It was announced on Thursday by Dana White that all UFC main events, even those that are not for titles, will be five round affairs. The idea of making main even fights five rounds has been a hot topic recently, especially in bouts to determine title shots. The main motivating factor for making contendership fights five rounds was to make sure that a lot of the judging mishaps that have taken place will be alleviated with the addition of two more rounds.
I for one am not a fan of five-round contests that are not for championships. I believe that there’s something special about five-round fights, and if all main events were to become five rounds then the potential exists for championship fights to lose some of their luster. I also believe that a three-round fight when a title shot is on the line makes the fight a lot more exciting, and the fighters know that they have to perform because they don’t have much room for error.
I can understand the UFC’s decision to implement five-round fights for bouts that have a title shot on the line, but the idea of making all main events five rounders—including Spike TV and Versus cards—is somewhat baffling. A lot of the main events for those cards may be interesting fights and even some of the main events for PPV’s are interesting, but at the same time hold no real relevance in their respective weight classes. I can live with five-rounders for title shots, but at the same time Dana White has shown on multiple occasions that he does whatever he wants; he has even taken away title shots from people that were supposed to be given to them on the condition of them winning their fight. If five-round fights are to be instituted, then title shots should be guaranteed.
I know people’s positions on this are split, but let me know what you guys think. Should all main events be five rounds? Should five-rounders be used only for title fights? Should five rounds be used in title fights as well as number one contender fights?
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