No. 3-ranked UFC welterweight contender Demian Maia is certainly deserving of a title shot after winning six straight bouts with three of those victories coming by way of submission, but the UFC has instead booked a rematch between champion Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson, for March 4’s UFC 209.
Recently speaking on this week’s edition of The MMA Hour, Maia said that the UFC ‘doesn’t care’ if he fights for the title or not, as he believes that the promotion doesn’t see him as a draw:
Maia’s Opinion
”I know why,” he said. “There are two reasons. One, they really don’t care too much If I am going to fight for the title or not. But, the main reason is that they are having problems setting up fights. They have cancelled a couple of events and they need names that can sell. I know even if they say I don’t sell, I know I sell something. I’m a name that can be a co-main event if not a main event with another guy people want to see. They need to book fights and I understand their rush for that.”
While his recent streak speaks for itself, Maia has typically been a quiet fighter, and some have said that his grappling-heavy style isn’t appealing to fans. The Brazilian, however, feels that a problem lies here within the sport, as he sees too much of a focus on ‘money fights’ and fighters who tend to be more active vocally. Maia believes the interest in fights should simply be based on seeing which fighter is the best:
Sh*t Talkers
“That’s another thing I think is a mistake. Every sport in the world, football, soccer, every sport that has many years and is consolidated, people like to watch because they want to see the winner. They don’t watch the NBA, or the Australian open in tennis because they want to see the guy who talks more or the guy is more outspoken. They wants to see (Roger) Federer and (Rafael) Nadal because they are the best. They don’t want to see someone just because they play more fancy. At the end of the day, who follows sport likes to see who wins. Some people like to see people who talk shit, but those are not the people who are going to carry on the sport forever.”
Maia continued by offering a strong stance that MMA simply won’t be able to continue on as it stands, and the short-term focus of ‘money fights’ will be far from sustainable until it ruins the sport:
Uncertain Future?
“If we don’t change as we think as a sport, the sport will be remembered as a nice thing 10 years from now, but it has gone. I don’t think it will last for sure like that. People watched the Super Bowl because they want to see the best teams, not go there to see who talked more or plays different, they want to see the best. The true fans of the sport are the ones that carry on this sport and will influence others to like. So I think it’s a lie when they say they are looking for money fights, that’s just looking for short-term things. If you just keep looking short term, I think you will ruin the sport and end up ruining UFC and people will start to just give up. People will realize it is not a sport anymore and you can not fool the people all the time.”
The veteran’s strong beliefs are hardly without agreement in today’s rapidly-evolving MMA landscape, and it remains to be seen how the trash talk-centered style of booking fights has on the lasting appeal of the still-growing phenomenon.
Maia reportedly does care about fighting for the title, however, as he recently said that he will wait to take on the winner of Woodley vs. Thompson II. Would you like to see the grappling guru fight for the title later this year?
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