MMA

[jujigatame]

I dunno, Nelson was never really that great, and purses don't include sponsorship money which (before the Reebok deal) could be quite substantial for a popular guy like Nelson.

Guys who fought on ESPN2 FNF (even big names like Glen Johnson) used to make even less than that.

[northern]

I agree, that's the problem with boxing, too much completion, now usually that's a good thing, just Not in combat sports, boxing- too many weight classes, promotors and world titles, it just ruins everything.
That being said, this reebok deal seems toxic, zuffa need to do something about it ASAP, before it does anymore damage.
How long does the deal last for does anyone know ?

I think it was a 3 year deal when it was signed but I'm not sure if its been revised since then to be completely honest

[lefty]

Page is very exciting. A bit of a bum-crusher in his own right but that's forgivable considering he's only been in the sport a few years. His next opponent (Fernando Gonzalez) is a solid step up, too.

McGeary I'm not 100% sold on. It's good to see a guy who attacks so aggressively off his back, but his last 2 fights were not super impressive victories. I think Davis will absolutely dominate him.

You're right. Unfortunately, like most Brits at the moment, they may fall short at the highest level. I had high hopes for Manuwa, but he didn't even put up much of a fight against the top guys. Disappointing. Till and Page have potential but I still don't see a UFC champ from the UK. Shame because if it really blows up here, the UFC will have another Ireland.

Tom Breese has a lot of potential. Trains full time at Tri-star under Zahabi aswell which is better than a lot of the UK guys you see come through.

[Impractical Poster]

Wonder Boy will be champion. Dude looked spectacular.

[Deadendgeneration]

Wonder Boy will be champion. Dude looked spectacular.

A wrestler who actually looks to wrestle with him could cause him a lot of problems but I'd pick him over Lawler and hope he gets the next shot. Failing that, give him Condit. I'd be pretty excited for that fight.

[King Carlos]

Yep, that's the next Welterweight champion. MMA is really changing. Becoming much more striker oriented.

[jujigatame]

I think people anointing Wonderboy the champ already are underestimating Lawler. His toughness and grit have carried the day in a LOT of fights where he was considered the underdog.

[Impractical Poster]

Lawler is tough, but he has had a pretty rough run of it as champion. What makes Thompson so good right now is that his wrestling has improved greatly in a relatively short period of time. Hendricks is a better wrestler than Lawler, and I think he has a better chin as well... and Hendricks got out wrestled out of a take down by Thompson. Stephen has been training his wrestling with some really top guys, which include a Canadian Olympian. I have a hard time seeing Lawler beating Thompson's style. Of course, I could be wrong. But, seeing how dominate he was against Hendricks, who I thought beat Lawler both times, I can't see Lawler's style as being very competitive with Thompson's. He stands in front of his opponents way too much.

Guys I can see giving Stephen a decent go would be technical strikers with good movement like NBK or McDonald.

[zojo]

Thompson looked larger than he has in the past. I was surprised when I saw that he is 32. I assumed he was still in his 20s. Seems to add on some muscle and worked on his takedown defense.

This was not a dehydrated, old, or ringworn Hendricks he fought. Hendricks even hit him a couple of times squarely.

I'd be happy to see either Thompson or Woodley get the shot.

Also, I'm more excited about Johnson vs. Cejudo than Jones vs. Cormier 2

[danamba7]

Very impressed with Thompson. I'm loving this new era of fluid movement and striking. Thompson, McGregor, Rockhold etc all brilliant to watch.

[danamba7]

Page is very exciting. A bit of a bum-crusher in his own right but that's forgivable considering he's only been in the sport a few years. His next opponent (Fernando Gonzalez) is a solid step up, too.

McGeary I'm not 100% sold on. It's good to see a guy who attacks so aggressively off his back, but his last 2 fights were not super impressive victories. I think Davis will absolutely dominate him.

You're right. Unfortunately, like most Brits at the moment, they may fall short at the highest level. I had high hopes for Manuwa, but he didn't even put up much of a fight against the top guys. Disappointing. Till and Page have potential but I still don't see a UFC champ from the UK. Shame because if it really blows up here, the UFC will have another Ireland.

Tom Breese has a lot of potential. Trains full time at Tri-star under Zahabi aswell which is better than a lot of the UK guys you see come through.

Didn't know that. I'll keep an eye on Breese then.

[Impractical Poster]

Gall is most likely going to put a hurtin on Punk... if it even happens at all.

[danamba7]

Gall is most likely going to put a hurtin on Punk... if it even happens at all.

Will be very interesting. Surely CM Punk can't have reached a decent level in striking and BJJ in such a short amount of time. He'll bring in some fans but I can't see him getting very far.

[Impractical Poster]

Gall is most likely going to put a hurtin on Punk... if it even happens at all.

Will be very interesting. Surely CM Punk can't have reached a decent level in striking and BJJ in such a short amount of time. He'll bring in some fans but I can't see him getting very far.

