Jake Hager vs Brandon Calton, Entertaining Fight

[TheMMAnalyst]

What kind of weird observation is your statement that you think Jake Hager didn't enjoy fighting? By your logic that means Gegard Mousasi enjoyed getting kicked in the legs by Douglas Lima. That means Michael Chandler enjoyed getting knocked out by Patricio Pitbull Freire. That means Julia Budd enjoyed getting beat down by Cris Cyborg. So MMA fighters having a tough gritty fight until the final bell means those fighters enjoyed getting hit in the face, taking physical body punishment, and getting cut. Your observation of Jake Hager not enjoying getting hit in the face is duh. I believe Brandon Calton wasn't enjoying getting hit in the face either.

I think you are missing the point they are making, so I will try to explain in further detail to hopefully properly relay the thought.

You are correct that very few fighters (outside of psychopaths like Robbie Lawler) seem to enjoy taking damage - after all, who likes getting their ass-kicked right?

That being said, it appears that most legit fighters accept taking damage as part of being in a fight and it just is what it is - their main focus/drive is winning at all costs and they are willing to absorb damage and go through hell to get it.

In the third round there were multiple moments where it looked like Hager would've rather been any place in the entire world then in the cage in a gritty fight (in a fight he was winning and would go on to win!). After the fight when he sat down on the stool and his face was getting worked on from the cut men for all the damage he had soaked up he had this thousand-yard stare where it legitimately looked like he was reconsidering if this MMA-Fighting thing was a good career choice. Up until this point it'd been all fun and games for him; as a Bellator "name" coming over from Pro Wrasslin' he was getting hand-picked chump opponents, getting $50K+ paychecks to beat-up dudes nick-named "Beef Plant" inside of a couple minutes. Now they gave him his first "real test" which is a fighter that isn't even that good, just a super-tough brawler, and he literally took him to hell and back and was walking around after the fight claiming he could go 2 more rounds while Hager looked near death.

At the end of the fight, it looked like Brandon Calton had a smile on his face and had thoroughly enjoyed being in a fight (to a degree): Jake Hager looked as if he was just happy it was over and getting the win was an unexpected cherry on top (I had him losing but it was close enough to go either way).

Like @careto said, he looked like he got his first "real" taste of what MMA is really about and he didn't like it one bit. The eyes don't lie and he had the look of a man re-considering his life's choices...

 

[RODNEY83]

I think you are missing the point they are making, so I will try to explain in further detail to hopefully properly relay the thought.

You are correct that very few fighters (outside of psychopaths like Robbie Lawler) seem to enjoy taking damage - after all, who likes getting their ass-kicked right?

That being said, it appears that most legit fighters accept taking damage as part of being in a fight and it just is what it is - their main focus/drive is winning at all costs and they are willing to absorb damage and go through hell to get it.

In the third round there were multiple moments where it looked like Hager would've rather been any place in the entire world then in the cage in a gritty fight (in a fight he was winning and would go on to win!). After the fight when he sat down on the stool and his face was getting worked on from the cut men for all the damage he had soaked up he had this thousand-yard stare where it legitimately looked like he was reconsidering if this MMA-Fighting thing was a good career choice. Up until this point it'd been all fun and games for him; as a Bellator "name" coming over from Pro Wrasslin' he was getting hand-picked chump opponents, getting $50K+ paychecks to beat-up dudes nick-named "Beef Plant" inside of a couple minutes. Now they gave him his first "real test" which is a fighter that isn't even that good, just a super-tough brawler, and he literally took him to hell and back and was walking around after the fight claiming he could go 2 more rounds while Hager looked near death.

At the end of the fight, it looked like Brandon Calton had a smile on his face and had thoroughly enjoyed being in a fight (to a degree): Jake Hager looked as if he was just happy it was over and getting the win was an unexpected cherry on top (I had him losing but it was close enough to go either way).

Like @careto said, he looked like he got his first "real" taste of what MMA is really about and he didn't like it one bit. The eyes don't lie and he had the look of a man re-considering his life's choices...

