According to Meltzer, he got into an argument with a mainstream sports writer who said Brock's antics are the reason that MMA isn't a mainstream sport.
As if Brock's actions are any worse than your average hot-dogging NBA/MLB/NFL player.
Thought this was quite a good card with the only letdown being that Mir/Lesnar wasn't a better fight.
I thought Akiyama won the fight fairly clearly, and my gut said 29-28. But the third round was the one I'd be most inclined to give to Belcher and yet he got taken down 3 or 4 times in the round. Takedowns score big with UFC judges. So I don't think 30-27 is way out of line, but it certainly didn't sound right, either, if that makes any sense.
Henderson did exactly what he and everyone else hoped he would to Bisping. It helped that Bisping did nothing to prevent it from happening; I think he truly believed he was too fast for Henderson. The late punch was clean: yes, Henderson "knew" Bisping was KO'd, but a fighter is virtually always going to be given a single shot to a downed opponent in that situation. has done the same thing; the difference is that Henderson admitted it out loud.
Georges St-Pierre is amazing. I thought Silva showed a ton of self-awareness in his acknowledging St-Pierre's victory as soon as final bell rang. He'll be back and he'll be even more dangerous. St-Pierre's about out of decent competition at welterweight, though. I'd rather see him drop to lightweight and make BJ Penn cry, but that's just not going to happen. Whatever does happen, I'll always remember St-Pierre as virtually unbeatable at 170lbs.
The only real competition between Lesnar and Mir was, "who can be the most unlikable asshat?" Credit to Brock for using every advantage and showing some surprising maturity (fighting-wise). Fortunately for him, I don't think Dana White is stupid enough to invalidate his entire heavyweight division by bringing in Fedor Emelianenko, so here's hoping Brock's next few opponents at least make things a little more interesting.
Fitch/Thiago was a very entertaining fight. I thought both guys put on an excellent show and that the decision was sound.
Originally posted by CxMorgado Yeah, that Lesnar is sure sullying up a classy sport.
Point taken. UFC will never be taken seriously when its fighters act like Brock Lesnar. They should conduct themselves like professional athletes - you know, running dog-fighting rings, raping women in hotel rooms, involving themselves in shootings at nightclubs, that sorta stuff. The professional stuff.
Fun night. Saint-Pierre is an absolute beast, which I guess we knew already, and even as a Brit it was nice to see Bisping get a long overdue pasting from Henderson.
Lesnar still has a ton of room for improvement, but that arguably just makes him even more scary given how dominant he looked with what he's already learned. Fedor v Brock would be f'n awesome so hopefully they can sort something out there (assuming he gets by Barnett, which he likely will).
Originally posted by CxMorgadoDana White pulled him into the bathroom and chewed him out for going WWE on them, then made him apologize at the press conference. White's pretty much playing the whole thing off as being the influence of that dirty, shameful WWE.
Meanwhile, Henderson flat out admitted (while smirking) that he dropped that last punch when he knew Bisping was out as a lesson for talking shit, yet he gets a KO bonus from the company while Lesnar has to eat crow.
I thought Dana was just saying the same thing as everyone I watched the fight with - Brock's used to playing up to the crowd reaction (good or bad) and took it a bit too far. The only real dig he had at WWE was the "you don't have to fake a character in UFC" line. I took that more as "we're real, they fake it" (which they've been saying for years) than "we're classy, they're shameful".
Henderson? He *did* get the knock out of the night even without the follow up, and he also got a dressing down afterwards from Dana.
I suspect the reason he escaped losing his bonus and/or a public apology was that unlike Brock, he was smart enough not to insult a sponsor. That, and Brock was the headline act so what he did was going to get more negative press. Probably not right, but hey, that's business.
For the life of me, I cant see how anybody thought Akiyama won the fight. A takedown isn't like it is in wrestling, where you score points automatically. if you take a guy down, and do nothing with it, what's the point. I thought Akiyama MIGHT have won the second round, but the first was evenly matched and he got his ass handed to him in the third. I guess that's why they have three judges though since a lot of people saw stuff I obviously didn't.
You can talk all you want about Brock acting like he did, but he was nearly booed out of the ring BEFORE the fight, he had a right to tell people to go F themselves after the fight. He beat the crap out of Mir and got booed for doing so.
