Friend of our site


MMA Headlines


UFC HP


Bleacher Report


MMA Fighting


MMA Torch


MMA Weekly


Sherdog (News)


Sherdog (Articles)


Liver Kick


MMA Junkie


MMA Mania


MMA Ratings


Rating Fights


Yahoo MMA Blog


MMA Betting


Search this site



Latest Articles


News Corner


MMA Rising


Audio Corner


Oddscast


Sherdog Radio


Video Corner


Fight Hub


Special thanks to...

Link Rolodex

Site Index


To access our list of posting topics and archives, click here.

Friend of our site


Buy and sell MMA photos at MMA Prints

Site feedback


Fox Sports: "Zach Arnold's Fight Opinion site is one of the best spots on the Web for thought-provoking MMA pieces."

« | Home | »

Will DREAM keep the cage?

By Zach Arnold | October 26, 2009

Print Friendly and PDF

The one top story coming out of the show in the various Japanese newspapers was Sakuraba surviving for 100 seconds in the cage to beat Zelg “Benkei” Galesic and pull off the win.

No attendance was listed in any of the papers regarding the DREAM 12 at Osaka Castle Hall, a building the promotion really should have not booked — especially coming off of a Yokohama Arena show a couple of weeks ago.

Nevertheless, everyone involved in the event seemed very happy with the cage. The fans, fighters, and event promoters. One thing that stuck out to me in listening to the various top foreign fighters (Overeem, Alvarez, Beebe, etc.) is that while they prefer the ring, they thought that the cage DREAM used was good. DREAM is an interesting position — they are pushing talent that UFC and WEC aren’t and it’s good to have some fresh faces. The problem is that long-term the promotion can’t book super elite talent because they don’t have the financial resources that UFC has. Much like the pro-wrestling boom in Japan in the early 90s, once the cash starts drying up so does the amount of foreign talent being brought in.

However, I think the cage format is an interesting way for DREAM to appeal to some big name foreign fighters to perhaps come and fight for the promotion in the future. It’s an ironic situation, given that Dana White has long argued publicly that he wants to see MMA leagues around the globe use the same rules and structure (a cage and the Unified rules). In this case, DREAM shifted towards that model a bit with the Osaka show and the experiment worked. The question now is whether or not DREAM in the long term will use the cage more often and how it will effect the outcome differently for certain match-ups.

Topics: DREAM, Japan, Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 39 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |

39 Responses to “Will DREAM keep the cage?”

  1. Mark says:

    I know the Danaites believe they’re just using the cage to try to leech off of UFC’s popularity (even though interestingly nobody gives a rats ass about UFC in Japan) but all MMA needs to do away with rings. It makes the fights much more fluent when you have to deal with being pinned against a fence and don’t get a chance to think a way out of a submission attempt when the ref yells “STOP!” because you’re about to fall out of the ring.

    DREAM is an interesting position — they are pushing talent that UFC and WEC aren’t and it’s good to have some fresh faces. The problem is that long-term the promotion can’t book super elite talent because they don’t have the financial resources that UFC has. Much like the pro-wrestling boom in Japan in the early 90s, once the cash starts drying up so does the amount of foreign talent being brought in.

    Well, if it forces them to push homegrown talent and only afford to bring in hacks like Tim Sylvia only once a year and skip out on fighting comedians, then is that really a bad thing?

  2. 45 Huddle says:

    I am pro cage. Just not that cage. It was way too bright and hurt my eyes watching the fights. The cage actually looked like bad CGI at a few points.

    Plus, they were doing a bad job at getting good camera angles. I think they tries to avoid the cameramen getting in the way like at most US events, but it is extremely necessary to get closer and better angles.

    Oh…. And if I never see another restatt due to the ropes, I will be a happy fan.

  3. d says:

    I believe the plan is to have one cage show a year, which I’m all for, but I’m not sure what the TV people think about it.

  4. 45 Huddle says:

    In a perfect MMA World….

