager, LevitZacks CPA

Secretary – Todd Colburn, Founder & CEO, Higher Gravity Brand Advocates

Board of Directors:

Candace Moon (aka the Craft Beer Attorney), Partner, Dinsmore & Shohl LLP

Dande Bagby, Owner & Director of Pub Operations, Bagby Beer Co.

Kris Anacleto, CEO, Booze Brothers Brewing Co.

Matt Zirpolo, President, Burgeon Beer Co.

Rachael Akin, Co-founder & Brand Czar, Benchmark Brewing Co.

Rick Chapman, Co-founder & President, Coronado Brewing Co.

Terry Little, Co-founder & CEO, Bear Roots Brewing Co.

Executive Director: Paige McWey Acers

Legal Counsel: David Moore, Attorney, Moore & Skilljan Attorneys at Law

On the horizon for 2018

In 2017, the official website for the San Diego Brewers Guild, sdbeer.com, was redesigned to feature a more user-friendly interface that allows visitors an easy option for finding a brewery, beer event and simply learning more about the region’s craft beer offerings. Whether a resident or visiting tourist, guests are able to search San Diego breweries on the site by browsing the map or using a current location. New for 2018, more features will be added to sdbeer.com along with an iOS/Android mobile application (launching in Spring 2018) to further assist with easily navigating through and enjoying delicious beers from the Capital of Craft.

Beer festival devotees can still look forward to SDBG’s popular annual events, including Rhythm & Brews (May 2018) and San Diego Beer Week (November 2-11, 2018). The organization’s highly attended festivals will continue showcasing an impressive array of craft beer offerings, which are to be served alongside new-and-improved elements added to this year’s celebrations.

Additionally, last year, SDBG joined forces with California State University San Marcos’ College of Business Administration and developed the “Economic Impact of Craft Breweries in San Diego County.” The study found that the region’s craft brewers produced an impressive economic impact of $870 million in output and contributed more than $100 million in taxes in 2016. This research will be revisited and released in 2018, ultimately providing more current data and expanding to include other topics.

Stay tuned for more information on 2018 events and educational initiatives, as full details will be shared later this year! For more information about the San Diego Brewers Guild, visit sdbeer.com or follow @SDBrewers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (facebook.com/SDBrewersGuild).

About San Diego Brewers Guild Founded in 1997 by a group of brewers dedicated to the growth of craft beer, the San Diego Brewers Guild is a nonprofit 501(c)(6) organization comprised of allied brewery members, tradespeople, and various goods and services providers. Since its founding, the Guild’s mission is to promote awareness of local, independently brewed beer via education, events and community involvement. San Diego (aka The ‘Capital of Craft’) is home to more than 130 independent craft breweries and continuously garners attention for its medal-winning beer styles and positive international reputation. For more information about the San Diego Brewers Guild and its members, visit sdbeer.com or follow @SDBrewers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (facebook.com/SDBrewersGuild).

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Contact Info

Company: Paradeigm PR + Social Contact: Nickie Peña Email: nickie@paradeigm.com

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WWE Uncooked outcomes, recap: Jason Jordan, Matt Hardy spotlight a PPV-like present

With fewer segments than regular and an elevated give attention to lengthy and thrilling matches, Monday’s episode of Uncooked felt extra like a pay-per-view contemplating how a lot was at stake in every bout. And with a decreased PPV schedule in 2018, that is removed from a foul factor.  

But when the episode is finally remembered for a single factor, it simply may be how far Jason Jordan has come as a celebrity with limitless potential.  

It might have been Roman Reigns and Samoa Joe, whose insertion into an thrilling Uncooked tag workforce championship important occasion, that proved to be the precept figures when the present went off the air on Monday. However the first hour of it was all about Jordan, setting the tone for a powerful night to return.

