It may be hard to believe, but when most writers sit down to put their name to a piece, they usually need to have some honesty behind their words—some belief that what they say is true. If not, how could they defend their position?
When it comes to writing for Bleacherreport.com, such considerations are of the utmost importance. Otherwise the words on the page ring hollow and it becomes quite easy to see through the smoke to find all the mirrors in the room, no matter how cleverly they are placed.
Consider my piece in June of 2012, about the then-upcoming fight between Dan Henderson and Jon Jones: UFC 151: Henderson vs. Jones, Why Hendo Has the Advantage.
Stop laughing, damn it, I am trying to be serious here.
After all, I was dead serious when I wrote the piece, and in reading it again and again, I think I did have some solid points for my previous opinion.
But overall, I was wrong, for all the wrong reasons.
The piece in question was a breakdown of the advantages each man would enjoy going into such a fight, and I do confess that I still wish the fight would have happened, if for no other reason than it would have given Henderson a chance at the title, which I think he had earned far more than Chael Sonnen.
And by the way, I appreciate Sonnen far more now than I did then.
Perhaps it was my fondness for fighters of my generation that colored my opinion. I have been following MMA rabidly since UFC 3, when you had to go to the local magazine rack and flip through the pages of Black Belt magazine in order to find a small write-up of the most recent UFC event.
But none of that keeps me from covering my face in embarrassment now as I look through all the comments and my passionate responses. Sometimes you cannot see the forest through the trees, and at that time, I was sure that Henderson had many advantages simply because Jones had not yet been put into any similar positions.
I defended my opinions with zeal, albeit misplaced. There are over 300 comments in total, and probably half of them are mine. When I look back at it now, that is a great deal of time I spent proving my bias for nostalgia outweighed common sense.
Now, the first day of 2014 is upon us, and I feel the need to account for myself, again. Don’t ask me why, because I cannot give you an honest answer.
Scratch that. Yes, I can, because the fighters in question deserve it.
This isn’t about erasing embarrassment. My piece about the fight is still up there for anyone and everyone who wants to read it and comment. I think it is about trying to become a better writer, and along the way, hopefully a better fan.
In my assessment of Henderson, I gave him three advantages he did not rightly possess—that of striking, cardio and timing. I won’t waste time in explaining why I did so. If you really want to know, just read the slides regarding those points, because I did write them reflecting of my honest belief at the time.
Now, after so many months and fights, I not only know better, but I should have known better at the time.
To be clear, I don’t think Jones is the striking virtuoso so many believe him to be, but now I do think he is better than Henderson. Striking isn’t always about flash. In fact, it is more often about sound fundamentals, and I do believe that a fighter with very solid grasps of the basics could get inside on Jones and do significant damage.
But I don’t think that man is, or ever was Henderson, and I do not say that to impart any sense of slight toward one of the most accomplished wrestler-turned-KO-artists out there. Henderson has always been and always will be a legend because he honestly earned it. But his accomplishments and genuine merit do not make my previous opinion correct, just overly optimistic.
As far as the realm of cardio is concerned, I think my reasoning back then was wrongly colored by the fact that Jones had only been forced to fight one five round bout, at only a moderate pace. I decided to give Henderson the benefit of the doubt because his much younger self had fought a total of 35 minutes, against three different opponents in a single night, way back in 1999. That version of Henderson was a 10 full years earlier than the man that would have been facing Jones.
I had decided that the proof found in the past outweighed the promise of the future. Before UFC 151, Jones was every bit as promising as he is now—hot off the heals from delivering the goods in a fight that demanded a great deal from him against Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 165.
I should have been wise enough to forbid myself the assumption that what is new cannot measure up to what is established, especially since I knew then that time erodes all. What was established then can never be assumed as a constant, especially 10 years later.
Of course, my fellow writers tried to guide my Titanic-sized ship of folly away from the icebergs that were clear for all to see. Hunter “The Ham-Hawk” Homistek tried to break it to me gently but firmly:
Kudos to you on the lengthy reply; it’s truly awesome when a writer goes out of his way to engage the fans! That said, I still think you’re severely overrating Hendo‘s striking abilities and his gas tank. He throws HARD, I’ll give you that. My point was that a phenomenal striker should be able to finish Palhares on the feet, not that he doesn‘t have KO power. Tell me Jones wouldn’t put Palhares away…child please! Hendo BOXES, and Jones employs MMA striking. That will be the difference. I don’t want to take anything away from Hendo‘s legendary career, but Jones is a 6:1 favorite for a reason–he is literally six times better :). haha (that was a joke before anybody destroys me over it) I rate Jones’ striking so highly because it has been absolutely ridiculous. Who else does the things he does not named Anderson Silva or Jose Aldo? Nobody. Why? Because they can’t. How many people throw big overhand punches? Koscheck, Hendricks, Roy Nelson…the list goes on with guys that can do what Hendo does on the feet. I like Hendo, really, I do, but there is no way he has the advantages you say he does my good sir.
Yeah, that about says it all, doesn’t it?
2014 will probably see Henderson retire without ever having won a UFC title. Save, that which he earned in a tournament victory at UFC 17 when he was a younger man—defeating first Allan Goes via decision after 15 hard fought minutes and then Carlos Newton by another decision after another 15 minutes that saw him battered and almost knocked out, only to come back and win a just decision.
Those victories, among countless others, will verify the greatness of Henderson for many years to come, and that is exactly as it should be, because it is honest.
It is also unbiased as it is a proven fact that does not assume too much, nor too little, unlike my prediction for UFC 151, which assumed far too little of Jones, a fighter who has earned every accolade and victory associated with his name.
This is why we have a comments section.
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