Monday, May 31, 2010

The Audacity of Hype!

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If Barack Obama can write a book called, "The Audacity of Hope", the unauthorized biography of the Ultimate Fighting Championship should be called, "The Audacity of Hype"! They have built a humongous business around that philosophy. The brass at Zuffa won't admit that that's what they've done, but that's exactly what they've done and what they continue to do! And they do it extremely well!

UFC 114 epitomized that philosophy, or in this case, business practice. Right from the outset of the show, Mike Goldberg started bombarding the viewing audience with drivel about the main event between Rampage Jackson and Rashad Evans being the BIGGEST, most anticipated fight in UFC history. Really, Mike, to who? From the amount of action the fight received on MMA forums, it wasn't even close to living up to those words. I understand that Goldie is a company man, and his job is to say outlandish things like that, but its insulting to any educated fan to have to listen to that nonsense. There wasn't even a title on the line!
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The hype machine has been on overload for the entire career of Diego Sanchez, one of the combatants on the UFC 114 card. Diego is a very good fighter but far from a "nightmare" for any top echelon fighter, as his nickname would mislead people to believe. And that's regardless of any weight class he wakes up in the morning and decides to fight in. Obviously, from the one-sided beating he took from relative newcomer John Hathaway, the move back up to 170 doesn't look like a smart decision. No disrespect to Hathaway but Joe Silva gave Diego that fight as a gift to facilitate an easy transition back to WW. In that division Diego will be at a serious size and strength disadvantage. Hathaway dwarfed him, and physically manhandled him. Imagine what guys like Alves, Rumble, Kos, Hardy and Fitch would do to him? No need to even mention GSP. While Diego did hold his own against Fitch and Kos, those fights would be very different a second time around. Diego has to realize that he is primarily a grappler. His striking is nowhere near the level of the top guys and he's never shown to have even a semblance of power in his hands. He also needs to vastly improve his slow, flat, plodding footwork. If he smartens up and fully commits to fighting a more grappling based style, he'll have a much better chance to fullfill the hype that's been surrounding him for years. If he continues to try to win fights with his relatively weak kickboxing game, his chances at success are thinner than Corey Hill.
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Another UFC 114 fighter with apparantly undeserved super-hype is Todd Duffee. And I do mean super-hype. Duffee himself has said he was uncomfortable with all the hype he's been getting, especially with his limited resume. Duffee appeared to be the "real thing" while dominating Mike Russow for 2 and a half rounds, only to be shockingly KTFO cold by a punch from a fighter who can't really punch well. That said, fighters get caught. Its part of the game. Given Todd's age and physical gifts, he can still work his way into becoming a Top 10 HW, but the point is, the hype came WAY too early. The big difference between Duffee and Sanchez is those aforementioned physical gifts to build off of. Diego isn't especially explosive, strong or athletic. Duffee undoubtedly is. While Diego appears to have peaked, Duffee is just in the embryonic stage of his career and skill development. With the proper training and smart career management, Duffee can still live up to the super-hype. He epitomizes Joe Rogan's description of the new breed of heavyweight fighters, being "giant, powerful and athletic." I just hope for his sake that his chin is compliant with the grand plan.


To be fair, aside from ridiculously hyping the Jackson/Evans fight as one of the biggest fights in UFC history, Zuffa isn't only to blame for hyping fighters. The entire MMA community is. We all like to jump on a fighter's bandwagon early to look prophetic. I've never stepped foot on Diego's bandwagon, and never will, but I'll still reserve a seat on Duffee's. This kid just might turn into a beast! After Diego's last showing and his quest to find the right weight class, I'm pretty sure his bandwagon has run out of gas and is sitting in the shop awaiting repairs that will probably never come. Duffee's, on the other hand, just needs a few minor adjustments and will be back on the road, motor revving LOUDLY.
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Now if you want to see hype come to fruition, look no further than Junior Dos Santos! JDS is a superstar in the making. There's no doubt in my mind that he is a future champion. He's got the whole package as far as skill, talent, desire, proper attitude and physical gifts. Beyond that, he is training with arguably the best team in the world and also has top level management. JDS is as real as it gets! In a division living off of unrealized hype, he's in a perfect position to separate himself from the pack. Lesnar, Velasquez and Carwin, all recipients of tons of hype, are in for some surprises when they get to throw down with Junior.


