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Dana White’s Strikeforce party in San Diego
By Zach Arnold | April 10, 2011
(Click the picture to watch the video. Image/video courtesy AOL/MMAFighting.com.)
We all know how similar Dana White & Vince McMahon are (scary). However, tonight may have been the moment where we truly say that we saw that McMahon-like quality to rub it into people’s faces. Other than showing up with Jake Shields on camera during the WEC PPV last April, this was the top rub-in moment. Dana White shows up in a Strikeforce t-shirt to basically throw himself a party and watch fights for the competition he just bought.
“It just feels like being at another fight.”
He observed the way Showtime produced the show and hinted at changes to come to make the live house experience better — a complaint that was almost universal at last February’s Izod Center SF show.
“Without sounding like a dick, I think we’re the best in the business.”
Videos (ESPN): Nick Diaz vs. Paul Daley | Gilbert Melendez vs. Crusher Kawajiri
He gives the proverbial middle finger to Rockstar by drinking Xyience, the drink of choice for the Fertitta empire, and has the cage canvas plastered with a UFC PPV ad graphic. Everywhere you looked, Dana was in an over-joyous mood. The mood got even better when Nick Diaz knocked around Paul Daley.
“When I listen to Nick Diaz talk, you know, this kid’s talented. He’s well-rounded, you know. I like his attitude and the way that he carries himself… to a point. He always crosses the line every time he gets out there and talks publicly and… he can be such a big star. This kid could be a big star if he would just calm down a little bit and not so be so angry with everybody. I mean, seriously, who the fuck wants to beat up Ariel Helwani, man? Other than other reporters, who wants to beat up Ariel Helwani?! It’s just… Nick has this talent and he talks about the big money and all the other things. He can make this big money. He can do that. He can be that guy. He could fight GSP. He could have all these opportunities. He’s got to tone it down a little bit, you know, and I don’t think that many people out there would disagree with me and I’m not asking Nick Diaz not to be Nick Diaz. I like Nick Diaz. I like the way he is and it’s part of the appeal of him, you know. But you gotta tone it down just a little bit.
“I’ve told him that when he did and didn’t work for me. And I’m sure he’s heard me say it many times and I’m sure he’ll hear me say this, you know, and his brother Nate & I have a great relationship. Nate is like Nick in a lot of ways, you know, they’re brothers, they’re close and they train together and they come out of the same camp but, you know, Nate is Nate without always crossing that line, you know, if we could get Nick to a point where he doesn’t cross the line and he doesn’t get so crazy all the time, he could be a big star. People like him. And people dislike him, too. That’s not a bad thing.”
We all know what the end game here is. Showtime’s essentially paying Zuffa and giving them a media platform to push upcoming PPV events. Some suggested that they should grateful that they stumbled into obtaining a Zuffa-based product. I suspect Ken Hershman is not one of those people.
“Showtime’s actually been great to deal with.
“It’s been great, and no, I haven’t talked to them. You know, Lorenzo (Fertitta) talked to them originally and then flew out and talked to them a couple days ago and everything’s been great. There’s no hard feelings on that side and there’s no hard feelings on this side. We’ll figure this thing out.
“There’s some guys over at CBS & Showtime that I’ve had great relationships with and never had a problem with and then there’s some that I’ve butted heads with.”
After everything was said and done Saturday night in San Diego, Dana White lives in an MMA world where he is the judge, jury, and executioner. His verdict is often final. Just ask Chael Sonnen. Mr. Sonnen has had a lot of experience dealing with judges and verdicts lately.
“I think the kid’s paid his dues as far as time goes and financially. He’s taken his lumps. He’s paid his dues, so time to get back and get to work. ASAP.”
DW translation: Get your head out of your ass, Keith Kizer. You’re not going to stop us. No one else has been able to, so far.
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, UFC, Zach Arnold | 61 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Nick Diaz thinks he’s suspended but the CSAC says he isn’t. I never seen anything and the only thing I can think of is a medical suspension and that happens for everybody, Diaz needs to stay off the weed, he sounds paranoid.
I already pre-ordered diaz v gsp for ufc 138. Gonna be epic.
Give Diaz a wrestler for a #1 contender fight and there will be no GSP/Diaz.
Fitch, Shields, & Koscheck would beat him without question. And yes I know he wouldn’t fight Shields.