    1. All fights take place in either 6/8 sided cage or circle one.

    2. Unified weight classes used with the least amount of catchweight fights possible.

    3. Unified rules used by the UFC with knees on the ground added. No elbow and no knees stinks.

  5. Alan Conceicao says:

    I had no issue with production or the look of the ring. My issue was what was supposed to happen inside of it. Its too bad they can’t pay some website to write about them, because then maybe we’d hear more about the awful decision on that show. Oh well.

    In other “Promotions that can’t get out of their own way” news, MFC stripped and cut Trevor Prangley for daring to take on other fights. Hopefully the UFC brings him back on. He generally makes for good fights. Strikeforce could use him as well in its weak 205lb or 185lb classes.

  6. Ultimo Santa says:

    Sakuraba turned in a phenomenal performance…my jaw dropped when he transitioned into the kneebar and forced the tap out. At one point I was expecting him to be carried out on a stretcher.

    Cage or ring? Either one is cool with me.

    Best rule sets IMO: stomps/soccer kicks/knees allowed anywhere, elbows only while standing.

    By disallowing stomps, knees and kicks on the ground, you give a disproportionate advantage to wrestlers. They can shoot at will and not suffer any consequences.

    Allowing elbows on the ground but no knees encourages wrestlers to lay and pray while dropping elbows, and not go for submissions or try to pass guard, improve position, etc.

    But the biggest problem, as we all saw Saturday night, is apparently giving NOTHING in terms of scoring for:

    a) causing damage
    b)pressing the action
    c) attempting to finish a fight

    Either that, or the UFC is now moving towards being a ‘worked shoot’ where Dana decides the winner and tells the judges what to score. With Machida’s win and Bisping’s win in the UK, it definitely feels like Zuffa ultimately controls the outcome of major fights if it goes to the scorecards.

  7. jr says:

    They’ll probably try the YAMMA Pit next

  8. Mark says:

    By disallowing stomps, knees and kicks on the ground, you give a disproportionate advantage to wrestlers. They can shoot at will and not suffer any consequences.

    Allowing elbows on the ground but no knees encourages wrestlers to lay and pray while dropping elbows, and not go for submissions or try to pass guard, improve position, etc.

    I 100% agree with this. And also how many lame stoppages for bad cuts due to elbows have ruined some fights. It’s funny that a lot of the same people who don’t want knees on the ground because it will lead to sooner endings to fights are supporters of elbows which cause basically the same thing.

    Either that, or the UFC is now moving towards being a ‘worked shoot’ where Dana decides the winner and tells the judges what to score. With Machida’s win and Bisping’s win in the UK, it definitely feels like Zuffa ultimately controls the outcome of major fights if it goes to the scorecards.

    I really doubt this. I think if they were going to work the Machida-Shogun fight it would have gone to Shogun because Dana is petrified Machida is going to be the 205lb Tim Sylvia and would love the belt off of him. Plus the feeling yesterday was the announcers were biased for Shogun by emphasizing his action and ignoring Machida’s. So would they be biased both ways?

    Also, I refuse to believe UFC would work fights because the stakes are too high. In Japan it’s believable because martial arts is part of their culture so no matter what it will thrive. But in America where the boxing squad would love to see UFC destroyed, why would they risk giving them the prime opportunity to do so for a Machida fight? (Or the Nogueira-Couture fight since the tinfoil hatters believed that was worked too.) Maybe it would be believable if it meant saving one of their top money draws like Lesnar or Ortiz. But Machida or Bisping? No way. Plus people can find conspiracies of fixing in all sports if they look hard enough. And it’s usually just officials making awful calls due to error, not malice on the part of the league.

  9. Mark says:

    The stakes are too high to risk someone finding out you’re fixing fights and destroying your company overnight to risk it on Machida or Bisping fights. Maybe I’d believe it if a top draw like Brock Lesnar or Tito Ortiz got saved, but if anything Shogun would have had the fight given to him because Dana isn’t a fan of Machida’s and would love the belt off of him since he believes he’s the new Tim Sylvia. Plus everybody was saying the UFC was making the announcers be biased for Shogun in commentary so why would they be biased on judging the other direction?

