If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my years of covering mixed martial arts, it’s that someone will always find something to complain about.
I get it. I’ve complained about my share of unnecessary things over the years. It’s part of the game.
Today’s complaint comes from Las Vegas Sun columnist J. Patrick Coolican, and it’s a doozy. And by “doozy,” I mean “completely inane and unnecessary.”
Coolican takes issue with Dana White‘s recent tweeting of the gambling odds for the weekly The Ultimate Fighter: Live fights:
Imagine NFL commissioner Roger Goodell tweeting that the Saints are 10-1 to win the Super Bowl next year.
Yeah, probably not.
I suppose we can appreciate White’s honesty compared with other sports’ commissioners, whose leagues benefit greatly from the enthusiasm generated by Vegas betting but keep their distance from our gambling dens.
But White’s loose talk seems inappropriate, especially as UFC tries to earn legitimacy.
By haphazardly associating his sport with Vegas sports betting, White is giving New York authorities an excuse not to welcome UFC.
Comparing the UFC to the NFL, especially when it comes to the gambling world, is ludicrous.
For starters, the UFC is based in the gambling capital of the world. I lived in Las Vegas for a year, and I can tell you that sports betting is part of the culture. White lives in Vegas, and he’s part of that culture. It’s a part of everyday life for many Vegas residents, mostly because placing a bet on a sporting event is as easy as a five-minute drive to the casino closest to your house.
And White isn’t telling the world that he’s betting on these fights. He’s simply giving you the lines. Many MMA fans are highly interested in the odds because it gives them something to gauge the fight on. Who’s the favorite? Who is a live underdog? These things are crucial to many MMA fans who will never, in their entire lives, place an actual bet on a fight.
And then Coolican throws in this doozy:
“Uh-oh, there goes my UFC credential.”
Ah, I see what he’s doing. Plenty of other media guys have used this same tactic, playing on the misguided idea that the UFC will rip your credentials away if you write anything they don’t like. As Coolican will no doubt find out, that’s simply not true. He’s trying to get attention by playing the martyr and nothing more.
White responded during an interview with MMAjunkie.com:
“People always ask me, ‘Do you think that Roger Goodell and Bud Selig should act more like you? No. I think their model is doing just fine. These guys are incredible commissioners that have taken their sport to incredible levels. They’re doing fine. My style is different than other people’s style.
“If this jackass from the ‘Las Vegas Sun’ doesn’t like the fact that I’m telling you what the line is, too f—— bad. Yeah, I’m not Roger Goodell, and I’m not Bud Selig. I’m not those guys. If you haven’t figured that out by now, your head is further up your ass than I thought it was after reading your story.”
White makes a very important point here. He’s not Roger Goodell, Bud Selig or David Stern. One of the major reasons for the UFC’s success over the past 10 years has been White’s brash, confrontational style of promoting his company. Fighting is a different world and a different business than pro baseball or football. Can you imagine Goodell as the public face of the UFC? It just wouldn’t work.
I mentioned earlier that I lived in Las Vegas for a year. During that time, I made multiple trips to White’s office for video and audio interviews. I’d call or text him and ask if we could drop by, and he never shut the door in our face. He was always accommodating, even when his insane schedule kept him from sleeping more than two hours a night.
You think Roger Goodell would take office visits from random NFL reporters at any time of day? It just wouldn’t happen.
There’s a reason White is one of the biggest stars in the UFC despite not being a fighter. Fans appreciate his blunt style. Yes, he’s said things over the years that he probably shouldn’t have. But his willingness to put his feelings on everything from horribly boring fight cards to other fight promotions and promoters is one of the things that endear him to fans.
Nobody wants a straight-laced figurehead running the UFC. I can’t imagine anything more boring.
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