For those who have the seen the video recently posted on mmaopinion, where I work and where the best news and analysis in the sport is.
Now lets forget Bill's economic stupidity. Let's forget that the 16-34 year old males are the second most potent viewer groups in the entire country (in, the minds of many producers of big advertisement buyers, like beer companies, the most important). Let's forget that the sport has been approved by state athletic commissions, that it has fewer fatalities than boxing, hockey or football.
Let's forget that when John McCain commented on the sport and called in "human cockfighting", Ken Shamrock destroyed him in civil debate on Larry King's live interview, one of the crowning moments for the sport, and one I would like to see Shamrock repeat. Personally, I'd be happy to debate O'Reilly myself, since he clearly knows nothing about the sport and about the way that it's marketed.
As far as the "redeeming moral value" of MMA that the twit Jane Hall, there's as much redeeming value in mixed martial arts as there is in football.
The sport teaches discipline and the value of pushing yourself. It teaches that the only person that can be held accountable in failure is ourself. It teaches that the fighter who develops his mind, his body and his craft wins, and that sometimes that guy comes from the school of hard knocks, and sometimes he comes from priviledge.
The sport offers us at least as much in terms of fantastic stories and tragic failings as any other sport. Some people love football, and just because, as my grandfather once described it to me, "it's just a bunch of fat guys running into each other," that doesn't mean they aren't entitled to watch it and that the networks aren't entitled to carry it. (for the record, I'm a football fan, go Raiders)
If Bill O'Reilly would attack the rights of a network to carry the fastest growing sport in the country, it just makes him come off like an angry pissant who's upset that it's not on his network. The money that the UFC has made Spike has turned the heads of every network executive who isn't an idiot. Obviously, this is why FOX is late to the table on this issue.
Big Bad Bill has tried to attack the sport for years, saying that he honestly believes that this sport is deteriorating the moral fabric of our nation. Really, Bill O'Reilly?
Is it deteriorating the moral fiber our country as quickly as you would like to deteriorate a network's right to broadcast anything you don't like?
Bill O'Reilly has bastardized and trivialized the rights of Americans, and makes every show he does an attack on somebodies right to do something for no other reason than because it doesn't straighten out his lap pinky. He's a shock jocky, but most importantly he's a hypocritical psycho who thinks that, for some reason, his opinions matter more than the facts.
If Big Bad Bill wants to get in touch with me, or anyone wants me to post their thoughts on this, feel free to send me an email at jstein.ironsport@gmail.com
Comments are welcome.
I realize that this is an old video, but it really is something that makes me want to puke when I see an idiot like O'Reilly try and justify his bigoted bullshit with no data and no knowledge of the topic he's flapping his lips about.
Showing posts with label Fight Politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fight Politics. Show all posts
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Pramit Mohapatra Interviews Mark Cuban
Fightticker's Pramit Mohapatra sat down with Mark Cuban and threw some questions at the millionaire behind HD Net. There has been alot of speculation about what, exactly, the purpose of HD Net is going to be, about whether it is going to serve as a line for Dream and World Victory Road into the American scene, or whether it is going to coagulate alot of the free agent fighters starting to crop up (both Fedor Emelianenko and Randy Couture have been mentioned by name).
My thoughts on the Cuban interview are a little bit direct, but I will say that I'm glad Cuban took questions and the first thing that struck me was his compliment of Fedor Emelianenko. While that may have been a diplomatic move, throwing a little flattery at the guy he's trying to sign, but it seemed genuine to me, and the fact is (while I consider the comparison to Charles Barkley to be a little inadequate) he gives recognition where recognition is due. That's good to see, especially from someone as typically egnimatic as Cuban has been known to be.
Cuban says openly that he's working on nailing out an agreement with Kurt Angle and Randy Couture to get a fight put together, and while I think that the fight would be an utter embarrasment if it happens, I can't say that I'm surprised Cuban wants to put the fight together. I mean, people would pay money to see this fight, and if Cuban puts together fights people want to see, he'll establish himself as a force very, very quickly.
I do like that Cuban says that cards should be offered free, with the exception of a handful of pay-per-view events. I do agree that the UFC expecting people to pay $40 for a crappy card is ridiculous, but I also think that Cuban expecting to have a monopoly on the outlet puts him in as much trouble with anti-trust regulations as the UFC is. Still, I think that it's important to recognize that since Elite XC is coming through CBS and IFL is available on other outlets, he's not going to have a serious monopoly.
