The Triangle Choke: UFC Lull
MMA’s #1 organization is in a slump, even after a live gate of 15,000 plus drawing $1.6 million? Yes, a slump. If fans and critics alike evaluate the UFC against old standards then all is well, but those days are gone. The metrics of the past are only in existence for the likes of Bellator and Strikeforce. After all, UFC President Dana White has stated the UFC will be as big as the NFL, of course a pipe dream but nonetheless the bar has been lifted. Despite the negative feedback in the UFC’s Octagon, the bigger news is outside of the cage.
First the problems in the cage: Why the slump? Before we get to UFC 117 Silva vs. Sonnen let’s look at UFC 118. The event took place in Boston and featured a rematch of Frankie Edgar and BJ Penn for the UFC Lightweight Title. However, the main event took a back seat to the fight between UFC legend Randy Couture and former boxer James Toney which frankly was a joke and a made a mockery of the sport. Dana White has openly stated that gimmick fights give the sport a negative image, something he has worked so hard to eliminate. Yet White will air enough promos of Kimbo Slice that the general public thought he was running for office and will feature a washed up boxer with NO MMA experience. Enough with the hypocrisy! It gives the sport a WWE feeling and of course hurts the fans and worthy mixed-martial artists.
UFC 119 in Indianapolis followed up the lackluster UFC 118 and did no better, in fact it was probably just as bad. The event was on PPV yet was void of a main event. The event “featured” Mirko Cro Cop vs. Frank Mir. Yes, a few years ago this might have been an exciting bout but Mirko is far past his prime and Mir had lost two out of his last three coming into the fight; granted to high quality opponents in Carwin and Lesnar. Amongst a cascade of boos Mir got the victory with a sharp knee with resulted in a KO in the 3rd round. The official decision is a subpar event at full price.
Getting back to UFC 117; the main event between slick-talking Chael Sonnen and one of the all-time greats, Anderson Silva lived up to its billing, for awhile anyway. Silva finally got the victory in the 5th round but that isn’t the true story. Recently, news broke that Sonnen admitted to using performance enhancing drugs. Fans were appalled and surprised, however, they really shouldn’t be. This may be the ultimate proof that the UFC is becoming more of a main stream sport! Yes, every UFC event is tested, but to what level? Why is it that California has more notable suspensions than fights held in Las Vegas? A great question…
So now the UFC has had back to back lackluster events, its champions are either hurt or tied up in The Ultimate Fighter (which is even a bigger mistake than all that has been mentioned) and it’s reaching a point where it’s grow at all costs. Why does that mean?
Major League Baseball faced several obstacles in the mid 90’s. What was Commissioner Bud Selig thinking? That is yet to be determined. Instead of focusing on the game itself Selig turned a blind eye to steroids and a variety of other issues. The end result was a barrage of negative publicity in which the sport is still battling, even though MLB players are nowhere near the size and strength of football players. In the NBA, David Stern has had his beady little eyes on European expansion for years and yes, you guessed it, he failed to recognize the problems with the game itself and the players. The end result was the brawl at The Palace, a thuggish image and the asylum being run by the inmates. The NBA’s image continues to decline. The NFL is the model all professional leagues aspire to. Yet, even America’s true past time is facing a labor dispute. NFL Commish Roger Goodell has accomplished some major initiatives such as player conduct, however you guessed it he fails to look at the game. The rookie salaries have been skewed for years and he continues to waste a home game overseas every season. In essence, the commissioners are largely at fault for their league’s issues.
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Will Dana White do the same? The difference with White is he has been around to watch the sport almost be eliminated, then flourish. Despite his outlandish ego, White still cares about the sport and hopefully will make decisions in the best interest of MMA as a whole. Hopefully White will focus on better match-making and of course testing. Make no mistake that UFC 121 on October 23rd in Anaheim, CA, will cure all ills with Brock Lesnar returning to the Octagon, unless of course California detects more of the infamous juice!
By Scott Dryden
ProFighting-fans.com Editor-in-Chief