Full of $hit

That's what some are calling Kermit Cintron now that his claims about his wrestling accolades are under scrutiny.

What defines a fighter?

Perseverance. No matter if you're a boxer or MMA fighter, and Diego "Chico" Corrales had a ton of it. Notable quote:

Diego Corrales lost five times. He spent time in jail for assaulting his wife. He admitted to making mistakes in the ring and out. That’s what people do—they make mistakes. He was human. And he showed the best of being human in what he did for work. As a fighter, he fought bravely and he never lost his will to win, even if winning seemed impossible. The myth of Sisyphus perhaps defines our human condition. In Greek mythology, the god Sisyphus was condemned to lug a boulder on his back to the top of a mountain, only to see the boulder roll back down the mountain, time after time after time, for eternity. That was his punishment. But instead of just sitting down and giving up, Sisyphus always went back down the mountain, always put the boulder back on his shoulders, always struggled to the top. Our human existence may be pointless, full of petty dreams and plans that mean nothing in the scheme of things, but, like Sisyphus, we struggle, we go on. Struggle defines us and maybe that’s why we loved Chico. The book is now closed on Diego Corrales, but the biggest chapter in his book has to do with character. Diego Corrales proved himself through struggle. He never gave up.

A fighter - by definition - struggles and seeks to overcome the forces acting against them. The fighter is never perfect, but also never in retreat. And even in defeat, the fighter seeks the redemption promised by tomorrow.

Chico personified that spirit and set an example for others. R.I.P., Chico.

Some more on MMA/Boxing

The boxing vs. mma angle isn't going to stop for at least another week, so I might as well air my 2 cents.

When you break the sport of MMA down to its essence, it is a fight. There are some superfluous rules... but that is more to appease the delicate sensibilities of society at large than to effect the fight. Boxing, however, can be seen as a face punching contest. There are rules in place to forbid the combatants from doing little other than punching each other in the face.

I have always been impressed by elite level face punchers in very much the same way that I have been impressed by elite wrestlers. They do things that others just can't... and it is awesome.

It's not a fight, though.

The reason that many in the boxing world feel compelled to disparage MMA and its participants is simple. Boxing was never marketed as a contest in pugilism, it was marketed as a contest between the world's toughest men and best fighters. So for a very long time, boxing promoters have seriously resembled snake-oil salesmen.

MMA has only made this lie a transparent one, but it was always a lie. Elite wrestlers have toiled in obscurity for decades while boxers and their promoters made millions.

Let me put it like this... In the late 80's - early 90's who really was the baddest man on the planet? Mike Tyson, Rickson Gracie, or Alexander Karelin?

Now, I don't think boxing will die. I think it is a great sport and a valuable tool for any martial artist. Also, kickboxing and MMA have both established themselves as juggernauts in the sports world in Japan. There is no reason that boxing and MMA cannot do the same in America.

(That was a rhetorical question... I wish that MMA evolved a decade earlier so I could have seen what a prime Karelin could do in a cage.)

- Matt Masterson

Jim Lampley/Max Kellerman Verbal Joust

From MMAWeekly

Lampley:
“You know, one of the specificities in that question is, ‘Will boxing have to cede its place on the stage to other fighting forms like Mixed Martial Arts?’ Mixed Martial Arts is entertaining, [but] the kind of skill level you saw in the ring tonight – there’s nothing in Mixed Martial Arts which is within light years of what Mayweather and De La Hoya are able to do with their hands.”

a bit later...

Kellerman:
“I disagree with Jim. I think there are Mixed Martial Artists who are operating on a very similar skill level in what they do to these fighters [De La Hoya and Mayweather]. And that’s one of the reason[s] why that fight…that sport’s becoming very popular.”

I believe that was one of Kellerman's first broadcasts with the HBO crew (he has done stuff for HBO since 05, but I can't recall him, Lampley, and Merchant doing many fights together). He stood up to someone who has seniority over him in a very public way. If you know anything about office politics, you'd know that they are not good friends right now.

