The Official MMA Discussion Thread

[mitsukaikira]

Interim belts are so dumb, especially when the actual champ is fighting on the show the interim belt is being fought for. So, either Frankie or Jose will get a strap and one will have to fight Conor. You don't need a diluted title belt to set that up.

[Blackman]

If I was playing UFC in WMMA and I'd have done a similar thing, I'd probably start a new game.

[gingerdilligaf]

I honestly dont see the point in Mcgregor v Diaz 2?McGregor should surely be defending his featherweight title not fighting above his weightclass?For all Mcgregors hype he needs to prove himself a true champion before he steps up. Why waste time fighting Diaz again so soon when guys like Edgar deserve a title shot?Bizarre matchmaking & not the main event i expected for a landmark event like UFC 200

[K-Nection]

Anyone know when CM Punk is supposed to fight?

[Kingster]

Anyone know when CM Punk is supposed to fight?

 

No one knows yet. He's currently recovering from a back surgery. But they have just announced a Fight Night in Chicago for July 23, so maybe he'll fight on that card.

I wouldn't expect anything from him, though. His skill level is basically that of an amateur fighter, and even that might be an optimistic estimate.

 

By the way: Daniel Cormier is injured and had to pull out of the fight against Jon Jones. That's not an april fool's joke

[guyver3]

Are fight nights still on free TV? If so no way, Punk is going to have his first fight on pay per view at least in the semi main.

[Celuwyn]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="gingerdilligaf" data-cite="gingerdilligaf" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="26660" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I honestly dont see the point in Mcgregor v Diaz 2?McGregor should surely be defending his featherweight title not fighting above his weightclass?For all Mcgregors hype he needs to prove himself a true champion before he steps up. Why waste time fighting Diaz again so soon when guys like Edgar deserve a title shot?Bizarre matchmaking & not the main event i expected for a landmark event like UFC 200</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Mcgregor defeated Jose Aldo by KO. A man undefeated for 6 years. And he predicted how before. "prove himself" for what ? And he have made Dustin looks bad, Dustin who is a very good fighter.</p><p> And he has KO Mendes. Mendes was THE GUY before Conor, and don't tell me " he wasn't prepared" it's his job. You think Conor was ready for a wrestling machine ? his initial opponent was Aldo. Look at some of the shot Mendes landed, Conor was smiling.</p><p> </p><p> The thing is, a match with Edgar is not lucrative. But IF Edgar beat Aldo (and I hope, Edgar don't lose the second match, he was robbed against Benson Henderson) That would be a big big match. Especially if Edgar KO Aldo, and Conor KO Diaz.</p>

[Kingster]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="guyver3" data-cite="guyver3" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="26660" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Are fight nights still on free TV? If so no way, Punk is going to have his first fight on pay per view at least in the semi main.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> I'd be shocked if they'd put him in a co-main event spot or even a main event spot on a PPV. Sure he's got some name value and that's why he was hired in the first place despite his complete lack of mma experience.</p><p> But they're not going to put an 0-0 fighter in a pay-per-view main event spot, nor should they. I can see him being on the undercard or headlining the prelims, though.</p>

[guyver3]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Kingster" data-cite="Kingster" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="26660" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I'd be shocked if they'd put him in a co-main event spot or even a main event spot on a PPV. Sure he's got some name value and that's why he was hired in the first place despite his complete lack of mma experience.<p> But they're not going to put an 0-0 fighter in a pay-per-view main event spot, nor should they. I can see him being on the undercard or headlining the prelims, though.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> And Brock Lesnar was in the semi main for his first UFC PPV a 1-0 fighter. Dana isn't stupid a lot of people are going to pay to see Punks first fight the wrestling fans who want to see how he does and all the stuck up haters who want to see him get his ass kicked. Putting him on the undercard or prelims is like throwing money way.</p>

[Kingster]

And Brock Lesnar was in the semi main for his first UFC PPV a 1-0 fighter. Dana isn't stupid a lot of people are going to pay to see Punks first fight the wrestling fans who want to see how he does and all the stuck up haters who want to see him get his ass kicked. Putting him on the undercard or prelims is like throwing money way.

 

Brock Lesnar had a legitimate martial arts background, was a heavyweight (who are bigger draws than the lower weight classes, in general), looked like he eats children for breakfast and his opponent Frank Mir was already a big name and former champion in the UFC himself.

 

CM Punk doesn't have any martial arts background and he'll likely fight at welterweight against Mickey Gall, a no-name who will probably finish him within the first round.

 

I don't think that CM Punk will be that big of a draw in the mma world as pro wrestling fans would like him to be and I'm almost sure the UFC will not put him in a (co-) main event slot of a numbered ppv for his first fight. I can see him headline a FS1 Fight Night or a Fight Pass event, but not a pay-per-view.

 

Don't get me wrong: I have nothing against CM Punk and I'm also curious to see how he does. And if the UFC gives him the chance to do what he has always wanted to try, good for him.

But he's been training mma for barely a year now and in the UFC, he'll be fighting guys that have been involved in martial arts their whole life. He's most likely going to get beat up by everyone they put in front of him.

[Celuwyn]

I agree with Kingster. CM Punk will surely open the main card or headline a minor event

[Blackman]

I think they'd let him open a PPV main card. He's been hyped so much that people will indeed pay for it. Fight fans will rejoice if this knocks a "PPV" calibur match to the prelims.

