The best-laid plans…
After many months in the making UFC200 has come and gone. Pretty everything that could have gone wrong before the event did. 9 months ago, I’m sure the UFC top brass where envisaging match-ups like:
- Ronda Rousey vs Cyborg
- Conor McGregor vs RDA
- Jon Jones vs Rumble Johnson
A Holly Holm high kick to the face put pay to Rousey participation.
A dick swinging contest between Dana & Conor put pay to McGregor's involvement.
An addiction to perpetually screwing up put pay to Jon Jones taking part at the last minute.
The anti-climax
So in the end we were left with,
- Tate vs Nunes as the main event. Whilst this was fun while it lasted, it was like being promised a Wedding Cake and being delivered... well a Cupcake (see what I did there)
- Brock Lesner dry humping Mark Hunt for 15 minutes. Yay! Brocks back.
- Jose Aldo picking Frankie Edgar apart for 25 minutes in a rematch. For the love of god, that should have been a 3 round fight.
- Daniel Cormier dry humping an out of shape, yet undersized Anderson Silva for 3 rounds. Credit Silva for taking the fight on two days with no training. But seriously, did Cormier think he could compete with Jon Jones performing like that?
The real main course
Okay, I may be a bit harsh, however UFC200 is like that covershoot model that is stiff and awkward in bed. I was all set to do a full card write up for the ‘big event’ but forget it… if you want to read a run-down of a seriously good card, go read my UFC199 run down.
UFC199 was the highlight of the year so far. It also attests to what combat sport is about. It is about the fighters and the fights. Not the promotion. The UFC organisation deserves A LOT of credit for rescuing mma from the doldrums. However whilst their business model works, it isn’t the most lucrative in my view.
Company men vs Superheros
When people think of martial arts and combat sport, they think of icons like Muhammad Ali, Bruce Lee, Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather. These were fighters, personalities and above all free spirits. The UFC is sucking the spirit out of its stars by insisting they be “good company men.”
Good company men? It’s hard for people to buy into company men. The UFC’s biggest commodity, Conor McGregor, breaks the bank simply because he is seen as a free spirit, not a company man.
It broke my heart,
to see an ageing legend like Anderson Silva, step in on two-day’s notice to be a card filler help save a UFC event. This is the bloody greatest fighter of all time!
The irony is, if the UFC took a back seat, left their egos at the door and gave the fighters all the shine *the UFC would probably make more money! They have the talent, Conor McGregor, Ronda Rousey, Holly Holm, Jon Jones (suspension notwithstanding), Brock Lesnar, Stephen Wonderboy Thompson. To name a few. These guys should be marketed as SUPERHEROS…