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Now, on with the show. This dude is a freaking animal. This is the Rich Eisen Show. The buck stops here, essentially, is what I'm saying. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles.
Earlier on the show, Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Irvin. Coming up. Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield. UFC president Dana White. Five-time Grammy Award winner Michael Bouple.
And now, it's Rich Eisen. That's right. Hour number two of the Rich Hodgen Show is on the air. Hour one was quite something because Michael Irvin is here for all three hours. Michael is back in the green room chit-chatting with our next guest that he will join for our chit-chat.
Dana White is here. He hasn't been here in 10 years. The president of UFC is here. And Ryan Garcia versus Connor Benn. It's going to take place on Saturday, September 12th in Las Vegas, Nevada, in the Team Mobile Arena with the main card being topped there.
All events will be seen exclusively on Paramount Plus. And then there's UFC 331 right here in Los Angeles, California.
So, lots to talk about with Dana here on the program. Baker Mayfield's about to join us shortly.
Meanwhile, in Las Vegas, Nevada, we have an announcement. We finally got it. We got it. Clint Kubiak announced it. Hit it.
Kirk's going to be the starting quarterback. And he was not out there today. That was by design for rest day, a vet day. He played really good football. I'm really happy with all three of our quarterbacks.
And you know, Kirk's had a really good offseason, very good camp. And he's earned it. Zero surprise there. Fernando Mendoza Mendoza Mania can wait. Makes complete sense.
Kirk Cousins was brought in to mentor and start. And now start the clock on how long he's going to be there or not. But no surprise there. That's the news out of Las Vegas, Nevada, everybody. But joining us right now in advance of the football season, courtesy of Sonic, One of my favorites, ladies and gentlemen, Baker Mayfield of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
How are you, Baker? Good to see you, man. It's great to be back, guys. Thanks for having me. Where are the kids?
Where are they? Where are we? Where are the children? Nappin. Nappin.
Nappin. Yeah, yes.
So do I sign a handle business and talk to you, Rich. Do I need to keep it down? Do I have to have the dad?
Okay. No, it's 2026. We're good.
Okay. Good to see you, man. How's life? It's great to see you. How's life?
Good. Yeah. Finally, through the preseason. We just finished up today with our last practice.
Now got the weekend off and Ready for the real thing.
Okay, a little labor day. Do you, yeah? I mean, you're going to be, you're probably working on Labor Day, I imagine, right? Monday, you're back at it. Extra labor on Labor Day.
Okay, buddy. Little bonus practice. Hey, man, listen. Your mindset entering your ninth NFL season is what? Let me check inside the temples there.
What do you think of Baker? Just excited, to be honest with you. After the finish that we had last year, not what we wanted by any means, but getting some pieces back, getting guys healthy. Adding in, I think The correct pieces all across the board, offense, defense, special teams. And just excited for what we've been building throughout the offseason in training camp.
And for me, just take it one game at a time, you know, not getting too high, not getting too low. I think we have a really good roster, a great group of guys, great staff that can take us all the way. Just take it one game at a time and try and progress from there. I got you. And I mentioned your actual children.
What are the kids on your. offense T walk me through them. Walk me through these guys that you're going to definitely be looking for, depending on, and counting on. Baker. Yeah.
I mean, first and foremost, I think Chris Godwin is back to his his purest form. He looks unbelievable. And he's taking a lot of time to get back to that healthy point, and we're happy and lucky to have him feeling that good. Looking forward to getting a Mecca and J-Mac back on the field, Jo McMillan. Those guys, two studs that can definitely contribute and help us out.
Tez Johnson, a guy that kind of flew onto the scene, thrown into the fire last year as a rookie. Looking for him to take a big jump. But the newest edition, Ted Hurst. Um Big big receiver, 6'4, big frame. He's been making plays for us, and so it's really excited about him.
And just what he brings to the table. As long as our guys up front stay healthy, we should be pretty good. Yeah. And the. The whole concept of Mike Evans not being there is difficult for the band fan base to rap.
Their arms around. I guess you've already wrapped your arms around that. with these guys and like walk me through that process. you have to take with somebody like him not being there anymore. Baker.
Yeah, I mean, as cliche as it sounds, you can't replace Mike Evans. I mean, first Ballot Hall of Famer in my eyes that. nobody can ever really replace Mike.
So of all the positions to lose somebody of that caliber, it's that receiver room is kind of made for it with the depth that we have, with the guys that have had a lot of experience and have stepped up for us.
So it's kind of by committee. And we still have You know, Chris Godwin's been here for he's gone into year 10. He's number two on all the receiver records for the Bucs, just behind Mike.