Jason Jordan carries opening hour  

Uncooked common supervisor Kurt Angle opened the present able to announce Roman Reigns’ opponent for tonight’s intercontinental title match. Out got here Jason Jordan who, amid a refrain of boos, challenged his father to present him a shot at Reigns. Regardless of Angle’s concern about his injured knee, Jordan begged and claimed, “I can beat Roman Reigns, I simply want an opportunity, dad.” Reigns ran in to inform Angle he needed Samoa Joe as an alternative earlier than ripping Jordan for a way he dealt with himself. “Do not come working to your dad,” Reigns stated, “step up and take it.” Jordan countered by calling Reigns the poster boy for every part WWE administration desires. Out got here Samoa Joe to just accept Reigns’ problem earlier than providing him 5 seconds to withdraw it and keep away from embarrassment. 

Jordan interjected to chop a promo on Joe, saying he would not must act powerful as a result of he is keen to problem individuals to their face. His try to problem Joe was halted by Reigns, who pushed him again. However simply as Reigns informed Joe “the 5 seconds are accomplished,” Jordan hit Reigns with a belly-to-belly suplex. An offended Reigns grabbed the microphone and informed Joe he can wait till after tonight as a result of “Jordan can get it proper now.” He then ordered Angle to guide it. After business, their three-segment match lasted simply over 20 minutes with one dramatic close to fall for Jordan after one other. Jordan, who reaggravated his knee, got here the closest following a pair of Northern Lights suplexes till Reigns countered with a Superman punch and spear for the 1-2-Three.  

Joe, who watched from the stage, heckled Reigns earlier than attacking him and making use of his Coquina Clutch. Jordan broke it up from behind and hit a suplex on Joe earlier than Reigns laid out Jordan with a Superman punch from behind. Angle angrily shot down Jordan’s backstage plea for a second match in opposition to Joe tonight, explaining that individuals are going to assume he is enjoying favorites. Joe then stunned Jordan and laid him out.  Afterward, Elias threatened Angle backstage that “your bias to your bastard son would be the finish of you.”  

Discuss a coming-out social gathering for Jordan. The previous American Alpha member was the focus of the primary 47 minutes of the present and didn’t disappoint a single time. In reality, his exchanges with Reigns on the microphone proved to be one of the best phase of the present. Jordan continues to get handed the ball and easily improves every week.  Jordan’s whiny persona is a confirmed warmth seeker which ought to pave the best way for an efficient heel flip. And whereas he has overachieved on the microphone, his in-ring work continues to be high shelf. Jordan’s push on Uncooked is not something new for anybody who has watched every episode. However he has been extra of a supporting actor at finest in current weeks. This was the week Jordan grew to become a number one man.

Woken Matt Hardy makes official debut 

It took eight months since Matt Hardy’s return to WWE for his “Damaged” character, which set the wrestling world on fireplace with TNA Influence Wrestling in 2016, to indicate up in full bloom. However after a current settlement with Influence father or mother firm Anthem Sports activities (and a “Delete” tease final week after his loss to Bray Wyatt), “Woken” Matt Hardy appeared. Utilizing most of his “damaged” catchphrases and voice inflection, Hardy traded barbs with Wyatt throughout a singular phase of dueling video promos. Hardy said that “as a result of my situation, I’ve laid dormant inside this vessel known as Matthew Hardy. However now, due to the patron of terrestrial entities, I’ve been woken.” Wyatt countered by calling him a fraud and countering that it was he who hit his breaking level final week. “My fireplace won’t cleanse you, my fireplace won’t prevent,” Wyatt stated. “My fireplace will be certain your entire burn.” Hardy closed by telling Wyatt he left him with no selection however to “sentence you to deletion” earlier than each traded evil laughs.  

So … this was attention-grabbing. Was it nice? Truthfully, no. It was babbling and complicated at finest, producing extra gasoline to the hearth (no pun meant) for many who are sick of Wyatt’s inane shtick. However was it nice to have Hardy again in a personality that produced one of the best work of his profession? No query about it. And that is finally the important thing. The worry on this case is that as a result of already weird nature of Hardy’s persona, placing him reverse an equally weird heel in Wyatt to begin will convolute what makes it nice. As of now, think about me cautiously intrigued that WWE will permit Hardy the artistic freedom to have the type of impression (pun meant) that he had final yr.