There's no disputing that hype is a HUGE part of the fight game, always has been, always will be. Decades of boxing has shown us that, and now its also an important element of the MMA promotion game. But as knowledgeable fans of the sport, its our job to weed out the bullshit. And from what we've seen as of late, there's more bullshit going on than a Dana White press conference.


How dare they?!?

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Tuesday, May 18, 2010

The Smoke 'n' Mirrors at the Top of the UFC HW Division!

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When you closely look at the top 3 fighters in the UFC heavyweight division you undoubtedly see lots of potential, but more importantly you see lots of question marks. At least I do! The top 3 in the class are Brock Lesnar, Shane Carwin and Cain Velasquez. Are they really as good as most say they are?

Lesnar is the seated champion, having beaten a very old, much smaller Randy Couture to earn the strap. He is ranked the #2 HW in the world by most. The question is, WHY? What has he done to be ranked as the second best HW fighter in the world? Let's look at his accomplishments as a professional mixed martial artist. His record is 4-1, for a total of 5 pro fights. He has fought as a pro for a TOTAL of 33 minutes. Thirty-three minutes! Remove his 15 minute snoozefest decision win over Heath Herring and he's fought a total of 18 minutes. In most peoples eyes, that makes him a virtual novice. Can a novice of the sport, with such limited experience and accomplishments be considered the second best fighter in his weight class in the world? I emphatically say HELL NO! Let's look at his 4 wins. Did you comprehend that last sentence? Yes, he has a total of 4 wins. I already mentioned his decision victory over Herring. Brock controlled that fight but couldn't finish a fighter he had hurt from a big punch early in the first round. Other than that one punch, it was a rather uneventful affair with Lesnar just using his superior size and strength to lay 'n' pray his way to a boring decision. Where is Herring now? Where was he ranked at the time? Lesnar's first pro win was over Min Soo Kim in that pathetic K-1 show at LA Coliseum in June of '07. You mean you never heard of Kim? Don't worry, no one has! Brock also beat Frank Mir in their rematch, having lost to him in their first fight. Mir exposed how green Lesnar was by easily submitting him with a kneebar, a minute and a half into their first encounter. Brock bullied Mir in the rematch, again, using his much superior size and strength. Anyone with a younger brother, has done the same thing a million times. It wasn't as much a display of superior technique as it was a display of the laws of physics. Then there's the fight that won Brock the belt. He beat Randy Couture in a little over a round and a half. Let's keep in mind that Randy was closer to 50 years old at the time, than he was to 40, and weighed 60 pounds less than Brock did. Randy beat an injured Tim Sylvia to get the belt. Without Zuffa's preferential treatment of Couture  he wouldn't and shouldn't have been near a title shot against Sylvia in the first place. We've all seen where Big Tim's career has gone since. Lesnar undoubtedly has a very accomplished collegiate wrestling pedigree and is a huge, athletic man, but what has he done as a pro fighter to warrant all the praise he gets or his ranking? Ranking should be based on accomplishments, not potential. Moving forward, Brock's difficult bout with severe diverticulitis and his lengthy layoff due to that are even bigger question marks as to just how good he is and how good he will end up being. Given all that, can Brock Lesnar realistically be considered the best or second best HW in the world? If you have even half a brain, you realize the answer is NO!
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Shane Carwin is getting the next crack at Lesnar's belt in early July. Shane is another behemoth of a man, with a strong wrestling base and heavy hands. He has a very impressive 12-0 record with none of his fights getting out of the first round, winning 7 of them by KO or TKO. Unbelievably, Carwin has less than 17 minutes of total professional fighting experience. Is it that Shane is that good or is it that he has fought a bunch of scrubs? That remains to be seen. His biggest win was over Frank Mir in his last fight at UFC 111. Aside from that, the only fighter he's ever beaten that was ever a Top 10 ranked HW was Gabriel Gonzaga. Of his other 10 victims, not one name will pop out as a fighter that will ever do anything significant in the sport. That said, credit has to be given to Shane for virtually destroying everyone that's been put in front of him. His real tests as a fighter are ahead of him but the title is his for the taking. He couldn't get Brock at a better time, coming off a serious illness and a long layoff. And again, Brock only has 5 fights under his belt. I think Shane is a more skilled fighter than Lesnar and should win the fight. Their size, strength and wrestling will negate each other. Shane's heavy hands will be the difference. But in all honesty, you can't look at Shane Carwin as a world class striker. Against a fighter like Lesnar he might end up looking like one, but we have yet to see him fight a seriously skilled stand-up striker. Again, many, many question marks.
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The last of the big 3 in the UFC HW division is Cain Velasquez. Like Carwin, Cain is undefeated and he sports an impressive 8-0 record. Also like Carwin, his list of opponents is far from impressive. His biggest win was his KO victory over Big Nog. While it was definitely Cain's best performance, there is a strong argument to be made about Nog being well past his prime and having a cracked chin. Much like Chuck Liddell, Nog never got knocked out until late in his career and now seems very susceptible to being KO'd. It happens. Fighters can only take so much punishment over many years of fighting and it all catches up to them. Other than beating Nog, Cain got a gift win with a bad ref stoppage over Big Ben Rothwell. He was winning the fight at the time the ref stepped in but Ben was not finished, not even close. He also beat Cheik Kongo, but so has Carmelo Marrera. More importantly, Cheik dropped Cain three times in the fight from questionable punches. There's no doubt that Cain showed excellent recovery skills, but his chin has to be in question after seeing that fight. Again, lots of potential, but limited experience and many question marks.