All that long winded blah blah blah saying a bunch of nonsensical nothing. In the 3rd Round Jake Hager got caught and staggered and somehow you expect Jake Hager to act as if that was enjoyable. Freaking pathetic. Jake Hager responded by getting distance and then tying up Brandon Calton. It was more like Jake Hager responded like a smart fighter instead of a stupid fighter. Sherdoggers see a tough fight and then bash it. So apparently Sherdoggers love to see prospects fighting "cans" because that is normalcy in Bellator.

 

[RODNEY83]

Some fighters have IT and other dont. I think he meant that Hager might have found out that MMA isnt what he thought, and perhaps he isnt made for it. Is one thing having easy fights against meat packing factory guys and another having a real fight that takes everything in you to overcome. These mental hurdles arent meant for everyone.
Check out Max Roskhoff for example, he was considered one of the bes LW prospects until he got punched in the face repeatedly and decided he wasnt made for it.

The last I checked, Jake Hager didn't wilt from that adversity. Instead he toughed it out and fought his butt off and fortunately got the victory. It's Sherdoggers that seem to have a problem with seeing a tough fight in Bellator that neither fighter wilted and that went the distance. It seems many Sherdoggers are so accustomed to prospects fighting "cans" in Scott Coker's Bellator that get come to grips with seeing an actual competitive fight with one of Bellator's prospects. I was pleasantly surprised to actually see a tough entertaining fight on one of Coker's era Bellator cards with a prospect. Now I another fighter to root for as well in Brandon Calton.

 

[Fluffernutter]

Calton 29-28

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

All that long winded blah blah blah saying a bunch of nonsensical nothing. In the 3rd Round Jake Hager got caught and staggered and somehow you expect Jake Hager to act as if that was enjoyable. Freaking pathetic. Jake Hager responded by getting distance and then tying up Brandon Calton. It was more like Jake Hager responded like a smart fighter instead of a stupid fighter. Sherdoggers see a tough fight and then bash it. So apparently Sherdoggers love to see prospects fighting "cans" because that is normalcy in Bellator.

All we are doing is stating our opinions based on having watched thousands of MMA fights.

It wasn’t because of his fight strategy in the 3rd round that we think he didn’t want to be there, it was literally the look in his eyes throughout the round and for over a minute after it ended.

You can disagree but no one is saying he isn’t tough or it wasn’t an entertaining fight. Seems like you want to obsess over this narrative that these are legit prospects when in actuality they are already on the decline physically since they got in the game so late.

Old wrestlers don’t age well in this sport if they rely on takedowns since they have no knees. It is what it is.

 

[JSN]

He looked like a MMA fighter not fighting a "can" and he kept at it and got the victory in a very entertaining fight, which neither fighter backed down.

here's the problem: he was fighting a can.

 

[RODNEY83]

All we are doing is stating our opinions based on having watched thousands of MMA fights.

It wasn’t because of his fight strategy in the 3rd round that we think he didn’t want to be there, it was literally the look in his eyes throughout the round and for over a minute after it ended.

You can disagree but no one is saying he isn’t tough or it wasn’t an entertaining fight. Seems like you want to obsess over this narrative that these are legit prospects when in actuality they are already on the decline physically since they got in the game so late.

Old wrestlers don’t age well in this sport if they rely on takedowns since they have no knees. It is what it is.

And I am stating my opinion basing it on seeing two undefeated fighters, early in their MMA careers and both seemingly to be tough as nails, having a tough gritty entertaining fight. Apparently Sherdoggers are even complaining about tough gritty entertaining fights now

 

[RODNEY83]

here's the problem: he was fighting a can.

Here's the fact to respond to your lame statement, Brandon Calton isn't a can. Sherdoggers calling a former NFL player, who was undefeated in his early MMA career a can is simply stupid and baseless

 

[RODNEY83]

Calton 29-28

I would have had zero problems with whoever won. It was a tough and gritty entertaining fight.

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

And I am stating my opinion basing it on seeing two undefeated fighters, early in their MMA careers and both seemingly to be tough as nails, having a tough gritty entertaining fight. Apparently Sherdoggers are even complaining about tough gritty entertaining fights now

You seem to continue to obsess over narratives, so I'll make one last attempt to clarify.

Nobody is complaining about:

A) How tough either fighter is
B) How entertaining the fight was

No is is even "complaining" period, we are just making an observation about where we perceive the mental state of Hager be based on visual evidence and our own experiences watching thousands of hours of MMA fights.