Fedor vs Brock? Maybe give Brock one or two more shows before he gets his head taken off by a Fedor kick.
Perhaps Kimbo Slice wins TUF and gets a title shot. It'd be interesting seeing a beat down between the two.
Originally posted by StaggerLeeFor the life of me, I cant see how anybody thought Akiyama won the fight. A takedown isn't like it is in wrestling, where you score points automatically. if you take a guy down, and do nothing with it, what's the point. I thought Akiyama MIGHT have won the second round, but the first was evenly matched and he got his ass handed to him in the third. I guess that's why they have three judges though since a lot of people saw stuff I obviously didn't.
With regards to takedowns: regardless of whether anything results from it, takedowns most definitely are "instant points" with the judges in UFC, probably affecting a round score almost as much (possibly more, depending on the judge) as a knockdown via strike. UFC scoring needs to be more transparent; once you've watched 10 or 15 events you get a feel for how the judges are going to score, but until then a lot of fights will leave you wondering. I've watched almost every event since UFC 85 or so, but I watched this one with a very casual group. When I told them Akiyama would win the decision they thought I was nuts.
In this case I also agreed with the decision. Belcher's shots looked heavier, but they didn't do any more lasting damage than Akiyama's. Akiyama pushed the action way more than Belcher. Yes, Belcher's leg kicks looked great and slowed Akiyama down some, but he didn't build on them at all. Check out fight stats here and here. I'm not a stats freak, but other than leg kicks Akiyama clearly outworked Belcher. Belcher also fouled Akiyama seriously in the first with that nutshot and now there's some rumblings that Akiyama's left eye was closed by an eyepoke, not a strike. Belcher was game, but I truly believe he lost that fight.
Fedor vs Brock? Maybe give Brock one or two more shows before he gets his head taken off by a Fedor kick.
Dana White is now saying he'll make the Fedor/Lesnar fight if he can because that's what the public is scrambling for. Thinking about it a little more, the UFC doesn't have a lot to lose. They get a "megafight" with lots of publicity and probably large numbers. Fedor most likely cleans Brock's clock very soundly. Brock goes back to dominating the currently weak heavyweight decision in the UFC and Fedor goes back to beating up folks in other parts of the world. Maybe Fedor's career goes on long enough that Lesnar gets another chance at him after a few years of seasoning, maybe not. Fedor will not be a serious blemish on Lesnar's career record either way, as he's almost unanimously considered the greatest heavyweight who's ever lived at this point. And if Brock manages to beat Fedor, you've immediately got an even bigger fight in the rematch.
This makes sense. Win or lose, UFC wins. Their bigger concern right now is probably that Brock gets caught by someone that everybody expects him to dominate.
Originally posted by tarnishDana White is now saying he'll make the Fedor/Lesnar fight if he can because that's what the public is scrambling for. Thinking about it a little more, the UFC doesn't have a lot to lose. They get a "megafight" with lots of publicity and probably large numbers. Fedor most likely cleans Brock's clock very soundly. Brock goes back to dominating the currently weak heavyweight decision in the UFC and Fedor goes back to beating up folks in other parts of the world. Maybe Fedor's career goes on long enough that Lesnar gets another chance at him after a few years of seasoning, maybe not. Fedor will not be a serious blemish on Lesnar's career record either way, as he's almost unanimously considered the greatest heavyweight who's ever lived at this point. And if Brock manages to beat Fedor, you've immediately got an even bigger fight in the rematch.
This makes sense. Win or lose, UFC wins. Their bigger concern right now is probably that Brock gets caught by someone that everybody expects him to dominate.
If Brock loses (especially if he's dominated), he loses credibility, and Fedor takes that credibility to whoever he signs with next (especially if it's Strikeforce). The one-time buyrate for Brock/Fedor would not be worth the increased competition as well as Brock's drop in drawing power.
Now if they sign Fedor to a multi-fight contract, then you absolutely sign it, but this has also been the biggest reason why Fedor hasn't signed, as Fedor wants his freedom.
It is the policy of the documentary crew to remain true observers and not interfere with its subjects.
If you wanna reach the Co-op, boy, you gotta get by me.
