UFC 79: Liddell vs. Silva Good or Bad for MMA

[Rhonda Rousey's Sports Bra]

I was thinking about this fight and how both men were at the top of their game just previous to both of them losing their respective titles. This was the fight everyone wanted to see and wated to see someone get knocked out. So I pose this question, was it better or worse for the sport of MMA that this fight wasn't to combine the Pride and UFC titles and didn't end in a KO?


The thing about this fight was it was so perfect until both men lost their titles and then the actual fight itself went to decision. Had this fight been for the the title and someone would have gotten knocked out it would have probably been one of if not the greatest fight in MMA history. The problem with that would be how could it be topped? Would people lose interest because no fight could have ever matched the hype and the outcome? Or would it have catapulted the sport into even higher into the mainstream than it is now?

 

[jmt225]

It was definitely good for the UFC.

The only thing "bad" about it was both guys losing 2 fights in a row before the fight took place. Silva had a knockout losses against Dan Henderson and Cro Cop, and Chuck Liddell got knocked out by Rampage and then loss a decision to Keith Jardine. So, a lot of momentum for this fight was cut down because of those losses, whereas if the fight happened a year before, it would have been one of the biggest, most anticipated fights in MMA history.

With all that said, it's definitely a good thing the fight happened. I mean, it was voted UFC Fight of the Year in 2007, and it was the last time we saw Chuck Liddell actually look like Chuck Liddell. For those two reasons alone it's good the fight happened... it's just a shame it couldn't have happened sooner (which it would have if Liddell didn't lose to Rampage in PRIDE a couple of years before).

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

I totally feel the sentiment for it happening sooner, but may I disagree with you two? This fight is a lasting legacy for what these dudes have done and, IMO, happened at the perfect time. These guys are absolute warriors and gave us a GREAT fight that neither athlete were able to produce before or after. Chuck and Wandy were on their way out as the vanguard and somehow still managed to give an epic performance against one another. Seemingly, that's the only time they have been able to give an epic performance in quite some time.

 

[Via Armbar]

In no way was it bad for the sport. It was an amazing fight. Any fight that draws that much attention, interest and genuine emotion from fight fans couldn't do anything but good for the sport. There have been countless fights in the past that have gone to decision and were outstanding. Rampage/Griffin went all five rounds and was still one of the greatest fights at LHW in the history of mma.

Coming from a huge Pride fan, this was something I had been looking forward to for a long time. As had most fans of the sport. Both were known for brutal power and highlight knockouts and people were drooling over the thought of this fight since 2004. In fact, the 2004 Pride MW Grand Prix say Chuck only one fight away from facing off against Silva. As we all know, Rampage changed those plans. Not until the end of '07 did we finally get to see the fight but the wait was well worth it.

The only blemish on the history of this fights is when/how it happened. Chuck was coming off of two straight losses and Wanderlei was coming off of two straight knock outs. Neither had the their respective titles anymore and people questioned if these two were in the twilight of their careers. In retrospect, one could see that both men had been slowing down a little. Possibly age, lifestyle or physical damage both had seen in the careers had attributed to this. Even with all that said, we can look back at this fight and see two of the greatest fighters in history put everything on the line one more time. To see them returning to their former selves and go for broke was something that the fans appreciated more than any knockout that could have happened.

 

[Rhonda Rousey's Sports Bra]

I guess I should clarify this a little bit, what I was looking for was would it have been bad for the sport if the fight would have been perfect. The reason I ask that is because if that fight would have been "perfect", and by perfect I mean it would have combined the Pride and UFC titles and it would have had a KO, would it have gained more peoples intrest in MMA or would it have just been too big to top resulting in people being disappointed in future fights.

What got me thinking along those lines are what happened to me with wrestling awhile back. After WrestleMania 17 I lost interest because nothing could top that night and I just expected every wrestling show to be that good. I was young and didn't know any better, but still it happened.