“I am very glad you won that fight Matt, but I was not impressed by your performance and I look forward to fighting you in the near future”
That quote was famously uttered by then contender Georges St. Pierre to Champion Matt Hughes during his post fight interview after his defeat of B.J. Penn to retain his title. The perfect callout to many, it said everything that GSP needed to say and although claimed by Hughes and Joe Rogan that it was a misinterpreted reaction, still left a sound byte for the ages. It visibly aggravated Hughes because he just finished B.J. in the third round in an exciting fight, and he had already defeated GSP earlier at UFC 50 by armbar. It was natural and an immediate reaction to being in the spotlight which is what fans pay to see.
Too many times the fans are exposed to this forced reality of rivalries and hatred between fighters when we see the interviews leading up to a fight, using certain clips combined with the answers of the opponents which creates a false pretense of drama. Every season of The Ultimate Fighter and every big PPV card we see this black and white shot of a fighter sitting on a stool and talking about their best camp ever, how they are in the best shape of their life, and how bad they are going to defeat their opponent. It’s simply boring and repetitive. The innate ability to call out a fighter and create drama is only in a few fighters simply because it’s not a skill that is trained while learning mixed martial arts. This is what sets the true stars apart from the rest of the fighters on the roster, speaking skills.
When we look back at the great stars of the UFC or even Pride FC there is obviously a connection between them, exciting wins. However, what the second biggest continuous trait always shows is how they speak on the microphone or in an interview. Most of the main card is interviewed after a fight so that Joe Rogan can ask them about their game plan and how they saw the path to victory, but the biggest question we all lean in for is, Who do you see yourself fighting next? Such a disappointing question to most fighters it seems because they usually answer with some encompassing answer like, whoever the UFC wants me to fight, or whoever Dana or Joe tells me to. Incredibly boring and just not taking an advantage of the moment. This is every fighters chance to call out any fighter, it doesn’t have to imply any disrespect and they don’t have to be angry about it. Plenty of fighters have called out older fighters just for the namesake and opportunity to prove themselves. The biggest call out star in recent memory has been Conor McGregor, who has called out just about every top ten lightweight and has made a name for himself in doing so. Otherwise, he would just be a fighter who is 2-0 in the UFC and is still on the rise, but here he is popping up in articles and media reports around his fights.
Too many fighters are just looking to be the best “in fight”, which is what the sport should be about. However, we all know that the sport is about selling yourself to the crowd and the matchmakers. This requires a personality, whether that’s playing to the fans or belittling them, it doesn’t matter as long as you get your name out there. Sound familiar Pro wrestling fans? Of course it does, this is what makes a great professional wrestler, charisma and microphone skills. Take, for instance, Chael Sonnen. An amazing athlete when he’s not failing drug tests and an amazing wrestler, but didn’t have the greatest fights or the exciting finishes. He has basically been granted 2 title shots AFTER losses, one not even in his division at the time, and this is all due to his popularity with he fans and the ability to sell tickets. This kind of fighter is a great one to have in every division, especially if he or she doesn’t hold a title. Reason being is that you can still make exciting fights without having to rely on the highest stakes. The best example is the Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock feud because the first fight was for the title, but the two that followed were simply rivalry fights. Obviously, they coached against each other on TUF and had some easy trash talking opportunities but anyone who saw these fights knew that Shamrock had no business being in the Octagon with Ortiz, he was man handled and defeated quite easily in all three bouts. Yet, they sold tickets for the first two at least and made it a huge ordeal, even despite being on one of the worst PPV’s of all time, UFC 61.
The biggest point to make in this age of low PPV buys, steroid controversies, and an overwhelming abundance of “boring” cards is this, start making your own matches. Fighters in the UFC in particular need to start branching out from this subtle and humble fighter that never says anything that can be construed as selfish or rude. This is the fight game, it’s one on one. The only way to prove yourself is literally by making another fighter go unconscious. It’s perfectly acceptable to be a little hungry for a certain fighter, and there is always room for respect in a call out. Show the eagerness to prove yourself to the fans by giving them a big fight against a certain opponent and make it worth their while. This sport is controlled by the fans and the UFC knows this and sees the drop in sales, which is why fighters who aren’t the number one contender are getting title shots, or the notable older fighters are still getting top bill over the up and comers.
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