So it's not like he hasn't been consistent for all those years. And so really excited about him and the steps that Omeka and Jalen are going to take. And obviously, like I mentioned, Tez and Ted. And then, you know, Bucky's healthy, looks really good. And bring a guy in like Kenny Gainwell.
So it's you kind of have a bunch of pieces that you have to replace and make up for that production that Mike's leaving behind. Baker Mayfield here, courtesy of Sonic. We'll get to that in just a matter of moments. Jason Light, the general manager of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Baker Mayfield, held a press conference. yesterday um and he He had an interesting sound bite about your realism.
I don't know if you heard that. Did you hear that one, Baker? I don't know if you heard that one. I did hear that one. All right.
Well, here's what we do in the program. We replay it and ask you for your comment. Go ahead and roll it, please. We love Baker. And um You know, Baker, there's There's nothing fake about Baker.
Sometimes I wish there was maybe 10% more fake, but he's. He's certainly uh motivated and um We love that. What's your two cents on that one, Baker?
Now Boravel. Um no, I I think I've just always been that way. You'll probably know exactly what I'm thinking or how I feel about you within the first couple of minutes of meeting you, and that's okay. It is, man. And I'm just glad I appear to be on the good side.
You know what I mean? With you. Oh, yeah, you're one of the best. I feel the same way about you, man. Because obviously, people are, that's why I asked about your mindset, quite frankly, and how you're going in and how healthy it might be for you.
walking into this season. There on that front, Baker. Yeah, I think obviously Vita's contract got done, which is a big deal. He's the anchor for the defense and somebody that takes a ton of double teams and lets those other guys play free. And so huge part.
So really, really happy for him. But for me, it's, you know, I can use that as galvanizing the troops and rallying everybody behind that, you know, listen, it doesn't matter what's going on, we're still going to play hard for each other. Stuff can be handled outside. The football field, and that is that's the business aspect of it. But when it comes to ball, it's just us in between those lines.
Let's go make it happen. How are you different now from nine years ago? What do you got? Yeah, right. Still wear my heart or my sleeve, but there's definitely a lot more thinking before speaking or some actions comes.
A lot of dumb mistakes been From the past, but uh you know stuff that you know, I've learned from and grown from that You know, there's things that I wish I could change, but I can't.
So all I can do is learn and grow from those things and spread that knowledge and try and help out the guys that come in the building and just be the same leader and continue to embrace that role. What about on the field, pre-snap, looking across the line? How how much more advanced are you now? than nine years ago. Honestly, it's frustrating to even see clips from even like three years ago.
Just the game slows down. The more you see different coverages, pressures, you know. What checks you're getting to protections. And so it slows down. You kind of keep those things in the holster and you're ready to communicate it and get the guys on the same page.
So that's the fun part about being able to play as much as I have: the more reps you get, the slower the game feels. And as long as you play on time and in rhythm, you know, let the physical abilities take over. What are you doing for Sonic, brother? What do you got here for me on that front? Oh, it's a great deal.
It's a $7 big deal meal, actually, Rich.
So in that $7 big deal meal, you get a burger, fries, or tots. I will judge you if you don't order tots, but you get a drink and a Sunday.
So it's a nice little football spin with a 7 point, $7 big deal meal, $7 exactly.
So, yeah, it was fun. Did a campaign with them a year ago, and then this came out.
So it was a fun twist on the football aspect of it. And we got to throw Emily in there as well.
So it was fun to film. I saw your lovely wife part of this whole mix. I saw that. Is that something? You got to give the people what they want.
I hear you. Was that an arm twist situation or they suggested it? Like, what happened? Did you have to twist her arm to get in there? She enjoyed this?
No, I just kept ordering Sonic until she agreed. Understood? Understood. And you and Bijan, too, huh? Longhorn sooner well.
Falcon rivalry. We don't have to talk about that. We don't have to talk about the longhorns. All right.
I mean, it is a talking point. This is a happy talking point. We don't have to talk about the longhorns. I like it. And how why are tots a window into somebody's soul?
Why are you judging? What is that all about? It just says a lot about you if you don't order the tots from Sonic. It's a classic. Like, you know, when you go to Sonic, you get the crushed ice, the nugget ice.
Like, that's the classic. It's tots, it's crushed ice. You get the big deal meal. I mean, there's only one way to do it. What about the Sunday portion of it?
Is that something you judge people on? On the Sunday? No, that's just the extra cherry on top, man.
Okay. You deserve it.
