I have been reading a lot about UFC 112 and the backlash from it whether it be the bad judging (Penn / Edgar) or the Anderson Silva Circus performance, but the problem with these and all the UFC champions lately is they have gotten lazy and let their DOMINANCE go to their head. 

Before UFC 112, all the talk was of BJ having cleaned out the lightweight division and moving up to welterweight. 

via www.latimes.com

Before UFC 112, all the talk was how dominant Anderson Silva was and other challenges for him.

via sports-odds.com

Before UFC 104 (Heck, immediately after UFC 98), I remember reading and hearing how the reign of the Dragon could last forever.

via t0.gstatic.com

  Before UFC 111, I read all about how over-matched Hardy was and how GSP should move up.

via media.ufc.tv

I can remember thinking how ridiculous the talk was for all these cases. If you want more, I can remember sitting in the crowd at WEC 36 telling my friend how Urijah would destroy Mike Thomas Brown only to watch MTB KTFO the California kid.

The problem with all these fights and all these champions is challenges.  There is a lot to be said for the UFC giving them the best possible matchups and wanting to have the belts on the line a few times a year.  The UFC is a business and they need to sell their pay-per-views.  I understand their logic and want to see the champs defend their belts multiple times a year, but as fans we have to understand that all these champions are humans.  They need to be motivated.  Most of them can go half ass it in training every day and still take out the best the UFC or anyone promotion could throw at them.  Hell, I am a sales manager and when they started cutting my bonuses, I will tell you I stopped pushing as hard.  I do just enough to keep the boss off my back because frankly, there is nothing motivating me to do more.

Each and every one of these champions above is guilty of this same attitude.  Anderson wants money fights and does not think he should be disrespected by lesser opponents (especially guys that are not going to challenge him on the feet).  BJ Penn is infamous for not training right and having terrible cardio.  I blame him for letting that fight go to the judge's and utilizing all the tools at his disposal.  Was it bad judging?  HELL YES, but for sure if the BJ that had shown up to fight KenFlo or Mr. "YUS" Diego had shown up in Abu Dhabi we would not be having this discussion.  The Lyoto you saw fight Shogun was a cautious one who really did not have a good game plan.  Did I agree with the decision? Yes, but I would not have been calling it a travesty if Shogun's hand was raised.  Was the Urijah Faber that fought MTB at WEC 36 the same one who fought him at WEC 41? Hell, no.  Did GSP go out and fight the safe fight to win against Dan Hardy? Heck yeah he did.  But he could have finished that fight and should have finished that fight.  His kimura and armbar attempts were technically poor and not the best GSP could do.  Do I consider that a lack of focus, a lack of training? Maybe.  I know if I knew I could go and hold top position against a guy, take him down at will, and keep my belt.  I would probably do the same.  What motivation would I have to take the extra time in practice and work on those submission intricacies (or the Endgame of BJJ as Keith and Kenny florian like to say)?

What the UFC needs to do is come up with a way to motivate their champions.  What the fans need to do is stop nut-hugging and call a fighter the best ever (including lazy ass Fedor, please don't get me started).  Is money the answer? probably not.  GSP probably makes at least half of his money from sponsors like Gatorade and Under Armour, and I am sure this is true for a lot of these champions.  I do not see a good solution to this and do not want the task of Joe Silva, Dana White or the Fertittas in finding a way to motivate them and keep the fights entertainign.

Humans need motivation.  Its why thousands of dollars are spent on motivational speakers like Tony Robbins every single year.  Its why I feel bad for the next person to take on BJ.  Its why Fedor can keep picking and choosing his next fight (Werdum, Antonio Silva, reallly?)   Its why GSP is content holding top position, doing a little damage and keeping his belt/

I am a huge fan of mixed martial arts, but if this is the motivation and the preparation that these champions are going to give, then I might as well just sign up for the UFC vault and watch the undercards the next day because these are the fighters that want it. 