What else occurred on Uncooked? 

Paige def. Sasha Banks through pinfall: Incorrectly introduced by Jojo as a submission match, this one was given prime actual property (greater than 20 minutes over three segments together with entrances). In her first match in additional than a yr, Paige dominated early and was pushed late to select up the tempo by Banks. After Paige’s Absolution stablemates Mandy Rose and Sonia Deville took care of Bayley and Mickie James exterior, making a distraction for Banks, Paige hit a superkick and her Rampaige finisher for the win. Absolution adopted by additional beating down Banks and standing tall. 

Drew Gulak def. Cedric Alexander, Tony Nese & Mustafa Ali through pinfall: In one of many higher cruiserweight matches to air on Uncooked, Gulak secured a No. 1 contender match in opposition to Wealthy Swann subsequent week for a shot at Enzo Amore’s title. The 18-minute match featured thrilling excessive spots together with an absurd springboard Spanish fly from Ali on Alexander. It additionally featured numerous late saves to stop a end. Ultimately, Alexander hit a Lumbar Test on Ali however Gulak ran in to hit a working knee and steal the pin.  Earlier within the present, there was an attention-grabbing second backstage between Amore and Nia Jax.

Elias attacked by Braun Strowman: Taking umbrage with Elias’ music, together with a lyric that there isn’t any greater star than him in WWE, Strowman ran in to inflict harm. He even no-sold a guitar strike to the again and completed Elias within the heart of the ring with a working powerslam. Kane’s music hit and, throughout a backstage video promo, he challenged Strowman to a match subsequent week. “Collectively we are going to ascend into the abyss however just one monster will emerge,” he stated. 

Asuka def. Alicia Fox through submission: Fox minimize a pre-match video promo claiming she’s “not Dana Brooke” and can keep away from a squash match defeat. She succeeded however not by a lot. Asuka prevented a scissors kick to land two kicks of her personal earlier than transitioning superbly into an armbar to supply a faucet. Out got here Absolution to encompass the ring however Asuka laughed as she walked away for the second straight week. Paige then put over how Fox as her finest (and solely) buddy in WWE final yr. “I really like you,” Paige stated. “I simply do not assume Sonia and Mandy really feel the identical manner.” Deville and Rose landed working knees on Fox earlier than all three grabbed arms to face tall over her.  

Finn Balor def. Bo Dallas through pinfall: Balor regained his shine following a comparatively temporary victory designed to make us overlook what number of occasions Kane has destroyed him in current weeks. Balor mixed a slingblade with a missile dropkick late within the match to arrange a Coupe de Grace, leaping midway throughout the ring, for the 1-2-Three.   

Uncooked Tag Workforce Championship — The Bar (c) def. Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins through pinfall to retain the titles: Within the fourth match of the evening to be given 20 minutes of in-ring time, this one was fixed drama all through with a pay-per-view really feel. The lengthy construct to a scorching tag of Ambrose was rewarding, as was the gluttony of close to falls. This one had super potential to be overbooked however by some means retained a enjoyable and thrilling really feel to the end. Sheamus was initially disqualified for mercilessly pounding Rollins whereas not the authorized man as The Bar tried to purposely finish the match with the intention to retain. However Angle interrupted their celebration on the ramp by restarting the match with a no disqualification clause. Simply because the babyfaces appeared on the verge of victory, with Cesaro barely kicking out of an Ambrose clothesline and Rollins splash, Samoa Joe ran in to take them out. That introduced out Reigns, who hit a Superman punch on Cesaro and chased Joe by means of the gang. However the distraction harm Ambrose as an alternative as Sheamus related with a Brogue kick and threw Cesaro on high for the pin.  