I read an article on CM's transition from Pro wrestling to MMA. While most would probably start their MMA career in a more obscure promotion, CM is starting straight at the top with the entire world watching. This is a ton of pressure on him. If he performs poorly, it's going to be quite embarrassing for him I'd imagine. The guy seems to have a huge ego to begin with. It probably shook him a bit to see how legit Gall was in his performance against Jackson. I wouldn't be surprised at all if the injury postponement ends up leading to further delays and an eventual "false start" with no actual fight coming to fruition on the part of Brooks.

Mickey has already entered the limelight having had his name mentioned alongside Punk's. Good for him.

[danamba7]

Gall is most likely going to put a hurtin on Punk... if it even happens at all.

Will be very interesting. Surely CM Punk can't have reached a decent level in striking and BJJ in such a short amount of time. He'll bring in some fans but I can't see him getting very far.

I read an article on CM's transition from Pro wrestling to MMA. While most would probably start their MMA career in a more obscure promotion, CM is starting straight at the top with the entire world watching. This is a ton of pressure on him. If he performs poorly, it's going to be quite embarrassing for him I'd imagine. The guy seems to have a huge ego to begin with. It probably shook him a bit to see how legit Gall was in his performance against Jackson. I wouldn't be surprised at all if the injury postponement ends up leading to further delays and an eventual "false start" with no actual fight coming to fruition on the part of Brooks.

Mickey has already entered the limelight having had his name mentioned alongside Punk's. Good for him.

Yeah you cant blame Mickey. He can go from an unknown to a very well known fighter in one fight.

Not really sure what CM Punk's end goal is. Surely he's not doing this to be a mid-tier gatekeeper or something? But there's next to no chance he'll get near the title as he's got so much to catch up on. Guys like Robbie, Rory and Condit have been doing this their whole lives.

[Impractical Poster]

Yeah. I think he's already gone from unheard of to somewhat of a star even if the fight never comes off.

Watch us all be wrong and CM comes out like a beast and starts destroying people....lol

[Impractical Poster]

Looks like McGregor's own countrymen are sick of his crap...

http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2016/2/16/11 ... r-mma-news

"Indeed, what's most galling about McGregor's arrogant persona, which lacks any sense of humility, is the way he's attempting to market what appears to be a natural inclination towards stupidity as national pride - especially his parading of the tricolour as a badge of honour, draped around his shoulders after each fight.

"The paddywhackery "Oirish" card McGregor constantly plays - to enhance his image in United States - is as embarrassing as it is ridiculous. One American journalist even claimed that McGregor was carrying 'the nation of Ireland around on his back'.

"McGregor agreed, adding that he was so proud to see Irish fans dancing around Las Vegas like 'fornicating leprechauns'. Never one to shy away from cliches and bland stereotypes in public, McGregor has also labelled the Irish - to millions of viewers around the world - as a nation of people who 'are lovers of combat'.

"It's hard to figure out if McGregor has the even the most basic intellectual faculties required to think before he speaks, given just how outrageous some of his comments have been."

I'm starting to feel McGregor is going to fall soon... and hard.

[danamba7]

Looks like McGregor's own countrymen are sick of his crap...

http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2016/2/16/11 ... r-mma-news

"Indeed, what's most galling about McGregor's arrogant persona, which lacks any sense of humility, is the way he's attempting to market what appears to be a natural inclination towards stupidity as national pride - especially his parading of the tricolour as a badge of honour, draped around his shoulders after each fight.

"The paddywhackery "Oirish" card McGregor constantly plays - to enhance his image in United States - is as embarrassing as it is ridiculous. One American journalist even claimed that McGregor was carrying 'the nation of Ireland around on his back'.

"McGregor agreed, adding that he was so proud to see Irish fans dancing around Las Vegas like 'effing leprechauns'. Never one to shy away from cliches and bland stereotypes in public, McGregor has also labelled the Irish - to millions of viewers around the world - as a nation of people who 'are lovers of combat'.

"It's hard to figure out if McGregor has the even the most basic intellectual faculties required to think before he speaks, given just how outrageous some of his comments have been."

I'm starting to feel McGregor is going to fall soon... and hard.

He may fall soon, but that article is ridiculous. There's still plenty of Irish who back him.

"especially his parading of the tricolour as a badge of honour, draped around his shoulders after each fight."

Please tell me what the hell is wrong with that?

[Impractical Poster]

There are plenty of Irish who back him. But, they are the sort who attended the prefight presser in Dublin for the Aldo bout. I can't remember seeing such a disrespectful bunch in a so called "professional" atmosphere. It was a zoo and definitely something I would be embarrassed about had my country been in the spotlight carrying on that way. Sure, I get what Conor does is fun and exciting for a lot of people. But, he crosses the line time and time again. I'm glad to hear some of his own people speaking out against him.

Another Irish journalist stated that it is good to have such a great athlete among the Irish people. But, the youth really look up to athletes of his stature and tend to model their behavior as such as well.

