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Friday fight headlines: Fighter rankings gone wild

By Zach Arnold | August 10, 2007

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Al Bundy on MMA.

People in boxing don’t know how to respond to the rise of MMA in America. So, naturally, a cure has been found – let’s have a media-driven symposium called “Is Boxing Down for the Count?” and have a bunch of people who made millions in boxing explain why the industry isn’t dead.

CBS Sportsline writer Mike Freeman is back with his UFC-bashing ways.

I got e-mails from friends and readers in Japan about this story, so obviously I’ll link to it here. For the first time in the history of Japanese baseball, a player has failed a drug test. Not surprisingly, it happens to be a foreign player (Ricky Guttomson). The substance in question that Guttormson tested positive for is finasteride. The Japanese angle on this test failure is that finasteride is a masking agent, although it’s a drug more commonly seen in hair-growth products. More information at The Fanhouse.

I’m horrified by this article claiming that Kazuhiro Nakamura vs. Ryoto Machida will be a ‘turning point’ in UFC for international competition.

Medical suspensions resulting from last weekend’s WEC Las Vegas event.

Another dog fighting/UFC comparison made.

The latest information on the UFC/Fedor negotiations.

An American court stops NFL star Pacman Jones from appearing at a TNA wrestling PPV this Sunday. More on this story here.

The trials and tribulations of Asashoryu.

Oh yeah, there’s a K-1 show in Las Vegas on Saturday.

There are now Sherdog fighter rankings.

Onto today’s headlines.

  1. MMA Madness: Does the US MMA judging system need revamping? How would you change it?
  2. KSBY (San Luis Obispo, CA): Tee up with Action News for the Ryan Bennett Memorial Golf tournament
  3. UFC Mania: The Huntington Beach Businessman – interview with Tito Ortiz
  4. The Houston Chronicle: WEC update – Urijah Faber versus Jeff Curran potential fall match-up
  5. The Battle Creek Enquirer (MI): Cage fighting show cancelled
  6. The Dayton Daily News: It’s ‘Lights Out’ at MMA show in Indianapolis this Saturday
  7. Crave Online: The trouble with the Gracies
  8. The Deseret News (UT): Jiu-jitsu builds self-confidence
  9. 411 Mania: The Throwdown MMA fighter rankings
  10. The Daily Texan: Teaching the fight – former UFC champion Bas Rutten in Austin to teach locals how to fight
  11. Niagara This Week: Doctor prescribes martial arts
  12. MMA Weekly: Paulo Filho discusses WEC title and picture
  13. The Fight Network: Jon Murphy vs. Tony Bonello booked for next ShoXC event
  14. MMA California: Vanilla Gorilla (Lodune Sincaid) ready for kick ass fight Saturday
  15. UFC Junkie: Justin McCully vs. Christian Wellisch set for UFC 76
  16. UFC Mania: Pictures of Cro Cop training for Kongo fight at UFC 75
  17. The Anderson Herald Bulletin (Indiana): UFL brings MMA to Conseco Fieldhouse
  18. The Thomasville Times: Boxing really needs a shot in the arm
  19. The Cecil Whig (MD): Life-changing experiences
  20. Sportsnet (Canada): Joe “Daddy” Stevenson in the lightweight mix
  21. The Hemet Valley Chronicle (CA): SJHS wrestler wins belt in first cage fight
  22. The Visalia Times-Delta: Mike Cook gets martial arts title shot
  23. The Korea Times: ‘Goliath’ Choi safe to fight?
  24. Komikazee: $1500 USD MMA hardcover collectors edition picture book
  25. Bodog Fight Files: Interview with Mark Coleman – Part 1
  26. The News and Star (UK): BBC TV cameras to be at War in Workington IV show
  27. CBS 2 (Los Angeles): Diego Sanchez is back and ready for UFC title contention
  28. CBS Sports Central: Interview with Josh Barnett
  29. The Indianapolis Star: Fight craze – MMA quickly becoming most popular combat sport
  30. The Indianapolis Star: Darrell “Bulldog” Smith takes to violent sport
  31. The Intelligencer (Philadelphia): Martial arts students excel at tournament

Topics: Boxing, Japan, K-1, Media, MMA, South Korea, UFC, WEC, Zach Arnold | 23 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |

23 Responses to “Friday fight headlines: Fighter rankings gone wild”

  1. Matt Boone says:

    New interviews w/ Denis Kang, Dan Henderson and Tito Ortiz are up at http://www.mmanews.com RSS feed is http://www.mmanews.com/rss.xml.