    And there’s calls of conspiracies in every sport. You can look at any bad call and believe it was intentional if you want. But in reality it’s just poor officiating due to human errors and not league-sanctioned malice.

  10. frankp316 says:

    Most Japanese promotions can’t afford to use a cage. It also forces them to run shows in buildings they can’t fill. CAGE FORCE and VALKYRIE are the only promotions that use a cage regularly. That won’t change.

  11. smoogy says:

    Alan, I assume the decision you refer to is Yoon vs. Saffiedine. I thought Tarec deserved the nod as well, but the DREAM rules favor attempts to finish, and Yoon was closer in R2 with that submission attempt than Saffiedine got at any point.

    I really like the cage. It didn’t bother my eyes, and seemed to offer great visibility for the live crowd. The camera work wasn’t outstanding, but considering it was their first attempt, I can cut them some slack. The netting is arguably superior to steel/aluminum fencing, as it easier to see through, yet seems to offer a perfect amount of give when fighters are leaning against it. If DREAM eventually switched to a cage fulltime, I would be ok with it. Sengoku has to keep the ring alive though.

    DREAM has come a long way in two years. They have true depth at 63kg and 70kg, are working hard on 76kg, and the divisions are starting to develop continuity. Unfortunately the english MMA bloggers are providing less and less coverage of their shows. The cycle of poor, incomplete coverage of Japanese MMA leading to fewer pageviews for those that write about it has really taken its toll.

  12. Without a doubt they will make the cage a perminant fixture. I think most people have been saying this as soon as the idea went public

  13. 45 Huddle says:

    I have to laugh at the people who think the UFC fixed the Machida/Shogun fight.

    1) Fertitta, White, and Silva are all big Shogun fans.

    2) Shogun is more marketable due to his style.

    3) Ed Soares has been a pain lately. He already has 2 UFC champions. noguiera could soon have a shot at being the third.

    If there was any fixing going on, Shogun would have won 50-45 across at least 2 of the judges…

  14. David says:

    I think overall the event’s fights were lackluster. The Zelg fight was awesome. James Thompson is weird. Alvarez is a beeeast!

  15. ttt says:

    [quote]The cycle of poor, incomplete coverage of Japanese MMA leading to fewer pageviews for those that write about it has really taken its toll.[/quote]

    the success of japanese MMA does not depend on some randoms in the western hemisphere blogging on it but rather the japanese keeping their interest in the sport through television and attendance

  16. Alan Conceicao says:

    Alan, I assume the decision you refer to is Yoon vs. Saffiedine. I thought Tarec deserved the nod as well, but the DREAM rules favor attempts to finish, and Yoon was closer in R2 with that submission attempt than Saffiedine got at any point.

    Its also a crutch when it comes to debate about decisions. I hate PRIDE/DREAM criteria.

    the success of japanese MMA does not depend on some randoms in the western hemisphere blogging on it but rather the japanese keeping their interest in the sport through television and attendance

    Moreover, why does MMA in Japan deserves special attention? The difference between your average M-1, UWC, Palace Fighting, Kingdom, etc B-show and DEEP, ZST, Outsider, or Pancrase is minimal. DREAM and Sengoku more often than not provide second rate clashes rather than elite competition. That’s not to say that every fight is irrelevant, but a great many are.

    Now, of course, people give relevancy to fights that don’t really deserve it in the UFC too. I’ve read more than one article about how awesome Joe Stevenson is now after UFC 104: he guy is what, the #6/7 lightweight in the UFC if lucky? Does anyone really care about Joe Stevenson or is surprised that Joe beat a guy who can’t wrestle? Its like people need to come up with something positive to say about the UFC each time.

  17. 45 Huddle says:

    DREAM and Sengoku have some good fighters…. But not good match-ups. Outside of tournaments and the occassional title fight…. They really don’t have too much too offer right now. DREAM 12 was a bunch of squash matches.

