Demetrious Johnson is done listening to MMA's

[Bowerman]

So how is Buvaisar Saitiev a wrestling legend? Revenue isn't the answer, obviously. As good as Saitiev was, he likely wouldn't get too far in Russian trials against the best HW. I'm at a loss as to why anyone cares about Saitiev.

Media mass is a parody news site, by the way. Riner makes nowhere near that amount.

He's a legend because he's dominating his competition. In combat sports people don't acknowledge what could happen against bigger opponents. It's doesn't register because that isn't how the sport is set-up.

On a different level we can see the same thing happening when a fighter goes on a tear in another organisation [In the same weight division] builds a hype train and then fades into obscurity the moment they lose to better competition.

I didn't know it was a joke website. Thank you. I know he gets $750,000 granted by French Judo but that was the limit to my knowledge until I saw that figure.

 

[Lucifer Alpha]

People don't hate on DJ because he's not a good fighter. They hate on and/or don't pay attention to him because he's the size of a middle school child.

Humans want to see big boys in combat. Not little ones. It's the truth.

The most iconic martial artist is a flyweight.

 

[BonesNose**]

Damn, the only time I enjoyed midget mouse was when he got angry. Oh, and I enjoyed him a lot in Disney on Ice.

 

[Ar145984]

dj is great I like him, I started watching his fights and taking them serious.

I will still always be a little hampered on his fight with Cruz, because it reminds me of what happens to him when he moves to different weight classes, unlike Anderson Silva for example.

 

[LouisBolanos]

He doesn't have to listen to anything.

At the same time the fans don't have to give a shit about him. He can continue to be who he is and be ignored by the masses while making chump change compared to fighters far less capable than he is, if that's what he wants, sure.

 

[JayElectra]

He's a legend because he's dominating his competition. In combat sports people don't acknowledge what could happen against bigger opponents. It's doesn't register because that isn't how the sport is set-up.

On a different level we can see the same thing happening when a fighter goes on a tear in another organisation [In the same weight division] builds a hype train and then fades into obscurity the moment they lose to better competition.

I didn't know it was a joke website. Thank you. I know he gets $750,000 granted by French Judo but that was the limit to my knowledge until I saw that figure.

Okay, so you started out claiming that the lower weight classes in combat sports (and, really, by your logic, any weight classes) exist simply to increase revenues. This was shown to be patently false as amateur combat sports which aren't primarily concerned with generating revenue have had weight classes for a very long time. I think the point that I'm making is that weight classes exist because people care about the ability of fighters relative to their weight in combat sports. That's why combat sports athletes like Buvaisar Saitiev, Cael Sanderson, Samart Payakaroon, Benny Leonard, etc. are looked at as genuine greats despite not competing in the highest weight class possible. Because of their ability and accomplishments relative to weight. Anyway, that's about as much time as I'm willing to spend on a subject that's really straightforward and simple to understand.

 

[Sgt Smith]

Presenting this year's Featherweight Superbowl Champs...

 

[SchlomoS]

It's nobody's fault, but a lot of people just don't get excited for 135 the way they do for other divisions. That's not a lack of education, it's a preference.

a lack of education, like thinking Tiny Tim fights at 135 lbs?

 

[Malthian]

Personally I don't have an issue with MM's size or skill set.

I do find his lack of aggression and desire to finish (killer instinct) puts me off more than anything else. That his personality is bland just adds to the lack of interest.

I had similar issues with GSP later in his career. He went from an aggressive fighter who was willing to take risks to win to a grinding point fighter.

I have no problem with watching highly technical striking or grappling matches. Heck, I can watch EBI any day. The main thing is that I like to see fighters who are driven to defeat their opponent within the time limit, not to outpoint their opponent and win via a judges decision.

It's the same reason why I can acknowledge that Mayweather is a technically superb boxer, but I can't stand watching his fights. It would be like watching a kung fu movie where the grandmaster simply stands and dodges blows the entire fight, but never bothers to try to knock out or kill the bad guy. Then after 36 minutes of ducking and flipping he says, "Ha! You didn't even touch me! Now you must concede defeat!"