Brock, Shane and Cain have a combined 25 fights between them, against relatively weak competition. Is that enough to consider them three of the best heavyweights in the world? Until they beat some better, more proven fighters, I have to say no. At least some things will be cleared up when Shane and Brock fight. Or will they? I can hear the excuses already if Shane wins. Keyboard warriors across the globe will say how Shane beat a fighter who has only had 6 fights and is coming off a major illness and a very long layoff. Would they be wrong to say that? That's the truth, isn't it? Given Brock's troublesome last year or so, him winning this fight would seem to be the bigger achievement of the two and the much bigger story. Besides his recovery from being sick, ring rust is a real thing and hard to overcome. So ultimately, regardless of the outcome, the questions will still remain.


As far as other heavyweight fighters outside of the UFC, you have the likes of Fedor Emelianenko, his brother Aleks, Alistair Overeem, Bigfoot Sylva, Josh Barnett and Fabricio Werdum, all of whom have more fights and against tougher competition than the UFC's big 3. Until we see these fighters actually fight one another, saying who is better is purely subjective. That's why MMAth and rankings are virtually useless, but it seems to be the only language most MMA enthusiasts speak these days. Sign language might work a little better as the signs are all there for everyone to see. Until further notice, the hype surrounding Brock Lesnar, Shane Carwin and Cain Velasquez is as overblown as Brock's formerly 'roided muscles.


No doubt, the potential is there with all 3 of these fighters. You would have to be a fool not to see that. But let's not give anyone legendary status before they truly deserve it. The UFC might be the biggest MMA promotion on the planet, but it doesn't mean they have all the best talent.


It's all about smoke 'n' mirrors!


http://www.budo-mma-nyc.com/

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Shogun Balboa!

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What can you say other than Shogun Rua is the best LHW fighter on the planet! Its been a long time coming, but he finally climbed the last bit of that mountain when he defeated Lyoto Machida at UFC 113. He must feel like Rocky Balboa did when he finally made it up those stairs at the Liberty Bell in Philly, arms raised in victory and jubilation!


