The Sports Sound Off 2.0

Some other doodads from Dana’s interview with Brett Okamoto:

-They’re relaunching TUF on Fight Pass alone, it’ll start filming likely during the Summer. TUF will have “changes” to it. Meh?

-There WILL be a DWCS this Summer as well. That’ll be on ESPN.

-Andrade vs Rose is happening once they talk to Rose Namajunas and make sure she’s comfortable with fighting. Made it clear that if she’s not interested then “there’s plenty of time for fighting this year.”

-Joanne Calderwood vs Valentina Shevchenko is still the fight they’d like to put together. Both are in Vegas training. 

-No real date as of right now for Yan/Aldo, Costa/Adesanya and DC/Miocic but those are the fights they’re trying to put together. Said that chances are it’ll be happening in the Summer for Aldo/Yan and Costa/Adesanya. 

-RE: Jones/Ngannou, Dana doesn’t think that Jones wants to hang around at HW and go for the title and think it would lead to a guy like Dom Reyes being forced to wait.  Seems like instead what he wants to do is Reyes/Jones 2 or Jan/Jones.

-Said there’s a lot of drama at welterweight, primarily because every one of the key guys wants to fight Conor McGregor instead of each other. 

-There’s been no discussions with Conor about fighting. They want Conor to maybe go back down to 155 lbs. 

-Per Dana, Mike Tyson apparently IS fighting. It didn’t sound like he was involved in putting together but there’s some sort of a fight announcement coming soon.

Dana says a lot of fluff and blegh but one thing he said that holds a tremendous amount of concern for me (probably due to how right it is) is that gyms are going to likely look vastly different/crushed going forward. THAT of all things figures to hurt all combat sports going forward. We’ve got Abel Sanchez and other genuine top flight gyms talking about not being able to reopen their doors going forward. That’s a bad thing. 

Got a favorite for Aspenn Ladd vs Sara McMann? @theanticool

I find it hard to pick McMann. Just cause she can shut down at anytime. With Ladd, we know she can flip that gear in her head and can just go crazy. Sara’s probably the technically better striker and wrestler but Ladd will not break. Picking Ladd.

I just keep thinking this is the sort of fight where McMann goes up 2-0 and finds a way to lose it in the 3rd. 

In hindsight, Rumble vs Jones ends pretty much how DC vs Rumble ended, right? Sort of dings the allure to it. 

I don’t think Rumble wrestles with Jones cause I don’t think Jones would have tried to wrestle Rumble. And if he did, I’m not sure how far he would have gotten.

I do think he’d wrestle with Jones because he’s kind of a dumb dumb fighter. 

I think it would’ve looked ended similarly. 

Mike Tyson really got every promoter to show their ass and then turned around and said “I’m going to go wrestle Chris Jericho w/ my best friends Rashad Evans, Henry Cejudo, and Rashad Evans”

Shannon Briggs has a pretty interesting Tyson story about how a money mark was going to promote his (being Briggs’) return to boxing until dude met Mike Tyson and then Tyson led dude into believing they’d do business together and bounced.

Which is kind of hilarious. 

People getting title shots apparently

People not getting title shots

Gotta love the UFC. “The best fight the best”

Ya know you can make an argument for Jorge Masvidal over Leon Edwards because as a marketing professor once told me “All things being equal never are” and so Edwards resume doesn’t trump Masvidal’s drawing power. Masvidal vs Usman PROBABLY moves more than Usman vs Edwards without much effort. I’d even have the courtesy to extend that to Conor McGregor because let’s be real; if Oscar De La Hoya came back and opted to fight Canelo, we’d find a way to make it for every belt in the universe. It’s the nature of the beast. 

HOWEVER

Is Aldo a draw? Has he EVER been a draw? He has one real number to his name and that was Conor McGregor induced. He’s a guy who routinely drew the LOWEST numbers of male title champs to his name prior to a dude like Robert Whittaker completely nuking the average. Is there ever a situation where Aldo should be fighting over Sterling, Moraes and Sandhagen? Besides the UFC doesn’t get PPV money unless a show cracks, say, 300K buys or so. Otherwise they’re basically putting on a sold show. The difference between Aldo and Moraes or Sterling is absolutely negligible and there’s no real reason to do this besides the idea, flawed as it may be, that there’s a market out there to see Aldo join the two division belt club. There’s not a Jose Aldo market. It didn’t exist when he was inarguably the best fighter of his generation and it doesn’t exist now when he’s lost his last two fights and 4 of his last 6. 

I guess they were selling it because Henry wanted to fight him and he the loss to Marlon was awful close like the Yoel Romero losses prior to the title shot. Something about a veteran over a rookie sounds more appealing to the fans who know names only. Now I agree, Aldo doesn’t sell but pair him with someone who does and make them a comain event with a heavier weight class as the main event and add the title on the line and boom, sold way better.

