Want to predict a fight? Watch the feet, not the face.
In animal behavior research, territorial encroachment means entering another’s space to test dominance. In a faceoff, it’s the same principle, just measured in inches. One steps forward. The other steps back. Predators advance. Prey yield. Under pressure, the body tells the truth faster than the face ever can. Sometimes one inch of movement reveals who’s hunting, and who’s being hunted. That micro-shift is often the nervous system leaking its real state.
It doesn’t predict the entire fight, but it often exposes the mindset they walked in with.
You can actually predict who’ll lose the fight just from the face-off, and it’s simpler than you think.
There was a study on UFC face-offs that found something wild: The fighter who smiled first lost a statistically significant amount of the time.
Why? Because smiling in that moment isn’t confidence. It’s appeasement. When tension spikes, your nervous system has four options: fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. That fake friendliness is your subconscious whispering, “Please don’t kill me.”
You’ll see the same tell when a fighter suddenly shakes hands, pats shoulders, or laughs nervously, especially if that isn’t their normal behavior. It’s the subconscious trying to diffuse danger.
In short, the one trying to make peace often loses the war.
Now, context matters. Charles Oliveira shakes hands with everyone. That isn’t fear. That’s his baseline: deep respect.
But when a fighter who’s never been friendly suddenly smiles and fawns at the face-off, that’s a nervous-system leak. A crack in the armor.
I’m not saying bet your house on it. But in the face-offs I studied, roughly two-thirds of the time, the one suddenly trying to make a friend lost the fight.
Do you think this pattern is real, or just coincidence?
Subscribe for deeper dives into the psychology of MMA champions:
First of all, thank you to every single person who watches the videos. There would be no channel without you.
Second, MANY more videos are coming your way, and very soon!
I believe the purpose of my life is to bring psychology to the masses. To use the gifts that God gave me in the service of others means to highlight psychology in motion and explain it to people in a simple way that helps them level up in their own life.
This life is truly you versus you, and the only person ever in your way is yourself. I believe I was put here to learn everything there is to learn about mindset and hand wrap it to other people so they can beat their own mind and succeed.
While I love making videos here, and will continue to do so, they take me a very long time. I often cut parts to keep the videos entertaining and high paced.
I have started a second youtube channel where it will be just me and a whiteboard. Me nerding out on psychology, very raw and in depth, without trying to find the perfect clip of the fighter saying it, or the perfect arc in a storyline.
I have quit my job and committed to a year of this. I'm not positive where this road leads, but even if it goes nowhere, it will have been a great honor to have given content that benefitted thousands of people. If that is my worst case scenario, this is a no brainer.
I want to give you everything I know about mindset, and it excites me to continue learning, so I will have more to give you.
The channel will be for you, tailored to what gets requested. I will give you everything I know about psychology. So tell me, what is the biggest problem you're facing right now?
Wow, surreal moment for me - DDP shared my video on his socials! Thank you to everyone who supports the channel for making moments like these possible. I appreciate it greatly and will keep making these videos as long as you guys keep enjoying them!
Psychology of The Fight
New Khamzat video is live! ⬇️
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nZZ_...
2 weeks ago | [YT] | 33
View 4 replies
Psychology of The Fight
Want to predict a fight? Watch the feet, not the face.
In animal behavior research, territorial encroachment means entering another’s space to test dominance.
In a faceoff, it’s the same principle, just measured in inches.
One steps forward. The other steps back.
Predators advance. Prey yield.
Under pressure, the body tells the truth faster than the face ever can.
Sometimes one inch of movement reveals who’s hunting, and who’s being hunted.
That micro-shift is often the nervous system leaking its real state.
It doesn’t predict the entire fight, but it often exposes the mindset they walked in with.
Do you think it's BS or legit?
3 weeks ago (edited) | [YT] | 46
View 9 replies
Psychology of The Fight
You can actually predict who’ll lose the fight just from the face-off, and it’s simpler than you think.
There was a study on UFC face-offs that found something wild:
The fighter who smiled first lost a statistically significant amount of the time.
Why?
Because smiling in that moment isn’t confidence. It’s appeasement.
When tension spikes, your nervous system has four options: fight, flight, freeze, or fawn.
That fake friendliness is your subconscious whispering, “Please don’t kill me.”
You’ll see the same tell when a fighter suddenly shakes hands, pats shoulders, or laughs nervously,
especially if that isn’t their normal behavior.
It’s the subconscious trying to diffuse danger.
In short,
the one trying to make peace often loses the war.
Now, context matters. Charles Oliveira shakes hands with everyone.
That isn’t fear. That’s his baseline: deep respect.
But when a fighter who’s never been friendly suddenly smiles and fawns at the face-off,
that’s a nervous-system leak. A crack in the armor.
I’m not saying bet your house on it.
But in the face-offs I studied, roughly two-thirds of the time,
the one suddenly trying to make a friend lost the fight.
Do you think this pattern is real, or just coincidence?
Subscribe for deeper dives into the psychology of MMA champions:
youtube.com/@PsychologyOfTheFight?sub_confirmation…
1 month ago (edited) | [YT] | 66
View 30 replies
Psychology of The Fight
First vid is up on new channel! ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRlGC...
1 month ago | [YT] | 7
View 10 replies
Psychology of The Fight
Hey guys! Huge news for the channel!
First of all, thank you to every single person who watches the videos. There would be no channel without you.
Second, MANY more videos are coming your way, and very soon!
I believe the purpose of my life is to bring psychology to the masses. To use the gifts that God gave me in the service of others means to highlight psychology in motion and explain it to people in a simple way that helps them level up in their own life.
This life is truly you versus you, and the only person ever in your way is yourself. I believe I was put here to learn everything there is to learn about mindset and hand wrap it to other people so they can beat their own mind and succeed.
While I love making videos here, and will continue to do so, they take me a very long time. I often cut parts to keep the videos entertaining and high paced.
I have started a second youtube channel where it will be just me and a whiteboard. Me nerding out on psychology, very raw and in depth, without trying to find the perfect clip of the fighter saying it, or the perfect arc in a storyline.
I have quit my job and committed to a year of this. I'm not positive where this road leads, but even if it goes nowhere, it will have been a great honor to have given content that benefitted thousands of people. If that is my worst case scenario, this is a no brainer.
I want to give you everything I know about mindset, and it excites me to continue learning, so I will have more to give you.
The channel will be for you, tailored to what gets requested. I will give you everything I know about psychology.
So tell me, what is the biggest problem you're facing right now?
See you soon:
youtube.com/@PsychologyOfYourFight
1 month ago | [YT] | 28
View 14 replies
Psychology of The Fight
Tomorrow morning the GSP video drops with HUGE news. Can you guess the core psychology behind it?
2 months ago | [YT] | 77
View 10 replies
Psychology of The Fight
Tomorrow morning: The Law of Attraction explained through Ilia Topuria part 3:
5 months ago | [YT] | 129
View 17 replies
Psychology of The Fight
Wow, surreal moment for me - DDP shared my video on his socials! Thank you to everyone who supports the channel for making moments like these possible. I appreciate it greatly and will keep making these videos as long as you guys keep enjoying them!
8 months ago | [YT] | 365
View 42 replies
Psychology of The Fight
Tomorrow morning - highly requested one!
8 months ago | [YT] | 91
View 3 replies
Psychology of The Fight
Which one would you click on?
1 year ago | [YT] | 23
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