The Last Emperor and What It Means: The Potential Decline Of The UFC...Thank God

Fedor Emelianenko is everything MMA fans all over the world hoped he was and a lot more...a fist full of steel more.  He is a dominant, humble, stoic, giant killer, and quite possibly (according to Tim Sylvia) an alien or a cyborg...or something else...and, we LOVE the way he gets it done.

Some submission fighters are boring to watch because they lack that wow factor that makes us jump screaming from our seats like a hyperactive child hopped up on birthday cake.

Fedor will knock the piss and wind out of his opponent's stomach and then choke him while he gasps for air.

Whatever Fedor is, people love him...and by "people", I mean this: Every MMA fan I have conversed with, ever. Tried and true fans of MMA don't miss Fedor fights.  Mention his name and watch MMA enthusiasts gush about the internet legend's unmatched ferocity...the keys start clicking and we replay youtube.com's "Darth Fedor" clip.

We love him because he possesses the same qualities as Maximus Decimus Meridius or William Wallace...the big difference is that "The Last Emperor" is a real man...and he keeps proving it. 

I don't like the UFC. I don't really want to watch it. I had to because it was there. Its story lines are exhausting. With all of the manufactured rivalries that grow because of the reality TV show and all the sub par fights and blowouts, I can barely stomach the "action."

I want the young guns and talent to train without all the false BS with their coaches punching doors and acting angry. I often feel like I should have watched "I Love New York" or "Flavor of Love" because the drama and the fighting would be there without Dana White cursing out fighters on national television because they make people think the sport is oafish and stupid. I wonder if he ever gave any thought to his semantics and their contribution to that opinion. He is a good business man and a cancer to the sport. Here is why: Hype-machine and over promotion. 

Dana White rebuilt the UFC, so he was charged with the task of making it legit. Before the acquisition of PRIDE, the UFC was unproven against the rest of the talent the world had to offer. So, UFC acquires PRIDE, Dana White talks about how tip top the talent in the UFC is yada yada yada and one by one the fixtures of PRIDE fall to UFC fighters.

Ironic? All of this happens in front of millions of fans while fighters like Forrest Griffin (who is hard to hate but is technically a one dimensional fighter) gets story-booked into defeating men like Shogun and Rampage. 

Story boy Griffin is on top...but who really believes that he deserves to be there? I don't. The only believable undisputed champ in the UFC is Anderson Silva. At the end of the Rampage fight it looked like Rampage went for a light jog.

Champions shouldn't lose like that. Send Dana the memo. Thank God for Fedor. Thank God that when he wins a fight, there is no question. Thank God he didn't sign with the UFC...that fight may have gone the other way. Instead, Fedor annihilated a two time UFC champion and established Affliction as a contender in one fell swoop. There is no greater champion than Fedor...how appropriate that he usher in a healthy alternative.

    The Fedor/Sylvia fight was also different from most MMA fights in that it kick started what appears to be a serious rival for the UFC...good news is that competition pushes the action for the harvesting of better fighters. Couture, Ortiz, McCarthy, Herb Dean, Sylvia, and Arlovski were all familiar UFC faces at this Affliction event. "Big John" McCarthy (UFC's signature "LET'S GET IT ON" screaming referee) was coloring the fights. Michael Buffer (not Bruce) announced the contenders.

With the success of this venue, and Donald Trump's business savvy, the support for Affliction will increase, especially with a Fedor/Couture fight looming in the future.

In addition to this, the UFC is increasingly boring, the octagon style cage fighting, with its no kicking when kneeling (and other similar ridiculous striking rules) isn't standup friendly.

MMA fans have missed that since PRIDE was bought out. We pay for knockouts, beatdowns, and explosive submissions. I don't think it will be long before the payout of Affliction will lure fighters away from the UFC to establish another credible MMA promotion company...hopefully it will be sooner than later. I would love to see Uriajah Faber, GSP, BJ Penn, Anderson Silva, and others in a sport where hype isn't needed.

Ask the Russian Bear who trains Rocky 4 style in the middle of the Russian winter...you have good enough fighters, the hype won't need to be manufactured.