Shocking Report - A Lot of People Hate Wrestling Applied to MMA
by Geno Mrosko on Sep 7, 2010 7:40 PM EDT
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No, I don't mean pro wrestling; I mean actual wrestling. I mean GSP taking guys down with absolutely no resistance due to his superior wrestling skills. Recently we've seen a few high profile names come out strongly opposed to wrestling in MMA and wanting to be rid of it. First up, Dan Hardy:
"Rather than saying 'oh, these guys can't wrestle', I think the problem is there's beginning to be too much wrestling in UFC Octagon, not too little of it in the gym. There are a lot of people out there calling themselves 'UFC fighters' who are nothing of the kind. In the UFC, you should go for finishes."
"The athletic commissions need to look at the scoring and refereeing to stop this from becoming a problem. If a guy is in a dominant position, but not actually doing anything offensive - stand 'em back up. If he is consistently trying to tie the other guy up to avoid actual fighting - warn him and then start taking points. It is supposed to be a fight."
It's really annoying to have to continue to hear fighters who have very little skill in one discipline complain about other fights using said discipline. Is it any surprise that in his last fight he was thoroughly dominated by the best wrestler in MMA, Georges St. Pierre? Of course he has a problem with wrestling; he's not any good at it. Instead of putting the time in to actually get better at it, he's chosen to just complain loudly in hopes of getting a rule change. A fight is a fight. You know the rules going in. Prepare accordingly.
Speaking of GSP, Mark Pavelich, the owner of Maxium Fighting Championships, has now also come out strongly against wrestling in MMA and even went so far as to call out GSP specifically. From AngryMarks and via MMA Mania:
"I can't stand watching Georges St. Pierre fight. I put him in the same category as watching Scott Coker talk. God, it kills me. You know? I want to watch people like Ryan Ford fight. I want to watch people like Jon Jones fight. I want to watch Clay Guida fight. I want to watch people like Tom Watson from England who fights for the Maximum Fighting Championship. I want to watch him fight. Because I know he's going to do dirty shit to people. I know he's going to kick someone in the head."
It's tough to even find the right thing to say to a ridiculous quote like this. You want to watch guys fight who are going to do dirty shit to people? He's projecting an image, I get that. But this is exactly the kind of quote that the mainstream eats up. This is just a bloodsport fed to men who are hungry for violence. The sad part is that Mr. Pavelich's opinion is shared by so many. I love watching GSP go out and totally outclass a lesser fighter like Dan Hardy. Watching him ply his craft is something we should be honored to get to watch. Do we really just want to see two men go out and throw haymakers at each other for 15 or 25 minutes? Does everyone just want Garcia-Sung Jung all the time?
MMA is beautiful because of how diverse it is. You have to be proficient at so many different levels that you will be eaten alive if you come in thinking that you can just stand and trade. That's a good thing. Eventually, fights like that get boring. Boxing is nice to watch every now and again but variety should not ever be underestimated. I enjoy the fact that I can watch a card like UFC 118 that features a stand up war between Marcus Davis and Nate Diaz and then an amazing display of ground work by Mario Miranda and Demian Maia. Why would anyone hate that?
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I read that one of Pavelich’s champions is Antonio McKee I found that hilarious after he called out GSP after I was already laughing that he would rather watch Guida then GSP. Just my opinion but if you don’t appreciate the ground game go to a different sport and stop b*tching about it.
He talks just to talk. He’s trying to be controversial. He’s an idiot.
Forget it Donny, you're out of your element.
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Dana speaks the truth (1.39 on):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkYC8TBzmmQ
I think Dan Hardy is on to a good point though. I agree with you in that Hardy is probably just bitching because he lacks the proper skills to defend against a great wrestler. However I agree with Hardy when he says that there is too much wrestling in MMA. If two fighters are refusing to engage while standing they will be told by the ref to get after it, like at UFC 112 inthe main event. The fine line between grappling for a better position and just laying on someone causes some refs to worry about breaking the fighters apart. Watching Lentz lean against Winner was awful and he should not be awarded the victory due to effective leaning. GSP actually does something with his wrestling. Rambling a little bit here……I guess what I am trying to agree with is damage done and working to end the fight. It seems to me that the ultimate way to win a fight is to “finish it” if it is deemed you are not working toward that then you should be penalized.
What's wrong
with a guy winning a fight the best way he can? Lentz wasn’t just leaning against Winner, he was working a single leg if I’m remembering right. Although, I agree that there should be some sort of penalty for blatant stalling. Maybe a Pride style yellow card system. Penalize part of their purse…that would ensure they would never pull that in a fight.
Forget it Donny, you're out of your element.
CagesideSeats.com
Follow me on Twitter at GenoMrosko
He won the first round on two cards by failing to get a single leg for three and a half minutes. It was not only ugly, it was ineffective and that shouldn’t be scored. You don’t get credit for missing punches, why is failing at a takedown attempt any different. I have no problem with GSP, Sonnen, Phil Davis and dozens of other guys who wrestle effectively, I just hate seeing guys get awarded rounds for holding guys against the fence.
That's a good argument.
I don’t like the way fights are scored, at all. I just think that if you try to force guys to separate too quickly you are giving an advantage to the guy who is just surviving the takedown attempts. I see the reasoning behind wanting action but everybody is working towards something. It’s really tough to find a middle ground here.
Forget it Donny, you're out of your element.
CagesideSeats.com
Follow me on Twitter at GenoMrosko
I have mixed views on this whole thing
And it’s probably worth me writing an article or two on it. I believe Hardy as well as training partners Andre Winner and Paul Daley have an outdated and flawed approach to MMA training and that Hardy’s recent commentary is an obvious attempt at diverting attention away from their own short comings. I also believe the problem of Wall & Stall is caused by technique ignorance from both fighters. And I also believe there is a bad habit even among journalists to label something as Lay’n’Pray as soon as a wrestler gets the fight to the ground and that there is an anti-wrestling bias.
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