The Fighting Safe Vs. Fighting Exciting Debate
by Kelvin Hunt on Jun 2, 2010 5:00 PM EDT
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It seems as if MMA fighters can't win for losing these days and times. The fickle MMA fans of the world see to it with each and every event. UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre came out and said that he fights 'safe' last week, basically saying that he fights to inflict damage on his opponents without taking any damage. Which is the only way to fight, some fighters are just more skillful at it than others. Take Anderson Silva for instance, that guy rarely ever takes punishment in a fight and when he decides to get your out of there...well he gets you out of there.
Just ask Forrest Griffin.
Rashad Evans is catching heat now for 'fighting safe' against Rampage Jackson, but the fact of the matter is if he had fought with any other strategy he would have been decapitated. He fought a nearly flawless fight and STILL almost lost.
However, the following news is why I'm an advocate of fighting to win first and then fighting exciting second.
Enter UFC middleweight Nate Quarry.
Quarry was basically involved in rock'em sock'em ultimate kickboxing in his last two fights(1-1). However, he just had surgery to correct floating bones in his face. Check it:
"After the last fight I had some bones that were kind of floating around and we thought it would be best to kind of put those back where they belonged, screw them down, titanium mesh, all that kind of stuff,"
He has no idea of when he's going to return to action, and he'll probably resume the same strategy of fighting exciting opposed to fighting to win. For what? Taking unnecessary damage is pretty stupid in my opinion. I mean that's like saying I know that Honda Accord is 20 something thousand dollars but I'm pay you forty thousand for it.
That's the retarded. Why should fighters want to get punched in the face just because paid $50 for the PPV? You rarely see me talk about a fighter winning ugly. I can recall two instances where I was heated, and that was Randy Couture vs. Brandon Vera and Clay Guida vs. Nate Diaz. However, I still couldn't place all the blame on Couture and Guida. It's was up to Vera and Diaz to stop Couture and Guida from just stalling and doing nothing.
That's my take on it. Discuss.?
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Who the fighter is and where they are on the card matters.
Rashad Evans, factoring in his salary, sponsorship money and PPV cut, stands to make 2 million dollars from his last fight. When stakes are that high, and that much money is on the table, you are going to look to fight in a way that ensures you have a long period of fighting for such high potential earnings (and look at almost all of our current champions: do they take hardly any damage? Shogun does, sure, but that’s why his career will be much shorter than everyone elses). There’s a major risk in getting your career shortened, and more importantly, your paydays and the financial well-being of you and your family going forward if you fight like an idiot.
Maybe one day people will realize this: Fighters do not fight for you. They do not fight to entertain you. They do not fight “for the love of the sport.” They fight to get paid. Above anything and everything, that’s their motivation.
Being exciting directly correlates to getting paid
We’ll see this in the coming year if people don’t change.
Also, guys like Wanderlei definitely fight to entertain the fans.
Inhale deep, like the words of my breath—I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death
by Anthony Pace on Jun 2, 2010 5:20 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
You know what gets you paid more than being exciting?
Being really good. And winning titles.
Wanderlei Silva fights to entertain the fans because he has no other recourse. He doesn’t have the skills, size or defensive ability to fight any other way.
by Forrest Lynn on Jun 2, 2010 5:22 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
You shut your whore mouth about Wanderlei!
Winning titles and being really good is not all it takes. Example: Tim Sylvia.
Inhale deep, like the words of my breath—I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death
Sorry RDS, but he deserved a rec for that
On the other hand, Tim Sylvia… more like “good enough for his time”?
We differ on what is more important for fighter’s wallets, that’s fine. But I won’t stand for the slandering of WANDERLEI SIIIIIIIIIIILVAAAAA
Also, as young as MMA is, almost every top fighter is only “good enough for their time.” So yes, you’re right, but it doesn’t take away Tim’s accomplishments in that timeframe, nor does it excuse his boring ass for not being a draw.
Inhale deep, like the words of my breath—I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death
So Randy Couture is the most exciting fighter?
Ride the Tiger!
by doonerthesooner on Jun 2, 2010 5:25 PM EDT up reply actions
Huh?
