5 Rounds with Jonathan Snowden: The Best and Worst of Bellator Dynamite 1
Bellator President Scott Coker may be facing potentially insurmountable odds in his battle with the UFC—but he's not willing to go down without a fight. Coker is pulling out every promotional trick in the book, taking a page from the beloved Pride Fighting Championships wherever he can while also adding some interesting twists of his own.
Take, for example, Saturday's Dynamite 1 show in San Jose, California—the second "tent pole" event of the Coker regime. It was familiar at times, with legendary Pride ring announcer Lenne Hardt belting out fighter names with an enthusiasm that bordered on comical and fireworks announcing to the world that this was no ordinary show.
But then there was the ring, sitting next to the cage, allowing Bellator to mix in some Glory Kickboxing bouts to go along with the mixed martial arts madness. At one point during the preliminaries, there were even two fights being contested at once.
It was innovative for certain. Whether it worked is a question that can't be answered right away. The kickboxing bouts, unfortunately, failed to deliver. But that's a failure of execution, not of concept. The idea may not be broken—it just needs a bit of fine-tuning and a better class of fighter.
At Dynamite 1 (broadcast on Spike TV), things went mostly to plan. Light heavyweight champion Liam McGeary went mainstream with a win over fading legend Tito Ortiz. Former UFC contender Phil Davis announced himself as McGeary's next challenger by winning a one-night tournament in impressive fashion.
Of course, the entire show wasn't perfection, even if the concept was. But what card is? In a new post-fight series, we'll look at the card as a whole and choose the five best and worst moments—the handful of things worth talking about on Twitter afterward.
Want to extend the bout from five rounds into infinity? That's what the comments are for. Make your voice heard.
Round 1: Coker's Madcap Concept a Win
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The Dynamite setup was new, and it was brilliant—Coker's masterpiece. It was also, unfortunately, built with second-rate materials. Like an architect tasked to build the Taj Mahal with warped plywood and stripped screws, Coker has been left to build his MMA empire with a collection of leftover toys.
On careful inspection some are completely serviceable. Others would have been better off left in the recycling bin.
In the one-night tournament, Coker and matchmaker Rich Chou played their best hand. And, even though one of the alternates ended up in the final fight, things went mostly to plan. Phil Davis, their first big free-agent signing, showed an aggression we hadn't seen from him in the Octagon in years, if ever. He didn't just survive the field—he obliterated it.
All in all it was a win. So far Coker has had quite a few in his short tenure. If he succeeds, if Bellator becomes a legitimate alternative to the UFC, it will be a victory worthy of song.
If he fails?
Well, at least it won't be boring.
Round 2: The Great Fedor Emelianenko Mystery Solved
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After months of speculation, we finally have our answer. The best heavyweight in MMA history, Fedor Emelianenko, will not be going to the UFC after all.
Instead, he will return to the familiar comfort of Japan where he built a reputation as the most fearsome fighter of his era. Emelianenko entered the cage between bouts to announce he'll headline an event on New Year's Eve in Tokyo, an annual tradition in Japan.
The catch? It will be broadcast on American television.
"We are thrilled to join forces with Nobuyuki Sakakibara and our partner Bellator President Scott Coker to give MMA fans a big reason to celebrate this New Year’s Eve—Fedor fighting free on Spike!" Spike President Kevin Kay said in a statement.
While Kay may be excited enough to include an exclamation point in his press release, I'm not as sold on Emelianenko's return. The last time we saw him against high-level competition, circa 2011 in Strikeforce, he lost three consecutive fights. Now 38, there's no reason to be hopeful for a return to form.
MMA fans dreamed of watching Emelianenko test his skills against today's best fighter. Instead, he'll most likely fight an overwhelmed patsy or Japanese pro wrestler in a match short on sport and heavy on spectacle. That might thrill some—but I've been there and done that.
Although the announcement was kind of underwhelming, there was one high point. After years of communicating with his American fans through a translator, Emelianenko debuted his heavily accented English to an audience of millions.
"I'm a fighter, and I am ready," he said. "I will see you on New Year’s Eve on Spike TV."