    “Now, of course, people give relevancy to fights that don’t really deserve it in the UFC too. I’ve read more than one article about how awesome Joe Stevenson is now after UFC 104: he guy is what, the #6/7 lightweight in the UFC if lucky? Does anyone really care about Joe Stevenson or is surprised that Joe beat a guy who can’t wrestle? Its like people need to come up with something positive to say about the UFC each time.”

    Typically the guys who are the most overhyped are outside of the UFC. But people also buy into the UFC hype machine and careful matchmaking as well.

    Kenny Florian didn’t fight ONE great wrestler on route to his title shot with BJ Penn. Florian loses to guys like Sherk, Guida, and Maynard 9 times out of 10. And yet he was kept away from them.

    Also, the problem is that people put too much emphasis on winning. Really, wins don’t mean as much as the quality of the wins. Mike Swick is 9-1 in the UFC, and does he really deserve a title shot by beating Dan Hardy? Not really!! I mean he is the next best option until the division turns over again, but he isn’t that great….

    The other thing is the Main Event Factor. You put Nick Diaz vs. Frank Shamrock as the main event of a televised card, and all of a sudden people think the winner is some great fighter. It is comical.

  18. Brad Wharton says:

    I didn’t see all the fights…did they use unified rules?

  19. Zack says:

    “45 Huddle Says:

    I am pro cage. Just not that cage. It was way too bright and hurt my eyes watching the fights. ”

    LOL lace up your boots, Sally.

    Brad…no they didn’t. It was 3 five min rounds, but knees to the head on the ground were legal, and they still judged the fight on an overall basis, not round by round.

  20. smoogy says:

    “DREAM and Sengoku have some good fighters…. But not good match-ups. Outside of tournaments and the occassional title fight…. They really don’t have too much too offer right now. DREAM 12 was a bunch of squash matches.”

    This is staggeringly ignorant. I find it hard to believe you even watched these cards.

    Miyashita vs. Fujiwara was a close fight. Hironaka vs. Parky was very competitive. Maeda vs. Beebe was great matchmaking. Yoon vs. Saffiedine was a nailbiter. Sakuraba vs. Galesic and Alvarez vs. Kikuno were both exciting, come-from-behind fights. Even Shibata vs. Ishizawa turned out to be not so bad. The vast majority of DREAM 12 was competitive, compelling matchmaking.

    As for Sengoku, clearly you missed the last event, because there wasn’t a poorly-match fight on the entire card. But just look at Sengoku XI:

    Michihiro Omigawa vs. Hatsu Hioki
    Marlon Sandro vs. Yuji Hoshino
    Shigeki Osawa vs. Ronnie Ushiwaka
    Kazunori Yokota vs. Eiji Mitsuoka
    Satoru Kitaoka vs. Jorge Masvidal
    Jorge Santiago vs. Mamed Khalidov
    Kevin Randleman vs. Stanislav Nedkov
    Dave Herman vs. Big Jim York
    Akihiro Gono vs. Shin Ramen

    Again, not a bad or uncompetitive matchup to be found. Quite to the contrary; Sengoku has established a reputation for their evenly-matched, quality bookings. Even Gono’s tune-up fight is far from a gimme.

    I guess there isn’t much I can do about the willing, almost gleeful disrespect towards Japanese MMA (and most world MMA). But I still find it sad when gimmick posters like 45 pass judgment based on presumptions that are completely wrong.

  21. 45 Huddle says:

    Lesnar pulled out of hsi fight with Carwin. According to Sherdog, he is sick…. And hasn’t trained for 3.5 weeks….

  22. Alan Conceicao says:

    Miyashita vs. Fujiwara was a close fight.

    Club fighters. Who cares?

    Hironaka vs. Parky

    More club fighters.

    Maeda vs. Beebe was great matchmaking.

    Great fight for a second rate MMA promotion. Competitive? Sure. Relevant? In what way?

    Yoon vs. Saffiedine was a nailbiter.

    Display of corruption. Embarassing.

    Sakuraba vs. Galesic and Alvarez vs. Kikuno were both exciting,

    I can give you both, even if I seriously doubt Sakuraba’a ability to fight these days and how it affects his health.