- Matt Masterson

Corruption in MMA

Zach Arnold of Fight Opinion reminds us that MMA - just like boxing - has its share of scandals, but that they seem to go unnoticed. Notable quote:

It’s interesting to see both the parallels and differences between boxing and MMA fans in regards to the issue of scandals and corruption. Boxing has a checkered past with negative stories on that front. MMA has skeletons in its closet, too, but the reaction from MMA fans towards those scandals often comes out of the pro-wrestling fan playbook - ignore the scandal, dismiss or slime the person writing about it, and try to minimalize a scandal as not important.

The Japanese fight game has had two - count them - two major scandals this decade (the K-1 corporate tax evasion scandal and the PRIDE yakuza scandal) and neither scandal has registered much of a significant blip on the top English MMA web sites. Kazuyoshi Ishii, the Godfather of K-1, is sitting in a jail cell right now. Nobuyuki Sakakibara, the front man for PRIDE, is in Las Vegas right now as Dream Stage Entertainment Inc. is preparing a defense against a lawsuit filed by former PRIDE USA President Ed Fishman. I’m sure Sakakibara and others associated with DSE and UFC are just thrilled about the prospects of deposition hearings.

The Japanese MMA scene on a national level is crippled — and it was MMA in Japan that helped cripple Japanese pro-wrestling as a national powerhouse industry in that country. All within the timespan of two decades.

I just want everyone to keep this in perspective as you see more and more MMA scandals develop and how supporters of the industry try to rationalize these events when they take place. MMA media writers and fans share a lot more in common with pro-wrestling fans than they suspect or want to admit to — for better or for worse.

Getting rid of boxing?

In the dust up from the Freeman screed, its interesting to note how the positions in support of MMA split two ways. On the one hand there are those who say, unequivocally, boxing is dead/dying and that MMA is the new (and generally better) replacement. On the other hand there is a group also arguing boxing is in decline, but suggest the two should be able to peacefully coexist.

For my tastes, I'm of the latter group. I'm as excited about the Mayweather - De La Hoya fight as anyone. Most of my beef with boxing centers very little on the sport itself and more on the unethical and incompetent handling of the business. And those problems are well-documented, so I need not explore them anymore here.

What I would say, though, is that arguing MMA is replacing boxing versus the two peacefully coexisting (although even in that paradigm MMA is the premier combat sport) is probably better for becoming mainstream, but ultimately a questionable position. That is, feverishly making the case that boxing - for lack of a better description - sucks will help push MMA into the mainstream quicker than holding hands with boxing. By dismissing something not only as unimportant or boring, but irrelevant, you nullify any reason for caring. Insouciance is the easiest way to usher the decrepit into the grave.

But I like boxing. And its been - and will continue to be - a wonderful addition to the MMA fighter's arsenal. Just as I love watching pure kickboxing matches or jiu-jitsu competitions, I like a good boxing match. The pissing contest of "which sport is bigger and better?" is a paradigm I have little interest in. And if you've been reading Fight Opinion lately, a few wise folks have observed boxing is dying in America, but its making a huge comeback in parts of Europe.

Either way, MMA is going to be the number one combat sport on the planet. It's only a matter of time at this point. We don't need to drown boxing in order to make that happen.

Reactions to Freeman

They're popping up everywhere. Komikazee's got a decent line:

Boxing has no credibility. IBC is root beer, not a boxing league.

Sherk on Mayweather

Floyd Mayweather, Jr. has definitely been running his mouth about the UFC of late, but if he runs it too much, he'll have a line of MMA fighters ready to shut him up. One such fellow is UFC Lightweight champ, Sean Sherk. In an interview with Random Speak, Sherk responds to Mayweather's claims and sets the record straight on who's really the boss. Notable quote:

RS: Floyd Mayweather, Jr. came out the last couple weeks completely bashing the UFC and stating that any boxer would demolish a UFC fighter in the cage. Dana White (UFC President) came back at Mayweather and named you as the guy who he'd put Mayweather up against, and that you would handle him no problem. What are your thoughts on the whole situation?

