What's new at Ludus Martial Arts

We’re so proud of our team! Find out how they’ve been doing, as well as what else has been going on at our gym lately.

Trading Shots: Did title turnover at UFC 217 teach us a lesson about the price of arrogance?


Filed under: News, UFC

Three very confident champions all lost their titles in brutal fashion at UFC 217. What, if anything, is the lesson here? MMAjunkie columnist Ben Fowlkes and retired UFC and WEC fighter Danny Downes discuss.

* * * *

Fowlkes: What a night, eh, Danny? For the first time in UFC history, three titles changed hands in three consecutive bouts. Another way to look at it: In all three title fights, we saw some version of a story that is as rare in real life as it is satisfying. I refer now, of course, to the story of hubris punished.

Think about it. Michal Bisping? Joanna Jedrzejczyk? Cody Garbrandt? All three came into their title defenses talking a metric ton of crap. All three, to one extent or another, played the role of the bully, constantly poking a finger in the challenger’s chest while threatening all manner of humiliating violence. Then, one by one, all three got beaten up.

To make the contrast between the defeated bullies and the victorious bullied even more glaring, you had Rose Namajunas out there using her victory speech to encourage us to be nice and hug each other. You had Georges St-Pierre apologizing for the using the word “balls” in public (surely, NYC residents were scandalized by such talk). You had T.J. Dillashaw … well, he didn’t gloat anywhere near as obnoxiously as he could have, and that’s something, especially against a bitter rival and former teammate.

Is it all one big coincidence, Danny? Or is there something to learn from a night when the plot of basically every teen movie from “The Karate Kid” to “Never Back Down” became reality in the UFC?

Downes: Who knew that all it took for Ben Fowlkes to get back into the church pew was three UFC titles changing hands in one night? Maybe next week we can change the name of this column to “Trading Blessings” and we talk about how #blessed we are in our lives.

Of course it’s a coincidence! You constantly talk about how we shouldn’t read any morality into MMA. Well, we shouldn’t attribute any metaphysical arc of justice to it either. The same night as these alleged “bullies” lost their titles, former NFL player and domestic abuser Greg Hardy started his new career as an MMA fighter.

I think there’s a mistake in grouping all three of the former title holders in the same group. They were all arrogant in their bullying, but in different degrees. Bisping was his usual, grating self, with the mix of cocky Englishman, condescension and lack of self-awareness that we’ve come to expect. He even dresses the part of a bad guy in a low budget action movie.

Garbrandt’s attitude was driven more by personal animus towards Dillashaw. He probably crossed a line or two in the etiquette department (it’s never appropriate to brag about sparring “wins”), but that could be attributed to the fact that he really did not like Dillashaw. Rightly or wrongly, he finds Dillashaw disloyal and that really annoyed him.

I personally find Jedrzejczyk’s case the most interesting. She’s always had a mean streak, but in the buildup to this fight, she seemed especially nasty. Particularly in the way she attacked Namajunas, who tried to bring awareness to mental health issues.

Was this a case of Jedrzejczyk turning up her persona to 11, or was it a case of her drinking her own Kool-Aid? When everyone in the MMA landscape says you’re the baddest woman on the planet, you’re probably going to start calling yourself the boogeywoman, speaking in crazy hyperbole and looking for a role in the new “Roadhouse” remake. (Sorry, I think that last one was somebody else who believed her own hype.)

Regardless of what type of bully they personified, it appears they all received their comeuppance. I’m sure many fans enjoyed watching them lose their respective titles. I’m also sure that many fans aren’t looking for a kinder, gentler UFC fighter.

Fighters, too, aren’t going to be telling themselves, “You know, I should be more respectful to my opponent.” Everyone is going to be chasing that Conor McGregor money. As result, you’re going to get bootleg McGregors (cough* Colby Covington cough*) trying to be a more athletic Biff Tannen.

You compared last night to “The Karate Kid.” Do you think the “good guys” won last night? Do MMA fans have cocky A-hole fatigue? What should we learn from last night other than it’s really difficult to keep your title?

