Time to LOL at the UFC again?

[Warner2BruceTD]

So this year we've had GSP demand Diaz get an instant rematch against Condit, Ben Henderson avoid facing Anthony Pettis, Anderson Silva refuse to face Chris Weidman while angling for a catchweigh against GSP, Jon Jones choose to face a middleweight with no wins at 205Ibs in the UFC, only Nevada stopping JDS from presuading Zuffa to give Overeem a title shot before Velasquez and Renan Barao sit on the sidelines waiting for Dominick Cruz.

What happened to the no-nonsense Zuffa that had learnt from boxing how letting champions dictate matchmaking was bad for business in the long term? And also what happened to the Zuffa that tried to abide by its stipulations?

You can put your head in the sand but the fact is that the inmates have taken over the asylum. The biggest stars can see the numbers and know that the UFC needs them to pull the big money and so have started to flex their muscles. And what is feeding it is the obvious desperatio and short-term thinking from Zuffa. This is a company that just two years ago felt strong enough to consign the biggest tv draw in the sport's history to fourth-tier matches and fire him after one loss, and rather than protecting Brock Lesnar booked him in two terrible stylistic matchups. And yet now in the first year of their game-changing tv deal they can't pull a viable pair of coaches out of their ass without overturning all their matchmaking principles? Its pathetic!

 

[EmpireWF]

Also, the GSP/Condit winner is likely facing Diaz, who wait for it...wait for it....is coming off of a loss.

Or...GSP/Silva and Condit/Diaz 2.

Unless Cesar is right and it's Silva/Diaz with GSP/Hendricks or Kampmann.

 

[EmpireWF]

Btw, TUF: Jones/Sonnen will air on Tuesday nights starting next year.

 

[The Buddha]

Btw, TUF: Jones/Sonnen will air on Tuesday nights starting next year.

That's probably the best move they coulda made, put it in front of Sons of Anarchy and I think numbers will go up.

 

[Steel Mamba]

You guys are right gsp vs nick is a terrible fight as well, I'm definitely not looking forward to that and Nick isn't a true contender in that division. He hasn't done enough in his career to warrant a title fight.

 

[Liquidrob]

yeah, Nick Diazs WW career is the same as Chael at LHW, almost identical even!

 

[SHOGUN]

Let's bury the title for a complete fucking mismatch of a fight.

:jonesy:

UFC IS TEH NFL of MMA!!!1111

 

[Liquidrob]

Jones fighting Belfort than Chael is too funny, didn't And1 just fight them and finish them both? What a awesome LHW division the UFC has!

Top of the food chain stuff right there

 

[Primetime]

I actually like this decision. If there is any chance that TUF will make a respectable comeback, while still very unlikely, this is the way to do it. I'll be tuning in because it has my favorite fighter and it's just a plus to have the best salesman in the UFC.

 

[Liquidrob]

Another misception, chael is a draw

Besides fighting Anderson he has not done much in terms or ratings and money

Now he is coming off an embrassing loss and into a higher division? He is not a credible contender

If TUF does some what better ratings it will be because of a different night, even if the ratings are good the ppv numbers will be based off Jones and not Sonnen

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

You guys are right gsp vs nick is a terrible fight as well, I'm definitely not looking forward to that and Nick isn't a true contender in that division. He hasn't done enough in his career to warrant a title fight.

The point here, is when Strikeforce was doing things like this, the narrative was that it was a joke and the UFC titles were 'pure' and had to be earned. Now UFC is just throwing whoever into title fights, people like Belfort and Chael and Diaz, who is some cases don't even fight in the weight class where they are getting the title shot. And now the narrative is that it's ok, because it's best for business. I'm ok with that mindset if people have it, I just find the inconsistency amusing. Especially since people are now critical of the Bellator model. We've come full circle.

 

[EmpireWF]

This isn't some new thing for the UFC. Did anyone cry foul when Couture got the shot against Sylvia despite coming off a loss to Chuck and not fighting at heavy since he lost to Ricco six years earlier?

Or how about Brock 'earning' a title shot in the UFC based on a win over Herring. It was the right move for business, but purists were pulling their hair out.

Or Belfort's first title shot since coming back, he had never even fought in the UFC's middleweight division before getting a shot at Silva.




Criticism of the Bellator format is nothing new, either. lol It's always been recognized...Tournaments are fun and fine...but sometimes, they may be better off giving rematches outside the tournament format.

 

[Liquidrob]

Of course its not new, people ripped SF for stuff the ufc did many times, randy, bj and others

The point is the mma media and fans never take them to task and actually praise them for it!

 

[KINGOFOOTBALL]

Yuck.
Will Chael get "hurt" last minute and have Hendo replace him ? Whys dana pissed at Hendo.

And1 and Jones are pussies. Also Joe Rogan pisses me off for not directly asking And1 about a Jones fight instead a "future at 205" question.


BTW While I agree with the UFC bashing here. The inmates running the asylum is pretty contradictory to what you guys thought would happen with Pride/SF going under no ?

 

[JeremyHight]

I'm beginning to think that Grand Prix's, tournaments, and even round robin league setups would help the UFC become more of a mainstream league. Ya, it would be weird at first, but most team sports started as "Just find opponents to play" like MMA/Boxing are still.

It probably won't happen, especially with injuries being so prevalent, but it would be nice to see say an 8 man division/tournament with promotions and demotions like in say the EPL. It might not be the greatest, but its better than what we get sometimes.

 

[Steel Mamba]

The point here, is when Strikeforce was doing things like this, the narrative was that it was a joke and the UFC titles were 'pure' and had to be earned. Now UFC is just throwing whoever into title fights, people like Belfort and Chael and Diaz, who is some cases don't even fight in the weight class where they are getting the title shot. And now the narrative is that it's ok, because it's best for business. I'm ok with that mindset if people have it, I just find the inconsistency amusing. Especially since people are now critical of the Bellator model. We've come full circle.

I think you missed what I was getting at earlier, it's completely the other way around. Just go to mma.ly, every blog is blasting the UFC for this. On the other hand, we both know who got away with this on a regular basis. Pride, and everyone loved them for their quirky matchups.

2 undeserving title shots out of the past few years isn't anything to get upset about.

 

[Steel Mamba]

Of course its not new, people ripped SF for stuff the ufc did many times, randy, bj and others

The point is the mma media and fans never take them to task and actually praise them for it!

Yall are throwing the SF victim card out there and not paying attention. UFC is getting ripped to shreds by the media, but IMO it's not warranted.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

I think we can all agree that 2012 was a rough year for the sport. Three cancelled cards, SF dying a slow death, UFC with these crazy injury issues, Bellator slowing to a crawl and waiting around to get on Spike, DREAM died, Diaz, Overeem, othere popped and suspended, GSP on the shelf, ratings in the shitter, etc.

Maybe next year Zuffa will be better prepared to deal with injuries, will stop this petty sabotaging of Showtime, Bellator will start putting the best foot forward again on Spike. 2012 sucked.

 

[Steel Mamba]

yeah, Nick Diazs WW career is the same as Chael at LHW, almost identical even!

I'm not comparing them or the situations, I just find it funny that people are complaining about that fight too.

 

[EmpireWF]

Tangent here...

Breaking news: Dana's a dick.