Well, speaking of cherry on top and stirring it up, before I let you go. I see a week two game. I see you, week two game. Oh, yeah, buddy. You know.
Who's that against?
Well, it's a home date as well. It's your home opener, it's in front of your home fans firing cannons the whole bit. Uh it happens to be the Cleveland Browns. And yeah. And I know you like planting flags on Ohio teams.
I know that. I've seen that before. And by the way, I'm a big fan of that. Certainly against the Ohio team, you did it. Against And I know you said you've already circled it, but are you aware that their quarterback situation is somewhat being talked about?
and that you could potentially send them back 0-2 home. And make it worse for that team? Is that in your mindset at all? Baker? No.
Honestly, it's. It's just about wedding. Really, I could care less about what's going on in the quarterback situation in their building. It's just about beating them and uh letting them know. That I found a home.
Mm-hmm. Baker Mayfield, I appreciate you. As always, do say hello to your lovely wife. I'm glad we didn't wake the kids.
Well, wait, Rich, we got week two. Oklahoma's coming to the big house, man. Yes. That's something you would like to discuss. Is that something that okay?
All right.
Let's put a big deal meal on it, man.
Okay, we will do that. Will we have our best defensive player this time around, or will he get ejected for targeting the week before and you won't have to deal with him? Will that happen? Because that happened. I don't know, man.
We didn't pay our quarterback $10 million, so whatever you want to do. This is what we're talking about, a boy Baker. Yes. Okay, so you got it. On.
We're on and I'll have I'll have the tots. In advance. How does that sound?
Now that's a good choice.
Okay, Baker Mayfield, you know, I'll be reaching out very soon, and I always appreciate you coming on, brother. You be well. Appreciate you guys. Crush it this year, Baker. Go crush it.
That's Baker Mayfield, everybody. Right here, courtesy of Sonic. Subsonic, I now have something. Extra on the line, a couple weeks from now when his alma mater visits mine. A couple tits.
It's going to be different than last year, I'll tell you that. And it's not just because there's some sonic tots on the line. The hell. I think that's a big noonie. By the way, Jay Sean Barham, who I believe the Bucs are going to see.
Are they going to see him? Yeah, are the Cowboys on the Buc schedule? They are, are they not? They are. Yes.
Okay. Jason Barham. He was the defender who did not play against Oklahoma last year because he was called for targeting while sacking somebody.
Well, stop cheating. Stop it. Stop cheating. I didn't know you were allowed to talk about college football over there. Hey, hey now.
By the way, Oklahoma, Michigan that day. Yes, sir. And then Ohio State, Texas. Oh, that's a good one. Yeah, let's go.
That's a good one.
Okay. Okay. Just remind me, Brockman, when we were up in San Francisco for Super Bowl, we went to a restaurant for lunch and we walk in. I'm like, is that Baker Mayfield over there? And then I turned around and he was standing right behind.
And we were like, hey, Baker and the wife. All right.
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Okay, so um here's the scoop. We're barely off and running. on this program. Um that was fun with Baker. When we come back, Dana White will come out of the green room.
And Michael Irvin will join us to talk about with the man who runs the UFC. We'll talk about that Garcia versus Ben fight. And you've got Noche UFC coming up, too.
So much to talk about with Dana White coming up. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast. Taking a quick break to tell you how Saturday's game time can get a little messy. Your crew just came over to watch. Snacks on the table, drinks in hand, and somebody's celebrating like they've just won the whole season and beyond.
And when that energy gets going, your walls can end up taking the hit. Whether it's a big spill or a noticeable scuff, that's where Bear Ultra interior paint comes in. It adds an extra durable, stain-blocking finish that helps your walls hold up for the whole season. It also delivers outstanding coverage and hide in fewer coats with easy application and a smooth, even finish that goes on clean from the first pass. Plus, that easy, clean finish helps walls stay looking new longer.
So before the next kickoff, give your space game-ready defense and coverage that goes the distance. Bare Ultra, only at the Home Depot. Rich Eisen here with some advice. If high-interest credit card debt is grinding you down, it might be time to call an Audible with a SoFi personal loan. It consolidates your debt into one low monthly payment with no fees required.
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Rich Eisen here. We talk a lot about battles in sports. Teams battling through adversity, athletes fighting for every yard. The toughest warriors I've ever seen, though, aren't on the field. They're kids fighting cancer, their families standing beside them, doctors, nurses, caregivers.
That's why I'm proud to support Hyundai Hope on Wheels. For over 28 years, they've helped fund pediatric cancer research, raising more than $303 million and supporting over 40,000 children. Learn more and donate at hyundaiusa.com backslash hope on wheels. wheels. When when we grew up, we had channel three, channel five, channel eight and channel thirteen.