Now, I only have one sticking point with Cuban's interview. I just want to make a short note before I start on the issue I disagree with Cuban on. The fact that Cuban can't comment on the ongoing trial with the UFC over the fate of Randy Couture. Obviously, Cuban is the one that brought the suit, but I think it's important to recognize that the suit is ongoing and Cuban has the good sense not to comment on it.
My problem with the Cuban interview is his assertion about the "Inside MMA" rankings as the guide to who is really the top of MMA. There is no associated press in MMA, there is no coagulate rankings. The fact that MMA rankings are subjective and are intricated is what makes them interesting. I can't say that I agree with the prospect of using one source as a way of structuring his divisions. It's ridiculous.
Establishing a ladder is a single organization job, and the thought of giving a single media outlet control of structuring that ladder subjects it to the bias of the guys at "Inside MMA." While they're smart guys, I don't think that we should give them the freedom to establish the ladders on their own.
Belts are a system that allows for extra publicity and a sense of dominance within an organization and a set of rules, and the ladder is a system of seniority. While I don't think that the system is perfect, I think that suggesting handing all of that over to a single magazine is not an improvement.
My thoughts on the Cuban interview are a little bit direct, but I will say that I'm glad Cuban took questions and the first thing that struck me was his compliment of Fedor Emelianenko. While that may have been a diplomatic move, throwing a little flattery at the guy he's trying to sign, but it seemed genuine to me, and the fact is (while I consider the comparison to Charles Barkley to be a little inadequate) he gives recognition where recognition is due. That's good to see, especially from someone as typically egnimatic as Cuban has been known to be.
Cuban says openly that he's working on nailing out an agreement with Kurt Angle and Randy Couture to get a fight put together, and while I think that the fight would be an utter embarrasment if it happens, I can't say that I'm surprised Cuban wants to put the fight together. I mean, people would pay money to see this fight, and if Cuban puts together fights people want to see, he'll establish himself as a force very, very quickly.
I do like that Cuban says that cards should be offered free, with the exception of a handful of pay-per-view events. I do agree that the UFC expecting people to pay $40 for a crappy card is ridiculous, but I also think that Cuban expecting to have a monopoly on the outlet puts him in as much trouble with anti-trust regulations as the UFC is. Still, I think that it's important to recognize that since Elite XC is coming through CBS and IFL is available on other outlets, he's not going to have a serious monopoly.
Now, I only have one sticking point with Cuban's interview. I just want to make a short note before I start on the issue I disagree with Cuban on. The fact that Cuban can't comment on the ongoing trial with the UFC over the fate of Randy Couture. Obviously, Cuban is the one that brought the suit, but I think it's important to recognize that the suit is ongoing and Cuban has the good sense not to comment on it.
My problem with the Cuban interview is his assertion about the "Inside MMA" rankings as the guide to who is really the top of MMA. There is no associated press in MMA, there is no coagulate rankings. The fact that MMA rankings are subjective and are intricated is what makes them interesting. I can't say that I agree with the prospect of using one source as a way of structuring his divisions. It's ridiculous.
Establishing a ladder is a single organization job, and the thought of giving a single media outlet control of structuring that ladder subjects it to the bias of the guys at "Inside MMA." While they're smart guys, I don't think that we should give them the freedom to establish the ladders on their own.
Belts are a system that allows for extra publicity and a sense of dominance within an organization and a set of rules, and the ladder is a system of seniority. While I don't think that the system is perfect, I think that suggesting handing all of that over to a single magazine is not an improvement.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
A New Day, A New Piece
So, I thought I'd share my thoughts on the upcoming fight between Michael Bisping and Charles McCarthy, not so much because I think it's a fight of the year candidate (but you never know), and more because I think that a fighter demonstrating that guys who drop down from 205 can have alot of success will attract the attention of guys who feel like they're being screwed in the lightheavyweight division.
I'm not going to name names...... okay, I will.
I think it's a little fucked up that Forrest Griffin gets a title shot still relatively soon after his loss to Jardine, while guys like Thiago Silva are just passed over. I know Forrest beat Shogun, but I'm shocked that essentially one fight has made him a title contender.
I'm not going to name names...... okay, I will.
I think it's a little fucked up that Forrest Griffin gets a title shot still relatively soon after his loss to Jardine, while guys like Thiago Silva are just passed over. I know Forrest beat Shogun, but I'm shocked that essentially one fight has made him a title contender.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Roy Jones Jr. = More of the Same
It has been suggested that Anderson Silva should fight Roy Jones Jr., perhaps the greatest 185 pound boxer in the world. It’s not surprising that people have started to think this, after Silva destroyed a man that many considered the #2 ranked middleweight in the world, but the thought of reverting to Roy Jones Jr. seems bizarre, and the reasoning is relatively simple.
