UFC: Barao and Mighty Mouse Are Chasing Records and Recognition

Two men are very close to tying UFC records, men who have combined to go 17-2-1 inside cages constructed by Zuffa’s roadies.
Overwrought statements of promotion notwithstanding, there are kernels of truth in the hard sell Dana White has been doing for …

Two men are very close to tying UFC records, men who have combined to go 17-2-1 inside cages constructed by Zuffa’s roadies.

Overwrought statements of promotion notwithstanding, there are kernels of truth in the hard sell Dana White has been doing for months now: bantamweight champion Renan Barao and flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson are bad dudes, and they’ve been laying considerable beatings on opposition for quite a while.

A win by either or by both the next time out, and they’ll tie MMA heroes like Pat Miletich, Frank Shamrock and Chuck Liddell for consecutive title defenses.

And yet, if you brought that up to the average fan, they’d be much more focused on those heroes of the past than on the champions who are chasing their records.

Why is that?

The argument that no one wants to watch the little guys has been around for a while and it’s a fair one. They’re not for everyone, no matter how much they’re lauded for their quickness and technique. There’s always going to be a population far more keen to see behemoths one-punch each other cold, and that’s fine.

Some people, a growing percentage of fans actually, seem to be pushing back against that promotional bluster noted above—the more they’re told how great these champions are, the less they’re willing to listen. Maybe more importantly, the less they’re willing to pay money to watch.

Others have been around long enough to remember the guts and heart of these great former champions, men who emerged from the no-holds-barred era as pioneers, exceptional athletes in a sport that didn’t have many at the time. It’s hard to forget their place in the game, even harder to imagine that these new champions have earned what they earned.

But at the end of the day, Barao and Johnson are each a win away from placing their names beside them in the record books. By 2015 it’s possible, if not likely, that both will have passed them. The fact that they aren’t drawing interest for that has to be concerning to the UFC, and it’s not good for the sport, either.

MMA’s history is short, but the inability to escape its own shadow has potentially dire consequences. While other sports can afford to have debates over the past versus the present thanks to decades of action, MMA can’t. The sport needs the new faces to matter as much as the old ones because the old ones aren’t all that old. People remember their great performances; they saw them live. If they aren’t sold on the new guys in the same way, it’s far easier to dismiss them because they have first-person historical context to give their opinions weight.

When it comes time to sell those new faces such adverse opinions are incredibly damaging, especially to a sport that’s expanding rapidly with events on a weekly basis across the globe. Those events need headliners that involve either the stars of today or the men who’ll fight the stars of today, not guys that people think of as a step down from the champions of the sport’s dark ages.

If guys like Barao and Johnson can’t entice people to shell out $60 when their name is on the marquee, or get them to flip over to FOX to catch them chucking leather to sell ad space on a Saturday night, there are serious problems. They’re doing spectacular things as spectacular athletes, but they aren’t resonating with the people who matter.

Still and all, they’ll be record holders before you know it. They’ll pass great men of an era gone by, men who fought for nothing so that they could come behind and fight for something.

Without their deserved recognition though, it’s hard to know what that something really is.

Follow me on Twitter @matthewjryder!

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC: Barao and Mighty Mouse Are Chasing Records and Recognition

Two men are very close to tying UFC records, men who have combined to go 17-2-1 inside cages constructed by Zuffa’s roadies.
Overwrought statements of promotion notwithstanding, there are kernels of truth in the hard sell Dana White has been doing for …

Two men are very close to tying UFC records, men who have combined to go 17-2-1 inside cages constructed by Zuffa’s roadies.

Overwrought statements of promotion notwithstanding, there are kernels of truth in the hard sell Dana White has been doing for months now: bantamweight champion Renan Barao and flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson are bad dudes, and they’ve been laying considerable beatings on opposition for quite a while.

A win by either or by both the next time out, and they’ll tie MMA heroes like Pat Miletich, Frank Shamrock and Chuck Liddell for consecutive title defenses.

And yet, if you brought that up to the average fan, they’d be much more focused on those heroes of the past than on the champions who are chasing their records.

Why is that?

The argument that no one wants to watch the little guys has been around for a while and it’s a fair one. They’re not for everyone, no matter how much they’re lauded for their quickness and technique. There’s always going to be a population far more keen to see behemoths one-punch each other cold, and that’s fine.