As far as I'm concerned, and I can't be alone in thinking this, not only is Shogun the best 205 pound fighter alive, he is very near the top of the best P4P list. His achievements speak for themselves. Aside from his injury related slump after first coming to the UFC, Shogun has been close to flawless in his fighting career. His work in the now defunct Pride was, in a word, amazing! Shogun has been involved in some of the most memorable and exciting MMA fights you will ever see with wins over the likes of Lyoto Machida, Rampage Jackson, Alistair Overeem (twice), Akihiro Gono, Kazuhiro Nakamura, Chuck Liddell, Ricardo Arona, Kevin Randleman and Lil' Nog, amongst others. That's an insanely impressive list of victims!
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Shogun's style of fighting is as well rounded, vicious and exciting as it gets. His striking is off the charts and he has a ridiculous submission game with some of the sickest and slickest leg locks in the business. If there is one slight weakness in Mauricio's game, its his takedown defense. But in his case, it almost doesn't matter because he has an uncanny ability to work his way back to his feet once the fight hits the mat. In 23 fights, Rua has won 16 of those fights by KO or TKO. That's an unprecedented 85% T(KO) rate.
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If any fighter deserves to be a champion, in the biggest MMA organization in the world, its Shogun. He's worked his way through so much in the past 3 years, including multiple knee surgeries. As recently as 7 weeks ago, he had an appendectomy. There's tough fighters, and then there's Mauricio Rua.

After his loss to Forrest Griffin and his rather unimpressive win over a very old, very slow, totally gassed Mark Coleman, a large portion of the MMA community, media and fans alike, wrote him off as being done as an elite fighter. Given what we all saw, it was mostly justified. He didn't look remotely close to the dynamic Shogun we all worshipped in Japan. None of that mattered to Mauricio. While his surgically repaired knees continued to heal, he worked on improving his fitness, knowing full well that he was far from a done fighter at the tender age of 27. His next fight was against Chuck Liddell, a match-up MMA fans have been salivating for years to see. Even though it wasn't Chuck in his prime, Shogun won the fight by KO and showed glimpses of returning to form. He proved he was fully back with his next fight, a title shot against the unbeaten Lyoto Machida. While he lost a very controversial decision, in a fight that is an all-time classic, he won the hearts of MMA fans worldwide. Given the questionable decision and the highly competitve nature of the fight, Shogun was awarded a very justified rematch. The MMA world waited 6 long months for that fight to finally happen. Shogun seized the opportunity with a first round KO win over Machida, giving the Dragon his first loss and marking the first time he'd been knocked out. His efforts earned him an extra 65K bonus for KOTN. Prior to fighting Shogun, Machida never lost a round in the UFC and was barely ever hit in 7 fights. Shogun proved to be Lyoto's kryptonite.
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So what's next for Shogun? It looks like he'll be defending his belt against the winner of the long overdue Rampage Jackson/Rashad Evans fight. Either fighter is formidable, but nothing Shogun can't handle. Recently, Rua has stated that he would also like to fight Randy Couture. I hope that's just in an effort to increase his exposure because it can't be for the personal challenge. I don't even see that fight being competitive. Shogun will put a quick, decisive beating on the old man.

You can't not root for Shogun Rua. He's been at the top of his profession, fell back near the bottom and is now standing on the top of the proverbial mountain again, hands raised in victory. He's defied the medical odds and proved all the doubters wrong. He's like a real life Rocky Balboa, making his bones on pure heart. His monumental talent, determination and perseverance didn't hurt either.

War Shogun Balboa!

You gotta love this guy!

http://www.budo-mma-nyc.com/



Monday, May 10, 2010

(((((((((((((What Doesn't Kill You...)))))))))))))

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"What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger!"


Truth be told, in sports or any type of competition, there is more to learn from losing than there is from winning. Losing his first fight and consequently his belt might be the best thing that could have happened to Lyoto Machida. In a sense, it will take some of the pressure off of him to stay undefeated. He no longer has to worry about being perfect any more. That pressure seemed to be there as of late, particularly in the last fight. Lyoto appeared to be a bit stressed and distracted. Now that he has that "L" on his record, he can get back to being himself; loose, relaxed and solely focused on the task at hand, which is training and fighting.