Even in the longstanding debate between who is the better striker, the conditons of Silva’s match with Jones would be subject to negative scrunity, however they turned out. Here’s what I mean:
If Silva and Jones met in a boxing match and Jones wins (which I imagine he probably would) then it won’t prove anything. It won’t show MMA fans that boxers are superior strikers because they are used to using heavier gloves. All it will show is that Jones is, as I suspect, a better boxer than the undisputed UFC middleweight champion.
If Silva and Jones meet in the Octagon and Silva destroys Jones, whether using his kicks, his thai clinch or his submission skills (all of which are possible, but the first two I find most probably, given that Silva feels they will look the best against Jones), all he will have proved is that it isn’t possible for Jones to adapt to the MMA system in whatever short period of time he is give. It won’t prove anything about the quality of Anderson’s skills and the authority of his dominance.
Let me simplify it even more:
If Silva fights Jones in MMA, all he’s going to prove is that Jones isn’t a very good MMA fighter. (or at least not any better than the other guys that he has systematically demolished)
If Silva fights Jones in boxing, all he’s going to prove is that his striking doesn’t translate well, or (on the slight off-chance that he should win) he’ll prove that he is (as we already know) a phenomenal striker.
That said, I don’t even think that Jones is a deserving opponent for Silva, given his current situation. Jones is 3-2 in his last 5 fights, and I, personally, don’t find that stat to be particularly impressive. If Jones were on the kind of roll that Mayweather is on, it might be more understandable (that said, if he also had Mayweather’s mouth, my reaction would be as it has always been to Mayweather, and that is to politely suggest that he shut his cakehole).
I think that it goes without saying, given how I feel about boxers coming into MMA (they shouldn’t), that I don’t think we should be talking about this, and that we should be looking at the prospect of a match between Silva and a legitimate top middleweight, pushing the UFC into signing Matt Lindland or Kazuo Misaki or Dennis Kang or Yoshihiro Akiyama (or a dozen other guys who are much more qualified fighters than the boxer Roy Jones), or, as has been suggested many times, that Zuffa work to convince WEC champ Paulo Filho that his best chance for a great fight (both to prove his own mettle and to entertain the fans) is in the prospect of a fight with Silva), despite the uncertainty of both men about fighting a fellow Brazilian.
My point is simple: we, as MMA fans, have been led on for over a year now (arguably longer than that, but other instances have been more sparatic, so I’ll just stay on the safe side) and I’m wondering why professional writers are still talking about it. I don’t want to sound superior, because here I am, talking about it (even if it’s as a suggestion not to), but it’s like my dad always used to tell me:
Fool me once, shame on you.
Fool me twice, shame on me for being suck a damn fool.
Even in the longstanding debate between who is the better striker, the conditons of Silva’s match with Jones would be subject to negative scrunity, however they turned out. Here’s what I mean:
If Silva and Jones met in a boxing match and Jones wins (which I imagine he probably would) then it won’t prove anything. It won’t show MMA fans that boxers are superior strikers because they are used to using heavier gloves. All it will show is that Jones is, as I suspect, a better boxer than the undisputed UFC middleweight champion.
If Silva and Jones meet in the Octagon and Silva destroys Jones, whether using his kicks, his thai clinch or his submission skills (all of which are possible, but the first two I find most probably, given that Silva feels they will look the best against Jones), all he will have proved is that it isn’t possible for Jones to adapt to the MMA system in whatever short period of time he is give. It won’t prove anything about the quality of Anderson’s skills and the authority of his dominance.
Let me simplify it even more:
If Silva fights Jones in MMA, all he’s going to prove is that Jones isn’t a very good MMA fighter. (or at least not any better than the other guys that he has systematically demolished)
If Silva fights Jones in boxing, all he’s going to prove is that his striking doesn’t translate well, or (on the slight off-chance that he should win) he’ll prove that he is (as we already know) a phenomenal striker.
That said, I don’t even think that Jones is a deserving opponent for Silva, given his current situation. Jones is 3-2 in his last 5 fights, and I, personally, don’t find that stat to be particularly impressive. If Jones were on the kind of roll that Mayweather is on, it might be more understandable (that said, if he also had Mayweather’s mouth, my reaction would be as it has always been to Mayweather, and that is to politely suggest that he shut his cakehole).