Some people, a growing percentage of fans actually, seem to be pushing back against that promotional bluster noted above—the more they’re told how great these champions are, the less they’re willing to listen. Maybe more importantly, the less they’re willing to pay money to watch.

Others have been around long enough to remember the guts and heart of these great former champions, men who emerged from the no-holds-barred era as pioneers, exceptional athletes in a sport that didn’t have many at the time. It’s hard to forget their place in the game, even harder to imagine that these new champions have earned what they earned.

But at the end of the day, Barao and Johnson are each a win away from placing their names beside them in the record books. By 2015 it’s possible, if not likely, that both will have passed them. The fact that they aren’t drawing interest for that has to be concerning to the UFC, and it’s not good for the sport, either.

MMA’s history is short, but the inability to escape its own shadow has potentially dire consequences. While other sports can afford to have debates over the past versus the present thanks to decades of action, MMA can’t. The sport needs the new faces to matter as much as the old ones because the old ones aren’t all that old. People remember their great performances; they saw them live. If they aren’t sold on the new guys in the same way, it’s far easier to dismiss them because they have first-person historical context to give their opinions weight.

When it comes time to sell those new faces such adverse opinions are incredibly damaging, especially to a sport that’s expanding rapidly with events on a weekly basis across the globe. Those events need headliners that involve either the stars of today or the men who’ll fight the stars of today, not guys that people think of as a step down from the champions of the sport’s dark ages.

If guys like Barao and Johnson can’t entice people to shell out $60 when their name is on the marquee, or get them to flip over to FOX to catch them chucking leather to sell ad space on a Saturday night, there are serious problems. They’re doing spectacular things as spectacular athletes, but they aren’t resonating with the people who matter.

Still and all, they’ll be record holders before you know it. They’ll pass great men of an era gone by, men who fought for nothing so that they could come behind and fight for something.

Without their deserved recognition though, it’s hard to know what that something really is.

Follow me on Twitter @matthewjryder!

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Raphael Assuncao Believes His Record, Not Theatrics, Should Get Him Title Shot

The path to getting a title shot in the UFC can be a tricky route to navigate. While building a solid winning streak is typically the key to unlocking that door, other factors such as marketability, drawing power and a temperature reading with the fanb…

The path to getting a title shot in the UFC can be a tricky route to navigate. While building a solid winning streak is typically the key to unlocking that door, other factors such as marketability, drawing power and a temperature reading with the fanbase all come into play.

A fighter’s ability to consistently perform is ultimately required, but a few well-placed call-outs has become the trendy way to get what you want in the fight game.

Raphael Assuncao recognizes where those additional elements can have an effect, but it’s not a direction he’s willing to travel. And choosing which avenue to chase is a category the 31-year-old Brazilian has proved to be capable in.

After investing the first seven years of his career trading leather in the featherweight ranks, Assuncao made the decision to switch gears and drop down into bantamweight waters in 2011. That decision has produced impressive results. The Team Ascension fighter has notched six consecutive victories and positioned himself on the doorstep of a title opportunity.

The versatile Brazilian’s most recent win came via unanimous decision against promotional newcomer Pedro Munhoz last month at UFC 170. The highly touted prospect stepped in as a late replacement for an injured Francisco Rivera, and while there was talk of the bout being pulled from the card entirely, Assuncao decided to take the fight against Munhoz and put his winning streak on the line in Las Vegas.

The end result was a unanimous decision victory and Assuncao‘s sixth consecutive win in the bantamweight division.

“I don’t think it was a great performance, but it was another win under my belt,” Assuncao told Bleacher Report. “I proved something to myself in that fight. I had been working on a game plan for my original opponent, but that changed, and I had to adjust. We are professionals, and that is what we have to do sometimes. I just feel it wasn’t my best performance, and there are some holes in my game I want to fix. I was still able to go out there and get the win against a tough opponent. He was on a 10-fight winning streak and comes from a great camp where he trains with guys like Lyoto Machida. It was definitely a different test to get past.

“I just wanted to fight,” he explained in regard to staying on the card. “It wasn’t about money or anything. Yes, this is my job and how I make a living, but I put in a long training camp and wanted to get in there and fight. I wanted to make sure the time I invested in my training was worthwhile. When you put yourself through a three-month training camp, it takes a toll on your body, and I wanted to make it worthwhile.”

Although he was critical of his performance in the aftermath, the victory gave Assuncao the longest winning streak in the division outside of the two men who up until recently shared the bantamweight title tier.