Round 3: Tito Ortiz in His Last Hurrah
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While it's traditional to celebrate the winner of a sporting contest, the career of former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz is worthy of a few words. Ortiz stepped into the cage against the best light heavyweights from three eras. From Frank Shamrock to Randy Couture to Forrest Griffin to Dynamite 1 opponent Liam McGeary, he fought the toughest men on the planet for 18 years.
His feuds, with Ken Shamrock and Chuck Liddell, helped define modern MMA promotion. Tito versus Ken is the template that every major grudge match followed. As Zuffa was trying to rebuild the UFC, Tito was a central figure.
His reputation was hurt by 12 years of UFC President Dana White badmouthing him to the press and fans at every turn. And, of course, he hurt himself with his increasingly comical injury excuses in a sport where that just isn't done. But if you were naming the 10 most important UFC fighters of all time you'd have to consider him for that list.
Even against McGeary, a towering light heavyweight with frightening submission skills on the mat, the 40-year-old Ortiz didn't look entirely out of place. He was firmly in control of the fight throughout the first round—until the moment he wasn't. It was a loss that had more to do with McGear's unique physical tools and excellent application of his own strengths than it did any failing on Ortiz's part.
Although he didn't rule out retirement, frankly he didn't look like a fighter who needed a harsh wake-up call. Love him or hate him, Ortiz has more left to give a sport he's already given so much.
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Round 4: Phil Davis Is a Double-Edged Sword
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Phil Davis wreaking havoc in the one-night light heavyweight tournament seems like a major win for Bellator. After all, Davis is the first major free-agent acquisition of the Scott Coker era, giving the promotion some much-needed credibility with MMA fans.
Running roughshod over the Bellator competition, in theory, benefits everyone involved. Davis' success is now Bellator's success. His return to form at 205 pounds could give the promotion the first breakout star in its short history.
But danger lurks. There's a catch. There's always a catch.
While the 30-year-old Davis was a bona fide star for the UFC, going 9-3-1 for the sport's promotion of record, he never emerged as a true elite. A former amateur wrestling champion, he had the tools to become one of MMA's best fighters—but he never did.
In UFC Davis wasn't the man. He was just one among dozens of great fighters. If he finds himself without a Bellator rival, it may do the promotion more harm than good.
Right now we just suspect any fighter in the UFC top 10 would demolish his Bellator peers. Davis continuing to dismantle top stars such as Emanuel Newton without even breaking a sweat would confirm it in the minds of many.
Round 5: Glory Doesn't Make the Most of an Opportunity
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Glory Kickboxing is an amazing product just looking for an audience. Its shows, which like Bellator air several times a year on Spike TV, are often action-packed and dazzlingly violent. It's MMA without the grappling exchanges that often slow down the action and frustrate casual fans.
If you were looking for a sport to pair with MMA, this is it. And, yet, at Dynamite it just didn't quite work. Bloody Elbow's Michael Hutchinson, an MMA blogger looking to give kickboxing a chance, had a representative response:
"It was a great chance for exposure, but ended up falling flat. As someone who hasn't watched a lot of kickboxing, it was very obvious that the first two fights were mismatches, and they still didn't produce a finish or at the least an entertaining fight.
The championship bout between Saulo Cavalari and Zack Mwekassa was not the great brawl or even the tactical war that I thought it would be. It's not to say that kickboxing is more boring than MMA, but those three fights did nothing to bring MMA fans over to the sport.
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Like any event, the fights are key. The very best ideas can fall apart when athletes fail to execute in the ring. Glory has a number of talented and exciting kickboxers it could have introduced to the world. Instead, two of the main card fights featured MMA fighter Paul Daley and the wife of an MMA fighter, Keri Anne Taylor-Melendez.
Let's hope next time Spike TV gets it right.
Even though Glory didn't bathe itself in, well, glory, the idea is far from dead. I expect Spike to expand the concept to include other combat sports such as boxing and even pro wrestling. It's a great idea that, with some fine-tuning, could be the game-changer Bellator needs to differentiate itself from the UFC.
Jonathan Snowden covers combat sports for Bleacher Report.
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