Surely surely. Aldo getting a title fight was pretty much a favor from the UFC to Henry Cejudo much like how Romero getting the title shot was a Thank You to Israel Adesanya. That said not saying “That was a one time thing for a special occasion and we’re moving on now that it’s gone” is the sort of decision making that even I, a guy who understands that this is business first and sporting second, can’t comprehend. If you’re so committed to doing an Aldo BW title fight then give him a dude in the lower half of the top 10 that he can ice and build to it. 

I understand what you’re saying and I dislike the divisions as they are. Usman wants Conor, doesn’t want to rematch Colby any time soon even though that was a close fight going into the 5th...Jon and Francis are trying to get paid to fight while DC and Stipe are saving their last dance. Its all a shit show. I agree with you, but I’m assuming its just for business. Aldo getting a title shot still sounds like more of a draw than any new guy. Who would you have put together to fight for that belt though? Can you put together the fight cards to earn that title shot?

I would’ve gone with Yan vs Moraes personally, had Sandhagen vs Sterling as a #1 contender fight and given Aldo the winner of Assuncao vs Garbrandt. I think that lines you up neater. 

I agree actually. What do you see for Dominick Cruz?

Good timing since I was just writing a bit about Cruz (sorta kinda)!

I think the problem with Cruz is that I don’t necessarily know what Dominick Cruz is anymore. He’s fought once since the end of 2016, has had multiple surgeries and while his processor still seems to run really well, I’ve now seen him get rocked more in two fights than he did in ten fights prior. So much of Cruz’s run has been trying to make sense of what the brief glimpses of Dominick Cruz really mean. The last time he fought more than twice in a calendar year was in 2016. He’s crossing into the really dark side of 30 years old with multiple surgeries with arguably the highest fight IQ in the game. 

Honestly I’d like to see Cruz take a slight step backwards. Maybe somebody outside of the top 15 or somebody we know is good but on a bit of a streak. Cruz vs Dodson?

Henry Cejudo enjoying retirement

Just gonna ignore my guy Rashad right there too?!

Writing up a bit about 10 UFC fights that were scheduled but didn’t happen that could’ve altered history and why don’t we talk about the insanity of UFC 137 more? 

So one of the fights that didn’t make the list that I want to take a second to acknowledge is TJ Grant vs Benson Henderson from August of 2013. It’s crazy to think that at the time, the UFC was gearing up to do Pettis vs Aldo in Brazil and TJ Grant vs Bendo a bit later on in the month. The whole story from there on is pretty crazy.

Anthony Pettis pulled out of the Aldo fight due to a bad knee and then when the call came in to fight Bendo, he took the fight with a bad knee and subbed Benson Henderson in the first round. The fact Pettis fought Bendo despite being injured was the subject of plenty of controversy with some folks assuming that the UFC had pulled some sort of strings to get TJ Grant to step aside. There were folks who thought Grant had faked his concussion which given that he hasn’t fought and still suffers the effects of it to this day is pretty revolting. What I think is interesting is that at the time in 2013, even with Canadian MMA slowing down, there was no real concern that “slowing down” would turn into “destroyed and destitute” by the time Rory Mac became the man tasked with carrying the burden of a post GSP world. Even if I give him but a slim chance to beat Benson Henderson, it’s kind of crazy to play out a “What If?” scenario where TJ Grant is the guy who somehow ascended to the GSP mantle. 

Writing up a bit about 10 UFC fights that were scheduled but didn’t happen that could’ve altered history and why don’t we talk about the insanity of UFC 137 more? 

That Danny downes fight was the first time I watched a fight and thought “This dude was not built for fighting but he sure can take a whooping”

GSP vs Diaz with BJ Penn vs Condit turned to GSP vs Condit with BJ and Diaz off the card which turned to Condit vs Diaz briefly for a minute before turning to Diaz vs BJ Penn finally with Condi vs Diaz like four months later. 

Oh, I remember! I also remember BJ calling Diaz a cage grinder and accusing him of fighting like a coward.

They pulled Nick Diaz off of the card for missing a press conference on a tour and then by the end of th etour he was back on the card IN THE MAIN EVENT. Lord. Then the next month, Dana and company tried to force a FOX special out of the blue where JDS melted Cain in like a minute. We can joke about previous years but the UFC from September to December of 2011 saw like five PPV main events fall apart, three cash cows get wiped off the face of the planet for various reasons and Papy Abedy on a numbered main card. Those were the blurst of times. 

Writing up a bit about 10 UFC fights that were scheduled but didn’t happen that could’ve altered history and why don’t we talk about the insanity of UFC 137 more? 

That Danny downes fight was the first time I watched a fight and thought “This dude was not built for fighting but he sure can take a whooping”

GSP vs Diaz with BJ Penn vs Condit turned to GSP vs Condit with BJ and Diaz off the card which turned to Condit vs Diaz briefly for a minute before turning to Diaz vs BJ Penn finally with Condi vs Diaz like four months later. 

