Why was Machida winning the LHW title so much more eventful than today's new champions.

[brainwash]

It felt like a huge event.

Today, it seems like the crowning of new champs is not as big of a deal.

 

[TheRassler]

no, it only gave us the shadface.

 

[mbach4307]

Two undefeated guys fighting for the belt. Both had been on a tear. Was a great fight that I had no idea which way it would go. Machida finishing him was crazy. Plus there was the whole, " Welcome to the machida era."

 

[fluffball]

At the time people thought he and Silva would karate-obliterate all challengers for ages on end. It was more interesting than a big deal.

 

[Clippy]

Wasn't he like the only full on karate champ or something like that

 

[The Natural Born Runner]

Huh?

 

[McGrubie]

Shadface

 

[Gamer2k4]

Usually when people say this, they mean "why was I more excited for Machida becoming champ than I am for anyone today?" It's like when people ask if MMA is dying just because they're no longer interested in it.

News flash: Your personal feelings regarding MMA and the UFC are not representative of the world as a whole. They're just how you feel.

 

[Cry0Therapy737]

It may just be because he's my favorite all time fighter but his win over Rashad is one of the more underrated performances of all time.

Greg Jackson the master strategist and Rashad in his prime had not one fucking clue how to fight
Lyoto and Rashad got dismantled, a championship level fighter who was mentally and physically annihilated with no offense whatsoever. There was no doubt who was the better man.

Of course it didn't last long and Shogun came along but if you were around back then and saw that fight you'll understand why Rogan claimed we were in the Machida era.

 

[BigMuffler]

He had a unique style no other fighter had, now we have 4 wrestlers with good striking and BJJ, 2 BJJ/MT guys, and 3 TDD strikers. The closest thing to a unique style champion is Cruz the dancing point fighter.

 

[charalsias]

Well he had one of the most interesting styles and impressive styles in the game.He looked good as well.I dont think we knew about his choice of beverage yet...

 

[PrinceOfPain]

The UFC's match-making has rendered their titles rather valueless.

 

[Which Doctor]

You damn well know why...

Spoiler

 

[Deleted member 501827]

Two undefeated guys fighting for the belt. Both had been on a tear. Was a great fight that I had no idea which way it would go. Machida finishing him was crazy. Plus there was the whole, " Welcome to the machida era."

I miss the Machida era

 

[blah_blah619]

that was a huge lesson to the UFC hype machine lol

 

[Nate Dogg]

Wasn't he like the only full on karate champ or something like that

Yeah, that was a big sticking point for me as a Machida fan. Here's a guy coming in as a lifetime practitioner, world karate champion. He brought something different than the prototype boxer, muay thai, wrestler mish mash MMA fighter. You knew he'd be slick striking and wanted to see how his karate style would hold up. It plays into the early freak show aspects of the UFC, where you wanted to see which style was better among a one glove boxer (lol), a sumo wrestler, a greco roman wrestler, a judoka, a BJJ expert, etc.

If someone successfully brought Jeet Kune Do (Bruce Lee style) into the UFC, KOing dudes with flicker back fists I would go nuts.

 

[CerebralKnievel]

Two undefeated guys fighting for the belt. Both had been on a tear. Was a great fight that I had no idea which way it would go. Machida finishing him was crazy. Plus there was the whole, " Welcome to the machida era."

I remember it differently... Machida was just superior as a striker to basically everyone else at the top when he began ascending the ranks in the UFC. Rashad, on the other hand, was a sloppy showboater who really only held the title because he had one of the easiest challenges anyone could ask for (no offense to Griffin, as I greatly respect his achievements, but this is a matter of relative comparison). Also, I despised Rashad at the time for decimating a suddenly slow and brittle-jawed Chuck. When Machida finally earned his shot, I expected him to display how vastly beyond Rashad he was, and that's exactly what he did. (Sidebar: I actually think Rashad really hit his peak later, probably around the Rampage fight, where he had begun to sharpen up his boxing, employ his speed to improve his movement in the cage, and mix in his wrestling rather than simply use it as the means and the end)

That time was just exciting in general, with the migration of all the Pride greats coming over. Hendo, Shogun, Rampage and Silva in the UFC was epic beyond all comprehension.

 

[IndyCovaHart]

Lol please.

Jones annihilating Shogun and making him tap to strikes was FAR more eventful.

PS - Shadface rules.

 

[IndyCovaHart]

Usually when people say this, they mean "why was I more excited for Machida becoming champ than I am for anyone today?" It's like when people ask if MMA is dying just because they're no longer interested in it.

News flash: Your personal feelings regarding MMA and the UFC are not representative of the world as a whole. They're just how you feel.

What homeboy said rite hurr.

 

[RJ43]

Everyone was looking for the next great champion at LHW that would defend as many times as Chuck. Rampage and Rashad were very good fighters, but people started to believe that Machida was pioneering a new style that could not be figured out.

In addition to that, Machida had a fair amount of "hype" due to have some stellar wins (BJ, Franklin, Bonnar) and everyone wanted to see what he could do in the UFC. And to be fair he looked pretty damn good and near unstoppable after finishing Evans.