The Doggy Bag: The Intense Week Edition
Ranking the Best
I think people are taking the UFC rankings lightly. I saw the first edition and I admit that there were some pretty crazy ideas being put forth. These rankings, however, give fighters a new kind of bargaining power. It is hard to imagine Johny Hendricks being passed over for a title shot if people took the rankings seriously. Shouldn't UFC President Dana White be publicly backing the UFC's rankings instead of badmouthing them? For the UFC to have something like the Associated Press poll for college football would be a huge step in being taken seriously as a "real sport." -- Vince from Kansas
TJ De Santis, Sherdog Radio Network program director: Mixed martial arts is not a real sport; it’s that simple. This is something that I have had a very hard time coming to grips with over the last couple of years, but with that said, the fighters still epitomize the word "athlete." It is just that MMA -- especially the UFC -- now operates much more with entertainment in mind instead of sport.
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I still love MMA. I am not jaded. What makes the UFC better than boxing, football, baseball or any other sports league? White generally gives us what we want. I will admit that I consider myself a purist of sorts. I find it appalling that Johny Hendricks isn’t fighting for the welterweight title in March, but the consolation prize for me is Nick Diaz fighting Georges St. Pierre in a fight most of us have thought over about a hundred times. A “super fight” is supposed to be special. With Jose Aldo-Anthony Pettis just announced, it seems that in 2013 those words are going to be used a lot when talking about UFC main events. How can you say no to a super fight? Unfortunately, none of those kinds of fights seem based on any kind of ranking system.
I feel rankings are important, for the most part. However, when it comes to promotional rankings, I take them about as serious as I did the ill-fated World Association of Mixed Martial Arts. A promotion is always going to do what makes sense for business. Even Bellator has made a loophole to get around the tournament format, teasing a potential rematch for Eddie Alvarez and Michael Chandler.
As a whole, I think it’s important to know who the top fighters in a division are, but looking to the UFC for those cues or expecting it to base its money fights around a list made by the media is far-fetched.
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