And then when we were in high school, cable came, you had like thirty channels, you know, MTV, HBO and whatever. And I think we're going to go back to channel three, channel five, channel eight, channel 13 over the next several years, but it will be global. Sure. Um, and who's it going to be? Is it going to be Paramount, YouTube, Netflix, you know.
But there's going to be a handful of channels again, but they'll be global. I'm also mandated to say Disney Plus because that's what we're sitting on right now, along with ESPN app as well. And ESPN Radio Series XM audience has just rejoined. That's the voice of the president of the UFC, UFC President Dana White, is here along with Michael Irvin. We were just talking about, again, a big Saturday, September 12th, Noche UFC, Silva versus Delgado in Glendale, Arizona, the Diamond Desert Arena.
The main card starts at 5 Eastern 2, and that would be, I guess, 2 o'clock Mountain Time. And then Ryan Garcia versus Connor Benn that night in Las Vegas as well. Both events exclusively streamed on Paramount Plus. You'll be at both. Man, I could keep going on and on.
I mean, I'm not going to let you talk, but there's so much to talk about. UFC 331 right here in LA, and that is a week later.
So two big Saturdays in a row coming up for you after late. Yeah, we're averaging like two and a half events a week. Right. It's uh Button. What do you like about promoting boxing?
What do you like about that?
Well, I wasn't sure for a long time if I would like promoting boxing. And now that I've jumped in it, I've been in it like six months. And uh, it's moving a lot faster than I had anticipated. Listen, here's what we all know: sports been broken and fragmented for a long time. And as I got in, you know, in six months, I'm two years further along than I thought I would be.
Because it's so messed up and so broken. I think the fighters that we've signed have been really happy to jump on board with us. Jai Opataya. Who is, you know, without a doubt the best 200-pound guy in the world is on the co-main event of this card. And we got a lot of really good talent.
In a real short amount of time.
So it's been fun for me. I've actually enjoyed it. How is it different? Than what you're doing. But it's not much different.
I thought it would be a lot different. And, you know. Every time I would think about getting into boxing, I'd get on the phone with some of these boxing guys and I'd be like, am I out of my mind? What am I doing? Why would I even think I want to do this?
But now that I'm in six months, it hasn't been bad. I'm actually enjoying it and having fun. And that day, I mean, I I To my core. I I am a hardcore fight fan and and uh you know that day I get to Go to Arizona. Watch the the UFC in the best seats in the house, and then fly to Vegas and T-Mobile and watch an incredible card.
And the best seats in the house. I was about to say, I imagine they're the best seats in the house. Doesn't available in both of those spots. Doesn't pretty good seats. I've been with Dana a couple of times.
No, I know that. I was going to ask you what that is. I'm walking around with Dana.
Well, I get called his bodyguard when I'm walking around with Dana. I really do. Dana's like, you know, because everybody loves him at the fight and they're calling his name all the time. And we're walking around and we're walking back to the private room and everything. And people are everywhere.
People are everywhere. It's always a great event. And I love, like, UFC events seem like people are more loose and have more fun than even at boxing events. To be honest with you, that's why I fell in love with going to UFC events. But, Dana, the great thing.
Well, that's what he's saying is true.
So, one of the things that was broken about boxing was the live event. When you would go to the live event, you wouldn't leave a boxing event and go, wow, that was a great experience. That's what I want to bring back to. Like the Tyson days. There were different.
100%. That was different, dude. We got dressed up. We got to walk all the way down the long hallway. It was a whole show.
It was a whole show. Well, the problem is the show only lasted 30 seconds. But it was a great show before in those days. That was it. But there was just this buzz and energy.
Right. What Tyson brought to the fight game was, you know. I don't know if that will ever be matched again. I mean, what he brought to the game. It was an incredible time for the sport of boxing.
And, you know, he's not one of the like Johnny come lately's, you know, when the UFC blew up and became, he was coming in the early days before it really took off. You've taken notice. He's always been a fan. Are you taking lists, Damon? No, no, I'm just saying.
What are you saying? You know, there's a lot of people that beat the UFC fan drum. He was there. Yeah, I love it. Way before it was, you know, the cool thing to do.
So, what would you say is the through line? Between UFC fighters and boxers that you've been around?
Well, I mean, it's obviously two totally different sports. That's why I don't. ever liked the crossover fights, you know, when uh People said, oh, would John Jones box this guy? Or would, no, they're too totally. completely different sports and you know and and they have Very different fan bases too.