"What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger!"

Lyoto will come back from this loss better than ever. With the help of his family and his inner circle of friends and teammates, Machida will get right back to work the minute he is medically able to. He will need a little time to heal up, both physically and mentality, and then its back to the blood, sweat and tears of the martial arts lifestyle that's been the blueprint of his entire existence. For those of you that think Lyoto is going to fold like a cheap accordion, and just disappear from the position he's held as one of the world's best fighters, you are sadly mistaken. All he knows is fighting. He's been groomed by his father since he's a young boy to do this. If you think one loss is going to change that, you obviously don't understand the budo mentality that is the essence of what makes rare fighters like Lyoto tick. Training and fighting is like breathing to him. Its something that's ingrained in his mind, body and soul. This guy literally eats, shits and sleeps martial arts, always has, always will.
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"What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger!"

Lyoto's father, Yoshizo, immediately began the mental healing process in the locker room right after the fight, telling his son, 'You're a samurai – on to the next. That's in the past now. You lost; oh well. You went out there, and you fought. You tried to do what you could do, and it didn't work out this time. Go back to the drawing board, come up with a better strategy, and life moves on." Unlike most fighters, Lyoto doesn't just fight for himself and to challenge himself. He fights to please his father, who is also his sensei, and to make him proud. That's a whole different type of motivation.

As far as the fight itself, Machida was more than holding his own up until getting caught with that punch to the temple. Not to take anything away from Shogun's performance, because it was fantastic, but anyone who has ever trained in any combat sport, or been around martial arts, knows that a shot directly to the temple is next to impossible to recover from. The punch that dropped Lyoto wasn't even that hard, but it directly hit 'the spot". This is the fight game, it happens. Up to that point, Machida was landing some heavy knees and was completely controlling the clinches, taking Shogun down at will. That said, Shogun landed the punch that put Lyoto on queer street and finished him off on the ground. He won the fight in emphatic fashion and is the deserved champion. For the time being, Lyoto has to be content with being the second best LHW on the planet. Most people would be OK with that, but something tells me that Lyoto will not sit still until he gets that belt back. It wasn't that long ago that something similar happened to Georges St-Pierre when he lost his belt to Matt Serra. He took a punch to the temple, never recovered and Serra finished him off to take his belt from him. We've all seen how GSP has rebounded from that loss. I expect the same if not more from Lyoto.

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"What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger!"

True, Lyoto Machida lost a fight.
True, Lyoto Machida got knocked out for the first time.
True, Lyoto Machida is alive and well
True, Lyoto Machida will be back better than ever!.

Trust on that!



Sunday, May 9, 2010

Kimbo Who?!?

Kimbo who?!?
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Let's hope that's the reaction when the name "Kimbo Slice" comes up in conversation in the near future! Kevin Ferguson's 15 minutes of fame are all but over! Thank God, Buddah, Allah, Satan or whoever you personally worship for that. Speaking of Satan, I'm still quite surprised that Dana White pulled the plug so quickly on the Kimbo experiment. Just kidding, I don't think Kimbo is Satan!


All jokes aside, there was probably still some money to be made off of Kimbo, so major props have to be given to Dana and the Zuffa brass for giving Slice his walking papers. As Dana said regarding the decision, the UFC is about the best fighters in the world and Kimbo just didn't cut it. Fair enough, but that's been blatantly obvious since Kimbo first reared his hilariously bearded, bald head. In defense of Slice though, he's far from the only fighter on the UFC roster who doesn't deserve to be there.

