When Retirement Makes Sense, or Why I Respect Couture

It's an issue in every single sport, particularly at an elite level. When to retire is as much a psychological exercise as it is a physical one (as is the case with most of sport), and that decision can come one of two ways: an athlete can make it themselves on their own terms, or have it made for them by their boss or opponents.  For the most recent example of the former, take Randy Couture; for a recent example of the latter, take Chuck Liddell.

Bearing in mind that no athlete, however humble or intelligent ever truly 'wants' to retire, especially when that athlete has been as famous and successful as the two mentioned above. However, there comes a time when the descent into obscurity can come almost as quickly as the ascent to fame and fortune did. Not that Liddell has any chance of being forgotten, or of fighting on small cards in organizations no one has ever heard of, however his fall as the unbeatable champion of the greatest organization in the world to borderline embarrassment was quick and sharp.  Couture, on the other hand, has chosen the idea of retirement (now for the 2nd time) to avoid being what Liddell became in many people's eyes, according to a recent interview (see below):

http://www.bjpenn.com/profiles/blogs/couture-not-looking-to-go-out?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bjpenndotcom+%28BJPENN.COM+NEWS+BLOGS%29&utm_content=FaceBook

I respect this in so many ways, and it serves as a lesson to others. True, Couture has achieved a status that most mma athletes will only dream of, and therefore has the luxury of not having to fight for money, not having to fight for fame, not having to fight to win a UFC belt, and all that must be taken into context. However, retirement is career death, the cessation of existence, passing into something else entirely. To choose the manner in which that transition occurs and not have it dictated to you is truly a luxury, and a lesson other athletes could learn from.

Why Jake Shields Can Win...

So I, along with many people out there, have been watching the St.Pierre/Shields Primetime shows. In addition to that, I've been watching Jake Shields for a while now. Everything that Shields has been saying about his career is true: he has defeated equal level competition as GSP, he has been a champion of numerous other organization, he is one of the best jiu-jitsu practitioners in the world of mixed martial arts.  Some other statements which are equally true: GSP is probably the best welterweight who's ever competed, and one of the top 2 or 3 fighters in any weight class.  So after that laud, why is it that I feel Jake Shields can actually win this fight? Simple...Jake Shields is better than all of GSP's other opponents.  He's better than Serra, better than Koshcheck, better than Fitch, and certainly better than an aging Matt Hughes.  GSP has acknowledged such, even beyond his typical (and frankly trite at this point) declaration of this opponent (whichever one he's facing at the moment) being the toughest he has ever faced. You could argue that Fitch or Koshcheck is a better wrestler, for example, than Shields, and you'd probably win that argument. What I would argue, however, is that Shields is a better Jiu-Jitsu artist than Serra, a better Jiu-Jitsu artists than Koshcheck or Fitch is a wrestler, and for that reason he can win.

Cesar Gracie said on yesterday's Prime-time show that GSP is a phenomenal athlete, but he's not the toughest guy out there.  I agree, and I think that the only reason GSP has reigned as long as he has is because he's good enough to neutralize all of his opponents strengths, while simultaneously being a very good (not great) offensive fighter.  His defense is a mystery, and one that may be tested on April 30th. There are down sides to not losing a round, or spending less than 5 minutes on your back in 5 fights, the problem is that you have not been challenged defensively.  GSP's defense has been, quite traditionally, a good offense, and offense so good as to never require that he exist for more than a few seconds in a bad, let along dangerous, position.  The last time we saw GSP in danger was the Serra defense. Now, although just about every opponent since Serra (excluding Shields, thank god) has sited that fight as a way GSP can loose, there is something to that loss.  GSP holds a dichotomous distinction as simultaneously being one of the best fighters to ever breathe, and one of the few I've seen tap out to strikes.  GSP wasn't knocked out, he wasn't submitted, he tapped while an mounted opponent with a stronger punch than him reigned down blow after blow.  And while GSP has certainly learned his lesson about the dangers of underestimating his opponents, his ability to deal with pressure under fire has yet to be seen. His answer has been to avoid that situation by being too damn good, and that in and of itself is a feat worthy of endless praise. However, Shields has the ability to take him where Serra took him, to take him where Hughes took him when he hastily tapped to an armbar with seconds left to a round. Shields can win because he can challenge GSP, which no one has yet to do.

