UFC 146 Results: 5 Things Jason "Mayhem" Miller Needs to Improve On

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Jason "Mayhem" Miller may have made his last Octagon appearance at UFC 146. Without getting into specifics, Dana White said Mayhem is done with the UFC for an incident that happened backstage after the fight.

But Mayhem more than likely would have been cut regardless.

His previous UFC loss, to Michael Bisping, was a disgraceful showing. And his loss to C.B. Dollaway wasn't much better, although in fairness to Mayhem, it takes two to tango and Dollaway did his fair share in making that a horrific fight.

Either way, Mayhem is gone.

Can he get back into the big time? It's doubtful, but if he wants to, he needs to address these five issues.

Striking

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Sure, Mayhem tagged Dollaway a few times, even had him rattled, but his striking technique leaves a lot to be desired. It's not just bad—it's terrible.

An 11-year veteran of the sport with 33 professional fights to his credit, it's unlikely that Mayhem will ever get much better than he is right now. But it's possible, and if he wants to get back into the UFC he needs to fix this glaring hole in his game.

Whatever it takes—head off to Thailand to work Muay Thai, go to Holland to learn the Dutch style of kickboxing, heck even get with a good karate instructor—Mayhem just needs to improve, and fast.

Wrestling

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Any fan who knows anything about Mayhem knows he's a good BJJ stylist. But he lacks the wrestling skills to get the fight to the mat.

Years ago that didn't matter. Good BJJ fighters weren't worried about being on their backs; that was their comfort zone. And Mayhem made a name for himself by submitting guys—14 of them.

But things have changed. Fighters have gotten so well-rounded that being on your back is the surest way to lose a fight. Sure, every now and then we see a beautiful submission from the guard, but it's becomes the exception rather than the rule.

With Mayhem's BJJ skills, he would be much more dangerous from top position. He just needs to work hard enough on his wrestling to get into dominant positions.

Conditioning

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It's no secret that it doesn't matter how good a fighter is. If he cannot breathe he cannot utilize his skills.

Mayhem has poor conditioning. He showed this in the Bisping fight, and at UFC 146 against Dollaway.

An intense strength and conditioning program would do him wonders. Maybe if Mayhem could breathe past the first round he could stuff a few takedowns or score a couple of his own.

A decent gas tank would open up his entire game.

Commitment

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Most fighters who are even more successful in the cage than Mayhem never reach the level of mainstream acceptance that he has. The reason is Bully Beatdown.

The popular MTV show cast Mayhem as the host, and since its beginning in 2009 has thrust Mayhem into the mainstream consciousness.

Even people who know nothing about MMA know Mayhem.

But with the level of fame has come some neglect to his fighting career. Since starting the show three years ago, Mayhem has only fought five times.

It's not only the inactivity, but the lack of commitment shows in his performances. He's just not the same tenacious fighter he once was.

Maybe he prefers hosting popular television shows to getting punched in the face, and who can blame him? But if he wants to be a top fighter, he needs to rededicate himself to the sport. MMA is not something you can do halfway.

Silliness

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The allure of Mayhem was always that he wasn't just a great fighter, but he was an intriguing personality as well. He had a star quality about him.

He doesn't have that anymore.

Perhaps it's because he doesn't back it up in the cage, but his act seems scripted now rather than natural.

In the first round against Dollaway, Mayhem gave him a noogie. That would have had such a better effect had he won the fight—kind of like when Randy Couture gave Tito Ortiz a spanking, but of course Couture dominated the fight, so his playful spanking was funny and fitting. Mayhem's was kind of lame.

Miller has the natural charisma. He just needs to get back to being natural and not worry so much about trying. If Mayhem focuses his efforts enough on training and improving, the rest will come naturally again.