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“Gotta kick this shit off with chaos and controversy” The UFC’s debut on ESPN preview

Joey

January 16th, 2019

Well folks! Welcome to the ESPN Era! Where to start where to start here. Let's begin with what feels like two repetitive themes of 2018 already poking its thicc ass into 2019. 1) The UFC overbooked a bunch of cards in an attempt to have big PPVs and in the process deprived themselves of potential main event fights. That, in turn, leads to the UFC scrambling to figure things out and try to put together a show with a limited hand and fighters who just don't seem to be in a rush to take any fights. This in turn lead to moving a PPV headliner to ESPN+ to make everybody happy which I guess leads to our that other deal aka 2) SUPERFIGHTS! This is a "superfight" in title alone, pitting a 0 defenses Henry Cejudo vs a 1 title defense in a rematch TJ Dillashaw. Cejudo really doesn't have anything better to do but Dillashaw does and instead he's here in a super fight. It IS a fantastic fight on its own but the additional drama of the flyweight division's fate resting in the balance gives me some heartburn. The rest of the card is very peculiar; some damn good action fights, some names we know of trying to resurrect their career, some intriguing prospects and Greg Hardy. There is a little bit of everything even if some of that something is unpleasant. Welcome to 2019! Things are unpleasant!

Fights: 13

Debuts: Greg Hardy, Alonzo Menifield, Vinicious Moreira, Ariane Lipski. Mauro Batista, Kyle Stewart

Fight Changes/Injury Cancellations: 6 (Thomas Almeida OUT, John Lineker IN vs Cory Sandhagen/ John Lineker OUT, Mauro Batista IN vs Cory Sandhagen/Ion Cutelaba OUT, Karl Roberson IN vs Glover Teixeira/Joe Benavidez vs Deveison Figueredo scrapped/ Randy Brown OUT, Dwight Grant IN vs Chance Recountre/Dwight Grant OUT, Kyle Stewart IN vs Chance Recountre)

Headliners (fighters who have either main evented or co-main evented shows in the UFC):  9 (Glover Teixeira, TJ Dillashaw, Heney Cejudo, Joe Benavidez, Yancy Medeiros, Paige Van Zant, Donald Cerrone, Joanna Calderwood, Dennis Bermudez)

Fighters On Losing Streaks in the UFC: 2 (Dennis Bermudez, Paige Van Zant)

Fighters On Winning Streaks in the UFC: 7 (TJ Dillashaw, Henry Cejudo, Gregor Gillespie, Dustin Ortiz, Alexander Hernandez, Belal Muhammad, Geoff Neal)

Main Card Record Since Jan 1st 2017 (in the UFC):  20-9

Henry Cejudo- 3-0 TJ Dillashaw- 2-0 Greg Hardy- 0-0 Allan Crowder- 0-1 Yancy Medeiros- 2-1 Gregor Gillespie- 4-0 Joe Benavidez- 1-1 Dustin Ortiz- 3-1 Paige Van Zant- 0-1 Rachael Ostovich- 1-1 Glover Teixeira- 2-2 Karl Roberson- 2-1

2019's Records We Keepin Track Of:

Debuting Fighters: Greg Hardy, Alonzo Menifield, Vinicious Moreira, Ariane Lipski. Mario Bautista, Kyle Stewart

Short Notice Fighters:  Maurio Bautista, Kyle Stewart

Second Fight:  Allen Crowder, Chance Rencountre, Te Edwards

Cage Corrosion (Fighters who have not fought within a year of the date of the fight): Allen Crowder, Paige Van Zant

Undefeated Fighters:  Greg Hardy, Gregor Gillespie, Mario Bautista

Fighters with at least four fights in the UFC with 0 wins over competition still in the organization:

Weight Class Jumpers (Fighters competing outside of the weight class of their last fight even if they're returning BACK to their "normal weight class"): TJ Dillashaw, Karl Roberson, Yancy Medeiros, Donald Cerrone, Dennis Bermudez

Twelve Precarious Ponderings

1- How confident are we that this is the final flyweight title fight of all time?

2- Let's say this is the final flyweight fight of all time. What's the legacy of the division? How will you remember flyweight?