Story, Johnson, Kim, Hendricks, Pierce, & Ellenberger would all be favorites in my opinion on him.
Not to mention in Bellator, Askren would wipe the floor with him and Hieron would cause him issues.
Diaz has an exciting style, but he hasn’t fought the most dominant type of fighting style since April 2006 when he fought Sean Sherk. Which is the only reason he is 14-1 during that time span. If he was in the UFC, do you honestly think he would have so much hype behind him right now? Nope….
Agreed 100% with this. Diaz hasn’t faced a good wrestler in a long, long time. Training with Shields in your camp will have its benefits, but you can only stay on that level by competing with the best at that level. I think Diaz is very dangerous and a legit Top 5 Welterweight, but I can’t see him overcoming GSP’s grappling and think even Fitch would give him a lot of trouble.
Kevin,
I have to point out that you both agreed 100% with what 45 Huddle said, and that you think Diaz is a legit top 5 welterweight.
45 Huddle listed off a number of fighters who are in the top 20 (and below) who would beat Nick Diaz. How does that jive with him a “legit top 5 welterweight” in your book?
I do not think you can have it both ways.
Ranking, and who you think would win in fights is a different discussion..
Edub,
But if he could be beat or was favored by any of the guys listed, then why in the world would he be ranked a top 5 guy? You have to admit that having a guy ranked that high who would expect to lose against MUCH lower ranked fighters is kind of a weird problem right?
But you can’t rank people on “what you think would happen”. That presents an entirely different form of judging fighters, one where accomplishments aren’t weighed as high. Styles make fights, and some people who are ranked lower with have the right skill set to beat someone who is ranked higher and might actually be better. (Hope that makes sense)
I dunno if I’d call it a problem though.
Side note: Nick Diaz is one of my favorite fighters in MMA. However, he doesn’t belong in the top 5 yet. GSP, Fitch, Shields, Alves, Penn, and Koscheck all have better resumes over the past 2 years IMO. I have him at #7 right now.
“Story, Johnson, Kim, Hendricks, Pierce, & Ellenberger would all be favorites in my opinion on him.
Not to mention in Bellator, Askren would wipe the floor with him and Hieron would cause him issues.”
I think that you are way wrong here 45 Huddle. I do not think that you are giving Diaz enough credit, and everyone man is entitled to his opinion, I just think that you are stretching it WAY too far by favoring guys like Pierce and Ellenberger over Diaz.
He flat out ducked Jay Hieron. Who is at the same level as a lot of guys I listed. So if he is not confident in fighting the Hieron level wrestlers…. He won’t want to fight the Ellenbergers and Story’s if the world.
So while you are also entitled to your opinion…. Mine is based more on what Diaz has done in the past both athletically and his choice of opponents.
He didn’t duck Hieron. He was going to get fined and suspended if he took the drug test for the fight so he didn’t pee.
Hieron then decided not to fight Zaromskis because he didn’t feel he had to. Than he sat on the bench for a year.
After the fight, Nick Diaz sort of lunged towards the dazed Paul Daley, pointed his fingers in Daley’s face and sputtered something a la Brock Lesnar, post-Frank Mir. Diaz may have been referring to that.
He may have been referring to that. He may also just be Nick Diaz, and crazy, and say s*** that doesn’t make sense all the time.
Which makes me love him even more.
1) Showtime also had an ad for Manny/Shane on the canvas. I would love to know which company fired the first shot, and I’m sure the other company figured they could play that game too. Either way, it’s not exactly a sign that Zuffa & Showtime are on happy terms. Typically you don’t see future fights advertised like that on the canvas. And it certainly is a huge FU to Showtime that Zuffa is advertising their own shows with Showtime paying the bill.
2) Overall the fights turned out pretty good for Dana White. Daley got stopped. They don’t have to use the championship clause to keep Kawajiri. Takaya lost which takes away whatever hype was left of the lighter weight classes from Japan.
3) I assume this means Sonnen is going to be on TUF 14.
As for the fighters….
NICK DIAZ – I’m still not sold on him. He did prove that he could hang with a powerful and wild striker. But there are a lot of wrestling aces in the UFC. Until he proves he can stop those takedowns, I’m not sold.
PAUL DALEY – He might of had a chance for a future with Zuffa if he didn’t mouth off. Bellator perhaps?