None of this has anything to do with Kevin Ferguson, the person. Its all about "Kimbo Slice", the character. And what a meticulously crafted character he is. The Kimbo persona is taylor made for a cartoon or a comic book. He reminds me of Snoop Dogg in that way, but without talent. That's the important distinction here. Snoop is an immensely talented dude while Kimbo is devoid of any. At least in relation to the talent that is required to be a professional MMA fighter at the UFC level.
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Yes, Kimbo has made some improvements as a fighter since turning pro in 2007, following his bum beating days down in Florida. He should be commended for that. Unfortunately for him, just not enough improvement. At this point, he is 4-2 as a pro, which isn't horrible, until you look at who he has fought. He has wins over Bo Cantrell, Tank Abbott, James Thompson and Houston Alexander, who have a combined record of 45-43. Ouch, do the math on that winning percentage. Look up the word "can" in any MMA dictionary and pictures of all these guys will immediately pop up. He lost to a much smaller journeyman in Seth Petruzelli, where he got KTFO in 14 seconds. Yes, you read that right, 14 seconds, and by a very weak punch to boot. Please remember, Seth took that fight on one day notice. His other loss is to Matt "Meathead" Mitrione, who beat him in only his 2nd pro fight. Meathead didn't just beat him, he crushed him. Kimbo made Meathead look like a world class mixed martial artist. Just so you know, he isn't. It was this last exposure of Slice as a virtual no-talent that basically forced Zuffa's hand with his dismissal. Aside from an early takedown, Kimbo looked like a complete novice out there. He showed no signs of his supposed punching skills, couldn't check low kicks, was nearly submitted on multiple occasions, had ZERO cardio and showed ZERO understanding of fighting off his back. By the second round, he was an immobile target out there, just waiting to be abused in any way Mitrione chose. He also got completely manhandled and outclassed by Roy "Big Country" Nelson in his one fight on season 10 of TUF, a show specifically put together by Zuffa to showcase "the internet sensation".

Several things were always working against Slice in his attempts to make it as a pro MMA fighter. His biggest obstacle was the age in which he began his pro career. Very few people can begin fighting professionally at the age of 33 (a publicized age I still question) and make it work. Especially fighters without years of real training under their belts. Kimbo's backyard beatings of untrained bums is not training that is conducive to a smooth, successful transition to pro MMA fighting. Then there's his size issues. He's a small HW who can't make LHW. All the behemoths at HW dwarf him and he carries too much muscle and not enough discipline to make the weight cut to fight at 205. Not that fighting at 205 would work out any better for him. His lack of speed would be exposed down there very quickly! Another glaring problem was Kimbo's own admission to smoking. I'm not sure exactly what he smokes, but whatever it was obviously didn't help his already very suspect cardio. He himself said on camera, on the Countdown to UFC 113 show, that he had to stop smoking while training for his fight with Meathead. Wrong Kimbo! If you are serious about being a professional athlete you don't smoke at all, PERIOD. That in an of itself shows his lack of true dedication to competing in the sport at the top level. Or maybe he was smoking something that "deluded" his view of reality regarding his skill level. Finally, did Kimbo ever show any real skills at all to build from? Even his supposed punching skills never shined when it mattered. Knocking out a scared shitless Bo Cantrell, or a very out of shape, very old Tank Abbott doesn't say much. Getting obliterated in 14 seconds by a much smaller Seth Petruzelli says much more about Kimbo's phantom striking prowess.
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As far as getting dropped by Zuffa, they really had no other choice in the matter, regardless of the cow still having a few drops of milk left to exploit. Realistically, what other scrub was left on the roster for them to match him up with, hoping he could pull out a win? The answer is, no one. Any wrestling based fighter annihilates him, taking him down at will and pounding his bald dome in. Any jiu-jitsu based fighter would submit him with relative ease. And any striking based fighter would just beat the crap out of him. A fighter who combines skills in all those disciplines, of which there are many, doesn't even break a sweat in handing him another "L" on his record. Bottom line, the skill, nor the true desire and commitment to fight at the top level was never there for Slice. It takes much more than just showing up to the gym. Kimbo fights for the money, and he definitely made some, so he deserves credit for that. He's made more money than most MMA fighters, fighters with actual talent, skill, desire and dedication, who deserve to make real money in this sport.

So what's the lesson to be learned from the "Kimbo Slice" experiment? The only one I can come up with is that a funny beard, funny chest hair, a muscular physique and an ice grill can sometimes carry you a long way. Take those things away from "Kimbo Slice" and what's left? Certainly not fighting talent, but who really cares about that anymore?!? Surprisingly, Zuffa does!

http://www.budo-mma-nyc.com/



Monday, May 3, 2010

The Importance of the Machida/Rua Rematch to MMA!