I think that it goes without saying, given how I feel about boxers coming into MMA (they shouldn’t), that I don’t think we should be talking about this, and that we should be looking at the prospect of a match between Silva and a legitimate top middleweight, pushing the UFC into signing Matt Lindland or Kazuo Misaki or Dennis Kang or Yoshihiro Akiyama (or a dozen other guys who are much more qualified fighters than the boxer Roy Jones), or, as has been suggested many times, that Zuffa work to convince WEC champ Paulo Filho that his best chance for a great fight (both to prove his own mettle and to entertain the fans) is in the prospect of a fight with Silva), despite the uncertainty of both men about fighting a fellow Brazilian.
My point is simple: we, as MMA fans, have been led on for over a year now (arguably longer than that, but other instances have been more sparatic, so I’ll just stay on the safe side) and I’m wondering why professional writers are still talking about it. I don’t want to sound superior, because here I am, talking about it (even if it’s as a suggestion not to), but it’s like my dad always used to tell me:
Fool me once, shame on you.
Fool me twice, shame on me for being suck a damn fool.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Hating Convention: For My Fellow Combat-Cult Followers
This piece was originally posted on mmaopinion.com.
There’s always going to be a large movement of fans (not just of fighting, but of anything) who reject the conventional and the mainstream. Those guys are generally credited with being the first MMA fans; guys who turned their backs on professional boxing and wrestling in order to find something new, something different, something off-beat.
The problem is, now the UFC has become so mainstream, so cultured that the reason they started following it to begin with no longer carries any weight. Where do these fans go?
They can’t go to Pride, since it no longer exists. (many left for Pride after the first TUF season, but they’re now looking for somewhere else to go)
They can’t go to the IFL, because, let’s face it, the IFL has worked way to hard to pull itself into the mainstream.
They can’t go to the WEC, because it follows that same formula as the UFC, only with lighter weight classes. (And, on top of that, many refuse to support Zuffa entirely, because of some of its contractual issues with its fighters)
They can’t go Japan, because they know that those organization are unstable. (and the disillusionment has only furthered itself with Fedor’s free-agency)
They won’t go to Elite XC because, besides about 4 fighters, the whole thing is a gimmick show (these are the fans who have been following the sport long enough to know that Kimbo Slice is not legit).
These guys are stuck in limbo, wandering back and forth between organizations. They watch UFC events because their friends (most of whom they got into the sport) are really excited to watch Anderson Silva (who is not, as many have said, the Mike Tyson if MMA, since he doesn’t commit rape and he has all of his teeth) and Rampage.
I wish I could say that the solution was simple, or that an answer would present itself, but the fact is I don’t think that’s the case. I’ve been out looking for other, exciting organizations for a long time. I’ve watched alot of K-1 (very exciting, but I miss the grappler) and have turned to Cage Rage to get some of my fix. Whether an underground titan will emerge soon, I don’t know, but I hope that when it does, these fans will find it, so that the UFC doesn’t just squash it with it’s giant checkbook.
There’s always going to be a large movement of fans (not just of fighting, but of anything) who reject the conventional and the mainstream. Those guys are generally credited with being the first MMA fans; guys who turned their backs on professional boxing and wrestling in order to find something new, something different, something off-beat.
The problem is, now the UFC has become so mainstream, so cultured that the reason they started following it to begin with no longer carries any weight. Where do these fans go?
They can’t go to Pride, since it no longer exists. (many left for Pride after the first TUF season, but they’re now looking for somewhere else to go)
They can’t go to the IFL, because, let’s face it, the IFL has worked way to hard to pull itself into the mainstream.
They can’t go to the WEC, because it follows that same formula as the UFC, only with lighter weight classes. (And, on top of that, many refuse to support Zuffa entirely, because of some of its contractual issues with its fighters)
They can’t go Japan, because they know that those organization are unstable. (and the disillusionment has only furthered itself with Fedor’s free-agency)
They won’t go to Elite XC because, besides about 4 fighters, the whole thing is a gimmick show (these are the fans who have been following the sport long enough to know that Kimbo Slice is not legit).
These guys are stuck in limbo, wandering back and forth between organizations. They watch UFC events because their friends (most of whom they got into the sport) are really excited to watch Anderson Silva (who is not, as many have said, the Mike Tyson if MMA, since he doesn’t commit rape and he has all of his teeth) and Rampage.
I wish I could say that the solution was simple, or that an answer would present itself, but the fact is I don’t think that’s the case. I’ve been out looking for other, exciting organizations for a long time. I’ve watched alot of K-1 (very exciting, but I miss the grappler) and have turned to Cage Rage to get some of my fix. Whether an underground titan will emerge soon, I don’t know, but I hope that when it does, these fans will find it, so that the UFC doesn’t just squash it with it’s giant checkbook.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
More Power Politics In The UFC
Dana White is often credited with being the most powerful man in the sport of mixed martial arts. He's a major stockholder in and president of the UFC, the worlds undisputed goliath when it comes to MMA, but recently he's looked a little bit like an angry third grader, pointing fingers and calling names.