    Where’s the love lately, Zach?

  2. Ivan Trembow says:

    Boxing had its second biggest PPV-revenue-generating year ever in 2006, and is on pace to have its biggest PPV-revenue-generating year ever in 2007.

  3. Fluyid says:

    I agree with Ivan. The idea of discussing whether boxing is down is little more than a media-generated matter.

    Have the demographics changed forever over the past couple of decades? Of course. That’s easy to see.

    However, anyone playing into this line of inquiry (present company included) is doing little more than wasting bandwidth/paper/brain cells. It’s a false premise.

    I recall quite clearly in the late 1970s when this very same thing was being discussed, and the “death of the heavyweight division” was seen as the reason for the downfall. How, it was asked, could the sport survive without an Ali, a Marciano, a Joe Louis, etc., etc.

    Yet it survives and, as always, thrives for the few.

  4. UFC Fanboy (45 Huddle) says:

    How much does the De La Hoya vs. Mayweather PPV skew those stats?

    I don’t think there is much debate that boxing PPV numbers are still solid. Their biggest issue is the lack of upcoming talent for the next generation. Coupled with a fan base that is aging with no younger fans really taking their place. That is why the “boxing is dead” articles have populated in 2007.

    Of course, boxing is still popular overseas and still have a very solid fanbase to the hispanic communities in the United States. But the writing is on the wall that boxing will likely never become a major sport again in America, and in 20 years once the baby boomers start to die off, their fan base is going to dwindle.

  5. Jordan Breen says:

    Boxing has been “dying” forever. And yet Saturday night serves up another great boxing card. Go figure.

  6. Ivan Trembow says:

    “Their biggest issue is the lack of upcoming talent for the next generation.”

    That is also an argument that is made primarily by people who don’t follow boxing. I’m not pointing to you in particular because a lot of people say that.

    As far as boxers who have big star potential and who are not considered “old” in terms of how much money they’ve drawn in the U.S. compared to how much money they can draw in the future, there’s Samuel Peter, Chad Dawson, Joe Calzaghe (has just begun to be marketed well in the U.S.), Jermain Taylor, Kelly Pavlik, Arthur Abraham, Miguel Cotto, Paul Williams, Kermit Cintron, Ricky Hatton, Paulie Malignaggi, Juan Diaz, Julio Diaz, Michael Katsidis, Manny Pacquiao (Manny Pacquiao!), and Jorge Linares to name like 15, and there are many more who could also be named.

  7. Jonathan says:

    I have been calling for the death of boxing since the Shoeshine Incident of 1890.

  8. Jordan Breen says:

    “As far as boxers who have big star potential and who are not considered “old” in terms of how much money they’ve drawn in the U.S. compared to how much money they can draw in the future…”

    The most telling part is that some of those guys were nobodies even two years ago. Hell, I’d actually seen three of Linares’ fights in Japan, and I didn’t think much of him until he plastered Larios.

    Boxing is always gonna be in fine shape, for serious.

    And all of you should watch Mexico vs. Philippines tomorrow night. It’s the new USA vs. Russia.

  9. Psygone says:

    I predict 15 years from now those same boxing writers will be lamenting about that generation’s crop of fights and yearning for these good old days 🙂

  10. Zack says:

    “Their biggest issue is the lack of upcoming talent for the next generation.”

    Kinda like how in MMA the biggest draws are Ken Shamrock, Tito, Randy, Hughes, Royce, and Chuck…all dudes who came up in the UFC prior to Zuffa.

