Dana White recently told UFC Tonight his plans to implement a strawweight division in the UFC.
A strawweight, for those unfamiliar with the division, is a small dude. Not Urijah Faber small, not even Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson small.
Smaller than that.
The strawweight division will host 115-pound fights, and according to White, the start of this division is a near-inevitability.
“As the sport continues to grow and we go into other markets like Latin America and Asia, yes, we will eventually open up a lighter weight division, which is a great thing,” White said. “It’s an amazing opportunity for fighters all over the world.”
Right now, this seems like a questionable move. The flyweight division is by far the UFC’s thinnest division, and even hardcore fans would be hard-pressed to name 10 strawweights, let alone 10 elite 115 pounders worthy of the Octagon.
Still, White confirmed the division will happen at some point in the future on UFC Tonight:
“I don’t know how soon it’s going to happen,” White said. “But yes, it will eventually happen.”
Personally, this is not a move I can get behind just yet. Thankfully, White used terms like “will eventually happen” and “as the sport continues to grow,” so hopefully that means such a move is not right around the corner.
With the reports of stellar ratings for Mighty Mouse’s title defense at UFC on Fox 6 against John Dodson, I can see why White is pondering the move, but I still have trouble supporting the notion at this time.
A guy named “Rampage” was on that Fox card, as well—maybe you have heard of him?
This is not to suggest lighter-weight fighters cannot carry a card in the future; I just do not think now is the time to dive even further into the already-scarce pool of fighters under 135 pounds.
Make the divisions you currently promote stronger first, then think about adding more. If White continues to dilute the product, we will be left with a mess of uninteresting, watered-down bouts containing fighters we have never heard of and do not care about.
No thanks.
With that said, I have faith in White and the UFC to properly scout fighters, develop a reasonable and cohesive plan and then announce the division when the time is right.
The organization has a knack for making their business plans work, and I expect this one to be no different.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com