Randy Couture gets paid because people love that fact that an old guy can beat young guys, he saved us from Tim Sylvia, and he’s quite charming as well.
Inhale deep, like the words of my breath—I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death
He gets paid more than any one else and is not known for having the most exciting fights lately. ( not my opinion)
Ride the Tiger!
by doonerthesooner on Jun 2, 2010 5:29 PM EDT up reply actions
I haven’t cared for his last couple of fights either. He’s being overpaid at this point just for tenure, like Chuck or Tito.
But 3 of his last 5 have been pretty exciting: Nog, Lesnar, Gonzaga
Inhale deep, like the words of my breath—I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death
Ohh come on, the Coleman fight was awesome
Competitive, no but fucking awesome
Ride the Tiger!
by doonerthesooner on Jun 2, 2010 5:40 PM EDT up reply actions
ehhhh... kind of...
Inhale deep, like the words of my breath—I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death
Pretty much my thoughts exactly. One of the main spectacles I pay to see is the spectacle of guys trying their absolute best to win. That includes implementing the smartest gameplan to put themselves into position to win. Is that sometimes boring. Yep. I want guys, above all else, trying to win. Can a fight get absurdly cautious sometimes? Sure (I’m looking in your direction Shamrock vs. Severn 2!). I guess the fighters with a more crowd pleasing style will be rewarded with more financial gain. Such is the free market that’s totally fine. As for me, though? I want guys doing their best to win at all times.
Agreed,
I’ll tell you one thing though find me some one who doesn’t get excited when Nate “the pile of rubble loosely held together by plates and rusty screw’s” Quarry is on the card.
Ride the Tiger!
Ehh
I don’t particularly enjoyed a dude getting punched in the face the way he does…. I mean anybody can do that….lol….hell I can get in there and do that….
http://www.mmaforreal.com
Follow Me On Twitter@MMA4Real
You didn't like Quarry/Sell
Or how about Leben/Martin
Or any of Scott Smith’s fights.
Ride the Tiger!
by doonerthesooner on Jun 2, 2010 5:15 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I’m a believer in the if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it philosophy. If fighters can be successful while fighting conservatively then good on them. It is up to their opponents to pick apart their gameplan and force them to take more strategic risks.
MMA is a sport, not choreographed entertainment. Appeasing the fans’ lust for ‘shock value’ is not the fighters’ primary concern. If you can’t appreciate the technical skill necessary to dominate an opponent of the highest caliber then maybe mma isn’t the right sport for your appetites.
Some people are like Slinkies... not really good for anything, but you still can't
help but smile when you see one tumble down the stairs...
BE SMART - FIGHT SAFE
Forget Nate Quarry, the lessons have been there for a LONG TIME. If you haven’t learned anything from Muhammad Ali, fighters need to learn this . . . DO NOT take unnecessary shots.
I’ll share one of my favorite boxing anecdotes. The performance by the late Diego Corrales and Jose Louis Castillo in their first fight was hailed as a FIGHT OF THE YEAR by many, note it was WAY better than Griffin vs. Bonnar 1. Floyd Mayweather Jr. commented that if that’s what the fans want, I’ll never give that to them. It just doesn’t make sense to stand and trade blows like that.
In the end, the referee always informs the fighters to protect themselves at all times, or better yet, INTELLIGENTLY defend yourself.
Make an exciting fight? Whatever, fans will either appreciate what your doing or they will not. You can not please everybody. GSP and Rashad Evans would be DUMB to do anything differently.
"There's nothing cool about taking punishment" - Floyd Mayweather Jr.
- - - -
"I'm not afraid to say it: I'm not a brawler, and I'm not a coward. I'm not going to trade punch one-for-one with a guy. I'm going to hit the guy and not get hit. That's a smart way to fight." - GSP
Also, ‘smart’ & ‘exciting’ are by no means mutually exclusive.
"I don't care, hit him with your groin!"
Anderson Silva
is the only one that can do that….
http://www.mmaforreal.com
Follow Me On Twitter@MMA4Real
"Be yourself, don't take anyone's shit, and never let them take you alive." ~ George Way
by RearNakedPoke on Jun 3, 2010 3:09 PM EDT up reply actions
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