[Counter-puncher]

I've no idea how he's somehow got a reputation for being this charismatic witty 'starpower' type, his schtick is as old as the hills and always struck me as embarassingly dull self-promotion

[Impractical Poster]

Looks like McGregor's own countrymen are sick of his crap...

http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2016/2/16/11 ... r-mma-news

"Indeed, what's most galling about McGregor's arrogant persona, which lacks any sense of humility, is the way he's attempting to market what appears to be a natural inclination towards stupidity as national pride - especially his parading of the tricolour as a badge of honour, draped around his shoulders after each fight.

"The paddywhackery "Oirish" card McGregor constantly plays - to enhance his image in United States - is as embarrassing as it is ridiculous. One American journalist even claimed that McGregor was carrying 'the nation of Ireland around on his back'.

"McGregor agreed, adding that he was so proud to see Irish fans dancing around Las Vegas like 'effing leprechauns'. Never one to shy away from cliches and bland stereotypes in public, McGregor has also labelled the Irish - to millions of viewers around the world - as a nation of people who 'are lovers of combat'.

"It's hard to figure out if McGregor has the even the most basic intellectual faculties required to think before he speaks, given just how outrageous some of his comments have been."

I'm starting to feel McGregor is going to fall soon... and hard.

He may fall soon, but that article is ridiculous. There's still plenty of Irish who back him.

"especially his parading of the tricolour as a badge of honour, draped around his shoulders after each fight."

Please tell me what the hell is wrong with that?

Nothing wrong with being patriotic at all. I believe what the journalist is getting at is the way he is acting as an ambassador for their country and speaking for them as a whole. By doing this, the way he carries himself is representing the country as well, so to speak.

[Impractical Poster]

I've no idea how he's somehow got a reputation for being this charismatic witty 'starpower' type, his schtick is as old as the hills and always struck me as embarassingly dull self-promotion

His thing is to say the most offensive things he can say to disrespect and belittle his opponent. The main reason is because of money, I'm sure (sell out). But, the mental warfare of it all is effective as well. I tend to believe most other athletes take the moral high ground and respect each other, for the most part, and that is why they draw a line they don't cross. Not because they aren't bright enough to come up with words to belittle their opponent, but because they have a bit of class.

[lefty]

I've no idea how he's somehow got a reputation for being this charismatic witty 'starpower' type, his schtick is as old as the hills and always struck me as embarassingly dull self-promotion

I think a big part of the appeal is how he tends to pick how fights are gonna go and a fair number of times he's been pretty accurate, down to the round and so forth. That's created a mystique around him.

[danamba7]

I can understand why people don't like him. He definitely crosses the line quite often. But I think people are taking him way too seriously. He picks fighters apart and they can't take it. But he can. Nothing phases him and he seems to have an answer for everything.

Impractical Poster - The zoo like atmosphere you talk of was only the same as what Conor has faced on a couple of occasions in Rio (once on the tour and once at a Q&A). Conor just handles it better than most. At the Q&A, Brazilians were threatening to kill him after he left and calling his mum a whore. He just stood there, smiled and gev it back to them.

Counter Puncher - I'm surprised that you think that way. He's definitely charismatic, he's come out with some brilliant moments for a fighter (the Aldo Gynecologist line & the El Chapo handshake reenactment to name a couple). And of course, he always backs it up, down to the round and the manor of the KO. I fail to see how people can't at least have some kind of respect for what he's done in such a short amount of time.

He's used the same pattern now on more than one occasion. In the fight announcment pressers or world tours, he goes big and launches a verbal onslaught to his opponent. He creates a hate towards himself and makes his opponent irrational. In the pre-fight presser, he's calm, almost zen like. He babies the opponent, saying things like "I feel sorry for Jose, I just want to give him a hug and tell him it'll all be over soon". Then post fight, after what he said would happen, happened, he is humble and respectful to his opponents. Luke Thomas was critical of his choice of insults towards RDA but went on to say he's the most charming fighter he's ever known post fight. He comes out with lines like "I'm cocky in prediction, I'm confident in preparation, but I am always humble in victory OR defeat", "I honestly believe there is no such thing as self made, I believe that is a term that does not exist. For me it certainly doesn't. The people who have been around for my whole career have helped shape this moment. This night and this moment is for them" and "There is no talent here, just hard work. This is an obsession, talent does not exist, we are all equal as human beings. You could be anyone if you put the time in. You will reach the top and that's that. I am not talented, I am obsessed."

This is not a completely arrogant ego-maniac here. He's just playing the game and winning.

As I said, I agree he crosses the line. But overall, his career and his mind set has genuinely inspired me.

[Impractical Poster]

There are ways to be charismatic and wage psychological warfare without going to the lengths of disrespect that he does. Maybe he just doesn't know how to do that yet. His fans will say that people take him too seriously. But, I believe he is just a bully at heart.

WIth that said, though, if some inspiration can be found through him in a good sense, I'm glad you could find it, danamba.