GILBERT MELENDEZ – The one guy who impressed me the most out of this card. I’ve always said he was Top 5, but that performance made me think he might have a chance at being #1. But he still has to prove it.
TATSUYA KAWAJIRI – Another one bites the dust. Japanese MMA just can’t hang with the current crop of top tier talent.
GEGARD MOUSASI – First, there shouldn’t have been a point deducted. Secondly, it was a slightly bad decision. With that said, Mousasi got taken down far too easy against Keith Jardine…. A guy not known for great takedowns. It’s been almost a year since his loss to Lawal, and he has showed zero improvement in that area of his game. And that’s a huge hole when considering there are guys like Henderson, Lawal, Bader, Jones, Davis, Evans, and others in this division. He would have more luck back at Middleweight where the really great wrestlers aren’t there as much.
KEITH JARDINE – Not much to say about him. He’s a tough guy with serious limitations who isn’t good enough to be top tier.
SHINYA AOKI – Good performance against a one time overhyped “prospect”. I think in the future he would always struggle at Lightweight, especially against the stronger wrestlers. I don’t know if he can make the cut, but he would do much better at Featherweight. Guys wouldn’t be as strong and his submissions would still be a brutal. If he stays at Lightweight, he will always be a one trick poney.
LYLE BEERBOHM – It was nice knowing you. Back to the minors.
I didn’t see the undercard (obviously), but Takaya lost. Not a shock. He was the DREAM Champion, but really can’t compete on the American level.
As for future matchmaking…. Very good fight between Del Rosario & Cormier. This was a fight that Coker should have made 6 months ago. I could care less about Overeem/Griggs.
One thing is for sure…. Moving forward, the Strikeforce fighters are going to be getting tested. That has to be the toughest pill to swallow for some guys. There are no more easy paychecks. If you want the big money, you have to fight the tougher fights. That is a first time this has happened in this sport.
re: Aoki
“I don’t know if he can make the cut, but he would do much better at Featherweight.”
I think he can, should, and will be forced to if he continues fighting for Zuffa stateside.
Aoki spent half his career at 167 and is the same height as GSP. I’m not sure where the idea that he could easily make featherweight comes from.
Same height but not nearly the same size. Take a look at the two and you’ll see the size discrepancy.
re: 167, I assume you mean his time in Shooto. That was over five years ago. He fought up in weight for Sakurai, but spent time putting on mass (as well as doing a warm-up fight at WW beforehand) and only got up to 161. Since then he’s been back down at LW.
His walking weight is around 155-160, if that. He can cut to 145.
“TATSUYA KAWAJIRI – Another one bites the dust. Japanese MMA just can’t hang with the current crop of top tier talent.”
So guy that was never the best LW on the Japanese scene back in 2002-2006 is not the best in 2011? Do tell…
Here’s a a thought, pretty much no one that was at the top of the heap 5-7 years ago is going to be at the top of the heap in 2011.
Considering that they probably could have signed the guy, and the only other place Takaya could have really gone was Bellator (which is more of a competitor for talent anyway than for viewers), I think this was a wash, if not a slight loss for them. They lost a potential high-quality signee that didn’t have the option to go to anyplace that competes with them for viewers anyway. The UFC would love to have some more Japanese stars, whether the idea of cracking the Japanese market (and maybe revitalizing it) is a realistic one or not.
Also, @Zach: if nothing else, the UFC has credibility, so if a Japanese fighter was to win a UFC Championship, they could easily be pushed as the best in the world. If that guy was at all a marketable personality, with the right talent agency in Japan they could be pushed hard in the variety show circuit and even in ads, and I think casual viewers would latch on much more to the fact that this guy is a Japanese person who is (ostensibly) the baddest dude on the planet in his weight class, more than they would be turned off by him specifically being in the UFC.
So I really don’t think it’s impossible for the UFC to break into the Japanese market, and if they had a Japanese champion (along with the other Japanese fighters they already have or could probably sign soon) I don’t think it would be implausible either for them to not only break into the Japanese market but also make a lot of money off of it.
You are forgetting the two universal principles I have long spelled out in regards to what works in building a Japanese drawing card. This is from wisdom and experience.
a) Young hot Japanese rookie, well known from a native promotion, goes on a ‘foreign excursion’ and comes back home either to show off his improvement or to build up credibility to fight off a foreign invasion. (Think: Takada, Misawa, etc.)
b) Established Japanese star decides to invade a foreign country, does so, and then comes back home to a native promotion that’s strong to be a star there.