    Even Shibata vs. Ishizawa turned out to be not so bad.

    Two lousy pro wrestlers who can’t fight fighting one another. Whoopie doo.

    A spade is a spade; People need to stop pretending that just because any promotion makes a fight, it is good or matters. That is the saddest thing about the pro wrestling crossover to MMA.

  23. 45 Huddle says:

    DREAM 12 had… DREAM’s #1 Heavyweight (Overeem) in a squash match. DREAM’s #1 Welterweight (Zaromskis) in a squash match. The required Sakuraba loses more brain cells fight. Yes, really good stuff there. Real competition going on. If you are going to bash me smoogy, at least don’t leave out DREAM’s best fighters and the complete crap fights they were given.

    And let’s disect Sengoku 11…. First, I will admit that it is one of the better cards on paper that Sengoku or DREAM has put on…. But still some major issues…

    1. Hatsu Hioki was undefeated in the title tournament, and couldn’t compete in the finals. He actually beat the champion in the semi-finals. Does he get a shot at the belt for his next fight? Nope! Typical Japanese MMA politics.

    2. Kevin Randleman on any card these days gives it just that much less respect. He is beyond washed up and has no business in the UFC, Strikeforce, Sengoku, or DREAM.

    3. With Herman actually taking the sport seriously now (he has cardio), does York even have a chance?

    4. Santiago in a non-title affair. More good stuff.

    Look, the Japanese fighters are actually able to look decent in Sengoku and DREAM. Look at how the guys like Akiyama, Yoshida, & Uno have done against non-top 10 Americans. They have looked average at best.

    To try and justify the Japanese MMA scene right now is funny. I’m not ignorant to Japanese MMA. I have followed it for over a decade. And this is about the worst it has ever been….

  24. smoogy says:

    45, your complaints are laughable. Kanehara is fighting on the next ZST card. Omigawa vs. Hioki is a title eliminator, winner gets Kanehara on NYE.

    Randleman is 1-0 in Sengoku… Herman vs. York is a competitive fight between two guys coming off Sengoku losses. Would you rather these guys be sent home and released? Every promotion has guys like this; UFC has a small army of them.

    Basically, your argument boils down to “if it happens in Japan, it is less important”, which is some abject ignorance if I’ve ever seen it. I don’t need to “justify” the upper echelon Japanese MMA shows, whatever that means. I’m just telling you, your assumptions about the matchmaking could not be more wrong. But go ahead, keep changing the subject and taking potshots, that is your M.O. after all.

    @ Alan: You are entitled to your cynical take on the D12 card, but couldn’t you make the same gripes for most any MMA card, including your typical UFC? I never said every fight on D12 was great or important to the world picture, but some of them were, and all the ones I mentioned were competitive. For a lesser DREAM event, it delivered a lot of high-level action. And for someone who “can’t fight”, Shibata has a nice counter left hook.

    P.S. I’m not a puroresu convert.

  25. The Gaijin says:

    Lesnar vs. Carwin is postponed, most likely until the Jan. 2 New Years card, the main event is now Ortiz vs. Griffin.

    “Official” cause is said to be the flu, possibly H1N1…a lesser man’s might start thinking of other reasons…

  26. 45 Huddle says:

    Some people are saying that the UFC moved the fight to Jan 2nd on purpose because of the problems with Silva/Belfort. I find that highly unlikely. Lesnar is the type of guy who would want to get to the fight ASAP. If it was GSP, Hughes, Liddell, or a few others in the main event…. I could at least see how people could try and reach for that conclusion.

    smoogy,

    1. Why does a man who already beat the champion in his very last fight need to be in a title eliminator to get a title shot? Are you trying to justify this? The tournament concept is bad enough. Making Hioki “earn” his title shot now is even worse.

    2. The fact that Randleman is actually 1-0 in Sengoku proves my point. Randleman couldn’t beat any one of the UFC’s best 20 Light Heavyweights. He would likely lose to basically all of the SF guys as well. If Sengoku could find anybody who is capable of losing to Randleman, it shows how HORRIBLE their matchmaking is.