When M-1 announced the signing of #1 heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, who the UFC had been chasing for some time, Dana could be heard referring to Fedor's management as "crazy Russian[s]." You'd expect the whitest collar in the room to be mature, but that's not the way things are looking right now.
With the recent resignation of the UFC's heavyweight champion Randy Couture and major contracts like Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and Chuck Liddell dropping bouts to stepping stone opponents, Dana is in a tough position.
For starters, he has a heavyweight division that lacks any real top. With fighters like Cheick Kongo, Tim Sylvia and Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera, all of whom could be considered for a title shot, Dana has to realize that it's going to be a while before he has a real dominant posterboy in that division.
Second, he's spending money on fighters who don't deserve it, and drastically underpaying guys who deserve alot more money. Fighters on smaller contracts who are starting to get the limelight, like Houston Alexander and Keith Jardine, are going to need more money when the UFC starts negotiating to resign them, and judging by the amount of time it took the UFC to renegotiate a contract with Brandon Vera (one of the fighters they are now paying alot of money to fight in the middle of a card) it's hard to say that we are confident in the UFC brass's ability to handle their money.
The UFC is really considered the show, but with the recent vacuum created in the heavyweight division, the possibility of an organization like M-1 creating a solid heavyweight division and building from there, eventually posing a threat to Dana and his boys, is significant.
Besides just the issues of how the fighters are performing in relation to how they are being paid, there's alot of concern over whether the UFC's wages are fair. The top fighters and faces of the organization are living confortably, and Dana is certainly bringing home the bacon, but many contracts for UFC fighters seem inadequate, since there are so few sponsorships to go around.
Even in the deal that the UFC offered to Fedor, top sports agents thought that he was being exploited. Imagine the guys who's contracts aren't getting looked at by the big sports agents.
Dana White doesn't seem to be captaining a sinking ship, but he's got a challenge ahead of him. All we can hope is that for the sake of the Octagon, he pulls through.
When M-1 announced the signing of #1 heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, who the UFC had been chasing for some time, Dana could be heard referring to Fedor's management as "crazy Russian[s]." You'd expect the whitest collar in the room to be mature, but that's not the way things are looking right now.
With the recent resignation of the UFC's heavyweight champion Randy Couture and major contracts like Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and Chuck Liddell dropping bouts to stepping stone opponents, Dana is in a tough position.
For starters, he has a heavyweight division that lacks any real top. With fighters like Cheick Kongo, Tim Sylvia and Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera, all of whom could be considered for a title shot, Dana has to realize that it's going to be a while before he has a real dominant posterboy in that division.
Second, he's spending money on fighters who don't deserve it, and drastically underpaying guys who deserve alot more money. Fighters on smaller contracts who are starting to get the limelight, like Houston Alexander and Keith Jardine, are going to need more money when the UFC starts negotiating to resign them, and judging by the amount of time it took the UFC to renegotiate a contract with Brandon Vera (one of the fighters they are now paying alot of money to fight in the middle of a card) it's hard to say that we are confident in the UFC brass's ability to handle their money.
The UFC is really considered the show, but with the recent vacuum created in the heavyweight division, the possibility of an organization like M-1 creating a solid heavyweight division and building from there, eventually posing a threat to Dana and his boys, is significant.
Besides just the issues of how the fighters are performing in relation to how they are being paid, there's alot of concern over whether the UFC's wages are fair. The top fighters and faces of the organization are living confortably, and Dana is certainly bringing home the bacon, but many contracts for UFC fighters seem inadequate, since there are so few sponsorships to go around.
Even in the deal that the UFC offered to Fedor, top sports agents thought that he was being exploited. Imagine the guys who's contracts aren't getting looked at by the big sports agents.
Dana White doesn't seem to be captaining a sinking ship, but he's got a challenge ahead of him. All we can hope is that for the sake of the Octagon, he pulls through.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Gina Carano: Kicking Ass and Taking Names
It's hard to call someone an icon in MMA when they started training about 3 years ago and only have 4 professional fights, but if anyone fits the profile of an icon, it's Gina Carano.
She's already made a name for herself as the most well known female fighter in the sport and is a main card attraction on the up and coming pay-per-view Elite XC organization.
My introduction to Gina "Conviction" Carano was watching her fight with Julie Kedzie in the Elite XC divsion that she still runs, which inspired the TV series fight girls and has made womens MMA more than just a cult like the WNBA in comparison to the MMA community.