Why Nick Diaz is His Own Worst Enemy

It never ceases to amaze that someone who is willingly fighting outside the organization which houses the best fighters in the world, the UFC, continues to laud himself as one of the best in the world. Does Diaz truly believe that the elite of the welterweight division are ducking him, that they don't desire to fight him for fear of losing? It's a ridiculous claim, one that no reasonable fan of the sport could objectively believe. Nick Diaz specifically, and the Diaz brothers generally, do a wonderful job of looking mean, acting like street thugs, and claiming that everyone who has achieved more than them in the sport are somehow lesser fighters than they.  Would I love to see GSP vs. Diaz? Certainly, but Nick Diaz fails to grasp why such a match cannot (at this moment) take place. The reason he can't grasp it is twofold: first, he has a psychological need to believe not only that he is better than all other welterweights, but that anyone who hasn't fought him is afraid; secondly, Diaz seems unable to understand anything approaching professionalism. He belongs in boxing, an interest he expressed recently (and one apparently left open on his most recent contract). Boxing is filled with criminals unable to string a sentence together who can fight like a motherfucker. Nick Diaz falls into that category. The world of educated, articulate, professional martial artists is not for him. If you're a Diaz worshiper, you'd say that he hasn't sold out, hasn't done what Dana White has consistently referred to as "playing the game".  If you're a reasonable human being, you'll see that he sees any reasonable compromise as being a bitch.  That's street mentality, not that of a professional athlete whose popularity and paychecks are dependent on the very organizations they love to criticize.  If you don't want compromise, and want to exist on street cred and a lack or rules, pull a Kimbo and upload some YouTube clips of you boxing outside Wendy's.

Is Nick Diaz incredibly talented? Of course he is. Is he one of the best welterweights in the world? Probably so, yet I'm not entirely convinced he belongs in that discussion yet.  The problem with Diaz's complaints is that he had numerous opportunities to be in an organization which would allow him shots at the GSP's of the world. He couldn't get past Sherk, he couldn't get past Sanchez, and he couldn't stop acting like a complete asshole outside of the cage.  Dana White has said repeatedly in recent interviews revolving around the main event of Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley, that Diaz would be in the UFC if he only played the game a little bit.  Therefore, Diaz has no right to stand on the sidelines and spew bullshit about other fighters ducking him when he had the opportunity to fight every last one of them if only he really wanted to. It's not the welterweight division of the UFC that's afraid, it's Nick Diaz.  A few less after-fight brawls, a few less offhanded comments, a few more smiles, and Diaz could be staring down GSP as Bruce Buffer announces "ITS TIME!", but that isn't likely to happen anytime soon. The truth of the matter is that Diaz is his own worst enemy, and he will continue to complain while unwilling to take the necessary steps towards what he claims he wants.

The Duality of Talking Shit - In Defense of Michael Bisping...

So everybody hates Michael Bisping all of a sudden...truth be told, I've never been a fan. I thought he was a dick on the Ultimate Fighter, and generally find him an annoying presence. Regardless of opponent I was always rooting for whoever wasn't Michael Bisping. That is, until he was set to fight Jorge Rivera at the recent UFC 127.