Whether it's a display of technical mastery, a brawl, or a one sided affair I want to see aggression. I want to see the fighters fight as if their opposition has a bunch of friends on the way and if they take too long they're going to end up outnumbered.

It's the difference between trying to win a "fight" and winning a "match".

 

[Ar145984]

Personally I don't have an issue with MM's size or skill set.

I do find his lack of aggression and desire to finish (killer instinct) puts me off more than anything else. That his personality is bland just adds to the lack of interest.

I had similar issues with GSP later in his career. He went from an aggressive fighter who was willing to take risks to win to a grinding point fighter.

I have no problem with watching highly technical striking or grappling matches. Heck, I can watch EBI any day. The main thing is that I like to see fighters who are driven to defeat their opponent within the time limit, not to outpoint their opponent and win via a judges decision.

It's the same reason why I can acknowledge that Mayweather is a technically superb boxer, but I can't stand watching his fights. It would be like watching a kung fu movie where the grandmaster simply stands and dodges blows the entire fight, but never bothers to try to knock out or kill the bad guy. Then after 36 minutes of ducking and flipping he says, "Ha! You didn't even touch me! Now you must concede defeat!"

Whether it's a display of technical mastery, a brawl, or a one sided affair I want to see aggression. I want to see the fighters fight as if their opposition has a bunch of friends on the way and if they take too long they're going to end up outnumbered.

It's the difference between trying to win a "fight" and winning a "match".

Same, for example, I'd rather watch TJ Dillashaw or Conor McGregor than Johnny Hendricks, who is a low-risk fighter now. Even if the former are in lower weight class

I think people watch fights for a mix of three reasons.

1) To see technical display of the most efficent form of unarmed combat (in sport context) (Jon Jones, Demetrious Johnson)
2) Out of admiration for the fighters which generally comes from nationalistic pride, accomplishment and their personality (Conor McGregor, Anderson Silva, Ronda Rousey)
3) To watch fighters have a display of "will", the strength to not give up and continue to fight (Rory vs Robbie, Brown vs Arvloski, Forrest vs Stephan Bonner)

 

[Bowerman]

Okay, so you started out claiming that the lower weight classes in combat sports (and, really, by your logic, any weight classes) exist simply to increase revenues. This was shown to be patently false as amateur combat sports which aren't primarily concerned with generating revenue have had weight classes for a very long time. I think the point that I'm making is that weight classes exist because people care about the ability of fighters relative to their weight in combat sports. That's why combat sports athletes like Buvaisar Saitiev, Cael Sanderson, Samart Payakaroon, Benny Leonard, etc. are looked at as genuine greats despite not competing in the highest weight class possible. Because of their ability and accomplishments relative to weight. Anyway, that's about as much time as I'm willing to spend on a subject that's really straightforward and simple to understand.

I never started out with the logic that the lower weight classes exist SOLELY to increase revenue. I said "I understand how their economic value to MMA".

Of course people care about fighters skill sets relative to their weight class. I'm a perfect example. I watch Featherweight more than I watch LHW. I think Aldo's skill set is better than 99% of LHW's. It's not hard to understand why anyone gets attached to a division or appreciates the skills on offer.

The main point is that combat sports are one of the only places where someone gets to display their 'RELATIVE' talent at a professional level. It's one of the only places where a far inferior talent can earn significantly more than their superior counterparts.

Combat sports could never do away with weight division [My personal taste would like to see less and force people to gain weight to compete just like any other professional sport but it's unrealistic].

Nothing I've said should be in any way controversial. It's just fact. On the one hand Conor McGregor is earning multi million dollars. He is getting all the accolades, all the attention and all the respect from fans. It shouldn't hurt anyone sensibilities to also state that in real terms the number 50 ranked HW [Bobby Lashley for instance] stops him with ease.

 

[Takamine86]

Personally I don't have an issue with MM's size or skill set.

I do find his lack of aggression and desire to finish (killer instinct) puts me off more than anything else. That his personality is bland just adds to the lack of interest.