3- It's totally unfortunate to put it in this light but the biggest problem I have with this fight is that its offspring will further hold up 135 lbs, a division bursting at the seams with new intriguing fights for Dillashaw. If Henry Cejudo wins then you're going to get a rematch at 135 lbs between Cejudo and Dillashaw. If Dillashaw wins then he's probably going to start chirping about fighting Max Holloway or someone at 145 lbs. In the interim, guys like Jimmie Rivera, Aljo Sterling, the Moraes/Assuncao winner and Pedro Munhoz are just kind of chillin knowing that the concept of a title shot in the future is flimsy and almost a joke. Welcome to the Superfight Error I guess.

4- Alexander Hernandez's UFC debut couldn't of gone better.  He went in there on short notice and mowed through a very solid proven 155er in Beneil Dariush. His second fight wasn't quite the roaring follow up as Hernandez struggled with the size of Olivier Aubin-Mercier and perhaps even dealt with the pressures of being on a Fox main card. His third fight is the ESPN debut show against a superstar 155 lber that normally rockets you up in the rankings and put you right in title contention. No pressure dude.

5-  Is it fair to say that PVZ and Joanne Calderwood are basically competing against one another for a title fight? Would imagine the winner, if impressive, trumps Jessica Eye off of 3 decision wins. Unless we're gonna get Eye vs PVZ.

6- We often times take pitchforks to 205 lbs but Alonzo Menifield and Vinicius Morreira are intriguing enough 205 lb talents to get kind of excited about that fight and I think Karl Roberson won't be too out of his depth at 205 lbs either.

7- Let's stick with Roberson vs Teixeira for a quick second and debate this fight as a whole. Glover Teix's slow decline due to age and his all around fighting style seemed to really have hit the skids over the past few years. Post Rumble, Glover has seemed particularly broken even in his wins. He looked spooked on the feet vs Jared Cannonier but relied on his wrestling, got smoked vs Gus, struggled with Cirkunov before "the big guy who gets taken down first loses" rule kicked in and then against Corey Anderson, his total lack of movement and athleticism was exposed really badly en route to getting mugged for fifteen minutes. His rebound fight to this (after an injury ruined a September booking) is a super athletic MW coming up on short notice who represents the biggest weaknesses Glover has. You'd assume this is going to be a blowout BUT Glover can absolutely still wrestle with people dumb enough to let him impose his grappling game. Karl Roberson is super raw and allowed Cezar Mutante (a similar minded stiff grappler) to take him down, casually maneuver through his guard and eventually submit him. If Roberson has improved his grappling a smidge, he should win this. If he hasn't (and that fight was in May so it's not like he's had years to work on his ground game) then Glover should absolutely be the favorite here.

8- Welcome back to 155 lbs, Dennis Bermudez. I know your run at 145 lbs sort of fell out of favor recently so this could be a nice change of pace for him. Your first opponent is an ultra talented prospect coming off a loss in his debut who will probably be a weight class bigger than you come fight night. Best of luck, dude.

9- Is Gregor Gillespie the best blandest potential top fighter on the come up?

10- So on 99% of these cards, it won't matter what fight 2-12 is because they'll all be on the same network but I object to there being *counts* 10 fights better than Geoff Neal vs Belal Muhammad. Even if we acknowledge Belal has a bland no frills fighting style, h's still capable of putting on some solid performances within those blegh fights. Geoff Neal is a really impressive DWTCS guy who is 2-0 in the UFC, both finishes and both of the impressive variety. Muhammad tends to struggle against guys who he can't keep on the defensive for long and Neal's offensive output and freakish power sort of masks his deficiencies overall as a fighter. This is a good match up and worth tuning in early on ESPN+ to check out.

11- Briefly dipping back to the Joanne/PVZ conversation for a minute; is 125 lbs doomed to be known as the division where fighters who couldn't "make it" in their own division found a safe haven to beat up on other similarly skilled runner ups?

12- How many Chance Recountre jokes do I gotta make to get kicked off the DojoTalkPodcast?