Pound-for-pound phenom and newly crowned undisputed champion Renan Barao has not tasted defeat in his last 33 outings, and former titleholder Dominick Cruz has found victory in 10 consecutive showings. While “The Dominator’s” track record is beyond impressive, his two-year struggle to return from injury continues, and the Team Alliance fighter is still a little ways out from once again becoming a major player on the bantamweight divisional landscape.

Assuncao has put in the work to climb the divisional ladder and believes his record is worthy of a title opportunity against Barao. That said, he is content to let his performances do the talking and leave the microphone time to those who choose to play that game.

“There is no need to campaign for anything because my record speaks for itself,” Assuncao said. “I’m not going to take up an acting class in order to get a fight. That is not what I’ve worked my entire life to do. It’s not what I’ve been living for. I’m ready to be the underdog and challenge the champion. I’m ready to go out there and prove people wrong.

“I’m ready to go out there and not have all the pressure on me. All of these fights I’ve won, the pressure has been on me to go out there and get the win. I have to beat this guy and that guy, or I’m fighting in Brazil. I’m ready to be the underdog where all the pressure is on him and I can go out there relaxed and surprise some people and become the champion.

“It’s an entertainment and performance business,” he added. “I know that. I’m always critical of myself, but I know where I stand as well. I’m not dumb. I know where I’m positioned right now and I’m ready for a change of scenario. Fighting Barao would definitely be an exciting matchup.”

 

Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 169: A Lesson in Appreciation


(Photo via Getty.)

By Thomas Anderson

“We also do cut-glass sherry decanters complete with six glasses on a silver-plated tray that your butler can serve you drinks on, all for £4.95. People say, ‘How can you sell this for such a low price?’ I say, ‘Because it’s total crap!'”

These were the famous words of business mogul Gerald Ratner at a 1991 institute of directors meeting. At the time he was the self-made owner of one of the world’s richest jewellery companies. By 1992 he had been deposed by his board of directors and the firm had all but collapsed.

Branding and image are everything in business; the quality of the product is second to the perception of that product. Ratner knew this only too well; he had built his entire business model on observations he had made as a boy in London’s street markets. It wasn’t the stall owners with the juiciest fruit and the freshest fish that dominated the sales; it was the ones with the loudest voices and the most tempting offers, the charming patter and the natural rapport. Yet in his folly he insulted not only his own products but the people who bought them. He laughed in the faces of those who made him rich and expected them to carry on filling his pockets. He thought he could play them for fools forever, but the man in the street is not so easily mocked and very soon Ratner was doomed.

Dana White’s words after UFC 169 and after a number of recent events brought this cautionary tale clearly to mind. Alistair Overeem’s clinical and ruthless domination of former champion Frank Mir led to a lopsided and well deserved decision win. He out struck Mir 139-5 in total strikes and 67-3 in significant strikes. When asked his opinion at the post-fight scrum White described the performance as ‘crappy.’ Not quite ‘total crap’ but well on the way.


(Photo via Getty.)

By Thomas Anderson

“We also do cut-glass sherry decanters complete with six glasses on a silver-plated tray that your butler can serve you drinks on, all for £4.95. People say, ‘How can you sell this for such a low price?’ I say, ‘Because it’s total crap!’”

These were the famous words of business mogul Gerald Ratner at a 1991 institute of directors meeting. At the time he was the self-made owner of one of the world’s richest jewellery companies. By 1992 he had been deposed by his board of directors and the firm had all but collapsed.

Branding and image are everything in business; the quality of the product is second to the perception of that product. Ratner knew this only too well; he had built his entire business model on observations he had made as a boy in London’s street markets. It wasn’t the stall owners with the juiciest fruit and the freshest fish that dominated the sales; it was the ones with the loudest voices and the most tempting offers, the charming patter and the natural rapport. Yet in his folly he insulted not only his own products but the people who bought them. He laughed in the faces of those who made him rich and expected them to carry on filling his pockets. He thought he could play them for fools forever, but the man in the street is not so easily mocked and very soon Ratner was doomed.

Dana White’s words after UFC 169 and after a number of recent events brought this cautionary tale clearly to mind. Alistair Overeem’s clinical and ruthless domination of former champion Frank Mir led to a lopsided and well deserved decision win. He out struck Mir 139-5 in total strikes and 67-3 in significant strikes. When asked his opinion at the post-fight scrum White described the performance as ‘crappy.’ Not quite ‘total crap’ but well on the way.

