Robbie Lawler, circa 2001, was a fight promoter’s dream. Raw-boned, corn-fed and lily white, the 19-year-old Iowan prodigy appeared to be cut from granite as he laid waste to Saburo Kawakatsu at a long-forgotten extravaganza in Hawaii. The world wasn’t watching Shogun Fights, but that wasn’t important, at least not for Lawler. One man who mattered […]
Robbie Lawler, circa 2001, was a fight promoter’s dream. Raw-boned, corn-fed and lily white, the 19-year-old Iowan prodigy appeared to be cut from granite as he laid waste to Saburo Kawakatsu at a long-forgotten extravaganza in Hawaii. The world wasn’t watching Shogun Fights, but that wasn’t important, at least not for Lawler. One man who mattered […]
Just 56 days after her last Octagon appearance, Ronda Rousey will headline UFC 170 this Saturday, and she’s by far the biggest draw on the card. As a result, Rousey and the UFC marketing machine have gone to absurd lengths in order to pump up her fight against Sara McMann. Here are five eyebrow-raising lines that stuck out during the recent media push…
This is exactly why Holly Holm needs to sign with the UFC. Because as ludicrous as that claim seems at first — the best grappler in women’s MMA is also the best *striker*? get out of town! — there really aren’t any female bantamweights in the UFC who can prove Ronda wrong right now.
Clearly, they meant the first American female to medal in Judo. But how did this slip-up make it into an official UFC promo without anybody catching the error? Maybe the UFC felt that the halfway-accurate talking point would become true if it was repeated enough times?
Just 56 days after her last Octagon appearance, Ronda Rousey will headline UFC 170 this Saturday, and she’s by far the biggest draw on the card. As a result, Rousey and the UFC marketing machine have gone to absurd lengths in order to pump up her fight against Sara McMann. Here are five eyebrow-raising lines that stuck out during the recent media push…
This is exactly why Holly Holm needs to sign with the UFC. Because as ludicrous as that claim seems at first — the best grappler in women’s MMA is also the best *striker*? get out of town! — there really aren’t any female bantamweights in the UFC who can prove Ronda wrong right now.
Clearly, they meant the first American female to medal in Judo. But how did this slip-up make it into an official UFC promo without anybody catching the error? Maybe the UFC felt that the halfway-accurate talking point would become true if it was repeated enough times?
Ugh. Didn’t we learn our lesson with BJ Penn? Your willingness to die during an internationally-televised sporting event is only impressive to the most sociopathic of meatheads, and somebody would stop the fight if your life was actually in danger. But feel free to tune in Saturday night to UFC 170: RONDA MIGHT SERIOUSLY DIE, W/ SPECIAL APPEARANCE BY THE BRAWLIN’ BARISTA.
“Under the right circumstance,” meaning Velasquez would be asleep and duct-taped to a chair. I kid, Ronda. Your confidence is a blessing. On the other hand, “I simply believe in my possibilities” borders on Jon Jones douchebag territory.
I give up. After two fights, Rousey has made more than Georges St-Pierre in sponsorship money? She’s a bigger star than Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz in their primes? She earns more than Brock Lesnar and Anderson Silva ever did when they were UFC champions? Is it true what Hitler said about a lie so colossal that it wouldn’t be questioned, because nobody could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously?
I guess I should stop writing, considering that I just Godwin’d my own post. But seriously, what kind of mark would believe this crap?
This opinion might be unpopular, but it’s true. UFC lightweight champ Anthony Pettis‘ younger brother just isn’t ready.
Sergio Pettis is talented, of that there is no doubt. While most 20-somethings were complaining about trivial social justice issues on Thought Catalog or watching Girls, Sergio Pettis was kicking ass en route to the UFC, showing that he has ample technique and a bright future. The hype wanted us to believe Pettis’ future was now. Fuck the Super Mario Brothers, it was time for the Super Pettis Brothers.
Alas, like with nearly every young, buzzworthy prospect, Pettis faltered. The hype train managed to steamroll over his pedestrian UFC debut, but not so for his follow-up fight against Alex Caceres at UFC on FOX 10. Pettis lost via submission in the third round. Even though the fight was close and well-fought up until the submission, a loss is still a loss.
“He’s just not as good as his brother,” some will say. Others will be harsher, citing Alexander Emelianenko syndrome. “If it wasn’t for his last name, you’d have never heard him; he’s nothing special.”
They’ll be right, but only about the “if it wasn’t for his last name” part.
This opinion might be unpopular, but it’s true. UFC lightweight champ Anthony Pettis‘ younger brother just isn’t ready.