For anyone unfamiliar, Rivera (a B-level fighter at best) was granted a fight well above his ability due largely in part to the shit-talking campaign he went on, calling Bisping out in particular and going out of his way to ridicule the Brit.  Trash talking is a time honored tradition of MMA (and sport in general), and the public has not only a tolerance, but a thirst for such pre-fight vitriol.  Some fighters take such trash talk a notch (or several) above what is typical (if you were under a rock for Chael Sonnen's pre fight interviews leading up to his fight with middleweight champion Anderson Silva, stop reading and get on YouTube immediately).  Jorge Rivera stepped the seemingly real (and somewhat puzzling) trash talk up leading up to UFC 127, posting a series of videos on YouTube in which him and his team make fun on Bisping on numerous levels.  

Fast forward to the fight. Bisping did what Bisping does. He dominated a fighter he should have dominated, ending the fight with a TKO, and shutting Jorge Rivera up. It's what occurred next that is my area of interest. In the adrenaline of just having beaten the piss out of someone who had offended you on multiple levels, Bisping did what many other fighters considered inappropriate when he spit at Rivera's corner, and told his defeated opponent to 'go home loser'.  Everyone from Dana White, to Nate Marquart, to Chael Sonnen (of all people) have openly criticized Bisping, stating that he needs to apologize and that they want to 'hit him in the face' (Marquart).

I think a little perspective is in order here. Is it necessary to spit at someone or otherwise act as Bisping did in the aftermath of his TKO? Of course not.  However, why was there almost no discussion of the role Rivera had in creating the situation which led to Bisping's behavior? Even Bisping himself came out and apologized!  I disagree with this entirely for a simple reason: it creates a double standard. Why is inappropriate trash talk, which crosses personal, cultural, and professional boundaries in its manifestations acceptable, so long as it's before the fight? Yet, someone having a normal response to being ridiculed, mistreated, disrespected, and otherwise made fun of is unacceptable because the reaction comes after the fight. It defies logic, and sets a dangerous double standards. Trash talk and ridiculous behavior is either acceptable, or it is not.  The timing of such behavior should not dictate its perception. Perhaps we are spoiled at seeing grown men beat the hell out of each other for 15 minutes then embrace like long lost brothers. That's all well and good, and sportsmanship is nice to see in all events, however we cannot laud pre-fight shit talking as 'hyping up the fight', yet post fight shit talking as inappropriate and punishable.  So, in defense of a fighter I don't like at all, leave Michael Bisping alone! Rivera was a dick and got the reaction he deserved, along with the ass kicking!

The Things That Fighters Need Never Say Again...

I like being the underdog

I'm not anyone's stepping stone

I'm going to impose my will

This is the toughest challenge of my career

I'm a more well-rounded fighter than him

The UFC is the biggest stage in the world

*No quote, but no thanking your lord and savior Jesus Chris...this isn't boxing and you didn't just fight your way out of the ghetto!

I'm not worried about what he's going to do to me, he's should worry about what I'm gonna do to him

It's going to be a war

I hope he underestimates me

I want the best (insert fighters name here) that there's ever been

I'm gonna knock him out

Why We Need Champions or "Why Jon Jones Matters"

May 26th, 2007 was almost 4 years ago. Why is this date significant? It was the date of UFC 71: Liddell vs. Rampage, for the UFC light-heavyweight title. Not only was this fight significant in the general decompensation of Chuck Liddell's career (he would post only 1 victory in his next several fights until his retirement recently), but it was also the beginning of a painful game of hot potato, played by all of the top 5 elite of the light heavyweight division. A few names...

Chuck Liddell, Rampage Jackson, Forrest Griffin, Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida, Shogun Rua, and Jon Jones.  7 men who have all had their hands raised as Bruce Buffer declared them the 'undisputed' champion of the UFC. 7 champions in 4 years! To offer some perspective, Anderson Silva has been the middleweight champion since October of 2006, George St. Pierre has been welterweight champion since April of 2008.

This is not to denigrate any of the former champions of the 205 lb division of the UFC, but if the adage that you are not a true champion until you defend your belt is indeed true, than some examination is not inappropriate. Of the aforementioned 7 men, 3 were defeated in their first title defense (Griffin, Evans, and Rua), and 1 (Machida) lost in his second defense (and many thought he should have lost the first on points).  Enter Jon "Bones" Jones.