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Maybe its just me, but its less than a week away and I don't feel like this VERY important rematch is getting the hype, press, publicity or coverage that it warrants and so justly deserves. I honestly think the Machida/Rua rematch is one of the most important MMA fights to come along in a LONG time!


Here's the reasons why this fight is so important:


From a technical standpoint, this fight is the quintessential example of what mixed martial arts is all about. Both Lyoto Machida and Shogun Rua are extremely well rounded martial artists. Rarely, if ever, will you see two MMA fighters competing against each other where both combatants are as skilled as these two are in all aspects of fighting. Both are equally adept in the striking, wrestling and submission games. Arguments can be made to support either fighter as being superior in certain disciplines, but the gaps are so minimal that its not even worth the effort. Without a doubt, Lyoto and Shogun are two of the most feared strikers in the LHW division. Actually, they're two of the most feared strikers in the entire sport, the entire world for that matter. While striking is where they have shown most of their dominance over the years, either fighter can just as easily take you down and submit you, or ground and pound your dome in. And quickly, I might add! These guys are "equal-opportunity" fighting machines who can seamlessly adjust to any situation. We're talking serious, serious talent here. As Joe Rogan would say, "top of the food chain" skillsets. Even that sentence might be an understatement. These guys are THAT good! Aside from the difference in their base disciplines, the parallels between them are abundant.

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From a philosophical standpoint, what motivates these two fighters is also very similar. Shogun and Lyoto didn't get into the fight game to hurt their opponents, or to beat people up. They probably didn't even think they could make a living being a pro MMA fighter when they initially started out. They started fighting for the love of competition and for the love of the essence of martial arts. That mentality continues to this day. While hurting your opponent is an unfortunate byproduct of MMA, or any combat sport for that matter, that isn't what drives fighters like Machida and Rua. Their motivation is all about competing, winning and testing themselves. Its those base desires that drive all the best sportsmen that have ever lived. That's not to say they don't have 'killer" instincts, because their careers have more than proven that they do. The difference is, they can display that instinct in a respectful way, riding that fine line between the ultra-violent and the unbridled love of martial arts competition. You will never hear Lyoto or Shogun hype a fight by saying how they are going to "kill" or "destroy" their opponent. They both would rather just speak of winning and showing who has the superior skills. They are a different breed. In a nutshell, they are TRUE martial artists, through and through.


Most MMA match-ups pit fighters who are both good at the same aspect of fighting, or fighters who have polar opposite skillsets. This match-up is about 2 of the most well rounded fighters on the planet, settling an unfinished score. From how incredibly close and competitive their first fight was, its obvious how evenly matched these guys are. This fight can go in any and all directions. It epitomizes true mixed martial arts and should really be looked at as a showcase fight for the sport. If you were ever trying to turn someone on to the sport, who has never seen an MMA fight before, this is undoubtedly the fight to make them watch. This match-up is guaranteed to represent the sport of MMA in its best possible light, both technically and philosophically.


This fight is also important in regards to how MMA fights are judged. As most of you know, the judging in the first fight received widespread criticism. I personally had Machida winning the fight, by the slimmest of margins, but I was definitely in the minority there. Detailed specifics of how MMA fights should be judged, and potential changes that could/should be made, requires much more than this paragraph can elaborate on. That topic really needs to be its own discussion. That said, the first fight was as close as a fight can be. While Machida got the nod, a draw might have been the proper decision. It was THAT close of a fight! Hence the immediate and justified rematch. The reason I leaned towards Machida in the first fight is because, points aside, Shogun never had Lyoto in any danger and never hurt him. In contrast, Lyoto did hurt Shogun on a few occasions, most significantly at the end of the third round. Had the bell not sounded, I believe Machida would have finished the fight shortly thereafter. That doesn't really matter now, or then, but it does say something about who was closest to potentially finishing the fight. Shogun was never remotely close to ending that fight. A strong argument can be made for judging fights as a whole, like they did in the now defunct Pride, as opposed to the round by round, "10 point must" system currently being used. That system comes from boxing and obviously doesn't work. We've seen way too many horrible decisions over the years using that system of judging. Mixed martial arts is NOT boxing. True, they are both combat sports, but they couldn't be more different, especially from a judging perspective. While I am a big proponent of leg kicks, and Shogun definitely landed many in the first fight, he never had Lyoto reeling from them. They might have slowed him down a bit, but there is a HUGE difference between what Shogun's low kicks did to Lyoto and what Jose Aldo's did to Urijah Faber at WEC 48. For more on the history of leg kicks in MMA, go HERE.


