Your roundtable:
DW: Dave Walsh
AC: Alan Conceicao
LC: Lee Casebolt
JS: Jonathan Snowden

The Ultimate Fighter: CB Loses, CB Wins

AC: Among the better episodes of the show ever. There were two fairly decent, well contested fights that weren’t merely subpar pugilism. I think there’s been a fair amount of criticism regarding CB’s stamina, but it should be noted that the guy fought 5 fights in the course of about 2 months. Not only that, the rematch between him and Amir should be spectacular based on their initial clash in the semifinals. My assumption going in is that it will finish the way I expected their first confrontation would go with a decisive CB win either by stoppage or unanimous decision.

LC: It was pretty much one fight for the price of two last night. CB/Amir and CB/Credeur were basically the same fight - more or less competitive standing, with CB able to hit a takedown more or less at will and follow up with decent but unspectacular ground and pound while the bottom man threw up halfhearted submission and sweep attempts. The difference, of course, being that Amir’s late attempts got more desperate instead of less, and consequently one of them worked.

JS: It’s interesting that CB didn’t learn anything from his loss to Amir. It should have been a lesson in humility. Instead, when given a second chance, he was still talking about how he “deserved to be in the finals.” No. The person that wins the fight deserves to be in the finals.

LC: The creative editing (there’s always creative editing) on Amir has worked - I like the kid. He’s got that Forrest Griffin self-deprecating tough guy goofball thing going on and sincere or not I prefer that persona to stereotypical drunk tough frat boy, which is generally the only alternative on TUF. Plus he’s the only guy this side of Semmy Schilt who uses the front kick as an actual strike instead of a push and that wins a couple points from me.

Jesse Taylor: Ultimate Meathead

JS: I think Dana White did the right thing here. The UFC is in a tenuous position in our mainstream culture and can’t afford to have their own “Pacman” Jones. Dana White was sending a message, not just to fighters, but to potential partners as well. This kind of behavior will not be tolerated by the company.

LC: This just in - Jesse Taylor is the dumbest fighter in the history of TUF. Other guys have gotten kicked off the show for dumb stunts, but JT Money is the first confirmed finalist to suffer such a fate. Far be it from me to cheerlead for Dana White, but he hit the nail on the head on this one. If JT is dumb and arrogant enough to pull a stunt like this as an as-yet-unpaid TUF finalist, what will he be like when he actually has some coin in his pocket and three or four people have actually heard of him? The capstone in an epically stupid season.

AC: The guy who urinates himself got kicked off and will probably be back by October if they plan to run opposition shows against everyone. Really, I’m not sure how much this truly matters unless they cut his contract right this moment. Given that he’s not fought anywhere else, I’m guessing that didn’t happen.

Fertitta to Reign in White?

JS: Yesterday’s big announcement was that UFC co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta was leaving his position with the family’s casino operation to run the UFC full-time. Dave Meltzer at the new Wrestling Observer website opined that fans complaining about a letdown just didn’t understand the importance of the decision for the company’s financial health. I think there is a disconnect between Meltzer and the average fan. There is no doubt that this move says a lot about the Fertitta’s continued willingness to invest time and resources to the UFC. But the average fan doesn’t care who’s running the company. To them a significant fight or a major fighter signing is huge news. This doesn’t qualify.

LC: And, obviously, casting this as “tremendous, exciting, sport- and life-changing news” is disingenuous at best. Given White’s track record for “big announcements,” I have to wonder what deal fell through at the last minute.

DW: The fact that this was the BIG ANNOUNCEMENT is hilarious. You can tell it was supposed to be NY, then NY fell through, so a simple personnel change turned into a media event. Meltzer is reporting that Dana White works so hard that he only spends around 4 days a month at home, so he is “ecstatic” over this announcement. What is funny is that Dana has a better understanding of the business than Fertitta, who expects, within 9 years, to be beyond the NBA and be the top sports league in at least the US. I doubt UFC will still be in business within 9 years, never mind making demands of major broadcast networks.

JS: There is a lot of talk that Fertitta will help reign in some of Dana’s self-destructive impulses. People close to White say that he takes many business decisions very personally and may make unwise decisions in a fit of madness.

AC: I don’t believe for a second White will be “reigned in”. Quite the opposite. The only way this move really matters is if, as I outlined in my supremely meta bloggity bloggity blog last night, Lorenzo changes how the UFC does business. I don’t think that happens. Heck, who is to say he wasn’t around before when they were in negotiations with Fox, HBO, CBS, and so on? I would assume that he is rather than that he is not.

LC: While I think we can all agree that someone needs to reign in The Ego That Walks Like A Man, one is forced to wonder what, exactly, Lorenzo Fertitta (juvenile moment - that came up as “Lorenzo Fertits” the first seven times I tried to type it) will do in his “hands on” capacity that couldn’t have been covered in a memo saying, “Dana, quit being a dick. You’re making us look bad in front of all our money. -TFB”

AC: Ultimately, the problem isn’t the way the plan is presented but rather the plan itself.

Affliction: Drama and Metal

JS: Affliction officials are flattered that White is paying so much attention to them. Media coverage of the UFC’s surprise bouts is bound to mention the Affliction show, helping them overcome a major hurdle. Without the UFC’s timely intervention, many fans would have no idea there was a major PPV on July, 19th. The company is also in the news for the ongoing Tim Sylvia-Andrei Arlovski feud. Some poor (and presumably blind) woman has left Arlovski for Sylvia. Anyone up for Sylvia-Arlovski IV?

DW: The fact that Big Tim has somehow stolen Andrei Arlovski’s girlfriend is just completely ridiculous. Other than the fact that you compare Arlovski to the awkward, goofy looking Sylvia and come to the conclusion that one looks like he belongs in a made for TV version of “Of Mice and Men” talking about how much he loves rabbits while the other looks like he could star in a Rob Zombie version of “Dracula,”
it is astonishing that this girl could go for either. If this means we get another fight and that Andrei isn’t gun shy and knocks Tim’s head off I’m ok with that. If it means another Sylvia/Andrei III, I give
up.

LC: These guys make the worst t-shirts in a sport filled with ugly t-shirts. “High-end Tapout” wasn’t a niche that needed filling, if anyone was asking me. Naturally, no one was asking me. That said, this is the kind of card that makes an MMA fan forgive a multitude of sins. Fedor v Sylvia? Are you serious? The best heavyweight in the world against a two-time UFC champ? Another former UFC champ (Arlovski) against Ben Rothwell, the only decent heavyweight the IFL ever had and, arguably, the second best American heavyweight in MMA? Add in Josh Barnett vs. the remnants of Pedro Rizzo and Buentello/Emelianenko the Lesser and this is the best card of heavyweight MMA action seen since Pride folded. It’s a good thing they tapped into The Donald’s money, because I have no idea how they expect to stay afloat with what those contracts must’ve cost.

JS: Affliction is also bringing in metal stars Megadeth to play at the show. Has this gimmick ever increased attendance in the history of sporting events? Maybe at minor league baseball games. But is that really the image Affliction wants? Will they shoot off fireworks after the event as well? Free bobbleheads?

DW: I liked them when I was a kid, but at this point, they are old, dated, and not that cool. I’m sure if they really tried they could come up with somebody cooler, but Megadeth have their own Affliction branded shirts and everything, so I guess it was easier to approach them with the, “hey our shirts kick ass for you, huh, so will you play at our fighting show?”

AC: Megadeth hasn’t been relevant in 15 years. I almost want to believe that this was their record label trying to promote them rather than Affliction coming on board looking for a musical act. If we’re lucky, they play the national anthem and leave.