Um what I'm trying to do with boxing right now is make it younger. You know, get more young people. What was fascinating was when we got into this back in 2001. You know, people are like, Oh, you'll never beat boxing. You'll never be as big as boxing and all this stuff.
Well, boxing, you know, has gotten a lot older and the UFC is very young.
Now I see some of these UFC kids of fans, you know, that that watch boxing are like, wow, these fights are long. You know, 10 or 12 rounds instead of three or five rounds.
So, um Mm my whole philosophy is uh You know, every time I put on an event, I want. The best live event experience possible. I don't ever want somebody walking out of one of my live events going, eh, I don't ever want to come to one of these again. And I want the best television experience. that you can have, whether you're home with your family and friends or you're watching it in a bar.
So, how do you how do you work on that? Like, you know what I mean? Like, obviously. And When you're going to a UFC fight and you see the people in the stands, right? You could see them, and I that's why I would notice you, and you're you're you.
I can't confirm you were an early goer of those fights. I'm like, oh, look where Irv is. And of course, I'd be thinking, I hope he gets in time for NFL Network tomorrow. I don't know how he's going to get across the country. Yeah, that's right.
I will pop over on a Saturday night and have to be on the air at 6 a.m. I recall, Michael. And we'd all be in the makeup room before NFL Game Day morning. Like, did you all see Irv at UFC? You know, I guess I'm trying to do the numbers here, like 260.
You know, like, do you remember all that? But at any rate, so how do you work on that? Like, how do you. You know, how do you make sure that the The evening has that entertainment value outside of obviously the combat.
Well, number one, first the matchmaking. That's what I was going to say. And you have to start, you know, the first fight of the night. To the main event. Are all great fights.
And then, you know, like I said, technology has been great to us. When you get. You know, as far as the production goes at home, every time there's something new or interesting, we try it. And we always try to raise the bar. And uh Yeah.
Do better than we did last time. We're always trying to beat ourselves. Daniel, you mentioned something, let me ask you 'cause you you talked about matchmaking. That has been the issue in boxing. I agree.
And you made a way. By giving people the matches that they wanted, guys come up and talk about calling people out. Everybody gets crazy about it. How do you do that? How do you accomplish that in boxing?
Well, it's not like the best don't want to fight the best in boxing. They do. The problem was the business was so fragmented. The biggest problem with boxing was every time these guys would put on a fight, it was like a going out of business sale. They'd try to go grab as much money as they could, and then they'd run away and disappear for a year and come back.
You know, we reinvest back into the product. We put on the best fights from the, you know, the. You don't let these guys dodge each other for years. Without fighting, and then they all end up with undefeated records, you know, 17 and 0 with 15 knockouts. We have some of these kids now that are.
Eight and O, nine and oh. fighting each other at at eight, nine and oh. And, you know, we will bring boxing back and and and uh We'll make it big again. What do you like about the matchup we're here to promote? Yeah, so this is one of those fights.
Ben is a big star in the UK. Garcia, you know, just won the title and a big star here. This is one of those fights that. If Garcia can win this fight in spectacular fashion. This guy could be the face of boxing.
And if Ben pulls off the upset, which people believe that he's the big underdog in this thing. He will be a massive superstar in the UK. And realistically, when you look at boxing now, boxing has become a very European sport. You know, all the big fighters and all the big fights always happen over there. American boxing has.
you know, plummeted in the last ten years.
So We gotta uh We got to put on good fights, sign the best talent. And rebuild boxing in the United States. It kind of sounds similar in a way to what we just talked about with the World Cup, right? Is how can you. Put Talent in a pipeline.
When there's other sports. And in all honesty, like you're running a sport that could potentially compete, right? Right. Where I don't want to box, I want to be a UFC fighter. Very true.
And that has happened over the last 25 years. You had all these young kids. Wanting to become mixed martial artists instead of boxers. And there are some who are like, you know what? I don't want to play soccer.
I want to play baseball. I want to play football. And it's a similar thing.
So I don't know how you could. You say, hey, well, as you dive into this, like I hadn't paid attention to boxing in a long time. There are thousands of kids out there that are boxing. And For instance, you know, the card in Vegas, um On the 12th, the whole card is stacked with young up-and-coming talent. And you have to showcase everybody, not just the main event.
And what you did start to notice when we did that, when we built these cards the way that we did, I mean, people show up for the first fight of the night for UFC fights. In boxing, everybody just shows up for the main event. We're going to fix that too.