I have been watching the unfolding of cards for both SF and the UFC over the past few weeks and have to say as an MMA fan, I have never been more excited (my wallet not so much).  Over the 63 or so days between UFC 111 on March 27th to UFC 114 on May 29th, there will be 10 title fights (11 if you count the interim HW UFC fight), 14 fights between top ten ranked competitors, and a host of other action like Bellator's upcoming events, Dream 14 and 15, and others.  I am not sure about anyone else, but this looks to be the most exciting lineup of fights and cards I have ever seen.  Thank you Dana White, Joe Silva, Scott Coker, Reed Harris and whoever else had a hand in delivering this to the fans because this is awesome. 

Here's a Breakdown and at the bottom I will be including a poll to see which title fight is the most anticipated:

March 27th - UFC 111

UFC Welterweight Title : GSP (#1 WW) vs Dan Hardy (#5 WW)
UFC Interim Heavyweight Title : Shane Carwin (#7 HW) vs Frank Mir (#3 HW)
Thiago Alves (#3 WW) vs Jon Fitch (#2 WW)

March 31st - UFC Fight Night 21

Kenny Florian (#3 LW) vs Takanori Gomi (#17 LW)

April 10th - UFC 112

UFC Middleweight Title : Anderson Silva (#1 MW) vs Demain Maia (#6 MW)
UFC Lightweight Title : BJ Penn (#1 LW) vs Frankie Edgar (#6 LW)

April 17th - Strikeforce Nashville

SF Middleweight Title : Jake Sheilds (#7 MW) vs Dan Henderson (#2 MW)
SF Light Heavyweight Title : Gegard Moussasi (#6 LHW) vs Mo Lawal (#21 LHW)
SF Lightweight Title : Gilbert Melendez (#8 LW) vs Shinya Aoki (#2 LW)

April 24th - WEC 48

WEC Featherweight Title : Jose Aldo (#1 FW) vs Urijah Faber (#3 FW)
WEC Lightweight Title : Benson Henderson (#18 LW) vs Donald Cerrone
Mike Brown (#2 LW) vs Manny Gamburyan (#7 FW)

May 8th - UFC 113

UFC Light Heavyweight Title : Lyoto Machida (#1 LHW) vs Shogun Rua (#2 LHW)
Josh Koscheck (#4 WW) vs Paul Daley (#7 WW)

May 15th - Strikeforce St. Louis

SF Heavyweight Title (rumored): Alistair Overeem (#9 HW) vs Brett Rogers (#8 HW)
Andre Arlovski (#11 HW) vs Antonio Silva (#17 HW)
(rumored) Fedor Emelianenko (#1 HW) vs Fabricio Werdum (#10 HW)

May 29th - UFC 114

Rampage Jackson (#4 LHW) vs Rashad Evans (#4 LHW)
Forrest Griffin (#6 LHW) vs Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (#8 LHW)

 To me this is the most impressive two month span I have ever seen as an MMA fan.   Can anyone name a 63 day period that was more relevant.  All I ever read about is how the UFC has dominant champions and there is not enough #1 contender matchups or fights that matter.  Here you go.  The dominance of almost all the champs will be tested (some more than others). 

These arbitrary rankings that everyone likes to debate and chime in on will be cleared up a little.   Is Shinya all that? Can Carwin survive his biggest test? Will Maia even last as long as Forrest? Is Jake Sheilds really world class at MW? Is King Mo ready? Can Urijah stop the beast that is Aldo? Was Lyoto/ Rua I an aberration? Will Paul Daley be able to keep it on the feet? How good are Overeem and/or Rogers? Was Forrest's last fight just a Spyder moment or was it something more? Rashad/ Rampage nuff said!

Maybe its too early to get excited.  Maybe not.  Maybe some of these fights don't happen.  No matter what, you have to give it up to the matchmakers in each of these organizations.   They knew they were going up against Manny Pacquiao/ Clottey and Mayweather/ Mosley.  They knew they had to give us something to spend our money on.  they delivered on the scheduling.

Strikeforce is in the process of finalizing their April show which as a hardcore fan (not ultra-hardcore, but close) I am super excited for.  Strikeforce has delivered some intriguing matchups in what has been announced (Hendo/Sheilds, Moussasi/ King Mo) and what has been rumored/unofficially announced (Melendez/Aoki).  I have a problem with them shoving all this on one card.