While MMA is still becoming a part of the mainstream, it has been running into alot of confrontation with medical associations (Most recently the BMA) and self-righteous conservatives (the representatives at the BMA). I'm not exactly shy about how much I dislike anyone who tells anyone else what to do or what not to do without being asked, but even the hardships men's MMA has, it's even harder for the women.
Dana White, the figurehead at the front of the mixed-martial-arts behemoth that is the Ultimate Fighting Championship has acknowledged Carano specifically as a talent, but has said that he doesn't believe the world is ready for watching women beat the hell out of each other.
Carano is a great fighter, so when I watch her I could give less of a crap what her gender is, and I suggest that everyone watch her and the other fighters on the upcoming Elite XC card.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Winning Europe: The UFC's War To Expand
UK MMA poster boy and TUF 3 winner Michael Bisping.I would be lying if I told you that Americans are "bringing" mixed martial arts to the UK. It's existed for many years and the community continues to grow.
Alot of people would say that British mixed martial arts are a lower cailber than American organizations are, but the UFC wants the UK market badly.
UK is the gateway to Europe, and fighters like "The Ultimate Fighter 3" lightheavyweight winner Michael Bisping and up-and-comer Terry Etim are their best bet.
The same way Americans love to cheer for their hometown boys, British fans go crazy for Bisping and he's fast becoming the UFC's European posterboy. He and Etim have already been announced as members of the UFC 75: Champion vs Champion card to be held in the UK. It will be the UFC's second event in the UK this year and will be the first time the UFC has attempted to unify a title with one from the recently liquidated (after being bought out by UFC step-parent company Zuffa) Pride Fighting Championships.
Dan Henderson vs Quinton "Rampage" Jackson will prove a high quality fight and will definitely do well in terms of American pay-per-view buys, but the time change may make it harder for American audiences.
Still, the UFC is trying to give the European fans something to be excited about, and with the main card bouts between the Brit Bisping and American archrival Matt Hamill (they are both very respectful, but it's no secret that Bisping doesn't like Hamill) as well as attractions for mainland Europe in the bout between Frenchman Cheick Kongo and Croatian Mirko "CroCop" Filipovic.
For all of the American MMA fans, we may not see the marketing, but the UFC is going global. We are no longer the soul patrons of the greatest fight-show on earth, and it's going to take some getting used to, but, in the end, it'll be a good thing.
After all, a world stage will bring us better fights and raise the level of competition that much higher.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Picking Winners
There's something that alot of hardcore MMA fans don't get when it comes to looking at the outcome of fights, it's something that even alot of fighters don't get.
When you are making fight predictions, you have to look at two things: what should happen and what could happen.
For instance: going into Gabriel Gonzaga vs Mirko "CroCop" Filipovic, Gonzaga could have KO'd CroCop, we saw him KO two of his other opponents in the UFC (Jordan and Scherner), but no one expected him to. When I was looking at the possible outcomes for that fighter I thought of it like this:
CroCop SHOULD win the standup.
Gonzaga SHOULD win on the ground.
Gonzaga was capable of finishing the fight in CroCop's arena, he had the power to do that, where as CroCop didn't really have a snowball's chance in hell at submitting Gonzaga or outgrappling him.
So:
Gonzaga COULD win the standup.
CroCop COULD NOT win the grappling.
People will tell you that anything can happen. Yes, anything can happen, but there's a reason why bizarre things tend not to happen. When I say what "could happen" I think of, given a fighters history, what he's capable of.
For those who watched the Couture v Gonzaga fight, you have to understand how hard a fight that is to bet on. Here's why:
Gonzaga SHOULD win the standup.
Couture SHOULD win the grappling.
But:
Couture COULD (and did) win the standup.
Gonzaga COULD (but didn't) win the grappling.
There's so much up in the air as to the dimensions of that kind of a fight. Both fighters can win in both places. My suggestion is to never bet more than play money on those kinds of fights, but always watch those matchups closely. They are the ones that are exciting because no one really has any clue what is going to happen until, finally, it does.
When you are making fight predictions, you have to look at two things: what should happen and what could happen.
For instance: going into Gabriel Gonzaga vs Mirko "CroCop" Filipovic, Gonzaga could have KO'd CroCop, we saw him KO two of his other opponents in the UFC (Jordan and Scherner), but no one expected him to. When I was looking at the possible outcomes for that fighter I thought of it like this:
CroCop SHOULD win the standup.
Gonzaga SHOULD win on the ground.
Gonzaga was capable of finishing the fight in CroCop's arena, he had the power to do that, where as CroCop didn't really have a snowball's chance in hell at submitting Gonzaga or outgrappling him.
