IrishCanadian25
Going on 10 years with WrestleZone
We hear it all the time from the MMA guys. "This isn't pro wrestling. This is real." Dana White puts himself out there as a guy who is trying to legitimize the sport and avoid the entertainment monicre of the WWE. Keep it clean, keep it a sport.
But it's funny - MMA has seen it's mix of great characters as well. And you know what? Often times those characters, maybe even as inferior fighters, get better matches and PPV slots because of...wait for it...drawing power. So this thread is designed to look at some of the "characters" of MMA, past and present.
Tito Ortiz.
Has there been a bigger MMA character? Ever? "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" with his arrogant scowl, his Gunther-from-Friends shade of bleach blonde hair, his Buddy Rogers-esque approach to his promos? He spit on tradition and stood face to face with the Shamrocks only to flip them off in front of the world. Then, he'd back up his mouth with the best conditioning in the business. His fights with Chuck Lidell and Ken Shamrock were all time greats and PPV buyrate dreams at the time.
Verdict - Top Heel, like a Buddy Rogers or Ric Flair.
Clay Guida.
He's the anti-Ortiz. A nice guy, a bright smile, but the hair of a caveman. He's got a loveable look, and a chin wrought from pure steel. He's never been knocked out. His fast pace and fantastic conditioning makes him an exciting fighter to watch. I've seen him take shots in the face from Diego Sanchez, Joe Stevenson, and many others, and he just gets right up and smiles. He's one of the most intense fighters, and he fights like the caveman he resembles.
Verdict - Top Face, like a Shawn Michaels.
Matt Hughes.
The country boy with the confident smile and the no-nonsense attitude. This guy would come to the octagon confident that nobody could beat him, and after taking a pounding, he's just stand up, lift you off the mat, and deliver one of the famous punishing slams that only he could deliver effectively. Then he's still talk trash afterwards. Not the most likeable guy, but certainly a respectable guy.
Verdict - Heel, with a future face turn, like a Triple H
Brock Lesnar.
A former pro wrestler shows up out of no where, goes 1-1 in his first two matches, and inexplicably is handed a world title shot against the top dog, which he wins. His arrogance does not mix well with the anti-wrestling sentiment of much of the hardcore MMA crowd.
Verdict - Heel, like, well, a Brock Lesnar.
Royce Gracie.
A submission specialist who, despite being outsized by most of his opponents (Gracie was a star at a time before weight classes when UFC was little more than a glorified cock fight), often earned tap outs with locks that threatened to snap the arm, leg, or ankle of anyone he crossed. He was confident without being verbally cocky, and was often just terrifying to be around.
Verdict - Quiet heel, like Chris Benoit in his early WWE days
So I ask - who are some of the other MMA "Characters," are they faces or heels, and do they remind you of a particular wrestler?
But it's funny - MMA has seen it's mix of great characters as well. And you know what? Often times those characters, maybe even as inferior fighters, get better matches and PPV slots because of...wait for it...drawing power. So this thread is designed to look at some of the "characters" of MMA, past and present.
Tito Ortiz.
Has there been a bigger MMA character? Ever? "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" with his arrogant scowl, his Gunther-from-Friends shade of bleach blonde hair, his Buddy Rogers-esque approach to his promos? He spit on tradition and stood face to face with the Shamrocks only to flip them off in front of the world. Then, he'd back up his mouth with the best conditioning in the business. His fights with Chuck Lidell and Ken Shamrock were all time greats and PPV buyrate dreams at the time.
Verdict - Top Heel, like a Buddy Rogers or Ric Flair.
Clay Guida.
He's the anti-Ortiz. A nice guy, a bright smile, but the hair of a caveman. He's got a loveable look, and a chin wrought from pure steel. He's never been knocked out. His fast pace and fantastic conditioning makes him an exciting fighter to watch. I've seen him take shots in the face from Diego Sanchez, Joe Stevenson, and many others, and he just gets right up and smiles. He's one of the most intense fighters, and he fights like the caveman he resembles.
Verdict - Top Face, like a Shawn Michaels.
Matt Hughes.
The country boy with the confident smile and the no-nonsense attitude. This guy would come to the octagon confident that nobody could beat him, and after taking a pounding, he's just stand up, lift you off the mat, and deliver one of the famous punishing slams that only he could deliver effectively. Then he's still talk trash afterwards. Not the most likeable guy, but certainly a respectable guy.
Verdict - Heel, with a future face turn, like a Triple H
Brock Lesnar.
A former pro wrestler shows up out of no where, goes 1-1 in his first two matches, and inexplicably is handed a world title shot against the top dog, which he wins. His arrogance does not mix well with the anti-wrestling sentiment of much of the hardcore MMA crowd.
Verdict - Heel, like, well, a Brock Lesnar.
Royce Gracie.
A submission specialist who, despite being outsized by most of his opponents (Gracie was a star at a time before weight classes when UFC was little more than a glorified cock fight), often earned tap outs with locks that threatened to snap the arm, leg, or ankle of anyone he crossed. He was confident without being verbally cocky, and was often just terrifying to be around.
Verdict - Quiet heel, like Chris Benoit in his early WWE days
So I ask - who are some of the other MMA "Characters," are they faces or heels, and do they remind you of a particular wrestler?