The problem I see with bringing Fedor in, you are basically saying we have a weak ass heavyweight division and we need someone to take out Brock. Its almost like putting a hit on Brock to go out and get someone from another federation to beat him. I think it will be big money, but I get the feeling Fedor will be a paper champion for UFC fighting when its good for him and not the company. If Brock wins, I just see him dominating for a few years until he once again burns his bridge with UFC which at this point its a small burn.
Dana also needs to lighten the fuck up. The honor stuff is good for the mainstream press, but people want a show too. I am sure the re-run buyrate will be higher due to Brock's antics. The problem with UFC is that for awhile their fighters all looked the same, now they have a legit heel and they don't want it. Also, it would be nice to see a woman's match as well. He really needs to expand his product instead of decreasing it. They are only getting mainstream coverage, because boxing is in the toilet and this is the dog days of sports summer. They will never be a mainstream sport due to the violence and controversial scoring. I do think it will replace boxing as a fifth or sixth sport in America, but it will never replace the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL/College sports.
How many more places will Fedor have to go, or legit fights to take? Once he finishes Barnett off that pretty much is it for unsigned heavyweights. He might be able to go to Japan and have a fights against say Mark Hunt or Bob Sapp or someone, but the options keep getting limited. I can't see Affliction lasting past this coming show, Strikeforce has no real HW division of note. If he wants to continue fighting at a high level, and making high level money, it is getting to be UFC or bust for him.
And I don't think Dana was unhappy with Brock's promo except for the Bud Light part. Otherwise he gets to play good cop while Lesnar generates tons of heat.
As for being bigger than other sports, it is hard to compare season-based sports to single-person exhibitions. Obviously even the NHL has more fans over a season than UFC over a year, but how many of those are the same person over and over, multiplied by all the teams?
Originally posted by Deputy MarshallPoint taken. UFC will never be taken seriously when its fighters act like Brock Lesnar. They should conduct themselves like professional athletes - you know, running dog-fighting rings, raping women in hotel rooms, involving themselves in shootings at nightclubs, that sorta stuff. The professional stuff.
Originally posted by lotjxThe problem I see with bringing Fedor in, you are basically saying we have a weak ass heavyweight division
Yes and no. Almost everyone who knows anything considers Fedor the best heavyweight in the world anyway . NOT trying to sign him looks far worse because it looks like your worried your guy couldn't prove everyone wrong.
Originally posted by lotjx It's almost like putting a hit on Brock
Exactly! How awesome is THAT?!
The only thing that could make this even more money for them is if Brock was big, evil AND foreign and the smaller face being relied on to end the reign of terror was the American.
It's practically a real life Rocky IV, what's not to love?!
Dana also needs to lighten the fuck up.
I hear ya, but without the sponsor thing this is a non-issue. I'd guess Dana's talking to was more like "great work, Brock, but play the f'n game and don't piss off the sponsors eh?".
He knows the danger for MMA is that it gets written off as a barbaric sport for the mindless minority, so there's a tightrope to be walked. Because of that he'll say what he needs to to appease the masses, but behind closed doors I'd be amazed if he wasn't encouraging Brock to play up his 'heel' status again next time out. Just without upsetting the sponsors is all.
Originally posted by CxMorgadoMeanwhile, Henderson flat out admitted (while smirking) that he dropped that last punch when he knew Bisping was out as a lesson for talking shit, yet he gets a KO bonus from the company while Lesnar has to eat crow.
Yeah, that Lesnar is sure sullying up a classy sport.
Doesn't matter what you know, until the ref waves you off you have to go for it, or you'll end up like Herring in the last Nog fight.
Now maybe Henderson didn't have to fully load up, but Matt Hamill and I disagree.
Oh I'm not dissing the punch, I just think it's hilarious that Henderson went out there and admitted to taking a cheap shot when he knew Bisping was out, and saying it felt good to do so, yet it's Lesnar showboating that's getting all the heat for not living up to the whole "respectful, honorable competitive sport" image they're trying to promote. Henderson's admission is the type of thing the anti-MMA types would hold up as proving their point, not Brock dissing Bud Light.
Chuck should beat Sobral without too much trouble, so the fight I'm most looking forward to is the Griffin/Bonnar rematch. If it's even in the ballpark of their last fight, it'll be a MOTY candidate.