3. MANDATE THAT INTERIM CHAMPIONS AND #1 CONTENDERS MUST FIGHT IF A LONG LAY OFF LOOMS
Does anybody remember Carlos Condit? Where did he go? After backpedalling instituting a brilliant game plan to outpoint Nick Diaz this past February, “The Natural Born Killer” has been missing in action. That is completely unacceptable as far as I am concerned. Had Diaz won that fight he would have fought 3 times during the same span, if only to try an calm the ever-present rage boiling just beneath his surface, right? Well, as much as we all enjoy the antics of the Stockton native, I am going to guess that he would be riding the pine waiting for a GSP match up as well. Case in point, Nick’s younger brother Nate Diaz was bestowed the coveted #1 contender title and has been pounding Yoo-Hoos and watching reruns of H.R. Puffnstuff ever since. He had the choice to fight Anthony Pettis but opted to sit out during the prime of his career when he has been on an absolute wrecking spree.
This is a trend that needs to be eliminated. If you are an interim champ or #1 contender and you have to wait more than 6 or 9 months before your challenger is ready, I believe they should be ordered to stay active or lose the current standing. I understand the monetary benefits for a fighter that headlines a championship bout and sometimes the risk outweigh the rewards. That being said, these are fighters and they should be competing if they are healthy.
4. GET TRT USAGE UNDER CONTROL
Because of Chael P. Sonnen and his shocking performance during his first bout against Anderson Silva, we all now know about Testosterone Replacement Therapy. The fact that a heroic triangle in the waning seconds of that fight ended with the champion retaining his title was a great thing regardless of your allegiance to either fighter. What if Sonnen was able to escape the choke or simply pulled a lay and pray for the remainder of that fight? We would have had one of the biggest upsets in sports history that would have culminated in Sonnen being stripped of the title after failing his post-fight urine test because he didn’t file the proper paperwork with the athletic commission. With the revelations that former champions Frank Mir and Forrest Griffin have also received TRT exemptions, I assume that it won’t be long before the entire roster is full of fighters looking for a pharmaceutical edge.
It is an epidemic and from the growing number of exemptions, I presume it is fairly easy to acquire. I imagine it is like getting a medicinal marijuana card in California. You go to your doctor and tell him/her you have anxiety. You get a prescription, drive down to your local dispensary and you are home with some Acapulco Gold in 10 minutes. I am not a doctor and do not exactly know what goes into getting an exemption but it seems like this could kill the sport faster than most things because it absolutely tilts the realm of a fair playing field.
5. MAYBE IT IS TIME FOR SOME NEW BLOOD AT THE PODIUM
How the mighty have fallen. Dana White was a trailblazer for the MMA community, but his act has become as fresh as a Peg Bundy foil-wrapped mystery pack. Like most, I loved his utter honesty and his ability to speak without a filter. He was the maverick that the UFC needed while they scratched and clawed for acknowledgment. We all know about his actions in regards to CP and by no way is that influencing my opinion, because we all know that he will always be a loose cannon. There is not a doubt in my mind that he was as instrumental in bringing the UFC to the forefront of prime time network television as any fighter, but there was a time and a place for the profanity laden interviews, the insolent slurs or the bully tactics. That time is not now and that place is not as the “face” of a major sports promotion. It may be time for Lorenzo Fertitta to step in and relieve Uncle Dana of his duties and if Mr. White reads this I am sure he will have two words to say to me.
Will any of these proposals happen? Probably not.
Would any of them help right the proverbial UFC ship? Maybe.
It is not that I am getting older or becoming jaded by the success of the UFC because I have been a fan since the sport’s inception. This is not an indie band that got swallowed by a major record label and exploited until their once-great artistic music has now morphed into top 40 fodder. This is The Ultimate Fighting Championship and from the poorly produced human cock fighting that took place at bingo halls in the Ozarks to the bright lights of Staples Center in the city of angels, it has been an uphill battle from the beginning. But with fan dedication and monetary support, we have helped push that locomotive to the apex. Let’s just hope that the train keeps chugging because at this rate, some of us may not be pushing forever. Now it is up to the think-tank at Zuffa to fix some of these deficiencies that are damaging the product.
Does the Potato Nation have any suggestions or is the UFC fine the way it is?
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They need to speed up the intros. Remember in early PRIDE days, when they introduced the fighters as they were making their way to the ring? That. Shaving off 5 minutes per fight could really up the pace of the cards. Something I've been feeling has become bloated with all the hullabaloo before fights start.
superfights...meh of course the real obstacle is the ufc not wanting to set precedents with huge purses for superfights.fighters could fight at catchweight for no titles and there would be no dramatic "lost stock" that really is a BS excuse.
the ufc needs to stop being so gaddamn greedy-how much money do 5 guys really need for gods sake.
put on LESS ppv's and better quality tv is the answer but they are hooked on profit so we wont see that.
somebody should tell em you cant take it with ya pal.
