Now, I know that I am going to be immediately classified into my good friend Bloodstain Lane's created word “Zuffa Zombie” group for what I am about to write in this article, but sometimes things just need to be done. I have sat back for quite some time and listened to quite a bit of hype over a few fighters that I truly believe are extremely overrated. Now, to the people that are trying to shove these guys down our throats day in and day out, they are not overrated, but the exact opposite. Most people say that the fighters that I am about to mention does not get any credit because they don't work for “The Man” Dana White.
Am I a Zuffa Zombie? I don't know, but I will make sure I ask my good friend from New York this week on the MMA AFFILIATES Radio show when he shares the co-host spot with me and my good friend Jason London. However, until then, I will let you decide as I speak of a few fighters that will probably have you sending me hate mail within five minutes of reading this. Now, here is my take on the UFC first and then these fighters. The UFC, is the SUPER BOWL of mixed martial arts in my opinion and 90-95% of the best fighters on earth work there. PERIOD.
Now, moving onto my actual topic here, I am going to talk about some of these fighters OUTSIDE the UFC that actually get far more credit than what they deserve. I hear all of the Zuffa haters out there saying that the UFC champions and top ranked fighters would be in so much trouble if so-n-so would come to the UFC. Well, lets really analyze some of these so-called underrated fighters. I am gonna start at the top of the list with Mr. Nick Diaz.
How many people in the past month have said that this is the man to defeat George St. Pierre and take his UFC Welterweight Championship? Lets be real here, we have heard plenty of people make this claim. The reason? Nick Diaz has actually marketed himself pretty damn well and has gained quite a decent following. Now, I admit that he has 10 wins in a row, but lets not even compare that to George St. Pierre's wins. I mean we can, but Diaz has met no where NEAR the competition of GSP over this span of time. Nick Diaz, the man that everyone thinks is the “next man” in the UFC's biggest win in this period of time was against Paul Daley, whom lost BADLY to a man that GSP beat twice in Josh Koscheck. Lets be real with this...Nick Diaz did NOT dominate Paul Daley and Daley actually clipped him a couple of times and I believe had TWO knockdowns in that first round. Yes, Nick Diaz finishes fights @ 170 (My Kenny Florian joke), but he has met no where near the same opposition. Am I the only one that realizes that Mr. Next big thing is only 6-4 against the big boys in the UFC? Of course, when I say big boys, I mean the likes of Jeremy Jackson, Robbie Lawler, Karo Parisyan (loss), Drew Fickett, Koji Oishi, Diego Sanchez (loss), Joe Riggs (loss), Sean Sherk (loss), Josh Neer, Gleison Tibau.
Are you kidding me people? I like Nick Diaz, but are we seriously taking a man that has lost to Joe Riggs and Karo Parisyan and making him all of the sudden better than George St. Pierre? Did I forget to mention that he has also lost to KJ Noons (a boxer), Kuniyoshi Hironaka, and Jeremy Jackson? George St. Pierre has lost to TWO people ever and one was just unexpected. I honestly don't even know for sure if Nick Diaz could beat Matt Serra or Matt Hughes RIGHT NOW. Why are we honestly saying that this man can beat George St. Pierre? I am not a GSP fan in any way, but lets be real with ourselves here. Nick Diaz is a man that would have never even been Strikeforce Champion if Jake Shields wouldn't have went to the UFC. Do you really think he could beat Jon Fitch? Josh Koscheck? I am not trying to hate on the guy, but we are taking a man that barely got fights on the main draw in the UFC and making him the next champion. See, with a lot of these guys, you can argue that they never had the chance in the UFC. However, with Nick Diaz, you just cannot do that. He was 6-4 in the UFC. The only real contender that he even beat was Karo Parisyan and that was a close fight in many people's eyes. Outside of the UFC, his only decent win was Paul Daley and he was seconds from getting knocked out in that one too. Am I a Zuffa Zombie because I realize that Nick Diaz has never really done anything amazing in this sport? I mean, in terms of contending with George St. Pierre.
Im just keeping it real. I love to watch Nick Diaz fight, but if you really think he will even come close to beating George St. Pierre, I beg you to bet all your money against all of mine. I will gladly take that bet and be VERY happy the Sunday after as I collect my dough. Will he ever be a World Champion at the highest level? No. NEVER.