So:
Gonzaga COULD win the standup.
CroCop COULD NOT win the grappling.
People will tell you that anything can happen. Yes, anything can happen, but there's a reason why bizarre things tend not to happen. When I say what "could happen" I think of, given a fighters history, what he's capable of.
For those who watched the Couture v Gonzaga fight, you have to understand how hard a fight that is to bet on. Here's why:
Gonzaga SHOULD win the standup.
Couture SHOULD win the grappling.
But:
Couture COULD (and did) win the standup.
Gonzaga COULD (but didn't) win the grappling.
There's so much up in the air as to the dimensions of that kind of a fight. Both fighters can win in both places. My suggestion is to never bet more than play money on those kinds of fights, but always watch those matchups closely. They are the ones that are exciting because no one really has any clue what is going to happen until, finally, it does.
Monday, August 13, 2007
MMA on 60 Minutes
My dad and I sit on the couch every once in a while and watch the news. We've been on vacation on and off for a while, so we were clearing through some recordings and we found an episode of 60 minutes we hadn't watched. One of the segments was on MMA.
I have, lately, been struggling with alot of the mainstream media's projections about the sport as a whole. My biggest problem, honestly, is that they still manage to represent the sport as barbaric.
With that said, I have to admit that 60 Minutes put together the best segment on MMA that I have seen so far. They weren't as uninformed as Sports Illustrated (shame on the guys that wrote that article, it was badly put together and parts of it were clearly ignorant of the sport) or as ridiculous and self-righteous as Bill O'Reilly's past work on the sport (I'm not an O'Reilly fan to begin with, but when a friend emailed me that segment, I couldn't finish it).
60 Minutes was honest about the sport, and they didn't talk.
Personally, I think it's great when a reporter asks questions and let's the expert answer.
They also had great selections for subjects of the show. They talked a little bit about Dana White (though it would be an understatement to say they glossed over the Pre-Zuffa history of the UFC) and he had some great comments, but he's a great guy to have speak for the sport.
More impressive was that they interviewed Pat Miletich and Renzo Gracie, real legends of the sport. They mentioned Pat Miletich's legendary coaching backround (though they forget, like everyone seems to, that Pat Miletich held a world title for a while). They discussed Renzo's jiu-jitsu skills, making a point of his intelligence and his articulateness (which is even better when you consider that English isn't his first language) and even talking about the fight with Kazushi Sakuraba.
There are so many intracacies of the sport that I would love for someone to put together an hour special on it to inform people, but that won't happen until we get to the point where covering the sport in an hour is no longer possible.
If anyone out there has money and air-time, it would be worth doing.
Still, 60 Minutes did a great job. Thank you to those responsible for the segment, and to everyone in the media who is smart enough and honest enough to present the truth about the sport in a way that represents the intellectual aspects, as well as the athletic ones, while managing to be historically and politically correct.
It's not an easy thing to do and I appreciate it.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
It Sucks to Be a Replacement (But It Pays)
Imagine the big boss, not your supervisor, calling you into his office and saying that he wants you to do a big project, but it has to be done quickly and at the highest caliber. You have no preparation and you have to get ready to work with material you may not have worked with before.
It happens in MMA all the time, especially in high level organizations like the UFC. Injuries happen in training, and so fighters getting ready for their big matchup occassionally have to call in sick. None of the guys ever wants to, but alot of the time it becomes a political issue (when the Nevada State Athletic Comission will not license them to fight with the injury) and an issue of performance (no one wants to put on a poor showing, because then they have to really start thinking about their next pay check).
It really sucks to be the fighter who has to call and tell UFC management that you cannot compete in your next matchup for whatever reason. It sucks because you know that you aren't going to have that nice shiny paycheck coming in and, if you're a new guy, you have to consider how long it's going to be before they call you again.
However, when a door closes for one guy, it becomes open for another. The issue then becomes whether or not the fighter is in shape, whether he's prepared for the opponent and whether he can make weight.
You see, a matchup never goes off a card because one fighter can't make it. If you can't fight in the UFC, they will find someone to fight instead. They have that kind of money and prestige.
Being the guy that gets the nod to come in and fight as a replacement has its perks. You get to fight in the biggest organization on the planet and you get to fight a top flight opponent, but at what cost.
When you get called up by the UFC as a replacement, it is almost always close to the fight date. At most, it gives a fighter two or three weeks to be ready for a fight against an opponent that has been training for six or eight, preparing his strength and cardio to go 15 minutes with an opponent that has been training as hard as he has.