I had similar issues with GSP later in his career. He went from an aggressive fighter who was willing to take risks to win to a grinding point fighter.

I have no problem with watching highly technical striking or grappling matches. Heck, I can watch EBI any day. The main thing is that I like to see fighters who are driven to defeat their opponent within the time limit, not to outpoint their opponent and win via a judges decision.

It's the same reason why I can acknowledge that Mayweather is a technically superb boxer, but I can't stand watching his fights. It would be like watching a kung fu movie where the grandmaster simply stands and dodges blows the entire fight, but never bothers to try to knock out or kill the bad guy. Then after 36 minutes of ducking and flipping he says, "Ha! You didn't even touch me! Now you must concede defeat!"

Whether it's a display of technical mastery, a brawl, or a one sided affair I want to see aggression. I want to see the fighters fight as if their opposition has a bunch of friends on the way and if they take too long they're going to end up outnumbered.

It's the difference between trying to win a "fight" and winning a "match".

Mouse finished 4 of his last 5 fights though.

 

[Lucifer Alpha]

I do find his lack of aggression and desire to finish (killer instinct) puts me off more than anything else.

No one at flyweight is finishing fights at the highest level like Mighty Mouse. I don't even understand your criticism considering he has finished almost all of his title defenses. This is where it gets into the conditioning I was talking about.

 

[Malthian]

Mouse finished 4 of his last 5 fights though.

Don't let those 4 finishes fool you.

Take his last fight for example. He basically had multiple opportunities throughout the fight to be more aggressive in his striking and grappling. Yes, he attempted subs at a couple of points but he was also highly conservative in his guard passing, sub attempts and gnp. And yes, he finished with 1s left to go in the 5th round but I put that in the same category as going for the take down with 10s left to go in a round.

Let's look at his last 10 fights...

Horiguchi, 5th round, 4:59 sub
Cariaso, 2nd round, 2:29 sub
Bagautinov, decision
Benavidez, 1st round KO, 2:28
Moraga, 5th round, 3:43 sub

Dodson, decision
Benavidez, decision
McCall, decision
McCall, draw
Cruz, decision

That's 6 decisions/draws, 2 subs in the 5th round, and 2 finishes in the first 2 rounds.

Yes, MM will go after a finish once he's in a very dominant position, but he's basically hanging around for long periods of time waiting for the other guy to make a critical mistake. He's not trying to constantly push to force mistakes or to put his opponent on their back heel.

That's just my impression from watching his fights. Maybe it wouldn't win him quite as many fights if he was more aggressive, but that lack of aggression detracts from the enjoyment factor for me as a viewer.

 

[Sdeev]

uneducated

 

[Damianj]

Oh, ok. No wonder Pac, Mayweather, Marquez, Morales, Barrera, or Hamed never made any money.

Remind me again, are we talking about Boxing or Mixed martial arts?

 

[mangokush]

Must be starting to piss him off

He should turn full heel and start talking shit about his opponents.

Worst case he could start taking up WWE shit talking classes.

 

[ajwbjj87]

Just keep winning man the idiots will eventually love you

 

[Lucifer Alpha]

Remind me again, are we talking about Boxing or Mixed martial arts?

We are talking about the sport that venerates a little Asian man.

 

[Islam Imamate]

Watching him is like eating a Nature Valley bar to me.

When the taste buds and enzymes are activated, pleasure is derived. But the journey involves a bunch of crumbs dropping and bits getting stuck in my flawless teeth.

And it's honestly just too much to work to chew it.

I don't want to have to nibble on MM for something so anticlimactic. I just want a Quest bar instead

I agree but I respect what he's able to do. I think he'd be a lot more popular if he opened up to the fans a bit more. People say that you need to be a heel and have grudge matches but that's a narrow way of looking at it. You need a persona and narratives. Look at Lyoto, his shtick is being a karate master and it works well enough for him.

Even though I'm not a huge fan I still have to admit he's a great fighter and honestly I wish the best for him. I always feel bad when I hear about his abysmal numbers on PPV, I want a guy like that to get paid good money.