People getting title shots apparently

People not getting title shots

Gotta love the UFC. “The best fight the best”

Ya know you can make an argument for Jorge Masvidal over Leon Edwards because as a marketing professor once told me “All things being equal never are” and so Edwards resume doesn’t trump Masvidal’s drawing power. Masvidal vs Usman PROBABLY moves more than Usman vs Edwards without much effort. I’d even have the courtesy to extend that to Conor McGregor because let’s be real; if Oscar De La Hoya came back and opted to fight Canelo, we’d find a way to make it for every belt in the universe. It’s the nature of the beast. 

HOWEVER

Is Aldo a draw? Has he EVER been a draw? He has one real number to his name and that was Conor McGregor induced. He’s a guy who routinely drew the LOWEST numbers of male title champs to his name prior to a dude like Robert Whittaker completely nuking the average. Is there ever a situation where Aldo should be fighting over Sterling, Moraes and Sandhagen? Besides the UFC doesn’t get PPV money unless a show cracks, say, 300K buys or so. Otherwise they’re basically putting on a sold show. The difference between Aldo and Moraes or Sterling is absolutely negligible and there’s no real reason to do this besides the idea, flawed as it may be, that there’s a market out there to see Aldo join the two division belt club. There’s not a Jose Aldo market. It didn’t exist when he was inarguably the best fighter of his generation and it doesn’t exist now when he’s lost his last two fights and 4 of his last 6. 

I guess they were selling it because Henry wanted to fight him and he the loss to Marlon was awful close like the Yoel Romero losses prior to the title shot. Something about a veteran over a rookie sounds more appealing to the fans who know names only. Now I agree, Aldo doesn’t sell but pair him with someone who does and make them a comain event with a heavier weight class as the main event and add the title on the line and boom, sold way better.

Surely surely. Aldo getting a title fight was pretty much a favor from the UFC to Henry Cejudo much like how Romero getting the title shot was a Thank You to Israel Adesanya. That said not saying “That was a one time thing for a special occasion and we’re moving on now that it’s gone” is the sort of decision making that even I, a guy who understands that this is business first and sporting second, can’t comprehend. If you’re so committed to doing an Aldo BW title fight then give him a dude in the lower half of the top 10 that he can ice and build to it. 

I understand what you’re saying and I dislike the divisions as they are. Usman wants Conor, doesn’t want to rematch Colby any time soon even though that was a close fight going into the 5th...Jon and Francis are trying to get paid to fight while DC and Stipe are saving their last dance. Its all a shit show. I agree with you, but I’m assuming its just for business. Aldo getting a title shot still sounds like more of a draw than any new guy. Who would you have put together to fight for that belt though? Can you put together the fight cards to earn that title shot?

I would’ve gone with Yan vs Moraes personally, had Sandhagen vs Sterling as a #1 contender fight and given Aldo the winner of Assuncao vs Garbrandt. I think that lines you up neater. 

People getting title shots apparently

People not getting title shots

Gotta love the UFC. “The best fight the best”

Ya know you can make an argument for Jorge Masvidal over Leon Edwards because as a marketing professor once told me “All things being equal never are” and so Edwards resume doesn’t trump Masvidal’s drawing power. Masvidal vs Usman PROBABLY moves more than Usman vs Edwards without much effort. I’d even have the courtesy to extend that to Conor McGregor because let’s be real; if Oscar De La Hoya came back and opted to fight Canelo, we’d find a way to make it for every belt in the universe. It’s the nature of the beast. 

HOWEVER

Is Aldo a draw? Has he EVER been a draw? He has one real number to his name and that was Conor McGregor induced. He’s a guy who routinely drew the LOWEST numbers of male title champs to his name prior to a dude like Robert Whittaker completely nuking the average. Is there ever a situation where Aldo should be fighting over Sterling, Moraes and Sandhagen? Besides the UFC doesn’t get PPV money unless a show cracks, say, 300K buys or so. Otherwise they’re basically putting on a sold show. The difference between Aldo and Moraes or Sterling is absolutely negligible and there’s no real reason to do this besides the idea, flawed as it may be, that there’s a market out there to see Aldo join the two division belt club. There’s not a Jose Aldo market. It didn’t exist when he was inarguably the best fighter of his generation and it doesn’t exist now when he’s lost his last two fights and 4 of his last 6. 

Masvidal doesn’t want the fight. He wants a Nate rematch. 0 part of me thinks McGregor wants the Usman fight when he knows he can get the Khabib/Gaethje fight in winter/early 2021 and probably make way more money. Just give it to the deserving guy. If it doesn’t sell, who cares? ESPN is comping this anyway. Sick of fighters doing the work and then getting screwed out of the only actual bargaining chip any of them actually have: an opportunity for the title.

With Aldo I’m assuming it has to do with none of these other guys headlining (except Moraes on that one weird upstate NY card), which is a problem the UFC created by not booking these guys to headline shows despite having 40+ cards a year to fill out.

“ If it doesn’t sell, who cares?”

If the UFC gets bonused for cards over 300K buys (or 500K or so on) then Masvidal vs Usman > Masvidal vs Edwards. IF!

The Aldo thing just reeks of stubbornness. They took a lot of shit booking him vs Cejudo and admitting fault is not something the heads of this org (or any org I suppose) wants to do.