Sergio Pettis is talented, of that there is no doubt. While most 20-somethings were complaining about trivial social justice issues on Thought Catalog or watching Girls, Sergio Pettis was kicking ass en route to the UFC, showing that he has ample technique and a bright future. The hype wanted us to believe Pettis’ future was now. Fuck the Super Mario Brothers, it was time for the Super Pettis Brothers.
Alas, like with nearly every young, buzzworthy prospect, Pettis faltered. The hype train managed to steamroll over his pedestrian UFC debut, but not so for his follow-up fight against Alex Caceres at UFC on FOX 10. Pettis lost via submission in the third round. Even though the fight was close and well-fought up until the submission, a loss is still a loss.
“He’s just not as good as his brother,” some will say. Others will be harsher, citing Alexander Emelianenko syndrome. “If it wasn’t for his last name, you’d have never heard him; he’s nothing special.”
They’ll be right, but only about the “if it wasn’t for his last name” part.
If Sergio Pettis was just a highly skilled 20-year-old without the baggage of a notable surname, he might not have been brought into the UFC so quickly. And even if the UFC had hired him, the negative, hateful fallout from a loss—or even from a lackluster victory—wouldn’t be so great.
The UFC has a history of throwing still-developing prospects into the fire nuclear reactor a little too soon. They fed a 20-year-old, 4-0 Max Holloway to Dustin Poirier back at UFC 143. Charles Oliveira‘s career was rushed as well. He went from fighting the likes of Efrain Escudero straight to top-flight talent like Jim Miller and Donald Cerrone. The young Brazilian wasn’t ready for this dramatic uptick in competition, and his career suffered. It still hasn’t rebounded.
But you don’t hear about these fighters quite so much because they don’t have famous older brothers. The MMA twitterverse isn’t rife with activity when these fighters lose. It was when Sergio Pettis lost.
In MMA, the drawbacks of a famous last name often outnumber the benefits; exposure is a double-edged sword that slays the lesser brother, leaving their career as one of many corpses the message board vultures pick clean.
2014 is not Pettis’ time. He’s quite a talent for his age, but he’s still green. At 20, and with a skill set that’s not quite there yet (but still growing tremendously with loads of potential), he’s not a world-beater. He might be one day, but not today. He’d benefit from more time on the regional circuit. But since he’s got a famous last name, the UFC might not heed this advice and let Pettis go develop his skills more. They’ll keep pushing Sergio Pettis before he’s ready just because he’s Sergio Pettis, the champ’s brother. And if he fails, he’ll forever become the Luigi to Anthony’s Mario—the perennial understudy—all because of his last name.
That win would represent Barao’s first defense of his brand-new unified title. Meanwhile, Jon Jones has defended his light-heavyweight belt six times so far, a tally that includes wins against four former LHW champs. But for the purposes of desperately hyping up a mid-level pay-per-view that could end up competing with the Super Bowl, we’ll just pretend that Jones doesn’t exist.
“[If Weidman beats Belfort] he’s the best. He’s No. 1. How is he not No. 1 pound-for-pound in the world if he beats Vitor Belfort?” White exclaimed. “It’s impossible not to call him the No. 1 pound-for-pound guy.”
You hear that? IMPOSSIBLE! Don’t even try it, ya dummy! When a reporter pointed out that White recently made the same proclamation about Renan Barao, White made a very cogent argument in support of his new stance. Just kidding:
That win would represent Barao’s first defense of his brand-new unified title. Meanwhile, Jon Jones has defended his light-heavyweight belt six times so far, a tally that includes wins against four former LHW champs. But for the purposes of desperately hyping up a mid-level pay-per-view that could end up competing with the Super Bowl, we’ll just pretend that Jones doesn’t exist.
“[If Weidman beats Belfort] he’s the best. He’s No. 1. How is he not No. 1 pound-for-pound in the world if he beats Vitor Belfort?” White exclaimed. “It’s impossible not to call him the No. 1 pound-for-pound guy.”
You hear that? IMPOSSIBLE! Don’t even try it, ya dummy! When a reporter pointed out that White recently made the same proclamation about Renan Barao, White made a very cogent argument in support of his new stance. Just kidding:
You hear that? You’re DOGSHIT, Barao! The potential coronation of Chris Weidman as New P4P King is ridiculous for the same reasons that White’s hype of Barao was ridiculous: 1) Jon Jones still exists, you guys, and 2) What exactly would Weidman prove by beating Belfort, that he hasn’t already proven with his two wins against the greatest MMA fighter who ever lived? And don’t forget, if Belfort’s application for a TRT exemption is rejected, Weidman will be beating up on an old, sick man who lacks fully-functioning testicles due to previous steroid abuse. That doesn’t even seem fair.
