While banned scribe Ariel Helwani’s hot takes have often rubbed people the wrong way, he might just have a point here.
The journalist sounded off on the BMF (Baddest Mother F***er) belt, suggesting that it’s time to retire the concept altogether, in the wake of featherweight champion Ilia Topuria knocking out Max Holloway at UFC 308.
For Helwani, the knockout highlighted his issues with the belt, arguing it’s more hype than substance and takes away from the genuine stakes of a championship title.
Helwani dived deeper and explained while lightweight champion Islam Makhachev still holds the title, how could Holloway be the BMF when he won the title in the same weight class?
“This issue I’ve always had with the BMF title. If I am Islam Makhachev… I am like ‘yo this is my weight class you won the fight in’. That is what the belt should recognise, not some secondary division within the division. And now you have a situation where the guy got knocked out but you’re like yeah he is still the BMF champion. It should have ended with the Masvidal fight in MSG.”
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Helwani has long been an advocate of having the BMF title thrown out entirely. But this is not even the worst disagreement he’s had with the organization. This is not to say, he hasn’t gotten it wrong a few times.
During UFC 199, the MMA journalist was exiled from the Dana White-led company. Helwani, known for breaking big news, reported Brock Lesnar’s return at UFC 200 before it was officially announced, leading to him being escorted from the event along with his team.
Helwani has since expressed regret that his story overshadowed UFC 199 and Michael Bisping’s title win, but has explained his priority was simply to report accurately and promptly, something he aspires to continue doing.
Helwani bats for Ngannou against Mr. White
Mr. White might not be breaking bad anymore but he sure has a thing against the former UFC heavyweight and current PFL heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou. And Helwani just isn’t going to let it pass.
Helwani called out White’s comments about Ngannou’s UFC exit and questioned the claims about the UFC president wanting to fire the Cameroonian back in 2018 after a loss to Derrick Lewis.
Following Ngannou’s successful PFL debut, White accused him of leaving the UFC solely for money and avoiding a potential fight with heavyweight champ Jon Jones due to being scared of the current undisputed heavyweight champion.
Helwani has now unpacked these statements and pointed out inconsistencies. He noted that despite the Lewis fight, the UFC continued to book Ngannou in major matchups, either headlining or featuring him on big cards—a sign that they didn’t actually intend to let him go.
The journalist sees this as more evidence of the UFC president’s selective storytelling owing to Ngannou’s refusal to sign a new contract with the company, thanks to the promotion’s rigid stance on fighter pay.
