MMA: The Old and The Not Yet Retired

Chuck Liddell is dancing, Mark Coleman beat Stephan Bonner, Randy Couture and Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira won fight of the night, and Matt Hughes just signed a new contract. All the buzz about the first generation of mixed martial artists begs the question: is it time to hang up the gloves, or are these guys just getting started?

I’ve noticed recently that only the elite mixed martial artists are asked about retirement after a loss; guys like Matt Hughes, Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, and even Jens Pulver can’t lose without being questioned. The problem is no one wants to see the masters of the game fall, which means the better the athlete, the sooner people start talking about retirement after he loses.

For a gamer like Spencer Fisher who serves as a perpetual gatekeeper, fans keep watching after a few losses and wait for him to string together a couple of wins. We’re all used to seeing him both win and lose, so a few losses are no surprise.

In contrast, a fan watching Chuck Liddell get knocked out becomes quickly disillusioned and wants him to quit before he damages his legacy. It’s understandable, but it is his legacy after all. Maybe some of these fighters can no longer compete at the top levels of the sport, but that doesn’t mean they have to quit. In fact, looking back over some of these guys the most recent fights, a few stand out among the rest: Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva and Randy Couture vs. Big Nog.

My proposed solution to the “hero takes a fall” dilemma is to let these guys fight each other.  It’s the best of all possible worlds. Their experience means they know how to entertain and put on a good show, and there isn’t any shame in any of them losing to each other. This would put a kink in the rankings systems, but let’s assume here that we’re talking about the fighters who no longer have a shot at the gold. Give them a chance to continue competing by offering us super fights that are surely to garner more and more fight of the night honors.  Tito Ortiz and Mark Coleman are up next, though I am personally a bit skeptical about that one. Which first gen fighters would you like to see go to battle with each other before they call it a day?