  11. steve says:

    How is Freeman and Caplan able to stand in the same room with one another?

  12. Ivan Trembow says:

    Mike Freeman wants attention and we’re only giving it to him if we take the bait. Not that different from a message board troll in that way.

  13. Zach Arnold says:

    Mike Freeman wants attention and we’re only giving it to him if we take the bait. Not that different from a message board troll in that way.

    He also draws a paycheck while the rest of us stay on the sidelines.

  14. Ivan Trembow says:

    You’re right about that; I’m just saying that I don’t even think he is sincere with some of the arguments that he makes against MMA. I think he’s just trying to stir the pot.

  15. Marcus Johnston says:

    Mike Freeman is a douche. The only reason MMA fans are a bunch of “knuckle draggers” to him, is because he’s too stubborn to learn about the sport. Plus, I bet he only responds to the letters with bad grammar, instead of the well thought out emails which he probably throws in his trash folder.

    I really couldn’t care less about what he writes. Let him get paid to be a jaded asshole. If he’s to stubborn to learn about MMA the sport;no–the artform, he can just screw off for all I care as he’s the one looking like the bigot.

  16. Jeremy (not that Jeremy) says:

    “Ken Shamrock, Tito, Randy, Hughes, Royce, and Chuck”

    Does anyone REALLY want to see Ken, Tito, or Royce ever fight again? Seriously, those three guys are singlehandedly responsible for half of the most incredibly boring MMA matches of all time. Royce alone is worth a third of them.

  17. THX-1138 says:

    That Al Bundy interview was great. He made a ton of great points with how the guys should evolve in the ring. The only weird part was his vision of bare knuckle fighting.

  18. Kid Nate says:

    Elaborate on why you’re horrified by the article on Machida/Nakamura fight. I understood what you’ve been saying on the UFC’s weak talent picking from Japan, but isn’t Nakamura pretty a-list because of his olympic judo credentials?

  19. Rollo the Cat says:

    “That Al Bundy interview was great. He made a ton of great points with how the guys should evolve in the ring. The only weird part was his vision of bare knuckle fighting.”

    The bare knuckle thing was one of the only god points he made. Gloves and hand wraps are the worst thing to happen to MMA.

    The problem with commenting on Ed’s interview is that he vacillates between Gracie propaganda and some good informed observations. It is difficult to figure out exactly what he imeans to say sometimes.

  20. Zack says:

    “Does anyone REALLY want to see Ken, Tito, or Royce ever fight again?”

    All we can go on is past buy rates. Royce was the only guy who could help Hughes sell a ticket and made him a star. And theres no point in trying to argue the point that Ken/Tito are draws…cmon man.

  21. Mike Sawyer says:

    I think Al made some great points…Fire Eddie Bravo right now for Al…lol..

  22. 45 Huddle says:

    Ed O’Neill makes some good points, but I don’t agree with everything he said.

    At the same time…. At least he knows what he is talking about before he opens his mouth. too many people in today’s media talk about stuff they have no clue about. Ed O’Neill obviously is a legit fan of both BJJ and MMA.

  23. 45 Huddle says:

    At the same time… I will say that at points, O’Neill does sound like your typical BJJ guy. Always downplaying the MMA fighters striking. Yes, it is correct that Chuck Liddell’s striking style would get him wrecked in boxing. However, a top level boxer would get wrecked in MMA 99 times out of 100. Why? Because their way of striking cannot stop leg kicks and completely leaves them open for takedowns. The “Boxing Way” is unrealistic in an MMA fight.

    Also, it is impossible for one fighter to master every level of fighting. Just look at the body type of a typical boxer. Compare that to the body type of a typical wrestler. They are usually very different. Then when you take that body type and try to put it into a field of combat that it isn’t made for…. Of course it is going to struggle.

    The revolving titles isn’t because of amateur fighting skills. It is because a fight has so many elements that it is nearly impossible for one fighter to match up (skill and body type wise) to all the contenders going for his belt.

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