Strategy has no place in MMA?

[Judo Fro]

If Florian would've finished Huerta at anytime he had his back, this conversation wouldn't be happening.

I think its a major complaint of the average mma fan. If the fighter doesn't finish the fight or turn it into a slug fest, they get the Machida treatment.

Sad. But I guess every sport has its fair weather fans.

[kurtwpg]

Originally Posted by Authority 51

"Kenflo ran." "Machida is a coward." etc

You forgot "GSP is afraid to stand", "Lesnar is afraid to stand", etc.

[IAMNOTMYSELF**]

Originally Posted by Authority 51

The joke is on you because you're it. If you believe that KenFlo wasn't fighting and was just trying to outpoint Huerta...then you are the type of fan I made this thread for. I'm sure if you were fighting in the UFC and had won the first two rounds with solid take downs, submission attempts and better striking, you would abandon that strategy and try something new.

You're an idiot.

suck a dick bitch, Kenny had a good game plan but Machida'ed his way through most of the fight with a win. He even said he didn't want to exchange with Huerta....fighting is not a chess match bitch!

[DoItAgain]

Florian didn't avoid Huerta that much, just when he was in trouble. You're an idiot if you think he should have stood and banged when the momentum was working against him. You know shitall about fighting if you think you shouldn't use footwork to avoid someone who's coming at you fast with a flurry.

On top of that, Florian made a good fight. It was exciting.

If you think Machida's backing off against Tito made the fight slow and more boring than it should have been, you're right. If you think Machida has relied on that to get to where he is, you're ignorant about his past bouts. If you think Florian did the same thing against Huerta, you're a moron.

If you think fighters can't use footwork defensively a couple times in a fight like Florian did, you're an idiot.

[Striker22 redo]

Kenny hit Huerta a ton of times, had takedowns, had his back, Huerta is just tough. It wasnt that Kenny didnt TRY to finish. Look at his record. He just couldnt. Look at the best fighter in the world--Fedor didnt finish everyone. As a matter of fact he couldnt finish the best fighters he faced--Crocop and Big Nog.

[cool2007]

Originally Posted by dugtheoub

Strategy is a good thing, but the strategy has to include finishing the fight. Simply outpointing opponents doesn't impress me.

I agree 100 %

[AngryOreo]

I think it comes down to the ufc rules, pretty much i think they don't reward the fighter taking the centre of the octagon enough. They say they score the bout on octagon control, but they dont seem to reward the guy who takes the centre and tries to cut the classic striker off who is sticking and moving. Sure sticking and moving is good, but in a sport where the ring is large and it has many periods of delays like clinching and takedowns and holding up against the cage that doesnt lead to anything it seems a fighter can get away with just a couple of shots taking it out round by round. When you only have to win 2 of the 3 rounds thats where the problem is. When watching k-1 max, also only 3 rounds (even shorter 3 mins rounds) you notice the two kickboxers who are much better than mma strikers actually trying to stay in the pocket and maintaining the centre. This is because they know they will get rewarded for it, I dont think its a case of the best kickboxers in the world are just all offensive/pressure fighters. I like the pride scoring a lot better. They had a good combination of the technique and pride of a fighter when it came to scoring. Do you guys remember the wandy vs hunt fight, where wandy clearly won the fight technically, had several takedowns, almost submitted, had mount for much of the match, but lost in a split decision? I think it was because he tried to take down hunt and held mount without actually trying to pursue any more offense. Or what about when hunt beat crocop in pride. But crocop was evasive and countered for most of the match, a few times hunt actually looked like he was running after crocop. And the fight was given to Hunt. I think i saw it again today with rashad running from the counter striker chuck, it then becomes a match of who wants to become the aggressor. Luckily someone got ko'd. i think the ufc should reward the fighter who takes the centre just so that we can have some fighters think about moving forward instead of circling. It's annoying to see fighters throw a few jabs for 2 of the 3 rounds and then eek out a victory. Dont get me wrong i think Machida-Ortiz fight was great. Tito didn't really attempt to cut off the ring, or take control of the octagon he just backed up every time Machida circled... which isnt enough to give him control. Its just sad to see one guy circle for 4:30 mins and then in the last few moments score a take down and secure victory for the round.. Remember its a fight, there has to be some pride and honor and involved, not just strategy and scoring.

[AngryOreo]

Originally Posted by dugtheoub View Post
Strategy is a good thing, but the strategy has to include finishing the fight. Simply outpointing opponents doesn't impress me.

I think thats true to, if your evasive and can finish its a beautiful thing to watch.. If your evasive and just wanting to out score round by round, i think you forgot its a fight. The judges decisions were intended as a last resort... Many fighters now even in boxing want to take it to the judges and not take too many risks in finishing an opponent

[Wrath of Foamy]

It's understandable that people want to see an exciting fight. After all, they paid to see excitement, not see one guy get outpointed by another for three or five rounds.

On the other hand, just like in any other sport, the fans should not dictate how the fighter fights or how a match is judged. In a sport, especially one so violent as MMA, it is the fighters goal to win fights whilst avoiding punishment, instead of potentially throwing himself under a bus just to satisfy a bunch of fans. MMA is a sport, not sports entertainment and victory should always take priority over entertainment, whether the fans like it or not.

So I agree with the threadstarter on this one. These strategic fighters may not be the most pleasing to the eyes and ears of much of the viewing public, yet it would be wrong of us to demand them to move out of their element just to entertain us.