If you’re noticing the formula, you’ll see that nothing UFC can do will make them big in Japan. Why? They aren’t a Japanese company on Japanese TV. Even if they had a Japanese frontman, the owners are still foreigners. Having yakuza owners is still considered a step up over foreign owners because, hey, they’re Japanese or at least mixed (with Korean blood).
Can UFC do an occasional spot show or two in Japan? Sure. But they will never have long-term momentum. Also, the fans they would draw for a spot show in Japan are different than the MMA fans that show up for DREAM, Pancrase, etc. It’s like what happened to WWE when they ran some shows under the Total Sports Asia banner there. People did show up initially but those fans were not the steady regulars that went to NJ, NOAH, All Japan shows.
Even before Zuffa took over UFC, the UFC’s way of picking guys that they thought were ‘stars’ from Japan was odd. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka is certainly legitimate in terms of his credentials, but he was never a big star in Japan. Kiyoshi Tamura was always the ace of RINGS. Interestingly enough, Kohsaka went to the UFC during his RINGS stint, came back and had some moderate but not huge success. (Mainly because RINGS was weakening with Maeda fighting less and running out of opponents before they turned to the shoot format with Babalu, Henderson, and Fedor.)
Okami could beat Anderson Silva in Brazil and it would be a blip on the radar screen in Japan. The only reason he would even get media attention for it is because he likes to hang around with the New Japan wrestlers on TV and take pictures with them. That’s about it. He’s not known at all in Japan on a large scale. Never will be.
They already had him signed and he was a WEC washout.
M-1 & Fedor Emelianenko really just have no faith in him fighting top tier guys.
They said no to fighting Dan Henderson at 205 pounds, but still want to fight him at either Heavyweight (which would basically be open weight) or at a specific catchweight.
So Fedor has such a lack of belief in his skills that now he wants to fight a Middleweight who within the last year lost to a Welterweight.
It will be nice when Fedor finally retires…..
I hear and agree with you, but it’s hard for me to take Fedor to task for it. The reality is that he’s not even on the bigger end of 205, but he comes from not only a different era but a different approach. Heavyweights were smaller during the height of his reign, and it was in Japan, where you just don’t cut weight.
Now Fedor finds himself having been fighting the better part of a decade whilst the sport has transitioned to bigger heavyweights and weight classes skewed by the onslaught of American wrestlers who have perfected the art of weight cutting.
Personally, even if I was managing Fedor (and not a crazy Russian mobster) I wouldn’t advise him to take the Henderson fight, simply because he gains nothing from it. If he beats Henderson he does what he really should be doing, if he loses he looks awful.
I wish Fedor would go away at this point.
Well to be more precise, I wish fedorm1 would go away.
Weren’t we all getting excited again when Fed said he was open to losing all that bubblegum body and coming back at 205, but SF hadn’t offered him such a fight.
It made me ill this morning to read that now he’s agreed to fight a man who periodically fights at 185, but he refuses to drop to 205 to do it.
It’s more then obvious that this is m1’s hand up his butt again, and for what reason to start another argument over this now i have no idea other then to just be jerkoff crazy Russians (not all Russians, these ones).
But for fedor to continue to allow this is making me start to dislike him.
I dont want to do that.
I would rather that he just goes away.
I don’t disagree with Dana re: Diaz. He’s always been a bit off, but the Helwani thing blew my mind. Not even his animosity towards him, but when he just started ranting in the latter half of the interview.
It’s probably because I’ve avoided watching interviews of him the last couple years, but boy oh boy, does he worry me. It’s not just that he doesn’t come off well, it’s that he…well, doesn’t come off as being all that well. If you know what I mean.
Well, Nick has taken some powerful shots in his career…
Regarding his behavior: Nick is Nick.
He\’s an emotionally charged guy & he also happens to suffer from ADHD. Which is a combo that can make him come off as a bit unhinged during interviews sure, but it\’s really no big deal. I mean, it\’s not as if he threatened or took a swing at Halwani or something.
Prefight Nick is ALWAYS surly, so what?