I have long been a fan of the idea of a competing / alternative promotion to the beast that is the UFC.  Do not get me wrong I love Dana's tombstone and the pride he takes in driving them out of business, but Strikeforce was supposed to be different.  It was a regional promo that got a big time TV deal and started signing some big assests.  They WERE building their cards and their fights.    This has ended with the announcement of this card and let me opine as to why:

This card is like this because of the pressures on Coker and co.  Not sure who it from (hardcores and their cry for big matchups, CBS/Showtime and their need for ratings, or M1 and their need for more money). 

I do not see a future for any of these title-contested divisions after this card.

Lightweight

This is an excellent matchup, but it will only serve one of two purposes: either a) (the much more likely) Aoki schools Melendez with an early sub, takes strikeforce's belt back to japan, and creates another wasted belt for Strikeforce. or b) Melendez fights the fight of his life with a standup/ wrestling clinic, and proves the myth of Aoki is just that a myth and there is no real intrigue at lightweight outside of the UFC (same thing Bellator risks with Alvarez vs fringe UFC contender Neer).  Also what inriguing matchups is there out there for either of these fighters in Strikeforce.  Fighters need to stay active to maintain their edge, and one other contender in Josh the Punk does not make for a compelling division.

Middleweight

Hendo vs Sheilds should be a great matchup whether it turns into a technical wrestling clinic or a Bisping-style KTFO for Hendo.  Where is the build up for the future of this division though?  Where is the next Jacare fight and would it have not served them better to have a matchup like Jacare vs Mayham (or Lawlor if he has re-upped already) to build towards future matchups?  Excitement and build up are already killed by the length of time between cards and the late lineup announcements.

Light Heavy

Poor, poor King Mo.  He is being rushed into a fight against a much more experienced and frankly better fighter in Moussasi.  So when Moussasi wins (especially if he dominates King Mo) , it will just  further reinforce the idea that Gegard should be in another promotion against better competition.  If (and a big if) King Mo somehow catches Moussasi then what for his career?  Is there another 205 contender out there? Or does he go back to fighting the past their prime crowd?  Do not get me wrong King Mo Lawal is a huge prospect and will be at least a top 5 fighter in the division he chooses one day, but this fight at this time is too much too fast.

Strikeforce really is getting away from the casual fan here with this card because there is virtually no big name recognition.  You've got Hendo coming off his big win at UFC 100 (a lifetime ago to fair weather casual fans), Shields (who most people were turning off for his last fight), Aoki (who outside of Japan knows of him), Melendez (who could sit cageside at a UFC event and most people would not know or care who he is) Moussasi (building a name but not there) and King Mo (see Moussasi)

Strikeforce needs to calm down and stop listening to the pressure and deliver some intriguing matchups that do multiple things (build contenders, fighting for a worth-while title, or just ratings/box office draws).  Look at the last UFC.  I watch with a lot of my friends (who are definitely what you would describe as casual fans).  They had contender matchs (Cain/Big Nog), building of up and comers (Joe Daddy/ Sotiropoulos & Jardine/Bader) and Ratings/Box office draws (Wandy/Bisping & Cro Cop/Perosh).  Some names my friends knew (Cain, Big Nog, Wandy) Some they remembered by face (Joe Daddy, Jardine), but when the card was over, the UFC had accomplished something: created buzz (they were youtube'ing Bader and Sotiropoulos), created a contender (Cain) and gave some fan service. 

Again I wish the best for Coker and crew and hope they build intriguing divisions (like they are trying to do with their May 15th card and the HW division).  I thank Strikeforce for this card as a fan of the sport.  I just hope that they build matchups for the future because I think MMA needs another promotion and Strikeforce was getting there.  More cards like this though and Dana will be adding another name to his tombstone.

I am long time reader of bloodyelbow, a huge MMA fan, and a big fan of both the contributors and the commentors on bloodyelbow.   This is my first fan post so excuse any errors please, and excuse my obsession with parethesis.