Props
First things first. A big thumbs up to Mark Hunt for finally getting it together and throwing out a big W. I've always liked Hunt. Granite chin, granite hands, and has always seemed like a cool guy in interviews. Here's hoping he can throw together another solid win and finally move back up to PPV status. Hunt vs Carwin? I'd buy it.
Fitch.
Well, I'd figuratively buy it. I will not directly pay money to watch a UFC event. You'll find me at my favorite local sports bar and grill downing a dozen wings on fight night and tipping my server generously but what you will not see is me flipping over to whatever PPV channel is showing the fights and hitting the button to buy. The simple fact of the matter is that the UFC doesn't deliver value for money. Overhype and underdeliver seems to be the habit as of late. Most of the issue stems from the complete lack of restarts. For reasons unknown, the UFC has always allowed such groundbreaking tactics as the Wall 'n Stall and Lay 'n Pray to continue unabated. They're more than content to let the cage be the determining factor in a fight.
Jon Fitch has made his entire career on doing absolutely nothing but pinning a guy up against the cage and making it look like he's doing damage when in reality he isn't. Fitch just doesn't generate the kind of power necessary. When you think of the all time great ground and pound artists, who comes to mind? Fedor? Don Frye? Marks Kerr and Coleman? Probably those and a few others. What name doesn't come to mind? Jon Fitch. You know why? Because he doesn't ground and pound. Unfortunately for those of us that have to sit through his drivel, he also does not lay and pray. "But Michael, isn't he given as the poster child for that tactic?" Yes, but it's incorrect. If you want to see a true lay and pray, have a look at Satoshi Ishii's fight against Ikuhisa Minowa. Ishii attempted about zero submissions, and not many more strikes. Contrast that with Fitch, who at least attempts to stay busy.
Were the UFC to actually enforce restarts in the middle once the fighters reached the cage, the whole sport would change overnight. For one, Fitch would immediately start losing. Without that wall there to act as a third arm his opponents could actually do amazing and unheard of things like attempt sweeps and escapes. Submissions would flow freely. Dogs and cats would live together in harmony. AIDS would be cured, as would gout. All food would taste better and be healthy at the same time. This and more would happen if the UFC would take a stand. NO, we won't let you make our product boring. NO, we will not let you sit there in someone's guard and act like you're a fighter when the only thing you have going for you is an admittedly strong top control game. NO, we won't let you stand against someone in a failed attempt at a single leg for five minutes.
All you have to do, UFC, is enforce restarts once the fighters reach the cage on the ground and break the fighters up more quickly when they're doing nothing but pinning each other against walls. This isn't difficult. It's allowed in the rules. Enforce them.
Bisping.
I've never liked Bisping. He sounds dumber than a post and ruder than a funeral fart, and every action backs up this feeling. At UFC 127 he hit a low even I thought he wasn't capable of when he clearly, with more than enough time to stop himself if it was an accident, kneed Jorge Rivera in the face while Rivera was on both knees.
Before I go further, I feel I must make a statement. The greatest travesty of the Unified Rules that US MMA organizations have mostly adopted is that knees and kicks to the head of a downed opponent are not allowed. It's an absolutely ridiculous rule that I feel does more harm to the sport than good.
That said, it is still a sport. It isn't a street fight. There are rules and regulations that you must abide by whenever you step into the cage or ring. You agreed to these terms and conditions of your own free will, with full knowledge of their meaning and results. While Bisping's knee to the face would have made a great highlight reel KO in Pride (and it was a KO, more on that momentarily), this isn't Pride. This is the UFC, under Unified Rules. If you're going to start blatantly ignoring the rules that you agreed to, you have no business fighting. If you're capable of grabbing someone's head in a clinch, kneeing them in the face while they're down, then acting like a child towards the other fighter's corner you have absolutely no business in this sport because you have absolutely no respect for the safety or well-being of the people you are competing against. It is on the individual fighter to protect themselves at all times, but if they have no sporting reason to protect against an attack why should they waste the processing power doing so? Attacking another fighter with illegal moves is cowardly and unsporting.
I'll put it simply. If Dana White had a ball in his pants he would immediately suspend Bisping the same way he suspended Paul Daley. He purposefully and with malice aforethought broke the rules. He did so out of anger and spite, further backed up by his actions towards Rivera's corner. But he won't be suspended. He probably won't even get a slap on the wrist. Why not? Easy. White knows a cash cow when he sees it, and Bisping's pretty much the only reason anyone in England watches the UFC right now. Putting money over fighter safety is despicable, but that's what you get when you mix business and sports the way it's allowed to be mixed in MMA. That's a whole other article though. A very long one, which will see the light of day soon.
Rivera.
Jorge Rivera's performance showed me several things that were severely lacking on that card. Class, and the heart of a fighter. Strange that he did so when he honestly should not have been allowed to do either.
Bisping's knee knocked Rivera out. He was obviously not expecting it, and had little time to defend, and as a result he was kicked flat-out stupid. One of the doctor's body language made it appear as if he was not happy the fight was continuing. It should not have. Near the end of the fight Bisping was pummeling Rivera with some good shots, but Rivera never gave up. It took a full minute of unbridled face punching to put Rivera down. Really, the fight should have been stopped somewhere in the second volley but again UFC refs seem to have a problem with proper enforcement of the rules. A fighter doesn't have to be unconscious on the ground to stop the fight. If someone is not defending themselves properly, that's when the fight ends. Sorry, clasping your hands to your head is not proper defense.
Okay, it is in certain circumstances on the ground, but not when standing. That's an indication you don't want this to continue but you're too damn tough to fall over. Rivera hit that point, but was allowed to get pummeled for another minute or so. It was ridiculous. While it doesn't rank up there with Santiago/Misaki for gutsy performances it does deserve at least a mention, which it hasn't received at all. The fact that someone can get knocked out, stand back up, continue fighting and then take a beating that would knock most guys down three or four times goes overlooked because some glass jawed Brit acts like a tool is sickening. Rivera isn't a great fighter by any stretch, but he has heart. Gotta give him some respect for that.
End.
I'll finish out by teasing something else I'm working on. Recently I've come to the conclusion that the biggest issue facing MMA is the fact that rather than sanctioning bodies, we deal with individual leagues that fighters are contracted to. I'll be going into detail on why this isn't such a good idea, and why the continual separation of talent will ultimately lead to the end of these organizations. It will be a while before this one is done, but keep an eye out for it.
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