Heavyweight division lacks progress & fresh blood. How to fix it???

[tophw]

Take a look at Sherdog's most recent (12/22/14) top 10 heavyweight ranking. With the exception of Travis Browne and Stipe Miocic, all other top fighters have been around for almost a decade. I don't even know of a up-and-coming "breakthrough" fighter or a dominant veteran to follow in that division to keep me interested (e.g. an exciting up-and-commer like Conor McGregor or Kyoji Horiguchi, or a dominant fighter like Jon Jones).

Why is this so?? Are potentially great heavyweights entering other sports (NFL, NBA) for the money? Should the UFC scout deeper into the international market to find another Fedor? What I think heavyweight division needs is an mma-version of Mike Tyson (a sort of tragic-hero that is vicious and exciting) or another Fedor (an exiting, enigmatic, all-around likeable fighter)

What are some solutions to progress the heavyweight division?

 

[estranged]

there arn't that many hw talents out there

 

[MrCarano]

The UFC should start heavily recruiting Eastern European HW wrestlers. Those guys are beasts.

 

[TKZOMBIE]

Bring in Zulu and Hong Choi

 

[mma midwest fan]

At one point, Carwin and Cain were the big prospects. Nobody has picked up the torch in the same way. You would think several NCAA HW's graduate each year and at least one or two over the last couple years would be a beast prospect.

 

[capnlarge]

Strangely, Bellator is ahead of UFC in signing HW prospects.

 

[kurtwpg]

The UFC should start heavily recruiting Eastern European HW wrestlers. Those guys are beasts.

And Americans. Maybe look to Brazil for good BJJ/Muay Thai guys. What they can't do is just wait for HW to come to them. For a relatively low investment they could develop guys.

 

[molest]

Well there's Mittrione and Stipe it's not exactly done, that russian guy from AKA also.
I like Volkov a lot too too bad he is in bellator.

 

[tophw]

At one point, Carwin and Cain were the big prospects. Nobody has picked up the torch in the same way. You would think several NCAA HW's graduate each year and at least one or two over the last couple years would be a beast prospect.

Good point. I remember about 5 years back, it was exciting to follow UFC's heavyweight division. Carwin was rising at a huge momentum and it was exciting to follow him. Cain as well even though many fans were concerned he wouldn't go far due to his relatively smaller stature.

Another solution: Perhaps UFC can dilute the HW division, like what Pride did: bring in more heavyweights who doesn't really have the best record or fought the best competition, but show either excitement or guts (i.e. having high KO/submission rates, either by winning or loss). i.e. think Igor Vovchanchyn and Sergei Kharitonov. Both didn't have a spotless records but they were exciting to watch and both has the kill-or-be-killed mentality. Also Pride diluted their division with a bunch of Japanese pro-wrestlers that served as good punching bags to build up their KO machines (Igor, Fedor, Crocop, Sergei, etc.).

 

[JKS]

The UFC has to look to Europe for HWs now.....there is a massive boom in mma in eastern Europe and scandanavia

 

[kic**]

The fundamental problem is that HW know how hard they hit and they don't like becoming vegetables. What they have to do is pay the guys. Every fighter has a health vs. pay function in their mind, a question of whether it is worth the brain damage. If you pay every HW at least 70k no matter what, you will see a lot of quality recruits.

 

[cheesus]

UFC doesn't pay nearly enough for contenders or guys fighting on the undercard. If you're a super athletic HW, you try to play football...if that doesn't work, you are still probably going to make a better living being a security guard rather then fighting on a regional circuit in hopes to get a call from the big show one day.

There is a lot of untapped talent from Europe, M1 has a pretty stacked HW roster...even a shitload of tough solid journeymen from that org would give some of the guys in the ufc trouble.

 

[vcmmafan]

The division will develope as the sport grows