Contrast that with the postfight interview when Ariel actually got Nick to lighten up & smile as he recounted the triathalon that he competed in prior to the fight…
“Which is a combo that can make him come off as a bit unhinged during interviews sure, but it\’s really no big deal. I mean, it\’s not as if he threatened or took a swing at Halwani or something.”
Yes, it’s no big deal. It’s not as though he jumped a guy in a hospital or participated in a gang-assault on network television or something.
Its a good thing miller has never been near an actual “street”, because he would be getting “gang assaulted” assaulted all day everyday for doing stupid isht like that.
He better stick to playing wigger and fighting “bullies” at the MTV studios or it will just happen again.
That Helwani interview was awesome in a remotely terrifying way.
(Genuine insanity can be frightening when your suddenly looking at it.)
Nick says that he needs the weed for a medical condition, I figured sure dont we all, but whether or not weed is in fact the proper medication for whatever he’s got it seems like he really does have something.
But he’s not the only functional nut walking around. Part of learning to survive around people is not to be a dumbass like miller and provoke people like that.
Helwani for instance is an intelligent kid and doesn’t have that problem around Diaz or James Toney.
What a great year of fights it’s been.
Both shows last night were a ton of fun, so was Friday Night Fights.
I don’t have a problem with the Moussasi draw. Because in the grand scheme of things I think it was right. I know this doesn’t factor into the scoring but Jardine took that fight on two weeks notice and Moussasi couldn’t put him away.
I think last night showed us exactly where Moussasi is in his career. And it’s what I’ve always thought. He’s on the UFC gatekeeper level. I think he’d be that at either 185 or 205. He’s fun to watch but he’s not going to be a top guy. If you put him in with Thiago Silva, Brandon Vera, Rich Franklin and Ryan Bader he’d be lucky to go 2-2.
Melendez should fight Pettis now and then the winner fight Edgar/Maynard around New Year’s. He’s going to be fun in the mix with the UFC 155’ers.
I think Nick Diaz is the most exciting guy in MMA right now. Every fight he brings. Yes, he is being put in with guys tailor made to provide exciting fights. I have no problem with that. I don’t need to see Jon Fitch lay crotch to crotch with Diaz and dry hump him for 15-25 minutes to know Nick isn’t a great wrestler.
A few weeks ago I listed my Nick Diaz fantasy fights. Let him battle BJ, Condit, Alves, Kampmann, etc. He wins a bunch of them do him and GSP. Or just keep him fighting fun guys.
What Dana means about turning it down is all the screw-faces and profanity shouting that Diaz does. And the post fight brawls. Dana also can’t have one of his top guys talking about smoking dope and acting like a low rent gangster. Nick can be a tough guy/bad boy without the criminal seeming element.
I though Nick was great on the mic after his fight. Classy but tough. He could make a ton of money if he keeps behaving like that.
Dana telling Nick to tone it down and stop going after reporters? Oh, the irony.
Nick Diaz has been in multiple fights outside of his actual fighting career. The rumble with Jason Miller. The hospital fight with Joe Riggs. The scuffle with KJ Noons.
Not to mention he missed out on taking a pee test. Has been busted for weed. Brags about smoking illegally.
Dana White has a unique personality, but he certainly “plays the game”. You are trying to mix up a determined promoter with a completely wacko fighter. Two different balls of wax.
You know, I really don’t think the NSAC is going to bend over and take it on the Chael Sonnen issue even with all the leverage the UFC has, considering how many lies the dude told. As such, I also don’t think he’s going to end up the coach for TUF 14, even if Sonnen vs. Bisping as coaches would be amazing just for the trash talking alone.
A more likely scenario is that Chael Sonnen gets a license in another state first, pisses clean for a few fights, then reapplies in Nevada. Nevada might be more lenient after some time has passed, as they would save more face in licensing the guy after he’s been clean and sober for a year or so fighting elsewhere.
That might be the case if Kizer had anything to justify not licensing Sonnen. The fact that he had to reach so far as to try and lump in his court case and his complainig about referees as reason why he needs to have a hearing shows just that. Kizer is simply butthurt that Sonnen put his name out in the CSAC, but who he should be mad at is the currupt and inept CSAC who’s hearings are a sham.
The slate is now clean for Sonnen to go on TUF and have what would probably be their most epic season. Kizer knows his role he might not like it but getting in the way of Zuffa making money would be a huge mistake on his part, because people don’t win those fights.
