The President of the United States gave his State of the Union address last night. And like every President does, they all proclaim the state of the union is ‘strong’. Were I somehow the President of the International Wrestling Community, I’d say the state of our union and the future of our existence is extraordinarily bleak.
If I had to think of a single act that could do the most damage to wrestling both domestically and globally, removing the sport from the Olympics would most certainly be it. This isn’t about no longer having the wrestling equivalent of the Super Bowl or World Series. We’re talking about the International Olympic Committee pulling the plug on the very architecture and system of financing that keeps wrestling alive.
Let me state this as clearly as I can: wrestling – the entire sport, in every corner of the earth – is in huge, huge trouble.
The best thing going for wrestling right now is that the skills are in high demand for mixed martial arts. And so, it’s not all horrible news. In fact, this week represents some of the best bantamweight has to offer. Tomorrow Eduardo Dantas and Marcos Galvao will square off at Bellator 89 while Michael McDonald will face Renan Barao at UFC on FUE TV 7. Both of those bouts are for titles.
There’s a lot going on, so join me today to discuss all of this and more. In terms of today’s chat, anything is up for discussion, but I will lead with this and it all kicks off at 1 p.m. ET.
As is customary, I’ll post the video window here as the event draws near and I’ll answer any questions you may have if you post them in the comments section below.
If you want to join me on Google+ and let everyone see your face, now you can. Go to today’s livechat Google + page. If you’re interested, join the service and leave a comment on this post on our Google+ page. Once you do, I can invite you through to the chat. Just want to participate in the comments? No problem. Participate however you feel most comfortable.
Talk with you all at 1 p.m. ET.