Fights like Cummins/Cormier and Maldonado/Miocic are unethical.

Maldonada had no business being in the cage with Miocic and neither of those fights should have ever happened, they are a farce resulting in pointless brain damage.

 

Money has been earned by both fighters and that's what it's all about at the end of the day. I agree but they're big boys and know the risks involved.

 

Unlike, let's say, Shogun v Dan 1 and 2, which was brain damage with a point.

 

they are like freakshow fights without the fun freakshow factor.

 

it did seem pretty clear what was about to happen in both cases.

 

The Cummins fight should not have gotten licensed, totally blew my mind the commission was willing to sanction it.

 

the commission should decline blatant mismatches.

 

I thought Maldonado was gonna be stopped early maybe in te 2nd round, but the outcome was really a huge surprise, him getting stopped so early in the fight. Didn't think that Stipe's power was something Fabio couldn't deal with at all.

 

Nah.

 

I'm all for "freak show" fights if they're entertaining. Neither of the fights mentioned in the op were. Just product of the UFC oversaturation with too many fight card slots to fill and not enough fighters to go around.

 

Add Tito Ortiz/Alexander Shlemenko to that list.

But I must say it's a breath of fresh air every now and then. I watched all these fights primarily because of the mismatches.

 

they consented to the fight

 

Because of the size disparity Miocic and Maldonado is pretty close to being unethical, especially considering one is a ranked heavyweight and the other is maybe a top 20 light heavyweight at best. Patrick Cummins is a legit, able bodied fighter with a background as a world class wrestler, who came in a short notice to fight somebody his own size. It was a mismatch because DC is special, but not unethical. Cody McKenzie and Chad Mendes was a huge mismatch that never should have happened, but I wouldn't say that was unethical either. On the smaller circuits you see these things happen, like fighters like Jon Jones or Travis Browne we coming up and smashing people in just a few seconds. Sometimes special athletes make mismatches out of almost everybody, it's hard to measure it all, since the sport is unpredictable. The best you can do is just not throw people into fights were there is a huge disparity in size, and competitive experience.

 

Fights like those are unethical IMO because the difference in ability between the two fighters is unfair to the fans from an entertainment standpoint unless you are one of those sick people who enjoy seeing someone get beat to a pulp.

Most importantly, these types of fights are unethical because it puts the weak fighter in much greater danger than in a truly competitive fight. Crocop vs Perosh was another travesty where you had a good heavyweight fight a mediocre LHW who had no time to prepare, just like Miocic vs. Maldonado. In combat sports, the two opponents must be of comparable ability or the risk of serious injury becomes significantly greater.

 

some people would consent to just about anything, especially a fighter with a hyper competitive mentality. BJ Penn would probably fight Cain Velasquez tomorrow, that doesn't mean it should be allowed to happen. You have to save fighters from themselves in a few instances. I don't know if these two fights totally apply to that, but I don't think consent is the deciding factor here.

 

Are they adults of reasonably sound mind and body that consent of their own free will?

Is the fight sanctioned?

Did the fight occur within the limits of the previously stated rules and regulations?

We're they paid the agreed sum?

If all of the above are met, then I have no qualms.

 

Meh!

Unethical is too strong a word, just mismatches. The bigger problem is why UFC has such a packed roster yet can't find better late notice replacements.

 

Always easy to say in retrospect.

 

Fabio didn't suffer much trauma vs. Miocic, he wasn't even rendered unconscious. The Texeira fight was likely more damaging to his brain.