Next on the list is Jorge Santiago. He is now getting a shot against Brian Stann, but what is all the fuss about this guy about as well? He ALSO already had a shot in the UFC and what happened? This man went 1-2 in the UFC and was knocked out twice. Over his career, you can see that this man has a jaw that cannot really take too much of a test. He can be knocked out. I give him his credit because he is a warrior and fun to watch, but he much like Diaz would be lucky to be on the main draw long term in the UFC. If Brian Stann knocks him out, then he will be 1-3 in the UFC with 3 KO's against him. Now, lets look at this so-called champion's biggest wins. Jeremy Horn or Mamed Khalidov would have to be his biggest claim to fame. Now, lets look at who has kicked that ass. We got Manny Gamburyan, Keith Wisniewski (Wasnt that a nose tackle for the Raiders?), Diego Sanchez, Jordan Radev, Joey Villasanor, Chris Leben, Alan Belcher, and of course, Mamed Khalidov. Will he ever be World Champion at the highest level? No. NEVER.
Notice that both of these fighters we have mentioned have lost to Diego Sanchez? Why do I mention that? Well, its simple...Most of these people that are big about bragging for these two guys dog Diego Sanchez day in and day out and say that the UFC just babies their Ultimate Fighters. Well, Diego Sanchez, whom most of you don't even rank in your TOP 10 anywhere has beaten both of these men. Is Diego Sanchez a main eventer? No, he is not. I love Diego Sanchez, but in reality, he will never be the UFC Champion at 170. Neither will either of these two men. That is my point that I am trying to make about these fighters here. People say that these dominant champions outside of the UFC would be just as good inside the UFC and I truly disbelieve it. Oh, I am not done...We are gonna keep it moving...
By the way, there will be NO Fedor bashing here. He truly is the greatest of all time. There also will be no Takanori Gomi bashing either...
Hector Lombard? The jury is still not out on him yet, but he had a draw with Kyle Noke. Do you think that Kyle Noke could contend with Anderson Silva? I truly enjoy watching Lombard fight, but I would love it even more if I could see him up against someone that is ranked in the top 100 in the class. He fought Gegard to a decision and lost it and other than that, I cannot honestly give his career any points yet. He NEEDS the UFC to be honest. He needs to get over there and prove that he is as good as his record and legacy seems to say he is. To me, he just has an amazing winning streak against less than stellar competition. Ill give him some credit for his last win at Bellator 44 though. That was some good stuff. Will he ever be World Champion at the highest level? No. NEVER.
Eddie Alvarez? Lost to Shinya Aoki....no shame in that. Also lost to Nick Thompson via TKO. Now, lets look at his wins...His biggest win would have to be over Roger Huerta in my book. I admit, thats pretty solid for a win, but that's about it. Joachim Hansen and Kawajiri were pretty good wins too. With this being said, I truly believe that Alvarez is READY for the next level. I actually think that he has the potential to be successful. However, we must admit that right now, he only has fought maybe three or four major fights in his career up to this point. At age 27, he has plenty of time to get in the UFC and shine. Can he ever be a World Champion at the highest level? Maybe. He is one guy other than Gilbert Melendez and Alistair Overeem that may have a legitimate shot at winning a championship in the Super Bowl of MMA.
Gilbert Melendez and Alistair Overeem? Both are beasts and I believe they will both be champions in the UFC at some point.
That basically covers a few of the so-called GREAT FIGHTERS outside of the UFC. I will write a part two of this article some time this week and will discuss fighters like Jacare and Gegard Mousasi. Am I a Zuffa Zombie for believing the facts in front of me? I do NOT think so, but if you think so, feel free to label me that. The truth is that I think people just wanna latch on to these people because they are the underdog hopes that someone outside of the big show can make the GOLIATH's look less than what they are. All of these fans of these smaller promotions seem to wanna feel like they were PART of something and thats why they blindly say that these fighters are better than their UFC counterparts. I am ALSO a huge fan of these smaller promotions, but if you expect me to say that Drew Fickett can be UFC champion because he holds a title elsewhere, your crazy. I don't give a shit how good Antonio McKee, Jamie Varner, or Jeff Curran looks outside the UFC. Its what they do INSIDE the UFC that matters when it comes to both their LEGACIES and their WALLETS. Am I right? I love Antonio McKee, but since he WAS screwed over after just one loss, he will NEVER be looked at in the same light as other dominant lightweights. He's just some guy now with a bunch of wins against lesser talent. That's the consensus and to be honest, how do you disagree with that?
Fuck it, I guess I am a Zombie then...Its sad Im labeled that when I truly do watch and love ALL MMA FIGHTERS...I just am not BLIND to reality. Ask the fighters themselves...They wanna fight for the UFC too. Why? Money and competition.
KING JB
MMA KINGDOM
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