He proceeded to call the event ‘a catastrophe with a cherry on top.’ He went on to criticise featherweight champion Jose Aldo’s dominant title defence, stating bitterly that ‘“When you talk about being the pound-for-pound best in the world, you can’t go five rounds with guys that it looks like you can defeat them in the second round.” The fact that his opponent Ricardo Llamas was still throwing with venom and eating Aldo’s famously vicious leg kicks like cookie dough at the close of round two seems to have escaped the boss’ notice.

The night ended with the still underrated (not to mention grossly underpaid) Renan Barao starching Urijah Faber with the second best right hand of the night and following up with a series of partially blocked hammer fists that led to an early stoppage. The main issue of discussion here rests understandably with the referee’s decision, (I discuss this controversy in a short article below) but could White summon a single word of praise for Barao’s blistering performance? The closest he came was to say that the champion had been screwed by the referee and so had his opponent.

White has ridden to huge success and notoriety, if not always popularity, on the back of an abrasive personality that acts as a refreshing antithesis to the hands off approach taken by most corporate presidents. However, there is a difference between telling it how it is and completely wiping your own ass with a pay per view that thousands of people have just coughed up $50 to watch.

The show itself was admittedly something of a turn off to the casual MMA fan who may have watched the event at a bar hoping for blood, guts and glory. However, it is not those people who bring in actual PPV buys. This falls to the true fans that are willing to part with the cash they have set aside for their weekend in order to see the greatest fighters in the world show their skills.

Just as real NFL fans do not expect Peyton Manning to throw a touchdown pass every time he touches the football, real MMA fans do not expect Diego Sanchez vs. Gilbert Melendez every time they watch a fight. We understand that events like UFC 169 happen; when you make close fights sometimes they are cagey and when the title is on the line the champion will often play it safe in order to keep the gold. We understood that Overeem was on a two fight losing streak and we weren’t apoplectic with rage when he chose not to hurl haymakers in the closing minutes of a fight where he was clearly ahead; one only has to see what Abel Trujillo was able to do to Varner earlier in the night to see why. We even understand that referees make mistakes in PPV main events. However, what I find hard to stomach is the President of the UFC making me feel like the proud new owner of a Ratner and Co. sherry decanter; an oblivious fool blithely handing over handfuls of dough for a product that not even he has faith in.

Unlike Ratner’s feted speech I don’t think White’s words will have too great an impact. Aldo will move up to lightweight and find himself pushed much harder by larger and stronger fighters, Overeem will be matched against someone in his own league and Herb Dean will probably put in a series of faultless performances that make his stoppage blunder a distant memory. As for the ten fights that went to a decision, they should be seen as mere unhappy coincidence rather than a catastrophe.

White will continue to reign as the UFC’s dictator in chief and his scolding words and brazen tweets will reap their share of praise and controversy across the MMA world. Somewhere though, many somewheres in fact, someone is listening to White’s words, looking at their paycheck and making the decision never to pay again.

Barao vs. Faber 2: Why You Shouldn’t Be OK with Herb Dean’s Early Stoppage

Renan Barao destroyed Urijah Faber at UFC 169. 
In under five minutes, Barao rocked Faber again and again, eventually forcing referee Herb Dean’s hand after a knockdown left Faber turtled, defenseless and susceptible to a series of hammerfists.&nb…

Renan Barao destroyed Urijah Faber at UFC 169

In under five minutes, Barao rocked Faber again and again, eventually forcing referee Herb Dean’s hand after a knockdown left Faber turtled, defenseless and susceptible to a series of hammerfists. 

Faber’s bid at the UFC bantamweight title ended in defeat, but the loss was not without controversy.  

In the post-fight press conference, Faber expressed that he was completely conscious and aware of what was happening around him. He knew Dean needed him to defend himself, so he gave a thumbs-up gesture to signify his state of affairs.

Backing Faber’s words, a replay clearly showed his thumbs up, and he immediately protested the stoppage. He did not appear badly dazed or hurt. 

None of that mattered. The fight was stopped, and that should bother you. 

Yes, Barao was dominating the bout. Yes, Barao looked phenomenal. 

And, yes, Barao already obliterated Faber once before for a full 25 minutes. 

But justifying a poor stoppage because “that guy would have won, anyway” is fallacious. 