[Capelli King]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Kingster" data-cite="Kingster" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="26660" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div><p> But he's been training mma for barely a year now and in the UFC, he'll be fighting guys that have been involved in martial arts their whole life. He's most likely going to get beat up by everyone they put in front of him.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Theoretically yes, but i am pretty sure they will be careful wit how they book him.</p>

[Kingster]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Capelli King" data-cite="Capelli King" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="26660" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Theoretically yes, but i am pretty sure they will be careful wit how they book him.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> No matter how careful they try to book him, he'll always be the guy with much much less martial arts experience. Even if they give him another 0-0 fighter, he will have had amateur fights and he will have been training mma or a specific martial art for years. Unless of course they put him against another celebrity with the same lack of experience - but that would almost crossover into Bellator freakshow territory.</p>

[guyver3]

Kingster I think you're over thinking this the fact that he is an amateur means nothing he has a name. Punk is a character whether you like or him or not that people are going to pay to see. His actual fighting ability doesn't matter for this fight it's the fact that he is a name that will draw buys which honestly the UFC needs. They've gotten so big but have maybe 3 fighters that are true stars a casual person will have heard of who fight maybe twice a year. Punk won't change that but he will definitely get more eyes on the sport and for those eyes to hopefully latch on to another fighter.

[Blackman]

I think we'll be hearing a lot more about Punk in the coming month, given McGregor seems to have broken up (for now) with the UFC. Serves them right for pushing him to the moon. He basically has enough dough to make it in life, so why not step out soon? You'd think he'd stick around for a while longer, but maybe watching a peer get knocked clinically dead urged him to move up the timeframe somewhat. Tbh, I get his point, if that is indeed his reason (too many possibilities to know for sure).

 

Shows how foolish it is to promote a superevent. I wonder what they put on the card now. Honestly nothing could be worthy of the hype, or it has to be Jones vs Cormier II or GSP returning to face Diaz, both of which won't happen. The lineup was already disappointing.

[Blackman]

I don't really buy into the whole "200" hype, but the press conference was quite a dud, with Bones and DC just exchanging words like little kids, repeating the same stuff over and over. They are really missing Conor.

[gingerdilligaf]

For anyone who praises Conor McGregor for his 'fake retirement' read Paddy Holohans retirement message. It puts a lot into perspective.

[gingerdilligaf]

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1420783467947111&id=100000464136581

[Blackman]

<p>Here we go again... UFC's dirty side gets the better of them (again) when they banned Ariel Helwani from their events. So... what did he do wrong? I know reporting unbiased news is a crime nowadays, but where would it hurt them? Maybe because he was playing matchmaker with the twitter-world before they even announced it? Did Dana want to hear the awes himself upon announcing the news? </p><p> </p><p>

They pulled a stunt like this with the Cut Man too because he was vocal about the Reebok deal. Come on, UFC. Don't be like that. I know they think they are bigger than the sport but they're not. Good luck trying to take on the "clueless" judges the same way.</p>

[Kingster]

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Blackman" data-cite="Blackman" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="26660" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Good luck trying to take on the "clueless" judges the same way.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Judges and refs are NOT employed by the UFC, they are appointed by the athletic commissions. So, the UFC has absolutely no say about them. Although, Dana's rants about Steve Mazzagatti made the commissions never use them again on UFC events. </p><p> </p><p> Regarding the Ariel Helwani thing: It's terrible and unprofessional. The UFC has been doing that for years with less known journalists and Dana White has even publicly insulted some of them on Twitter. </p><p> Even though banning Helwani is obviously wrong, he's probably one of the few MMA journalists who doesn't need to care. He's still got a big amount of informants and sources to get his information from, so I don't think that changes much for him.</p><p> </p><p> Instead, you should feel bad for people like Esther Lin and Casey Leydon, who make their living as photographers and cameramen respectively at UFC events and who didn't have anything to do with breaking the Lesnar news.</p><p> </p><p> Dana White has always been a [insert any swear-word that is banned on the GDS board here] and things like that make me hope that he gets replaced sooner rather than later, which will probably not happen unless the UFC gets sold. </p><p> </p><p> The sad thing is: UFC 199 was so awesome, one of the best if not the best overall fight cards in my memory and the UFC itself distracted from that successful event by being stupid.</p><p> </p><p> Everyone should listen to Jeremy Botter on the Submission Radio podcast and read Ben Fowlkes' article on MMA Junkie with regards to that matter. Sums up everything about it pretty well and Ariel gives some details about what happened backstage in an article from Kevin Iole on Yahoo Sports.</p>

[BHK1978]

I just saw that Kimbo Slice has passed away at 42.

[iruleall15]

Considering the amount damage he prolly took from the pare knuckle fights it had to of played a part in this. But im assuming heart failure

[lr10540]

<p>RIP Kimbo. I always enjoyed watching him fight. He was pretty entertaining on TUF, as well. I'm curious what the cause of the heart failure was.</p><p> </p><p>

Time to make Big Magic an in ring competitor and push him to the moon!</p>

[Blackman]

So UFC is really pulling the switch at promoting the draws. VanZant is getting a match with Rawlings, a masterful pairing as the latter is coming off a winning streak despite being a little lacking technically imo. It'd be a good win for VanZant and should really be winnable for her, setting up a rematch with whoever wins the Herrig/Curran rematch. If she wins, they'll probably hand her a title shot. It's cheesy booking, but if you replicate it in WMMA4 you profit just the same, especially as Rawlings does have some marketability.

 

Punk will have his match in september. Finally (if it actually happens). Imagine Gall overtraining and injuring himself. Brooks would probably never take another opponent and it will be postponed yet again. Why was this guy fighting him again? Because he called him out?

 

Apparently the Fedor card was laughable according to sherdog. I watched the main event and honestly it wasn't laughable at all, being quite exciting all the same without any severe lack of technical prowess. I take it the reviewer never saw the first SFL ("Supa Fite Leeeegg"). That event was funnier than any Ben Stiller movie. If the UFC can court Fedor for one final match (and I think they will) it will boost one of their "has-beens" to another title shot - as Fedor won't win it - and give them a nice paycheck in return. A win-win.