Fowlkes: I’m not going to say it was a moral failing that caused the downfall of these three champions, but especially in Jedrzejczyk’s case, it did seem like a disdain for her opponent’s skills (and maybe an overabundance of faith in her own) played a role in her loss. Arrogance can be a good selling point in combat sports. But if it’s also a character trait that you bring into the fight, it can get you knocked out.

As for the question of cocky A-hole fatigue, yes and no. It was strangely refreshing to see Namajunas pull off the night’s biggest upset, only to turn around and insist that she felt “like a normal person” afterward, because it is who you are with or without the belt that really matters.

And when GSP did his polite Canadian gentleman thing, you did get the sense that people were more into it because it was such a departure from the swaggering braggadocio we’ve gotten accustomed to lately.

I’m under no illusion that this is the beginning of an MMA culture change. Fighters saw McGregor getting fame and money, so they naturally tried to emulate the form hoping for similar results. That’s not going to stop all at once, or maybe ever.

Let’s not forget, when we were used to having St-Pierre and his G-rated trash talk around on the regular, we got to a point where we found it all a bit boring. He had to go away and come back in a different era for anybody to appreciate it.

But I do think that Saturday night might have been a reminder that there’s more than one path to the waterfall. Not everyone needs to be the sneering, cocky champ. The more people who try that act, the more of an opening it creates for something – anything – else.

Downes: If there’s one thing MMA fighters can learn from Hamlet (other than don’t get involved in Danish politics), it’s “this above all: to thy own self be true.” We’re so quick to tie MMA to professional wrestling that we conflate fighters with characters.

To be sure, fighters need to have some type of “brand.” The idea of letting your fighting do all the talking is naive, and it ignores the business of the sport.

When we have fighters out there working a gimmick, though, it cheapens everything else. Chael Sonnen had a decent thing going, but he went over the line into becoming a caricature of himself. I would argue that you’re better off having a boring personality than an insincere one.

Look at Sage Northcutt. I would assume by now he’s in on the joke, but it still works because that’s his personality. When wannabe McGregors spout uncreative nonsense, it seems ridiculous. It’s like when you tried to bring back the word fetch. Stop trying to make fetch happen, Ben. It’s not going to happen!

MMA is at its best when there’s variety. That applies to fighter personalities as much as it does to fighting styles. Homogeneity isn’t entertaining, and MMA fans aren’t a monolith. We all have different opinions of what we find entertaining, and the more options we have presented, the sport in general will be healthier. Some of us cheer for the bully. Some of us root for the underdog. But all of us want the sport to grow.

For more on UFC 217, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

Ben Fowlkes is MMAjunkie and USA TODAY’s MMA columnist. Danny Downes, a retired UFC and WEC fighter, is an MMAjunkie contributor who has also written for UFC.com and UFC 360. Follow them on twitter at @benfowlkesMMA and @dannyboydownes.


Filed under: News, UFC

‘That’s not who I am’: Igor Severino apologizes for bite, hopes one mistake doesn’t define career

Igor Severino’s life isn’t the same as it was one week ago. As of now, the 20-year-old ex-UFC fighter doesn’t know if it’ll ever be even similar after he bit opponent Andre Lima during their March 23 fight at UFC on ESPN 53 in Las Vegas. The highly unusual...

Joaquin Buckley: ‘This Is The Reason I’m Here’

UFC Welterweight Joaquin Buckley Is Stoked To Be In A Marquee Position To Move Up The Rankings And Show He Belongs Fighting The Top 170-Pound Fighters On The Roster Read the Full Article Here

come and try a ludus mma class free!

We want to make sure that Ludus MMA is the right fit for you before asking you to commit to a membership.
That’s why we’d like to offer you a FREE ONE-DAY PASS to our gym.

With your FREE PASS, you can:

  • Try as many classes as you’d like,
  • Explore the facility
  • Talk to our coaches one-on-one about what you can expect as a member

© Copyright 2024 - Ludus Martial Arts - 730 Beach Blvd, Unit 105, Jacksonville Beach, FL 32250.

(904) 374-4186 / ludusmartialarts@gmail.com