MMA: Seven Fighters That Fans Need to Stop Picking on

MMA fans are a hateful breed. They build fighters up, only to tear them down when they lose or even just say something they don't agree with. 

It's difficult to achieve popularity, and even more difficult to maintain it amidst the hyper-critical fans of MMA.

As a result, there are quite a few hated men in MMA (albeit some deservedly). However, there are several specific men who fans have just been hating on for too long or with few good reasons. These men have been figuratively kicked to the curb and fans should just give dissing them a rest. 

Who are they? Read and find out!

Tim Sylvia

Tim Sylvia is the butt of many MMA jokes. 

He crapped himself in the cage, left the UFC to fight Fedor Emelianenko and got destroyed, then lost to aged boxer Ray Mercer in an MMA fight, and eventually ballooned in weight. 

Aside from that, "fans" have always mocked his appearance. 

More recently, Sylvia campaigned for a return to the UFC over twitter, a fact which people maligned. 

But let's be real. While there are some legitimate grievances to have with Sylvia, the man is a former UFC heavyweight champion! For that accomplishment, he deserves respect; the hate should stop.

Carlos Condit

Carlos Condit became a hated figure after his brilliant performance over Nick Diaz in which Condit utilized impressive footwork and a diverse array of striking to outwork Diaz and earn a decision victory.

Unfortunately, some people wouldn't describe Condit's performance in such a manner. 

The Diaz fans say that Condit wasn't a true fighter, that is to say that he "ran" from Diaz. They then applied the "point-fighter" label to Condit. 

For some reason, this label stuck (at least amongst Diaz fans)—some misguided cretins still believe that Condit is a "boring" point-fighter but nothing could be further from the truth! Condit has 26 finishes in 28 victories and is one of the most exciting fighters in the sport today.

Georges St.Pierre

Georges St.Pierre went from one of the most beloved fighters in MMA to one of the most divisive. 

People once loved "Rush" for his thrilling fighting style but, after a loss to Matt Serra at UFC 69 that cost St.Pierre his belt, fans accused the Canadian of becoming a "safe" fighter who seeks only to earn a decision. 

They cite the fact that since that fateful fight, St.Pierre has had nine fights, six have been decisions while only three have been finishes (and cynics/haters don't count the TKO victory over BJ Penn as a finish since the fight was stopped in Penn's corner, not by a proper TKO via ground and pound or what have you).

Detractors say that St.Pierre doesn't even try to finish. They point to St.Pierre's fight against Josh Koscheck as proof. How could St.Pierre not finish a fighter he was clearly out-classing who only had one eye for the duration of the fight?

But all this talk is just that—talk. 

St.Pierre draws massive numbers, both in terms of ticket sales (55,000 people in Canada, a record for the UFC) and pay-per-views.

And while his tactical style of fighting may produce a lot of decisions, the fights aren't boring since it's tantamount to watching a master artisan apply his craft. 

Nick Diaz

Yes, Nick Diaz has ducked out on important events, most recently a BJJ superfight against Braulio Estima, but that's not reason enough to hate him. 

Nick Diaz is a unique personality in MMA. The outspoken, brash Stockton native is the yin to Georges St.Pierre's yang. While St.Pierre is a reserved (some might say cold and insincere) professional, Diaz is the exact opposite—he doesn't care what anyone thinks, is an avid marijuana user, and won't hesitate to flip off anyone. 

The MMA fandom needs a man like Nick Diaz just the same as it needs a man like GSP, an anti-hero and a hero, respectively. 

There are certainly accurate points to criticize Diaz for, but the fact is that fans should stop dissing him; Diaz acting like himself has garnered more interest and generated more press than if he just shut his mouth and "played the game" like other fighters. 

Diaz is his own man in a time when corporations steal people's humanity. Diaz doesn't bend for anyone, and fans love and respect him for it. 

Kimbo Slice

Yes, Kimbo Slice was an overrated, overhyped MMA fighter and he wasn't even at a journeyman level in the sport—he could barely beat perennial tomato can James Thompson without an extremely questionable stoppage.

Nevertheless, he was a phenomenon who drew more eyes to MMA than many other more skilled fighters have. 

Even though he has since left MMA and is pursuing a career in boxing, the haters still follow him. The man is trying to earn a living doing what he likes to do—beat people up without having to worry about wrestling or BJJ.

Can't fans just let him go?

Jon Jones

I've already compiled a list of reasons why people hate Jon Jones, now I'm going to tell you why they should just give up the hate. 

Jones is one of the most gifted athletes the sport has ever seen and will be around a long time. Hating him and criticizing him for every little thing he does (or doesn't do) won't make him go away. Just make your life easier and give up the hate, learn to embrace and love Jones.  

After all, sports are about talent—and Jones has more than almost everyone.

Brock Lesnar

Few fighters are more polarizing than Brock Lesnar. 

When he was brought to the sport, communities on forums across the Internet were torn to pieces.

How could the UFC let a "fake" pro wrestler into its midst?

Well, before he was a wrestler he was an NCAA champion and an incredible physical specimen. He soon proved to the haters that he was worthy of the UFC by capturing the UFC heavyweight championship from Randy Couture (although it's worth noting that Lesnar lost his UFC debut to Frank Mir by submission). 

Then, disaster struck. 

Lesnar was stricken with the digestive disease diverticulitis and didn't return to the sport for a year. When he returned, he took a thrashing from Shane Carwin only to come back and win via arm-triangle. 

But his success didn't last. Cain Velasquez humiliated Lesnar, getting him to "pirouette" during the fight. It was the beatdown of Lesnar's life...until he faced Alistair Overeem who crushed Lesnar even more decisively and sent him back to the WWE.

Fans still deride Lesnar and his apparent inability to deal with being hit. That's true, but the hate he gets should stop. 

First, going back to professional wrestling was a wise financial decision since he'd get more from them than he would from doing nothing. 

Second, bringing Lesnar to the UFC in the first place was inherently brilliant. Lesnar is by far the biggest draw in the history of the UFC. Therefore, he is partially responsible for the boom in the UFC's growth and the increased amount of fans the sport enjoys. 

Love him or hate him, when the UFC said "Lesnar," people listened, and watched, and parted with their cash. There was simply no one better at making fans do that than him.

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