A license is a privilege, not a right smart guy. Just because he serves his CSAC sentence doesn’t mean they have to give him his license upon request. They don’t have to give it to anyone if they don’t feel like they deserve the privilege of having it. I’m sure if they had any balls they would say, a proven cheater who will lie even when he’s caught redhanded, blatantly lies in an official hearing and drags the integrity of the commission through the mud, doesn’t deserve the privilege of a license until the numerous discrepancies are settled. It would be amazing to see that jackass have to provide an admission and apology cap in hand. Oh well, it will be funny to see someone who thinks he’s much smarter than he is look like a total moron again, even when they end up giving it to him.
“Kizer knows his role he might not like it but getting in the way of Zuffa making money would be a huge mistake on his part, because people don’t win those fights”
It boggles my mind the militant Zuffa acolytes that will just mindlessly champion against anything that they perceive as “against” the company. Seems like they literally don’t have an independent thought of their own and just wait to repeat whatever mantra they’re told to on twitter. What was Zach’s great analogy about mma fans needing their crack and just jonesing for their next fix? The Sonnenites are a perfect example, completely off the reservation with how brainwashed they are to defend that idiot and demand he be able to fight because he served his 6-month slap on the wrist joke of a punishment from the CSAC. He’s not even funny or good at “playing heel”, he’s just an embarrassment to the sport.
Eerily similar to my own screed a few days ago concerning zealous UFC fans.
And just a completely lacking grasp on reality….yeah they’ll show that big jerk Kizer for actually caring that commissions and the sport aren’t just a big fk-ing joke, they’ll just stop running their shows in their home base state! Or they’ll get into ugly political battles and influence peddling with government bodies! Grrrr…
Kizer will do as he is told.
Why?
Because he wants a cushy job once his career as a public servant is over. Just like his mentor Marc Ratner. He won’t jeopardize his future career at Zuffa over Chael Sonnen.
Since when?, like I said Kizer has no case against not giving Sonnen a license which is why he’s reaching as hard as he is. And it seems that alot of people are letting their own personal bias against the guy cloud their judgement. Trying to judge cage fighters morality is a joke, if that was the case Nick Diaz would never fight again the guy has done much worse things that Sonnen ever has.
As opposed to the anti-Zuffa crusaders that will jump at anything to rail against the company in a negative way please. Not to mention that you’re coming off as a mark trying to make Sonnen out to be some monster because he made funny comments about Silva. Seriously you need to get it over it Sonnen is hillarious, the fact that your allowing yourself to be worked by him shows just how good he’s been at his job.
I’m not being “worked” by him at all, quite the contrary, people like you who beg and beg for more of him are being “worked” – you think he’s “cool”. I see right through him, he’s not funny at all he just plays to the lowest common denominator of unintelligent fans, and he’s a proven cheater. Why should I jump up and down to have a guy coming off suspension for cheating and making a mockery of the rules of the sport to be rewarded with a gig that’s supposed to be reserved for guys who deserve it and/or will get a big push? There’s a cavernous difference between getting “mad” at Sonnen because he’s a good villain and thinking he (and the people that think he’s “awesome”) is an embarrassment to the sport.
Funny thing is after the “he’s a great promo guy” reasons the pleebs give for why they’re dying for him to get the TUF gig and #1 contender fight is that “he was beating Anderson Silva for 23 minutes until he got caught”…yeah – and he also pissed hotter than hell for steroids, so how is that supposed to be sound reasoning? He obviously needed to cheat to have a close loss to the champ, why is he getting an express ride back to another title shot, when based on the fight he would just lose in more spectacular fashion?
And I’m not railing against the company at all, but I like to point out how “worked” the fans are that demand the lowly NSAC needs to get down on bended knee to “give us more Chael”…
“Since when?, like I said Kizer has no case against not giving Sonnen a license which is why he’s reaching as hard as he is.”
Remember when Big John McCarthy re-applied for his license with the NSAC and was denied?…Yeah me too – it’s a license, not a constitutional right, to have the privilege of fighting in the state of Nevada and they don’t have to just hand it out because Sonnen applies and you really, really want him to get it. But I’d hate for you not to get your fix of seeing Sonnen channel a 1980’s wrestling bad guy on Spike and revel in his great “mic work”.