I agree that year-round, total testosterone testing would curtail concerns about TRT as it would prove that people on the therapy have not been going heavy on the dosing to gain an edge.
But I would like to point out that, out of the 35 men and 1 woman who have failed steroid tests, only 1 was on TRT and his blood test showed that he was within the normal human range of testosterone. I think there should be year-round testing for all competitors; There's no reason to think that just because a guy is on TRT that he is more likely to be bringing his testosterone levels above normal.
@Mr. Nathan Smith
To get on TRT most (legit) doctors will make you take least 2 total testosterone tests, a few weeks apart, in addition to other tests to see if you have Primary or Secondary Hypogonadism. This includes thyroid, pituitary, diabetes, estrogen, CBC panels, and other tests to make sure that your low T isn't being caused by something other than your testicles. Sure, there are shady doctors who will only get a Total T test (which you can get after coming down from doing steroids before your own production kicks back in so as to get a low score) and write out a script after that - the bare minimum to cover their ass if the DEA comes after them. But the NSAC requires that there be a history of blood-work to support one's need for TRT. That's what they did with Marquardt: He was told he could apply for a TUE as long as he discontinued TRT for 10 weeks and then get another test to confirm his inability to make testosterone.
Being on TRT only gives someone a "pharmaceutical edge" in that he can use a medication to bring his levels to the same as someone who has a fully functioning body. What is the difference if a guy has a Total T score of 700ng/dL through his own natural production, or if he has a Total T score of 700ng/dL by way of testosterone injections?
The harm obviously comes from guys abusing it. But why should those who need it and use it as it's supposed to be banned from competing because there are people who are trying to work the system? Thyroid, diabetes, and asthma meds are abused by guys trying to cut weight, but we never see the outcry against people who need them. Why the focus on TRT and not other potential sources of abuse?
Regardless, thank you for the info that I was way 2 lazy to look up. I appreciate it.
But 4 - who gives a fuck if they juice. Most do so let 'em be.
I used to swing from Dana's nuts. And MMA wouldn't be here without him. But he lost me exactly at the point when he supported SOPA and then dared hackers to attack his site. He's out of touch and needs to fire his entire legal dept.
The fact is that I am already missing my legs and roll around on a 1970s-style skateboard pan-handling like Eddie Murphy in Trading Places.
2.Fix the live experience....get rid of the camera men around the octagon and get rid of the media section on the floor, put them up in the rafters where they belong.
There is a reason the UFC can come and sell 55k+ in Toronto but when they return can fill 17k seats across the street....as much as Dana says live shows are amazing blah blah, anyone who goes to live events know's most of the time you end up watching a screen because so camera guy is in your line of sight.
3.Work with comissions to test fighters year round...not banning TRT so much(although that would be best for the sports legitimacy+growth)...to avoid fighters testing positive and ruining fights that are being promoted. Testing fighters is expensive, but what's the cost of promoting JDS/Reem and then having the fight cancelled??? Zuffa needs to find a way to do this, tax the fighters, pay themselves or a combination of both....get it done and have these fighters tested constantly to clean the image of the sport up, only time ESPN covers UFC is when TRT is the topic.
4.RANKINGS!!! transparent rankings for fans to follow, this creates interest, all other major sports today have this as well, no more "in the mix" or off the cuff title shots etc...have clear cut rankings, fighter is injured next available ranking fighter get's the shot. I can't believe the UFC has not done this one yet, it's so obviously needed.
5. Your idea is "Fuck the horse that got you here"? This mode of thought is what's wrong with this country in general. "He's done so much for the company, but fuck him; on to bigger and better things." That dude's quite obviously devoted his life to the UFC and the kind of assholes who would whine about Dana's rough edges aren't the kind of people I wanna see around events anyway, and I'd venture to say most fans would agree. Bottom line, like him or not, his dedication deserves loyalty.
How about this? Get rid of TUF, and replace it with a quality half hour weekly program that follows upcoming fighters. This way you can build up the fighters as characters, but avoid the general crappyness of the TUF talent pool. I'm thinking something like the HBO 24/7 series. Have just 4, yes 4, PPV's a year. Make them big, promote the shit out of them, and make them really meaningful. With the rest of the year have free cards on fox with a couple marquee fights that have the whole pageantry, but then for the other fighters go ahead and cram them in quicker. I'm thinking faster walkout, quicker introduction.
This all boils down to the UFC needing to create a better tier system instead of treating all fighters about the same. Here's one more idea (God I should be the one running this show), how about for the guys trying to establish themselves have a 1 round 10 minute fight with maybe a minute break at the 5 minute mark? 15 minutes seems like forever when the fighters suck. This way the UFC could sift through their overinflated talent pool and begin to make some meaningful cuts.
I don't agree that Dana should go, but I do think he needs a reality check. UFC 148 sucked too, most people ignored the rest of the card because we all wanted to see the Spider/Sonnen rematch. Between 148 and 149 that was a lot of terrible fighting and wasted money.
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