This sport is still in its infancy. 10lb separations for lighter weights aren’t that big of a deal.

Here is a link to the talked about wallpaper:
http://photos-c.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v153/198/89/44007810/n44007810_31866342_7190.jpg

He just mailed in his performance yesterday: lackluster, telegraphed shots; impatient on the ground; and he somehow didn’t learn how to avoid the looping power punches after getting his face broken by Gomi.

I think everyone is partially correct regarding how this weight class was formed.

I don’t think Gaijin is completely wrong for saying that it has to do with the metric system. PRIDE already had their MW set at 93 kg (205 lbs). They already knew they wanted 2 lower weight classes when they formed Bushido, and it was convenient enough to set them at 10 kg increments: 83 kg (183 lbs) and 73 kgs (161 lbs). Shooto having previously had a 154 lb division obviously had little traction to PRIDE.

That said, I’m sure it was very convenient that they could then use Sakurai at this 161 weight class. Gomi/Sakurai being popular or not, I recall PRIDE hauling out 4 Japanese fighters during one of their events as their “Bushido Aces”: Gomi, Sakurai, Minowa and some other guy I can’t remember at this moment (Chonan perhaps? — I’m sure someone remembers).

True – his performance last night had all but ensured he’s going to have a hard time getting booked on any legit cards. So maybe a loss like that might need to be worth a bit more than his “base pay”, maybe he got his own “shower room bonus”. But I was just looking at his recent record (0-4 and 3 by (t)KO) and taking into account the fact that he took the fight on about a week’s notice (and 2 weeks after his last loss). I just felt it was more an indication of him being underprepared, not wanting to get hurt and needed a paycheck.

On the subject of Kimbo, like him or love him, he seems to have a pretty good following – that crowd was electric for him last night. And even though he has a thug persona, he seems to be taking the sport very seriously and after reading a bio on him he sounds to be a pretty smart guy (he was a high school football star that went to Miami U on an academic scholarship). He has some good natural ability and I think if he is brought along he could be a pretty decent pro, unfortunately his internet stardom will probably overshadow most of this.

But I’m not about to be a douche and refuse to relent in the face of overwhelming evidence.

The one thing I’m not sure of is whether you’re implying that there was someone else involved in this “dive” or just that Cantrell didn’t feel like fighting and took the pussy way out. If it’s the former, as I’ve said before I’m inclined to disagree.

Well, people who take dives usually try to do so in a fashion that does minimal damage to them. Sometimes you have a guy like Ray Lamotta who stands there and takes a beating in doing so. In any case, the end result is the same. Its not a “work” though. A worked fight is one that’s faked with both participants knowing. Lots of guys (probably most) have taken dives for fighters in the past with the fighter being blissfully unaware. Primo Carnera, anyone?

Now, as for whether or not he was given extra incentive, I have no idea. I have a hard time believing some guy with 20 pro fights and who had been KOed legitimately before was so completely terrified of a guy with no licensed fights and who had lost one of his underground battles to a guy at least on his own level that he was too frightened to fight. Beating Kimbo was a meal ticket for him. Losing to Kimbo could have been too. We’re likely never to know.