Earlier this month the California State Athletic Commission took the bold step of overturning victories for fighters who come up positive for a banned substance while the World Alliance of Mixed Martial Arts (WAMMA) announced they were close to locking in a “major sponsor.” Meanwhile at UFC 97 Anderson Silva was accosted by critics for his mediocre performance against Thales Leites and an era ended when Chuck Liddell got KOd by Shogun Rua. I invited Mark Chalifoux from MMA Stomping Grounds to gnaw on these tidbits with me.
How will the California State Athletic Commission’s ruling that gives them the power to overturn a fight due to a positive result for a banned substance affect MMA?
Kelly-There’s an old saying-“locks only keep the honest people honest.” On the surface the CSACs decision will probably have its desired effect of causing fighters to rethink whether or not to jab a dirty needle in their arm, but only the ones who have an ounce of integrity in them. If a fighter is determined to give himself an advantage he will, no matter how Draconian an athletic commission’s penalties are. The Nevada State Athletic Commission already has this power (see Pride 33-Diaz vs. Gomi) and fighters still come up hot in that state after a fight, so how will it be any different in California? After all, it’s a 50-50 risk. If the fighter loses, then coming up hot for a banned substance won’t change the outcome. If he wins he has about a Somali pirate’s chance of getting busted because most MMA promotions don’t have the money to test all the fighters on the card. Even the richest organization, the UFC, doesn’t test 100% of the time. The down side of course, is the permanent tarnish on a fighter’s career if he comes up hot. Sean Sherk, Karo Parysian, and even the legendary Ken Shamrock will forever have their name associated with cheating, whether it’s deserved or not, for coming up positive for banned substances. That’s the real penalty, but plenty of guys seem willing to take the risks anyway.
Mark-Risks definitely aren’t worth the reward. However, the key here is doing something that can’t be tested. Baseball and football have mastered this (yet players still do stupid stuff, like steroids). The only problem with using something undetectable, like an HGH, is the person providing it getting busted. So if you’re in cahoots with someone you trust, go ahead and juice up. I do disagree that one test tarnishes a career. Thiago Alves failed a drug test but is still the top welterweight contender and has revived his career. It’s not easy and it’s a huge gamble but there will always be cheaters and new ways to cheat. No amount of fines or rules will stop that. You can limit it, or at least try, but you will never completely stop it.
Anderson Silva is to blame for the weak UFC 97 main event
Mark- In my opinion, the blame should be with the UFC and with Thales Leites. Anderson Silva was the champ and while I think he could’ve pressed a little more, it’s up to the challenger to make the move. Silva shouldn’t be blamed for Leites falling to his back anytime things started to get hectic. If he wanted a fight on the ground, it’s on him to take Silva there, not fall down enough until Silva gets bored and takes it to the ground. Leites was only going to win on the ground but his strategy was miserable. I blame the UFC because Leites had no business being in the cage with Silva that night. I much rather would’ve seen Silva-Franklin III than that fight. Leites had only one decent win and that was over Nate Marquardt and it was clear he didn’t have the skill set necessary to compete with Silva. Many champs have learned the hard way what can happen when you change your game plan or take someone lightly (see: Matt Serra taking down GSP). Silva had a fine game plan, he dominated the fight and walked away with an easy win. Blame Leites for the boring fight and blame the UFC for putting him in that place to begin with.
Kelly-Leites didn’t stand and bang with the champ, but Silva still should have finished him, if for no other reason than to deny Leites the distinction of being the first guy to force a decision against him in years. Now every casual fan will see Silva’s record and say, “wow, that Leites guy must be the shit. He took Silva the distance!” If the Pittsburgh Steelers are playing my kid’s preschool football team, does that mean they won’t be able to finish the game quickly because the kids aren’t playing on the same level? Do they have more of a chance against them than the Arizona Cardinals did? You’re right that Leites is not in Silva’s class, so the Spider should have knocked him silly before it got to the fifth round, especially after professing how disappointed he was in his own performance against Patrick Cote.
Chuck Liddell has fought his last fight
Mark-I can’t see Liddell hanging it up after the loss to Shogun. If Randy Couture and Mark Coleman can come back north of 40, I’m not ready to give up on the Iceman. I’ll readily admit that he’s past his prime, that his fight game hasn’t evolved at the rate of younger fighters and that he will no longer be relevant in the title picture. Still, he’s one of the biggest names in the sport’s history and can still fight (somewhat). There is money to be made off Chuck and while Dana White nobly acknowledged that and still said they wouldn’t go that route, I think it’s just a matter of time. Depending on what happens with Couture’s next fight, I think they could reasonably sell a Liddell v. Couture fight. Liddell taking on his former student from TUF in Forrest Griffin would be another entertaining fight. He’s not a main eventer anymore, but there are still a few fights I could talk myself into wanting to see. The reason Jordan’s and Ali’s of the world don’t leave in their prime is the competitiveness that made them great to begin with. You can’t just turn it off in Liddell and while we know he won’t be the Liddell of old, it doesn’t mean he still doesn’t have another solid performance or two in him.
Kelly-I also think Liddell won’t be able to resist the Siren call of the cage, but I hope he lashes himself to a mast like Odysseus and rides out the storm of desire. His last four fights have proven that every fighter has an expiration date and the nuclear bombs he once wielded in his hands are now mere chunks of stone that still hurt a lot, but don’t induce sleep as before. Dana White and Chuck himself have declared he’s done, but how many times have we heard that from extreme competitors only to have them come back? Liddell won’t be any different. He’ll get restless with a desk job or training up-and-comers and try his hand in the cage again. He may succeed once or twice or he may fail miserably, but either way it’s doubtful he’ll be a contender again. Has he fought his last fight? No. Has he won his last fight? Possibly.
WAMMA says it’s about to lock up a major sponsor who will give them credibility. Can ANYONE really give WAMMA credibility?
Kelly-Yes, and its initials are UFC, but that will likely never happen. Until the UFC comes on board with WAMMA, it will be like the UN without the USA’s money-toothless. Most of the world’s true MMA champions fight outside their purview with the only exception being Fedor. So how can you ever profess to have any credibility in a sport where the best are outside of your jurisdiction and even worse, thumb their noses at you? The issue at stake here is power. It’s simply not in the UFC’s best interest to be a part of WAMMA because it diminishes their power. Collective organizations like WAMMA redistribute power among their members, so it’s a great opportunity for the little guys, like the Ultimate Warrior Challenge and Cage Rage, to get onto a level playing field and be treated the same as the big guys. But for a member who already negotiates from a power position, such as Zuffa, a collective body like WAMMA will only dilute their authority and benefit them very little. Zuffa’s best course of action is no action.
Mark- Hey, I’m a WAMMA voter! I don’t have any strong issues with the concept of WAMMA or what WAMMA is trying to accomplish. Granted, my involvement with WAMMA is limited to the fighter rankings, but the question comes down to power and the UFC has all of it. If the UFC doesn’t need to recognize WAMMA, why would they? For better or worse, in the eyes of much of the public, the UFC is MMA and credibility in the sport belongs to them. Even mainstream types were able to see through EliteXC and the fraud that was Kimbo Slice. The UFC marketing machine is second to none and that isn’t the absolute worst thing in the world. They care about growing the sport and expanding it, so in some cases, what’s good for the UFC is good for MMA. In short, I agree, WAMMA is screwed without the UFC.