Sean: Well, you know honestly in a boxing match, of course he'd beat me in a boxing match. In an MMA fight, he would be in for a beating. I mean, he's not going to knock me out with one punch; I've got a hard head and have been boxing for 13 years so it's not like I don't know how to box. So, he'd have to land a lot of punches to stop me from taking him down, and me being one of the best wrestlers in the sport, there's no way he could stop me from taking him down.

I don't think that fight would last longer than a minute, to be honest with you. And I don't think he should be talking about something that he can't back up, because I'll fight him tomorrow. I literally would, if they called and asked me to fight Floyd Mayweather, Jr. tomorrow, it's done. He's not going to fight me though, and he's just running his mouth. I don't really respect that a whole lot.

RS: It seems like a lot of boxers are starting to fear the rise of MMA by the way they keep speaking out against it. Do you think MMA has taken over?

Sean: Well it has, the numbers for the UFC are absolutely phenomenal. The numbers are unbelievable, and it's only getting bigger. A fight with me and Mayweather would obviously draw all the boxing fans, and after they see what happens to Floyd they would immediately jump on the UFC bandwagon and say "hey, what the hell are we watching boxing for". So it's a losing situation for boxing.

This wouldn't even really be contest. Mayweather hits hard, but not hard enough to score a quick KO over Sherk's very respectable chin. More importantly, Mayweather is around 130lbs whereas Sherk is a natural 170lbs. Mayweather would quite literally get mauled.

Boxing's house has water damage and termites

So says Bill Simmons, the ESPN Page 2 columnist.

Hat tip: UFC Mania

1 of 5 "Irrefutable" truths

According to Mark Chalifoux of The Athens News (Ohio, not Georgia), that the UFC is for real and here to stay is the first of five irrefutable truths about sports. Notable quote:

The UFC is here to stay. Sports fans occasionally get drawn into bitter arguments about what is a sport and what isn't a sport (these usually deal with NASCAR, bowling and golf). What's shocking about these arguments is that some pundits have actually included the UFC in that discussion, despite the fact that mixed martial arts is twice the sport auto racing is on its best day. Labeled as a fad by bitter boxing enthusiasts, the Ultimate Fighting Championship has become the dominant organization in the world of combat sports.

Some are still naive enough to argue that ultimate fighting is not a sport but as long as the UFC continues to blow away boxing pay-per-view numbers, those people simply don't matter. The UFC has out-performed both the NBA and MLB with shows on Spike TV, and even ESPN has balatedly jumped on the bandwagon by showing highlights on "SportsCenter." The coverage will only increase with two major fights on the horizon: Chuck Liddell and Quinton Jackson in May for the light-heavyweight championship and a heavyweight championship bout between Randy Couture and Gabriel Gonzaga in July.

What not to do

If you want your combat sport, its athletes, and the organizations involved in the sport to fail, make sure the best fighters do not face each other. According to Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White, that's exactly what boxing did and that's why they believe boxing is failing. Notable quote:

Wow, that's a novel concept, the top guys actually fighting each other. That happens so rarely in boxing these days.

LF: Part of the reason for the success we've had is the fights we put on are competitive. We don't pad guys' records. A lot of boxing guys complain "How can this guy be any good? He's 14-5." But that's because the guys in the Top 10 are fighting each other (in the UFC).

Dana White: Boxing is a road map of what not to do. The greedy promoters basically killed the sport by taking it off free TV. When we were growing up, we used to see Riddick Bowe, Lennox Lewis, Bernard Hopkins, Roy Jones Jr. ¦ on Wide World of Sports and USA's Tuesday Night Fights. Then those were the guys who became the pay-per-view stars of the '90s. In our era - I'm 37, Lorenzo's 37 - we grew up watching these fighters on (free) television. This younger generation didn't. The (boxing) pay-per-viewership is (minimal) compared to what it could be on a bigger platform.

Quote of the Day

“99 percent of boxers who would go in UFC would probably get their ass whooped. But I am one percent, I never got my ass whooped.” -- James Toney, speaking about the UFC