Jake Hager is a 38 year-old former pro wrestler that took his first MMA fight when he was 37 and has 4 fights total now. He's looked like he's hit his ceiling this last fight in terms of what he is physically capable of in a fight, which is getting into a life and death gritty fight with a 40-year old that at that time had 2 fights. He couldn't even get a takedown against a fat 2-0 fighter with no wrestling background, which is his bread-and-butter MMA skill.

Neither of these guys are prospects; one guy is a "Name" thanks to Pro Wrestling, the other guy is a tough scraper they figured Hager could take down and smash but was tougher and grittier then they figured. It made for a quality scrap that to me had Hager questioning the wisdom of getting his face sliced open and taking massive CTE for $50K paychecks when he is already rich and his body is starting to break down from decades of abuse in wrestling.

These are just facts bro, it doesn't mean they shouldn't be able to fight if they don't want to, or that you shouldn't be entertained if you were. Just you think the road is starting our for these guys when in fact its going to be ending abruptly soon for both.

 

[RODNEY83]

You seem to continue to obsess over narratives, so I'll make one last attempt to clarify.

Nobody is complaining about:

A) How tough either fighter is
B) How entertaining the fight was

No is is even "complaining" period, we are just making an observation about where we perceive the mental state of Hager be based on visual evidence and our own experiences watching thousands of hours of MMA fights.

Jake Hager is a 38 year-old former pro wrestler that took his first MMA fight when he was 37 and has 4 fights total now. He's looked like he's hit his ceiling this last fight in terms of what he is physically capable of in a fight, which is getting into a life and death gritty fight with a 40-year old that at that time had 2 fights. He couldn't even get a takedown against a fat 2-0 fighter with no wrestling background, which is his bread-and-butter MMA skill.

Neither of these guys are prospects; one guy is a "Name" thanks to Pro Wrestling, the other guy is a tough scraper they figured Hager could take down and smash but was tougher and grittier then they figured. It made for a quality scrap that to me had Hager questioning the wisdom of getting his face sliced open and taking massive CTE for $50K paychecks when he is already rich and his body is starting to break down from decades of abuse in wrestling.

These are just facts bro, it doesn't mean they shouldn't be able to fight if they don't want to, or that you shouldn't be entertained if you were. Just you think the road is starting our for these guys when in fact its going to be ending abruptly soon for both.

A long winded narrative about absolutely nothing but you're hater-aid against Jake Hager and looking for anything possible to show your obvious bias against Jake Hager. You are the type of Sherdogger that would have stated Jake Hager fought a "can" and you're not impressed. If Jake Hager gotten knocked out you would be spewing your rhetoric, "I knew he didn't have it in him". So you can't bash him for his fortitude, you can't bash him for fighting smart after he got tagged, you can't bash him for fighting a "can". So you come up some obscure nonsensical garbage of Jake Hager looked like he didn't enjoy getting hit. Your opinion is laughable and pathetic for a MMA fan. MMA fights are tough. Fighters get punched and kicked and elbowed in the face and body. Nothing about that is enjoyable to any MMA fighter. You're simply a biased fan, who simply won't admit it.

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

A long winded narrative about absolutely nothing but you're hater-aid against Jake Hager and looking for anything possible to show your obvious bias against Jake Hager. You are the type of Sherdogger that would have stated Jake Hager fought a "can" and you're not impressed. If Jake Hager gotten knocked out you would be spewing your rhetoric, "I knew he didn't have it in him". So you can't bash him for his fortitude, you can't bash him for fighting smart after he got tagged, you can't bash him for fighting a "can". So you come up some obscure nonsensical garbage of Jake Hager looked like he didn't enjoy getting hit. Your opinion is laughable and pathetic for a MMA fan. MMA fights are tough. Fighters get punched and kicked and elbowed in the face and body. Nothing about that is enjoyable to any MMA fighter. You're simply a biased fan, who simply won't admit it.

Fuck I never in my entire life thought I would find a legit die-hard Jake Hager fan.



You lack reading comprehension and are absolutely obsessed with parroting your own personal perception. That's your right to do so, but to ask the rest of us to delude ourselves in your journey to MMA retardation is not a fair request.

