Maximum Fighting Championship president Mark Pavelich has long held to the principle that a ring is superior to a cage when it comes to mixed martial arts, by offering fans a better view of the action and eliminating a lot of the boring clinch work seen when fighters are up against the cage.
Pavelich had been ready to make the move from a ring to a cage, but has flip-flopped that decision and will keep the MFC ring (which was for sale $19,500) for this Friday’s upcoming MFC 33: Collision Course event set for the Mayfield Inn Trade and Conference Centre in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
In a recent interview with theScore, the MFC pres gives his reasons why a ring is better than a cage, telling them that he’s constructed an even bigger ring for this Friday’s (May 4, 2012) event.
“I hate cages. I always have because it’s not good for viewing MMA. I’ve always thought that’s a downfall in MMA. People watching a show in a cage are watching the video screen and not the actual apparatus. I think that’s ridiculous because in every other sport you watch, like if you’re watching hockey, you’re watching the game, not the video screens. In MMA more people are watching the video screens and not the actual apparatus of people fighting in.
“I’ve never liked cages and I’m struggling never to go in one (again).”
“I’ve constructed a five-roped ring for MMA, with bigger corner pads and tighter ropes,” he said. “It was made by Throwdown Industries in Las Vegas. It’s a 32-foot ring and it’s phenomenal to watch MMA in.”
This Friday’s MFC 33 event card appears as follows:
Welterweight bout: Nathan Coy vs. Ryan McGillivray
Lighweight bout: Adam Lynn vs. Mukai Maromo
Middleweight bout: Edwin Dewees vs. Luke Harris
Welterweight bout: Jamie Toney vs. Andrew Buckland
Lighweight bout: Sabah Fadai vs. Diego Bautista
Middleweight bout: Derek Parker vs. Jared McComb