“I’m not being “worked” by him at all, quite the contrary, people like you who beg and beg for more of him are being “worked” – you think he’s “cool”. I see right through him, he’s not funny at all he just plays to the lowest common denominator of unintelligent fans, and he’s a proven cheater. Why should I jump up and down to have a guy coming off suspension for cheating and making a mockery of the rules of the sport to be rewarded with a gig that’s supposed to be reserved for guys who deserve it and/or will get a big push? There’s a cavernous difference between getting “mad” at Sonnen because he’s a good villain and thinking he (and the people that think he’s “awesome”) is an embarrassment to the sport.
Funny thing is after the “he’s a great promo guy” reasons the pleebs give for why they’re dying for him to get the TUF gig and #1 contender fight is that “he was beating Anderson Silva for 23 minutes until he got caught”…yeah – and he also pissed hotter than hell for steroids, so how is that supposed to be sound reasoning? He obviously needed to cheat to have a close loss to the champ, why is he getting an express ride back to another title shot, when based on the fight he would just lose in more spectacular fashion?
And I’m not railing against the company at all, but I like to point out how “worked” the fans are that demand the lowly NSAC needs to get down on bended knee to “give us more Chael”.”
Actually if you saw right through him you wouldn’t get so worked up about him like you clearly are. And the way you continually reach to try and make him out to be Josh Barnett baffles me, that guy is an embarrasment to the sport Sonnen isn’t.
Also you can claim steriods as the reason why Sonnen dominated Silva like no one else has but that’s bs. Which doesn’t surprise me because it’s almost become comical to see how many excuses and justifications some fans will make to make sure that fight never happens again.
Simply put it’s not about the NSAC it’s about Kizer who’s clearly letting his own personal stuff with Sonnen to cloud his judgment. Which seems to be a pattern with Sonnen i’ve never seen so many people get so emotional about a guy before showing once again just how good he’s become at playing the mma smart marks.
“Remember when Big John McCarthy re-applied for his license with the NSAC and was denied?…Yeah me too – it’s a license, not a constitutional right, to have the privilege of fighting in the state of Nevada and they don’t have to just hand it out because Sonnen applies and you really, really want him to get it. But I’d hate for you not to get your fix of seeing Sonnen channel a 1980’s wrestling bad guy on Spike and revel in his great “mic work.”
I remember I also remember why it had nothing to do with it being a right they simply had all the slots filled for refs. That in no way applies to Sonnen and his case, the Kizer might not like it but he has no legs to stand on. And yeah I do want my fix of Sonnen channeling 1980’s pro-wrestling mic work, and i’m not the only one since he’s really good at it.
You dont think Kizer should be a truffle upset that Sonnen lied to the CSAC about getting clearance from the Kizer and the NSAC?
In baseball fans were ready to grab their pitchforks when they found out players lied while questioned; in mma they want them to headline. I’m trying to understand why there is such a different mind-set.
And Steve4192,
As I’ve written before the relationship between the UFC and the NSAC resembles that of the Pentagon and weapons manufactures.
I’m not worked up about Sonnen. AT. ALL. Try to get that through the pea-brain of yours.
I know you really wish and hope that I am, but that’s not the case. What I am worked up about has nothing to do with Sonnen’s “promo work” or his “bad guy act”. It’s that “fans” like you, actually think he’s cool. Sonnen is an embarrassment to the sport and fans like you are an even bigger embarrassment because you come on here and rave about how cool he is and how he “works” people. I’m just baffled adults are so enamored by someone that thinks he’s really smart and really funny, when he’s neither. It’s like saying Dane Cook is “working” me because I think he f**kin sucks…he’s not working me at all, he’s just not funny and it’s sad that “fans” will pay to see that tool.
Yeah, steroids weren’t a big part in the fight at all! After all Sonnen took them for his hypogonadism…but only for this fight. Surprising a guy that had a serious problem like hypogonadism had such a long and successful athletic career and yet only this time needed to use steroids for the biggest fight of his life. GTFOOH.
Weird people were angry that Bonds, McGwire, Clemens, Pettite, Ortiz, Manny, A-Rod lied about steroids, but pro-wrestling mma fans like EJ just bury their head in Sonnen’s tiny testes to ignore the fact that the only reason their hero is where he is because he cheated.
I’m done talking to you – clearly you and your pro wrestling fixation aren’t worth discussing this issue with. Guys like you make me embarrassed to be an MMA fan. What a joke.