For the third time - no one, I repeat, no one, me or otherwise, has said a goddamn word about whether or not he's tough. We never questioned either guys "toughness" or whether it was an "entertaining" fight (whatever the fuck that means - I surmise you like watching 40 year-old dudes with no MMA future beat the shit out of each other - cool, that's your prerogative). All we are talking about is whether Hager has a future in the sport or not on the basis of this fight. This is purely subjective opinion that you can disagree with, but you choose to try and gaslight that perspective by white-knighting for some fucking has-been pro-wrestler.

I'm not bashing Hager for literally ANYTHING, I just can't in good conscience buy-in to your delusions of reality that either Hager or Calton are "prospects." Honestly, it felt like it was a glorified tough-man fight at best, which if you enjoy is all well and good.

The irony of you calling anyone a "biased" fan is the ultimate pot calling the kettle black since you are one of the most biased fans I've ever ran into on these forums (and that's saying a lot). Typically though they are McGregor nut-huggers or at least have been given enough reason to buy into false narratives that I can understand it. Why you choose to die on the hill of "Jake Hager has a future in MMA and loves fighting" is beyond the pale to me.

Just enjoy the fights buddy - just because someone on the Internet didn't like it or doesn't think Hager has an MMA career in the future really shouldn't affect your enjoyment of it in any way. But it appears you are obsessed with creating and controlling artificial narratives of MMA fights as part of your enjoyment of it.........pretty sad actually.

 

[RODNEY83]

Fuck I never in my entire life thought I would find a legit die-hard Jake Hager fan.



You lack reading comprehension and are absolutely obsessed with parroting your own personal perception. That's your right to do so, but to ask the rest of us to delude ourselves in your journey to MMA retardation is not a fair request.

For the third time - no one, I repeat, no one, me or otherwise, has said a goddamn word about whether or not he's tough. We never questioned either guys "toughness" or whether it was an "entertaining" fight (whatever the fuck that means - I surmise you like watching 40 year-old dudes with no MMA future beat the shit out of each other - cool, that's your prerogative). All we are talking about is whether Hager has a future in the sport or not on the basis of this fight. This is purely subjective opinion that you can disagree with, but you choose to try and gaslight that perspective by white-knighting for some fucking has-been pro-wrestler.

I'm not bashing Hager for literally ANYTHING, I just can't in good conscience buy-in to your delusions of reality that either Hager or Calton are "prospects." Honestly, it felt like it was a glorified tough-man fight at best, which if you enjoy is all well and good.

The irony of you calling anyone a "biased" fan is the ultimate pot calling the kettle black since you are one of the most biased fans I've ever ran into on these forums (and that's saying a lot). Typically though they are McGregor nut-huggers or at least have been given enough reason to buy into false narratives that I can understand it. Why you choose to die on the hill of "Jake Hager has a future in MMA and loves fighting" is beyond the pale to me.

Just enjoy the fights buddy - just because someone on the Internet didn't like it or doesn't think Hager has an MMA career in the future really shouldn't affect your enjoyment of it in any way. But it appears you are obsessed with creating and controlling artificial narratives of MMA fights as part of your enjoyment of it.........pretty sad actually.

OMG! I never thought I run into a Sherdogger, who has a problem with seeing two fighters giving it their all, putting each other through adversity, with neither fighter backing down, while putting on a entertaining fight. And that Sherdogger is so biased that he or she is actually so frustrated to sell to himself or herself that I'm a diehard Jake Hager fan just because I enjoyed watching a fight with two tough fighters that put on a entertaining fight. Ain't nobody reading all that pure gibberish you typed up.

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

OMG! I never thought I run into a Sherdogger, who has a problem with seeing two fighters giving it their all, putting each other through adversity, with neither fighter backing down, while putting on a entertaining fight. And that Sherdogger is so biased that he or she is actually so frustrated to sell to himself or herself that I'm a diehard Jake Hager fan just because I enjoyed watching a fight with two tough fighters that put on a entertaining fight. Ain't nobody reading all that pure gibberish you typed up.

Where did I ever say I had a problem with the fight?



Have a good one buddy, glad you enjoyed it.