I have taken a few days to think about this thoroughly before posting and I rarely make threads unless it is something I feel very strongly about and the co-main at Belem certainly warrants it.
Watching the entire fight, and more importantly the last minute of the fight, between Shevchenko and Cachoiera was fairly disturbing and I was not surprised by Dana's reaction as well as that of many fans and fighters alike. It was a brutal assault between arguably the #2 ranked 125lber and an untested, unknown, "undefeated" prospect. Not only was Shevchenko arguably the #2 ranked fighter, her last fight was a hotly contested fight for the UFC World Title where she lost by split decision, meaning at least one judge saw the fight in her favor. The reason this is important is because it was the UFC's decision to put a debuting fighter up against the #2 fighter in the entire division and that got me thinking.
Dana clearly went after Mario Yamasaki, going as far to suggest that he never ref a UFC fight again. I do think if the fight had been among the male fighters in the UFC, Dana's reaction may not have been as harsh and we all must admit, that plays a role in our emotions and reactions as well. And it is true, part of the ref's responsibility and duty to ensure the safety of the fighters inside the cage but does the UFC not have any responsibility in this?
The one thing we have ignored, and continue to ignore in the MMA, is the corner's responsibility. Often times in boxing, a corner will stop a fight before a ref will. In MMA, it's something that rarely ever occurs and if it does occur, it usually occurs in-between rounds. The corner's responsibilities and duties are to help the fighter to obtain victory AND to protect them from unnecessary damage. In MMA, we never hold the corner responsible but why is that? The coach and main cornerman are usually one and the same. The coach is the one closest to the fighter, knows the fighter best, and has the best rapport with the fighter. If the ref is not saving the fighter, why would the coach/cornerman not throw in the towel to save his fighter and let his fighter live to fight another day? The last time I can recall a towel being thrown DURING the fight would be by Nate Diaz's corner.
So my question is...who is MOST responsible for a fighter's safety and why?
1. The ref for not stopping it when it's clear one fighter is not defending themselves intelligently and just taking damage?
2. The Organization (Dana and co) for matching a top 3 fighter, a fighter who just fought for the title and came very close to winning it, against a debuting and untested fighter? It's absolutely irresponsible match-making at its worst.
3. The fighter's cornermen, who's sole responsibilities are to take care of their fighter and help them win?
Watching the entire fight, and more importantly the last minute of the fight, between Shevchenko and Cachoiera was fairly disturbing and I was not surprised by Dana's reaction as well as that of many fans and fighters alike. It was a brutal assault between arguably the #2 ranked 125lber and an untested, unknown, "undefeated" prospect. Not only was Shevchenko arguably the #2 ranked fighter, her last fight was a hotly contested fight for the UFC World Title where she lost by split decision, meaning at least one judge saw the fight in her favor. The reason this is important is because it was the UFC's decision to put a debuting fighter up against the #2 fighter in the entire division and that got me thinking.
Dana clearly went after Mario Yamasaki, going as far to suggest that he never ref a UFC fight again. I do think if the fight had been among the male fighters in the UFC, Dana's reaction may not have been as harsh and we all must admit, that plays a role in our emotions and reactions as well. And it is true, part of the ref's responsibility and duty to ensure the safety of the fighters inside the cage but does the UFC not have any responsibility in this?
The one thing we have ignored, and continue to ignore in the MMA, is the corner's responsibility. Often times in boxing, a corner will stop a fight before a ref will. In MMA, it's something that rarely ever occurs and if it does occur, it usually occurs in-between rounds. The corner's responsibilities and duties are to help the fighter to obtain victory AND to protect them from unnecessary damage. In MMA, we never hold the corner responsible but why is that? The coach and main cornerman are usually one and the same. The coach is the one closest to the fighter, knows the fighter best, and has the best rapport with the fighter. If the ref is not saving the fighter, why would the coach/cornerman not throw in the towel to save his fighter and let his fighter live to fight another day? The last time I can recall a towel being thrown DURING the fight would be by Nate Diaz's corner.
So my question is...who is MOST responsible for a fighter's safety and why?
1. The ref for not stopping it when it's clear one fighter is not defending themselves intelligently and just taking damage?
2. The Organization (Dana and co) for matching a top 3 fighter, a fighter who just fought for the title and came very close to winning it, against a debuting and untested fighter? It's absolutely irresponsible match-making at its worst.
3. The fighter's cornermen, who's sole responsibilities are to take care of their fighter and help them win?
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