What direction does the UFC go in from here? The organization looks so bad here. And I can't imagine Reebok being thrilled either.
The two biggest draws for their biggest card in history both fail drug tests. Main events and big fights are constantly being cancelled or delayed due to this exact reason OR due to the constant injury bug which is 100% understandable due to the nature of the sport.
I've heard it said many times when it comes to athletes at the highest level from all types of sports- you simply can't put your body through the stress of training as a professional athlete without some sort of supplementation or enhancement.
From MMA to track and field the demand for the spectacular is just ridiculous, and at this point with the combination of high viewer expectations and the extremely competitive nature of the sports it's completely understandable for athletes to try to gain an edge. And unfortunately the PED issue is NOT black and white as the media would like to portray, it's much more complicated than the "he used steroids!" arguments from the past.
The issue is that the potential consequences in MMA/boxing/kickboxing are so great that the idea of hormonally enhanced athletes competing in a simulated death match is very off putting to even the most serious MMA fans- myself included.
I can live with knowing that the fastest man alive is almost certainly doping- I am not as comfortable watching another King Mo-Lorenz Larkin type beat down.
A ridiculous amount of advertising goes into this UFC 200 card and it turns into a disaster. And then the actually really exciting cards, like the one this past Wednesday, don't get nearly as much credit, advertisement, or attention.
The two biggest draws for their biggest card in history both fail drug tests. Main events and big fights are constantly being cancelled or delayed due to this exact reason OR due to the constant injury bug which is 100% understandable due to the nature of the sport.
I've heard it said many times when it comes to athletes at the highest level from all types of sports- you simply can't put your body through the stress of training as a professional athlete without some sort of supplementation or enhancement.
From MMA to track and field the demand for the spectacular is just ridiculous, and at this point with the combination of high viewer expectations and the extremely competitive nature of the sports it's completely understandable for athletes to try to gain an edge. And unfortunately the PED issue is NOT black and white as the media would like to portray, it's much more complicated than the "he used steroids!" arguments from the past.
The issue is that the potential consequences in MMA/boxing/kickboxing are so great that the idea of hormonally enhanced athletes competing in a simulated death match is very off putting to even the most serious MMA fans- myself included.
I can live with knowing that the fastest man alive is almost certainly doping- I am not as comfortable watching another King Mo-Lorenz Larkin type beat down.
A ridiculous amount of advertising goes into this UFC 200 card and it turns into a disaster. And then the actually really exciting cards, like the one this past Wednesday, don't get nearly as much credit, advertisement, or attention.