What do folk think of the Mousasi-Jardine decision?
Taking into account the point deduction in Round 1, I scored it a 28-28 draw, giving Jardine the first round 10-8, and Mousasi 10-9 on the last two rounds.
Having said that, I believe the point deduction was unwarranted, and I feel Mousasi should have won 29-28.
The last round was dominant round for Gegard. Why? because personally I score the catch as one point, and another point for completely dominating the stand up and takedowns. You have to be real, Jardine did nothing in round 3 he just barely survived. Compare to the Fitch Penn final round where Fitch was never close to finishing yet got a 10-8 score.
The change that needs to made to scoring is not 1/2 points(what would you even score a half point for?), but points given for a solid catch, and knock down from a strike.
Diaz was reprimanded for pushing the camera after the fight.
Heiron would get nowhere fast with his glass jaw vs Diaz punches. No way he gets through 5 rounds with Diaz, he’d basically his punching bag like everyone else has been.
Fitch was close to finishing Penn. BJ could barely stand up after the round was over.
Theres a big discussion on it on the last page. I thought it was within the realm of possibility, but I had it for Gegard. 10-10 turns to 10-9 for Jardine. Still resulting in a 29-28 Gegard win.
“What do folk think of the Mousasi-Jardine decision?”
I think its funny.
🙂
Moussasi obviously won IMO, but since Jardine is a totaly cool dude and its not actually an L for Gegard, then I cant seem to get mad for throwing the poor man a bone.
Of course we shouldn’t start basing MMA decisions on doing a guy a favor, but since its done, and both guys are so cool, and with it being so ridiculous, I just cant seem to get mad about it.
Its also a fine addition to Jardines crazy bipolar MMA record.
Thats what happens when you go to a decision in california.
Curious why you would have scored the 1st round for Jardine when he was outstruck 48 to 10 and failed to keep Mousasi down for more than 15-seconds on any takedown (the duration of one was 2-seconds)? Even on the ground Jardine was outstruck 12 to 1 in the 1st round.
Getting taken down at will sort of negates a lot of the strikes landed…. None of which really hurt Jardine in the 1st.
Either way, this fight did not make Mousasi look good.
Also the last takedown was completely negated by the upkick. The ref stood them up, took the point, and restarted them standing (which IMO needs to be looked at further in the rules).
“Getting taken down at will sort of negates a lot of the strikes landed…”
Ok…? Not really sure how that makes sense…by the same logic, your opponent getting back to his feet at will sort of negates all of the takedowns landed…especially when he kicks your ass on the feet.
Regardless, I agree with that sort of. Mousasi not being able to finish a guy like Jardine when he only had 10 days notice is not a good thing. Then again, he completely whipped his ass the 2nd and 3rd round but Keith showed a lot of heart and toughness by managing to hang in there…the main takeaway for me was that Mousasi needs to start really working on his takedown defense if he wants to be an elite 205 or even 185lb fighter…and from what I’ve seen, he doesn’t seem to put any effort into that part of his game.
“Either way, this fight did not make Mousasi look good.”
Sorry, that’s the part I agree with.
Although I’m pretty sure Diaz would have won eventually anyway, I kinda agree with Daley about stopping the fight 3 seconds before the bell.
If he was KO’d flat, then yeah.
But he wasn’t.
And Adding to that that McCarthy allowed Diaz to squirm around underneath Daleys assault just a minute earlier for 2-3 times longer also makes it inconsitant.
They’ve done this before a few times (was it also McCarthy who cut off vera vs Verdum?) and I’ve never understood it.
Daley wasn’t gonna die from 3 more seconds of blocking punches.
If the guy isn’t flat out unconcious then I’ve never seen a reason to call off a fight in the last 10 seconds.
“Daley wasn’t gonna die from 3 more seconds of blocking punches”
C’mon now Rob. He was “blocking” them with his face/head.
And the ref isn’t the timekeeper, it wasn’t his job to know whether there were 30 seconds or three seconds left in the round. It’s to protect the fighter.
Diaz v Daley peaked at 806k viewers. Diaz is cash money. The ufc would be
retardedto not bring him over asap. He is the only compelling fight left for GSP after he crushes Shields. I am going to find religion and pray that Nick knocks out that cheating greaser.