Bradley vs Provodnikov

[aholbert32]

Re: Bradley vs Provodnikov

Well, I don't know that much about MMA, as I readily concede. I do remember the early, original UFC's being on PPV, though, because my buddies and I used to get them and they were great. I really liked the original 'no-holds-barred' (except fish-hooking and eye gouging), no weight classes, anything goes UFC's populated by the likes of Royce Gracie and Tank Abbott and other slightly unsavory characters, because of the clash of completely different styles, but since it's gotten big it seems that everyone has basically the same 'style'.

I guess by "lasting", I meant in its current state of popularity. I'm not saying it won't, it was just speculation. I mean, I really like horse racing, and it's "lasted" more or less unchanged for 100+ years, but at one point in time, it was one of the most popular sports in America, and now it's barely a side-show for 80-year-old gambling addicts with chest hair coming through their not-completely-buttoned-up shirts loitering in smoke-filled OTB sites...don't get me wrong, there's no other place I'd rather put a $10 tri-box on a graded stakes race in Dubai, but I'm acutely aware that the sport isn't exactly on the forefront of the national consciousness...

You should spend some time watching MMA and get a better understanding. GSP's style is different from Anderson Silva's whose style is different than Jon Jones. Your statement would be like me saying that Winky Wright's style is the same as Bradley because they both throw jabs and hooks occasionally.

The reason MMA is the most popular combat sport around has nothing to do with it being a fad and there shouldnt be any concerns about it "lasting" as long as it doesnt do the things that boxing does. Ask any MMA fan who the "welterweight champion of the world" in MMA is and they will all say GSP. Ask any boxing fan who the WW champ is in boxing and most will have no idea. Bradley has a belt. Marquez has one. So does Floyd. ****, the Ring belt doesnt even mean anything anymore since Golden Boy bought the magazine. In boxing, the names only matter. In MMA, the names and the championships matter.

Also, like I said before the top fighters tend to face each other. You will rarely see a champion and a #1 contender not fight in MMA. It happens in rare occasions but you rarely see cluster****s like Pac/Floyd or Mares/Donaire in MMA because the UFC is the main promotion in MMA, they set the fights and the 98% of the best fighters in the world fight in that promotion. Boxing fans have no idea how many casual fans were turned off from boxing because of the Pac/Floyd fiasco or fixed fights like Pac and Bradley.

As long as MMA continues to do what its doing, it will be fine.

[Money99]

Re: Bradley vs Provodnikov

Great points aholbert32.
I'm a way bigger boxing fan than MMA, but I love how the UFC is set-up.
- minimal weight divisions
- only 1 belt per division
- best fighters fight all the time.

I prefer the act (or art) of boxing over MMA because I really don't find anything entertaining with wrestling.
But at least in the UFC, everyone knows the champs and they're always fighting the best.

If boxing were run the same way, I don't think there's any question that boxing is 10x more popular.
Imagine a world where you have Floyd,Trout, Alvarez and Molina all fighting each other?
Even better if you get rid of some of the jr and lt weight classes.
If you don't have jr welterweight, suddenly you have guys like Peterson, Garcia, Khan, Judah, Matthysse all fighting Marquez, Floyd, Pac, Guerrero, Bradley, Brook, etc.

It'll never happen because of greed and corruption and I hope for UFC's sake it doesn't happen to them either.
But if Boxing ever got it's act together, I think the sport would return to being in the top 3 in the U.S. and world.

[pietasterp]

Re: Bradley vs Provodnikov

Also, like I said before the top fighters tend to face each other. You will rarely see a champion and a #1 contender not fight in MMA. It happens in rare occasions but you rarely see cluster****s like Pac/Floyd or Mares/Donaire in MMA because the UFC is the main promotion in MMA, they set the fights and the 98% of the best fighters in the world fight in that promotion. Boxing fans have no idea how many casual fans were turned off from boxing because of the Pac/Floyd fiasco or fixed fights like Pac and Bradley.

As long as MMA continues to do what its doing, it will be fine.

I think most boxing fans have a pretty good idea of how badly the sport was hurt by the Pac/Floyd fiasco. And I'm on the same page with you when it comes to boxing's myriad problems - you're leaning on an open door with your criticisms. I've been very vocal about what I think the problems with the sport are, and they are largely the same issues you point out.

I'm not calling MMA a fad or predicting its demise. I readily admitted I know very little about it.

What's next for Bradley?

[aholbert32]

Re: Bradley vs Provodnikov

What's next for Bradley?

Not a lot of choices because he's with Top Rank. Could rematch with Provodnikov. Marquez is using him as leverage in negotiations with Pac but Marquez could decide to fight him. Pac rematch isnt happening. The other top 147s are with GB so there is no way for him to fight them.