    3. And can you say HULK Tournament? That is competitive stuff!! Great matchmaking.

    DREAM and Sengoku cards are basically really good DEEP cards with some more foreign fighters on it and a good amount of freak show & squash matches thrown into the equation. The problem is they have no access to the vast majority of American fighters. They don’t have access to the best Brazilian fighters. And with an already limited talent pool, they end up having a few solid guys who are in completely non-competitive fights. Why? Because they don’t have anybody for them to fight on a consistent basis.

  27. Anders L. says:

    Didnt PRIDE try a cage? I know they had some shit which lasted like 3-4 events, i remember Ken Shamrock and Don frye going at it at one of these events.

  28. rene levesque-caline says:

    I love the Dona fanbois getting all lathered up about what is happening in japan and comparing it to their precious.

    The reason I prefer the Japanese promotions is they will bring in world champions in judo, BJJ, muay thai, K-1, karate, wrestling, sambo and other martial arts to MMA.

    UFC takes middling regional fighters mixed in with brand recognition and reality TV and sell you a storyline and character development. Sure, the TUF guys are mediocre but after a years of them jerking each other off, you KNOW those jerkoffs.

    Kimbo and Leznar have their builtin audience that you can market.
    Joe Warren, Antz, Xande Ribeiro, Blagoi Ivanov, Ishii, Aerts and others champions in their discipline dont.

  29. Jeremy (not that Jeremy) says:

    Anders,

    I believe Pride used it for the promotions under the “The Best” title. Those are the ones that you can’t get on video that no one wants to talk about.

    I wonder if it will stick this time.

  30. smoogy says:

    PRIDE: The Best used an octagonal ring. It only lasted three events, but they put on some decent fights. I remember current Sengoku LW contender Eiji Mitsuoka fighting under that banner. The videos are out there if you care to look hard enough…

    http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb296/smoogyfc/pridethebestring01.jpg

  31. Ivan Trembow says:

    Meltzer wrote, “We’ve been able to confirm Lesnar has been sick so that part of the story is real.”

    What in the heck is that supposed to mean? Which part of the story ISN’T real? It seems perfectly reasonable to me that he wouldn’t be able to fight if he’s that sick. We’ve seen what happens when fighters fight with bad infections (ie, Nogueira vs. Mir), and it’s not fair to the sick fighter or to his opponent.

  32. Lesnar is not one for turning money down, i totally believe hes sick. People should not go jumping to conclusions

  33. Alan Conceicao says:

    @ Alan: You are entitled to your cynical take on the D12 card, but couldn’t you make the same gripes for most any MMA card, including your typical UFC?

    I do on a regular basis. Its why I have the reputation of a malcontent. Take that talking point up with some imbecile blogger who regurgitates Meltzer talking points.

    And for someone who “can’t fight”, Shibata has a nice counter left hook.

    Shibata looked good against a guy who sucks. So what? I want to see him in the big show as much as I do Kimbo.

  34. Zheroen says:

    When did PPV buys, contracts, etc. become a bigger story than the fights themselves? It’s weird, the stories on that seem to get the most comments are those related to “who sells more PPVs” than the actual quality of the fights or technique used therein. People can’t seem to appreciate a good, well-matched fight if it doesn’t draw at least 300,000 buys or is only seen by x amount of people.

    Man, Internet discussion of MMA. It truly has diverted the potential audience of those obsessed about redundant minutiae such as how the cage/ring looks from pro-wrestling. Alvarez vs. Kikuno was a brilliant fight, but instead we have people talking about camera angles on a show they either streamed or downloaded for free.

  35. Alan Conceicao says:

    When did PPV buys, contracts, etc. become a bigger story than the fights themselves?