Fighters, like every athlete, track their training schedules so that they peak at fight time. When you get called two weeks before, that's a pretty small peak.
That isn't to say that the fighter ever comes in as the pillsbury doh-boy (unless they always look like that), but they don't have the same level of conditioning that comes from training their ass off for ten weeks getting ready to tear an opponents head off.
The other major issue is weight. Almost all fighters, in this day and age, have to cut weight. If you don't have a good deal of notice, this can leave you drained for the actual fight.
The cost of being a replacement is high. You have to rush to be ready, but if it pays off, it pays off. Fighters who win as replacements almost always get called back, even if they have to take their opponent to a decision, because the management knows that they won, even though they weren't at 100%, and that's what makes the big boss excited.
When a fighter comes in as a replacement and puts on a great show, if he finishes his opponent or at least goes to war with his opponents (even in a loss) he can get alot of attention for himself.
Eddie Sanchez came in as a replacement for current UFC #1 heavyweight contender Gabe Gonzaga and made his UFC debut on short notice against Mario Neto. When Sanchez KO'd Neto the fans weren't all talking about it, but it was clear that the management was. After all, they gave Sanchez an incredible matchup for his second fight: asking him to fight Mirko "CroCop" Filipovic, the best striker in the heavyweight division, ranked #2 in the world at the time.
While Sanchez was destroyed by CroCop, he got the opportunity to fight a top flight fighter.
Being the replacement has it's disadvantages, but the management of organizations like the UFC know that. They don't expect the replacement to pull it off, but if it happens, they know that they need to call that guy back, they need to find out what he can do.
No one expects the replacement to win, but when he does, it pays.
It happens in MMA all the time, especially in high level organizations like the UFC. Injuries happen in training, and so fighters getting ready for their big matchup occassionally have to call in sick. None of the guys ever wants to, but alot of the time it becomes a political issue (when the Nevada State Athletic Comission will not license them to fight with the injury) and an issue of performance (no one wants to put on a poor showing, because then they have to really start thinking about their next pay check).
It really sucks to be the fighter who has to call and tell UFC management that you cannot compete in your next matchup for whatever reason. It sucks because you know that you aren't going to have that nice shiny paycheck coming in and, if you're a new guy, you have to consider how long it's going to be before they call you again.
However, when a door closes for one guy, it becomes open for another. The issue then becomes whether or not the fighter is in shape, whether he's prepared for the opponent and whether he can make weight.
You see, a matchup never goes off a card because one fighter can't make it. If you can't fight in the UFC, they will find someone to fight instead. They have that kind of money and prestige.
Being the guy that gets the nod to come in and fight as a replacement has its perks. You get to fight in the biggest organization on the planet and you get to fight a top flight opponent, but at what cost.
When you get called up by the UFC as a replacement, it is almost always close to the fight date. At most, it gives a fighter two or three weeks to be ready for a fight against an opponent that has been training for six or eight, preparing his strength and cardio to go 15 minutes with an opponent that has been training as hard as he has.
Fighters, like every athlete, track their training schedules so that they peak at fight time. When you get called two weeks before, that's a pretty small peak.
That isn't to say that the fighter ever comes in as the pillsbury doh-boy (unless they always look like that), but they don't have the same level of conditioning that comes from training their ass off for ten weeks getting ready to tear an opponents head off.
The other major issue is weight. Almost all fighters, in this day and age, have to cut weight. If you don't have a good deal of notice, this can leave you drained for the actual fight.
The cost of being a replacement is high. You have to rush to be ready, but if it pays off, it pays off. Fighters who win as replacements almost always get called back, even if they have to take their opponent to a decision, because the management knows that they won, even though they weren't at 100%, and that's what makes the big boss excited.
When a fighter comes in as a replacement and puts on a great show, if he finishes his opponent or at least goes to war with his opponents (even in a loss) he can get alot of attention for himself.
Eddie Sanchez came in as a replacement for current UFC #1 heavyweight contender Gabe Gonzaga and made his UFC debut on short notice against Mario Neto. When Sanchez KO'd Neto the fans weren't all talking about it, but it was clear that the management was. After all, they gave Sanchez an incredible matchup for his second fight: asking him to fight Mirko "CroCop" Filipovic, the best striker in the heavyweight division, ranked #2 in the world at the time.
While Sanchez was destroyed by CroCop, he got the opportunity to fight a top flight fighter.
Being the replacement has it's disadvantages, but the management of organizations like the UFC know that. They don't expect the replacement to pull it off, but if it happens, they know that they need to call that guy back, they need to find out what he can do.
No one expects the replacement to win, but when he does, it pays.
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