To be honest I didn't pay him much mind until fairly recently. I thought, as I'm sure many others did, that the hype surrounding him was perhaps slightly overblown, a manifestation of the collective public need of a phenom.  He's lived up to the hype now, with a absolute dismantling of one of the greatest fighters in the history of the sport, Mauricio Shogun Rua. That being said, I have little interest in singing the praises of Jon Jones anymore than they already have been sung, his fights speak for themselves. I am interested, however, in what Jones represents for the sport of MMA. A young, black, American kid with limitless potential and an undefeated record thus far in his career.  He's not only what the 205 lb division of the UFC needs, he's what American MMA needs.  He's a champion with the potential to actually earn the moniker, someone who can conceivably hold the title for a long time, someone who young fighters can follow and look up to.  Jon Jones fills that collective psychological need for a sports hero, a guy who little kids can have posters up in their room while they pester their parents to take them to wresting or jiu jitsu practice, and in that Jon Jones is incredibly valuable.

Why I Love Fighting

"People see a lot of times fighting as an ugly thing, as a thing that denigrates the human body...in reality you see fighting in everything...everything's fighting, it doesn't matter what it is...to wake up in the morning, to get out of bed is a fight...fighting is actually the best thing a man can have in his soul."
---Renzo Gracie, as a guest on 60 Minutes

It's the name of the blog as well as the first post, so I suppose I should explain exactly why it is that I love fighting. It's a complex and slightly misleading question in that it warrants some semantic clarification. I don't love street fighting, or general violence, or people getting hurt without purpose or structure, nor is any of the aforementioned the focus of this or any other blog post.  What I mean is that I love martial arts in all of the various incarnations it may manifest in. Both of my parents were lifelong martial artists, and as you can imagine I grew up in a household that fostered the ideals that go along with such endeavors. My father was a more active martial artist, having attained a black belt in Shotokan karate, and several other high level belts in disciplines such as wing chun, kung-fu, and others.  It's in the blood. My father died before Mixed Martial Arts gained the status it now occupies, and we never got to have so much as a discussion about what is now the only sport that I watch, the best sport that there is.  It will always be a regret.

Nevertheless, I've been a politician thus far and have danced around the original question. So why do I love fighting? Fighting is, as Renzo Gracie stated, in everything that I do, every day of the week. As a concept it dictates my consciousness when I don't feel strong enough to deal with something. In fact, I find myself able to handle difficult obstacles when I think of them as fights. For whatever reason the idea of a challenge is quite unmotivating, but the idea of a fight gets my blood pumping. Applying that paradigm to the difficulties of life gets me ready, it gets me motivated, it gets me in the frame of mind I need to move forward.

As a sport, MMA is the only sport that matters, the only complete sport insomuch as a sport is, at heart, a competitive endeavor.  That is not to step on other sports (not so explicitly anyhow), but a man who can get a fastball past the bat of another man is simply better at a given skill, one that doesn't matter in any context outside of a baseball game.  Fighting is different. Fighting is something that we all do, whether in the philosophical context mentioned above, or in the literal sense, we are all fighters. Even the baseball player struggling through his game is a fighter. Fighting is the state of mind that allows victory in all other sports, and the physical manifestation of that spirit represents the domination of one human being over another.  To simplify, you can run faster than me, or hit a better jump shot than me, who the fuck cares? If you can't stop me from taking you off your feet and holding you life in my hands, than nothing else matters. Now in a professional sense this is seen in what former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin has called "human chess", beautiful violence when it's done correctly.

So this is another MMA blog, one of countless others, but one I hope will hold a little distinction in that it's not about stats, it's not about saying outrageous things, but it's about the sport and the business of MMA, a sport in which I find true beauty, and the only sport that matters to me.

More to come....