Believe it or not, there is an effective style of striking in MMA besides muay thai. As Machida has so aptly shown over the course of his career, that style is karate. While karate was been the base striking art for a number of MMA fighters over the years, no one has shown that as emphatically as Machida has. And no one has flown the flag of karate more proudly than Machida. While he is also a student of multiple other arts including Brazilian jiu-jitsu, judo, sumo and the aforementioned muay thai, Machida is undoubtedly primarily a karateka (a student of karate). The Machida family is to karate as the Gracie family is to Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Its not a question of which art is better between karate and muay thai, its more just a statement that there are highly effective stand-up fighting styles outside of muay thai. There's no disputing that muay thai is a fantastic, proven striking art, but it isn't the ONLY style that can excel in the confines of mixed martial arts combat. Shogun proudly represents muay thai at its optimum level and its an absolute pleasure to watch him display his art. While this fight isn't a "karate vs muay thai" battle, we will get to see two very different styles of striking, going head to head and bone to bone, literally.

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Machida and his family have put TMA (traditional martial arts) back in MMA. Its important for fans of the sport, especially young fans, to see that traditional martial arts has a place in the MMA spectrum. Along with Machida, both Anderson Silva and Georges St-Pierre have exhibited actions showcasing their traditional martial arts backgrounds. It could be as simple as bowing to your opponent or bowing to the "four corners of the place of the way", but it says a lot. GSP proudly wears his karate gi and blackbelt to and from the cage in every fight. Machida does the same. It shows the world that the sport isn't just a bunch of thugged out, knucklehead punks who have no respect for each other. Anderson, GSP and Lyoto are in the Top 5 on most P4P lists and they are also proud traditional martial artists, as well as being immensely talented and successful mixed martial artists. While Shogun doesn't outwardly show his TMA background like the aforementioned fighters, he is also a very respectful, traditionally trained fighter who deserves to be in the same class as they are. This is important for the longevity and further mainstream acceptance of the sport!


There are great stories in either fighter winning this rematch. If Lyoto wins, his same story continues. He will remain the undefeated karateka; the living, breathing, modern day version of the original dragon, Bruce Lee. He'll still be the mysterious, unorthodox fighter who excels in the sport by relying on the tried and true, centuries old teachings of his father. If Shogun wins, it will represent a complete return from the knee problems that have plagued him in his post-Pride career. His loss to Forrest Griffin and his lackluster performance against an over the hill Mark Coleman were never fights that in any way represented the real Shogun Rua. In my eyes, he has always been one of the very best fighters on the planet. Those two fights were like watching an impostor in the cage. Its a shame that that was the first time many MMA and UFC fans ever saw Shogun fight. They didn't see the real Shogun, the healthy Shogun; the Shogun that fought in Pride, and the fighter that took Machida to his absolute limits back in October of last year.


Regardless of the outcome of this very important fight, as fans of the sport of MMA, we are getting a special opportunity to see the sport on display at its absolute best. And we are getting to see two of the greatest ambassadors of the sport compete in the primes of their respective, impressive careers. Aside from the GSP/BJ Penn fights, you would be hard pressed to name any other fights that brought such a high level of talent and integrity into the cage at one time.


Barring another close, controversial decision, the world of MMA will be in a very special place on the evening of May 8th, 2010.

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