MMA is not a game built on conjecture and “ifs.” How many times do “experts” routinely blow fight predictions? How many times have you watched a fight where one man looked in total command, only to have his opponent snatch victory from the fists, knees and shins of defeat? 

The latter happened literally three fights before Barao vs. Faber 2 at UFC 169, when Abel Trujillo came back from the dead to knock out Jamie Varner with a devastating counter right hook (gif courtesy of Zombie Prophet, @ZProphet_MMA). 

To rob a fighter of a chance at a comeback can be a fatal error in MMA, and it can directly alter the way the bout would should have ended. 

Let me clarify: I’m not against referee stoppages at all. I don’t have to see a fighter faceplant to the canvas to realize a fight needed to be stopped. 

I do have a problem, however, when a fighter is defending himself by keeping his off hand high while holding on to a single leg and giving a thumbs up. 

I have a problem when the fighter in question is noted for his ability to absorb punishment and move forward. 

“It’s unfortunate, being a guy that’s very tough and prides myself on that in a big show like the one that we had today, where I don’t get to fight until the bitter end,” Faber said in the UFC 169 post-fight press conference. “If they’re asking me to defend myself, I’m already defending myself, I have to do something, so I put my thumb up, but, ya know…It is what it is.” 

Faber was not done against Barao at UFC 169. I’m not trying to say that he was definitely going to win that fight. 

But he did deserve the chance to mount a comeback, and Dean—who I still feel is one of the best referees in the game, for the recordrobbed him of that. 

Don’t justify a terrible decision because you assume a particular end as an inevitability. 

If you still want to, however, Pat Barry, Chael Sonnen, Pete Sell, Jamie Varner and countless others are happy to provide some notes for help you change your mind. 

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 169: Dissecting Long-Term Implications of Barao-Faber II

UFC 169 was full of thrilling fights, with 10 of the 12 matches ending in decisions. However, the main event, the 135-pound championship fight between Urijah Faber and Renan Barao, ended in controversial fashion when the referee stopped the fight in th…

UFC 169 was full of thrilling fights, with 10 of the 12 matches ending in decisions. However, the main event, the 135-pound championship fight between Urijah Faber and Renan Barao, ended in controversial fashion when the referee stopped the fight in the first round in favor of Barao.

The loss is a tough setback for Faber, who received a lot of hype coming into the fight about his improvement under new coach Duane Ludwig. It seemed reasonable to expect the 34-year-old to avenge his 2012 loss to Barao.

However, there is only so much a new coach can do to alter a veteran’s fighting habits, and the fight was an illustration of that. Faber moved well throughout, but never really threatened Barao in the fight’s lone round. 

The stoppage drew most of the attention after the fight, and referee Herb Dean’s decision was borderline at best. Faber expressed justifiable frustration afterwards, per ESPN.com’s Brett Okamoto:

Despite being dropped moments before, Faber was actually signaling a “thumbs up” as Dean moved in to stop the fight. The result is his sixth consecutive loss in a title fight.

“It’s very frustrating,” Faber said. “I’m one of the most durable guys in the world. You get caught with punches, man. He told me to do something, so I gave him a thumbs up. Herb is a great referee, but I wish I had more of a chance.”

However, given that Faber was not particularly threatening throughout the round, and that he was on his back taking multiple shots, some believe the decision was defensible:

Regardless, Faber is now undefeated in non-title bouts and winless when a belt is on the line. Even at the twilight of his career, he may get another shot, though after losing twice, it will not likely be against Barao.

Meanwhile, the reigning bantamweight champion is now on an eight-year undefeated streak, and has fully established himself as monster in the 135-pound division. As FoxSports.com’s Damon Martin notes, it might be time for Barao to turn elsewhere to look for challenges:

Barao is the real deal, folks. He’s been undefeated for eight years and hasn’t lost in 33 fights. The only real mountain left for him to climb at bantamweight is to finally face former champion Dominick Cruz, but that almost seems unfair at this point following a two-plus year layoff for the former bantamweight king. If Jose Aldo bumps up to lightweight, Barao could consider a move to featherweight and challenge someone like Chad Mendes to crown a new champion. His challenges at 135 pounds are minimum at best right now.

It seems unlikely a Cruz match would occur right away without the former champ getting some time to get his feet wet again. Nevertheless, without a viable challenger at the moment, the 26-year-old Barao sits in the prime of his career at the top of his division.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com