Okay. Dana White is here with Michael Irvin. I'm making it a show. What's next for you? I know you've got your plates full, but I mean, like, you have to be on some sort of.
Manifest destiny, to use an old school history phrase here. I mean, are there other. Sports on your radar screen, you want to pick up or join, or I don't have the bandwidth or the time to pick up any other sports right now. And this is, it's crazy because I just turned 57. This is the busiest year.
of my entire career. I mean, I've been home. This whole last week I was home, but before that, I was home four days and two months.
So, you know, my kids are grown. My kids are in college and doing. 24, 25, and and 20.
So, my kids are out doing their thing.
So, um Yeah. Are they going to join the family business? No, they're all sort of on their own paths right now, and good paths.
So I'm really happy for them. They're doing great. And you know how it is. You don't ever want your kids involved in your business. You want your kids to have their own path in life.
Their own way. Although you told your. Didn't you tell me once upon a time there's three things your kids cannot deny? Is it what you told me?
Well, that was when he was trying to figure out what school he can go to.
Okay, I think. Go ahead and say what about it. He can choose another school. He just has to find somewhere else to eat. You know, outside of Miami.
You told me, you once told your son there's three things he cannot change. His last name is religion or where he's going to school. Where are you going to school? It had to be Miami. And that's where my daughter goes.
My daughter goes to Miami. Oh, is that that? See what I'm saying? It's family business, right? It's family business, man.
And hey, that's the best place in the world for it. There's no other sport you'd be interested in. I just, I guess that you'd be like, you know what? I'd love to.
Well, you know what? I want to be a fan of some things. You know what I mean? I like when I get to, like, I'm a Celtics fan.
So I get to go to the games and watch the games and the Patriots. Um I like when I get to be a fan and actually just go enjoy myself and not. Sweat the entire event.
Okay. All right.
So, no, I'm not looking to get anything. This is you're good with what you got, right? I'm great. I'm great with what I got.
Okay. And then, so you're bringing UFC to Los Angeles, which is, it's been a while, has it not? Yeah, yeah, it has been a while. You know, it's great because as we've grown and expanded, and then obviously coming out of COVID, there's still a lot of places that we haven't been in a while.
So. As we go back, um We, you know, absolutely kill. I mean, we continue to break all the arena records. And I mean, in Madison Square Garden, if you look at how long it took us to get into MSG, We're like eight of the top 10 all-time gates at Madison Square Garden. And we're going there again in November and then next year.
So, in the next two years, we'll be. 10 of the top 10 all-time gates at MSG. Speaking of that, let me ask you, because I remember you did the fight at the spear. Right, in Las Vegas. Where's been the toughest place to set up the white house door?
Oh, the white house. Yeah. Not even appreciate that plug. By the way, not your name. Don't appreciate that plug.
That was my plug. Before that. Yes. It was absolutely.
So I was thinking: after we do the sphere, everybody's going to run to the sphere. Nobody has gone to the sphere. It's expensive. It's hard. You know.
It's a hard technical event to pull off, and it's very expensive. And the White House was more difficult than that just because the security.
Well, we had to build a we no, well, the security, but we had to build an arena on the lawn that slopes like this and Yeah. And then we had to set up the ellipse across the street. You know, we had 85,000 people. In the ellipse, the night of the fight. That was an incredible night, too.
I spent a lot of time with all the guys that served, man. That was an incredible night. I mean, I got woof. I mean, everybody came in there because they were all of service men. They never, and they love sports.
And I walked in and they woof, man, it was. I had a great night. I had a great night. Is that another way for you to promote the Dallas Cowboys? I don't understand America's team.
But what I was saying to them, that was the true Americas team. I was really with them, and they had their families with them, man. And a lot of people said a lot of things about that. That was such an incredible night being there with those guys. Where do you want to go next?
could choose. Pick and choose. Forget about the logistics.
Well, there's still places that we, but you know, it's crazy. One of our biggest markets. since day one, has been Hawaii, and we've still never put on an event in Hawaii. We've had multiple world champions from Hawaii.
So and they're building the infrastructure there Can't support. Um You know, a UFC event, but n now they're building a new arena there. Supposed to be done in like 28 or 29. And uh, you know, I I like Destinations where people like when we do UFC Hawaii, people will lose their minds. That's, I mean, that's a right?
Yeah. Who doesn't want to go to UFC Hawaii? And every staff member I have working is going to want to work that event.
So, off the top of my head, you're firing that at me. I mean, that's just when I think about UFC Hawaii, that'll be a fun one. Because doing it outdoors is not an option, right? You just did that again. Yeah, no, I'm not.