    Its been that way seemingly forever? Go back to that most of the fans who are writing about the sport are pro wrestling guys and that they got turned on by it as Meltzer began to focus more and more attention on the sport; That’s their muse. He’s the basis of their worldview on MMA, which is BIZ BIZ BIZ, buyrates, ratings, who is drawing, who should be pushed, etc. All the unpleasant side effects stem from that simple and unalienable truth. We are, after all, posting on Puroreso Power right now, however much that may have been swept under the rug, and most of the bloggers who everyone mentions are guys who cut their teeth on the ROH and DVDVR boards.

    Now, what I’d like is people to treat this like a real sport; i.e. Being honest about how crappy or meaningless certain fights are, how the enormous amount of belts are stupid, posting about the ratings 5th and the results first. But that’s probably not gonna happen until something radical occurs.

  36. 45 Huddle says:

    Three points to be made on how people view MMA online:

    1) The fact that you have to pay $45 for PPV’s is one of the main reasons why the business side of things gets looked at so much. People sometimes feel cheated for the money they are paying.

    2) I do agree with Alan that a lot of the guys come from the pro wrestling business, and there is carry over. So is a lot of the negativity.

    3) The sport is not mainstream. I have worked in an office where I can talk baseball to a few of my co-workers for a good 30 minutes. And I’m not talking about the casual fans who just root for the team to sound cool. I’m talking about people who know the players, understand the game, and really enjoy it. And yet I can barely find anybody who really understands MMA. I can name those people on one hand (in life, not online). So what happens is that in order to discuss MMA, we are almost required to do so online. And the very nature of online message boards are negative.

    By comparison, I am just as big of a Yankees fan as I am a MMA fan, and I don’t think I have ever writen a post online about the Yankees…. And I mean ever. Why would I need to if I can find people I know who enjoy it just as much.

    The only thing in sports I have ever seen that compares to the amount of negativity surrounding MMA discussions is Boston sports. It’s a brutal sports town. Even as 3 of there 4 major sports teams are successful, there is still a lot of negative talk every week on their sports shows.

  37. matthew says:

    Are there going to any reports on the k-1 max event from this weekend?

  38. Mike says:

    I personally hated that cage – white is just not a good colour – waaaaaay too bright.

  39. sved says:

    Sakuraba turned in a phenomenal performance…my jaw dropped when he transitioned into the kneebar and forced the tap out. At one point I was expecting him to be carried out on a stretcher.

    Cage or ring? Either one is cool with me.

    Best rule sets IMO: stomps/soccer kicks/knees allowed anywhere, elbows only while standing.

    By disallowing stomps, knees and kicks on the ground, you give a disproportionate advantage to wrestlers. They can shoot at will and not suffer any consequences.

    Allowing elbows on the ground but no knees encourages wrestlers to lay and pray while dropping elbows, and not go for submissions or try to pass guard, improve position, etc.

    But the biggest problem, as we all saw Saturday night, is apparently giving NOTHING in terms of scoring for:

    a) causing damage
    b)pressing the action
    c) attempting to finish a fight

    Either that, or the UFC is now moving towards being a ‘worked shoot’ where Dana decides the winner and tells the judges what to score. With Machida’s win and Bisping’s win in the UK, it definitely feels like Zuffa ultimately controls the outcome of major fights if it goes to the scorecards.

    Great points

    I loved when the UFC had guys like J.Jones using standing spinning elbow attacks and J.Burkman also used Elbow combinations transitioned into a takedown clinch.

    THAT is TRUE MMA but unfortunately standing Elbows aren’t yet part of MMA in most ASIAN MMA organizations.

    Flipside is that the ZUFFA promos that set the tone for N.A. MMA shows need to find new judging criteria, judges, and a way to allow both flying Stomp kicks, and Knees at all times.

    I’m not sure about the standing stomps since they can be absolutely devatstating to a grounded opponent that can’t really defend in a cage.

    But a flying stomp has a moment of anticipation built in just like a flying knee strike that allows for defense.

    Anyway I really prefer the Ring for viewing the matches.

    But if I had to see a fence around the action can we please have it in a 6 sided YAMMA pit—-

Comments to Mark

*
To prove you're a person (not a spam script), type the security word shown in the picture.
Anti-spam image