So I guess this is what we’re doing from now on, huh? If Ronda Rousey whoops Sara McMann next month, she’s the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world? And if Jones beats Teixeira in April (if!), maybe he’ll reclaim his rightful spot at the top? The stakes are high, people! Buy the pay-per-view today, drink your Ovaltine, and watch the money card at all times…
(And when Cella was just lying there all comatose while everyone was fearing for his life? FUCKING. AWESOME.)
As MMA fans, it’s safe to say that we can appreciate a good knockout when we see one. The timing, the precision, the simultaneous grace and utter devastation — these are all factors we take into account when, say, deciding the greatest knockout of the year. But as we are continuously reminded in the aftermath of knockouts like the spinning back kick Uriah Hall hit Adam Cella with on TUF 17, the line between a brilliant knockout and a hard-to-watch knockout is a thin one. As amazing as these displays of technique are to witness, they can often leave a sour taste in one’s mouth when the victim appears to be seriously injured as a result.
So perhaps we’re in the minority here, but when Dana White recently attempted to hype the 19th season of TUF by promising fans “a f*cking scary knockout,” we were less than enthused (okay, sarcastically enthused) to say the least (via Fox Sports):
We had the fights to get into the house yesterday on The Ultimate Fighter, probably the nastiest f-king knockout. It beats Uriah Hall knockout. Was Uriah Hall not one of the sickest knockouts you’ve ever seen? This one beats it. Picture how f-king scary this knockout is.
On one hand, this could just be another instance of White attempting to stir up some buzz for a season of TUF that he knows no one is interested in. On the other, should we even be excited by this news?
(And when Cella was just lying there all comatose while everyone was fearing for his life? FUCKING. AWESOME.)
As MMA fans, it’s safe to say that we can appreciate a good knockout when we see one. The timing, the precision, the simultaneous grace and utter devastation — these are all factors we take into account when, say, deciding the greatest knockout of the year. But as we are continuously reminded in the aftermath of knockouts like the spinning back kick Uriah Hall hit Adam Cella with on TUF 17, the line between a brilliant knockout and a hard-to-watch knockout is a thin one. As amazing as these displays of technique are to witness, they can often leave a sour taste in one’s mouth when the victim appears to be seriously injured as a result.
So perhaps we’re in the minority here, but when Dana White recently attempted to hype the 19th season of TUF by promising fans “a f*cking scary knockout,” we were less than enthused (okay, sarcastically enthused) to say the least (via Fox Sports):
We had the fights to get into the house yesterday on The Ultimate Fighter, probably the nastiest f-king knockout. It beats Uriah Hall knockout. Was Uriah Hall not one of the sickest knockouts you’ve ever seen? This one beats it. Picture how f-king scary this knockout is.
On one hand, this could just be another instance of White attempting to stir up some buzz for a season of TUF that he knows no one is interested in. On the other, should we even be excited by this news?
Rewatch the video of Hall’s KO, or Matt Riddle’s KO of Dan Simmler, for that matter, and ask yourself: Should this really be a selling point for our sport? It’s kind of contradictory to declare that our sport is so much safer than boxing one day — which, it barely is — and then promote this kind of uber-violence the next. While there are surely some MMA fans out there who follow the sport to satiate their own sadism, not everyone of us adopts a “Just Bleed” guy mentality towards fighters. Likewise, the UFC should be past the point where it needs to hype the brutality of the sport in order to get people interested.
But who knows, maybe ol’ DW is simply speaking in hyperbole again. Or maybe TUF 19 will feature a KO that leaves a fighter in a coma for a week. No matter the case, “scary” should probably be on the short list of words *not* to use when describing a knockout in a positive manner. That is, if you’re ever hoping to convert the Tim Rothfield’s of the world to our fine sport.
Josh Thomson has been one of the top lightweight fighters on the planet for the past decade. The 35-year-old American Kickboxing Academy staple has retained his status among the elite at 155 pounds by proving to be one of the most versatile fighters in a weight class that is filled with world-class talent. “The Punk’s” […]
Josh Thomson has been one of the top lightweight fighters on the planet for the past decade. The 35-year-old American Kickboxing Academy staple has retained his status among the elite at 155 pounds by proving to be one of the most versatile fighters in a weight class that is filled with world-class talent. “The Punk’s” […]