I don't ever. Do you know the story of this thing?
So, so. We're getting up to date. Whether From not the Channel 4 weather guy, like the military meteorologist. You know what I mean? I hope so.
You're not just turning on the traffic, you're getting the traffic on the eights. Right, the guy who determines whether we go to war or not based on the weather. That's the guy that's giving us the. Right. So.
100% guaranteed we're getting hit with this storm. Yeah. So, so. If anybody saw that we did a dock on it. Like our guys are batting down the head.
We're going to get hit. It's a nasty storm. There's going to be damage. Everything's going to be wet.
So we have a team that's going to try to fix whatever gets broken, dry up the place, get the seats dry. The storm comes. When it gets to the White House, it's It breaks in half. and goes around the White House in the ellipse. And then keeps going.
Not one drop of rain fell. The wind stopped. It was the craziest thing ever. Man, I knew you were powerful, but I didn't.
Well, yeah.
Well, you know, all the conspiracy theorists now are like, oh, yeah, the government does control the weather. Believe me when I tell you, they do not. They do not. We thought we were going to get wiped out. You got a question over there, Chris?
Well, Danny, you're a big Celtics fan. I'm a huge Celtics fan. What did you think about the Jalen Brown trade? This is interesting. You know, I I think my take on it now is that everybody seems happy.
Right. No, he was mad. You know, he seems happy with the trade. Both teams seem happy with the trade.
So. Uh w what's funny is My favorite place to go to a game. When the Celtics play as Philly, the fans are hilarious. You should hear the, you know, I go in there with my all my gear on, and I go in, you know, and the whole time I'm there, everybody's yelling at me. And I just love that type of atmosphere.
I love Philly and I love doing games there. Yeah, that's kind of how they treat me in Philly.
So we got something else in common. Bro, they're yelling at me. UFC sun. That's weird. That's weird that that would happen.
Doesn't sound very on brand.
Well, that's a Philadelphia 76er fan over there in TJ Jefferson. And Trust me, as a Nick fan, we like going to Philadelphia as well. People show up quite en masse. All right, so let's hit everything here one more time. Um, you're wearing this shirt, Ryan Garcia versus Connor Benn, taking place Saturday, um, September 12th in Vegas.
Meanwhile, earlier in the day, Noche UFC, Silva versus Delgado. That's the The event that's at the top of flowchart there in the Desert Diamond Arena, both exclusively on Paramount Plus. You're going to physically be at both, correct? Yes, sir. I will do both.
Then the next week you'll be back here in LA? I will.
Okay, very good. And that, by the way, um That's the first UFC event at crypto? I didn't know that. Crypto, it's formerly Staples Center since they changed. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Okay, yes. Basically, all right. It's still the same building, otherwise, and that's on Paramount Plus as well. Am I missing anything? No, sir.
Okay. We nailed it. Thank you. Thanks for having me. Good to see you again.
Good to see you. Congrats on all your success. Thanks. Right back at you as well. We're the same age.
Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah, I know, for sure. I'm just a little bit younger on the kids' department than you. President of UFC, Dana White, is here, along with Michael Irvin as well.
Thought the White House references about his podcast in the Netflix. I just do it. I appreciate that. All right.
We're back on the Rich Eisen Show here on Disney Plus and the ESPN app in a moment. The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. Rich Eisen here. Running a small business means every hire matters. A bad hire costs time and money, but the right one helps your business grow.
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Michael Irvin is still here. O. Shay Jackson Jr. is going to join us in hour number three. Michael Boublet is going to be zooming in to talk about more fantasy football right here on the pro.
Do you ever play fantasy football ever? I don't really play fantasy football. Have you ever played fantasy football? I've never really played fantasy football. You know, I'm I'm only doing real football.
But but I I love that fantasy football has brought so many more fans in. Yes. You know what I mean? It crosses over. Jerry Jones runs the Cowboys like it's a fantasy football type hit.
It's the truth. It's the truth. TJ, let me ask you a question. I guess you should. Would you ever.
Own a fantasy team and let somebody else pick the players. Absolutely not. Jerry Jones runs a Dallas Cowboys like a fantasy football team.
Well, he's not the only one. Yeah. He would never. I mean, another owner doesn't pick the players. He's the only one.
Naming another. Would Jerry Jones ever allow somebody to pick the players without any of his input at all? Ever. I I don't never. And you could say never.
It's okay.
Well, they they may pick the player, but he's gotta make a decision to pay the player. Hmm.
So we'll let you pick, but who I pay is different. You know, that that's going to come down. All right.
Okay. Do you think the Cowboys trade for Max Crosby middle of the season? I think the Cowboys may not need a Max Crosby now.
Okay. Hey, now.
Okay. Hey, no, no, no. Listen, listen. Listen. Rashad Gary grabbed me at practice the other day.
I saw that. I was like. Who was that? Who the hell just he felt like Bruce Banner? I was like, Connie, that's a strong dude, man.
And now you got. The first day I was at practice when Von Miller showed up. He went and grabbed young guys right away and started teaching and showing. There's a lot of things. I love Max Crosby.
I love Max Crosby. I would love to have Max Crosby on my team. I love him. I love his way, the way he plays the game. I'm just saying.
Now Dallas is at a point where they have to discern. Is it a good move now, or do you keep the resources and keep adding on later? Because that defense, I want to see what this defense does before I throw more resources at it.
Okay, very good. You know what, we're going to do it? We're going to do the NFC North Top of the Next Hour with Michael Irvin. I want to take a phone call here. Kenye in Washington, D.C., is joining us on this program.
This is going to be fun. What's up, Kenya? You're on with Michael Irvin. You got something to say? I sure do.
It's the most wonderful time of the year. You got a hater in the house, sir. Are you ready? Gentlemen, are you ready? Go, bird.
Shell and rich. I am highly disappointed. And you and Shady C's Pick but NFC Uh, champions.
Well, we no, no, we said the NFC East. We predicted it yesterday. We all said the Cowboys win it. We all did. Um, and you disappointed.
Why are you disappointed? Because I expected that tomfoolery from my favorite cow turd, Big Tuna, but y'all two got some sense. First of all, don't big tuna. O'Shea, you started this. He's off camera.
Okay. Yeah. Okay. Big tuna. It's all good, because my eagles thrives.
when they're the underdogs, and it will be very sweet. When they win, and Dallas don't even make the playoffs this year. Oof. Hey, Ken, you man, listen, I was walking on Mero's the other day and just doing a little shopping, and one of your buddies jumped out and sang that same song: Fly, Eagles, Fly. I said, Well, you guys, are you joking?
Get out of here with that. He followed me. Fly as I'm walking in the store singing, Fly Some Man, come on, man. That said, I told him we're clipping all Fly Eagle Fly wings this year. Gentlemen, thank you, Kenya.
Appreciate it. What was it like playing against those Eagles? When Reggie showed up, Reggie White, everybody. And that's the that's the only rich, the only thing that I say. I got I pr I I got up close.
I got an up close look. At what p what they could possibly look like, Aaron Donnell and Miles Garrett. I saw Reggie White and Jerome Brown. You know what I mean? Is that similar in your estimation?
I don't I I as similar as I've ever seen. As far as defensive line, having two, I mean, different type of dudes on one defensive line, I would say the closest thing tantamount to what we're going to see with Aaron Donald and Miles Garrett was Reggie White and Jerome Brown. You know, talent-wise and fear-wise. I've seen grown men. back out of games because those dudes were on the field.
Grown men, somebody said, Well, I'm hurt. Where are you hurt? I promise you, I heard a lineman say, Somewhere in here. All I know is I'm out. I'm out.
That's what he says, somewhere in here. An unidentified object. I can't identify what's in me hurting. I can identify who's going to hurt me if I get on that field. It's them two.
But don't you think there are teams. in the NFL hearing us talk about Donald coming back and joining Garrett. And how it We're assuming that's a wrap. Don't you think other teams are pissed hearing about that? Wouldn't you?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Well, yeah, it will. It will peak. My interest and say, oh, okay, nobody believes in me. What's going on? But.
But then when I go turn on film You'll be like, she's right on me. How the hell is this? It'll be different here, boy, especially if you get young Aaron Donald. What when we had Coach on Scheinheimer talking about, well, we get them later. We're not worried about that right now.
I was like, whew, you well, we should have got them now. Before he gets into that later type shape, you want to get him now. See, if if you can get him now, I believe Tyler can take care of him and you can double team Miles Garrett. Thanks for listening to the Rich Eisen Show podcast. You can watch and listen to The Rich Eisen Show live weekdays from noon to 3 Eastern on ESPN Radio, Disney Plus, and on the ESPN app, The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast.
This episode is brought to you by Chat GPT. Hey, it's Bill Simmons from the Bill Simmons Podcast. Have you guys heard about ChatGPT work? It's the new way to use ChatGPT for bigger multi-step projects and when you need more than just answers. Give ChatGPT Work access to your apps and files, and it can create real work documents like spreadsheets, slides, and structured reports.
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