Welcome to UFC's post-merger world: Harris cut with 3-1 record

Mixed martial arts, in particular the UFC, has cultivated an amazingly passionate fanbase. Boxing and its fans treat card-filling fighters like throwaways with little interest. Meanwhile, because of the coverage from sites like MMAJunkie, FanHouse, Bloody Elbow and MMAWeekly, hardcore mixed martial arts fans often view the guys in match No. 9 with a reverence just short of the attention given to main eventers.

Which bring us to the latest cut made by the UFC. Gerald Harris, a cast member from Season 7 of "The Ultimate Fighter," was given his walking papers after losing to Maiquel Falcao at UFC 123.

Upon hearing of the Harris cut, the MMA community erupted. Keep in mind, Harris (17-3, 3-1 UFC) is well-liked by many bloggers and fans for appearing on lots of podcasts and being active on Twitter. Now some are using the Harris firing to question Dana White's motives and business acumen. From SB Nation:

Gerald Harris was cut after going 3-1 in the top MMA organization in the world. Cutting someone because of  "boring" performance (which is subjective) is not the way a so-called sport works. I would wager that if Harris had been choked out in the 1st round, he would still have a job. This whole thing seems like a "I put you on the main card and this is how you repay me? With a boring fight?" type personnel move. Doesn't seem like the right way to run a business. Now, in the big picture, the Harris cut seems insignificant, but moves like these add up over time.

S.C. Michaelson says emotion is playing a role in the UFC's roster moves. 

The Harris cut for a "boring" fight also ties into my other point of vindictive booking. Let me state outright vindictive booking has no place in any sport. The NFL or NBA schedulers don't make matchups trying to obtain a certain outcome. It seems like the UFC is doing this more and more.

That's an interesting view. On the flip side, many fans trash the heck out of cards any time there are slow fights. It seems like White is simply giving the casual fans what they want -- action fighters. The UFC's head honcho says he's operating like the major sports:

"It's exactly the way it works. You want to stay at the top of the food chain, you deal with it. If you don't, you won't. You know how many guys get cut by the NFL and Major League Baseball every day? It's crazy, staggering. Same thing here, no difference." 

He wants action in the Octagon. If that message hasn't been sent by the recent cuts, maybe all fighters on the roster need to read this Dana White doozy (also from MMA Fighting via SB Nation):

"This isn’t the [expletive] Ultimate Staring Competition, it’s the Ultimate Fighting Championship."

Harris seems like a nice guy and he was entertaining in his previous fights, but with dozens of fighters being added to the roster from the 135- and 145-pound divisions there isn't much margin for error.

Because of a clock error in the first round, Harris got new life in the Falcao bout. He did little with the opportunity in the final two rounds. Falcao certainly took a lot of starch out of him and he probably didn't have a whole lot left in the gas tank.

On the positive side, these roster trimmings will have more fighters going for broke knowing their jobs are far from safe.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Welcome-to-UFC-s-post-merger-world-Harris-cut-w?urn=mma-289037

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Couture didn't like 'Rampage' decision at UFC 123; Judges still an issue

Randy Couture has seen a lot of fighting over the years and while the scoring system has improved, the 13-year veteran of mixed martial arts feels like the quality of MMA judges is still a work in progress. He thought the Quinton "Rampage" Jackson split decision win over Lyoto Machida at UFC 123 was a prime example.

"They see some superficial things like Rampage moving forward the whole time in that fight and they attribute that to him winning those rounds," Couture told Paul Howard of ESPNRadio1100 in Las Vegas. "And technically that's not what was happening. It sucks to be a fighter and have that happen to you."

UFC president Dana White came out strongly in support of Jackson in that fight. Couture disagreed. 

"I think it's a huge issue. It's a lot different than judging boxing and unfortunately a lot of judges transferred over," Couture said. "They don't understand a lot of the intricacies of our sport. Who's controlling the tempo of the fight. Who's actually technically scoring."

Veteran judge Cecil Peoples was mentioned as an example. Peoples has been on what seemed to be the wrong side of several close decisions over the last few years. He also exacerbated fans' angst when he decided to make a statement about not scoring leg kicks following the UFC 104 Machida-Mauricio Rua fight. 

"Unfortunately guys like Peoples, and some of these guys have been around for a long time, (you'd) think they'd have figured it out by now," Couture said. "I think there has to be some sort of education or certification program for these judges to get them up to speed on the criteria and what they're looking at to the judge these fights."

There are some schools popping up, but more for the guys in the cage or ring.

Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole has a feature on veteran ref Herb Dean, who has opened his own MMA Referee School in Pasadena, Ca.

The judges for these major fights could also get a little help from the promotions. We've said it for years that it's time to make all main events five round, regardless of whether there's a title on the line. If they're not for a title, most main events have title implications. Why not give the fighters a better chance to state their case for a win and the judges more material to work with?  

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Couture-didn-t-like-Rampage-decision-at-UFC-12?urn=mma-289911

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Famed MMA Trainer Greg Jackson Responds to Dana White's Recent Comments: "What Are You Talking About?"

Dana White doesn?t mind making enemies. Time and time again, the controversial UFC President has proven that he?s more than willing to state his opinion on any given subject no matter what his reaction garners. Most recently Dana White vocally criticized famed MMA coach Greg Jackson and the entire Greg Jackson team. But Greg Jackson [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/12/01/famed-mma-trainer-greg-jackson-responds-to-dana-whites-recent-comments-what-are-you-talking-about

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DREAM's Dynamite!! 2010 event in dire straits; may not be televised

If you thought DREAM has seen the last of their woes, think again.
After many reports surfaced concerning several fighters not being compensated for their performances under the Japanese banner, either in an untimely manner or in some cases not at all (Ronaldo Souza), it looks like now the organization has a new obstacle to [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/11/30/dreams-dynamite-2010-event-in-dire-straits-may-not-be-televised

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Jabs from Jonas: The Marquez-Katsidis War and a Great Boxing Weekend

Katsidis Fights on For his Brother and Puts on a Show:
This past Saturday was a great night to be a Boxing fan! On the HBO card you had 13 to 1 underdog Jason Litzau?s stunning upset of Celsestino Caballero, Andre Berto?s one punch knockout of Freddy Hernandez, and Juan Manuel Marquez?s war torn, all action 9th round TKO of Michael Katsidis. Over on Showtime it was Carl Froch?s impressive win over favored, Arthur Abraham in a ?Super Six bout? and Andre Ward?s rough yet entertaining foul filled victory over Sakio ...

Source: http://www.proboxing-fans.com/jabs-from-jonas-the-marquez-katsidis-war-and-a-great-boxing-weekend_120110/

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Dana White Says Judges Are Ruining Fighters' Legacies - UFC 123

UFC president Dana White says judges are ruining fighters' legacies with bad decisions.

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-123/dana-white-says-judges-are-ruining-fighters-legacies-video_f704249d6.html

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Jackson takes tight decision from Machida at UFC 123 main event

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Quinton "Rampage" Jackson beat Lyoto Machida in a 29-28, 28-29, 29-28 decision in the main event at UFC 123 in front of a loud crowd at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Jackson won the with aggressiveness, and escaped a close call in the final round.

The first round began just as expected, with Rampage immediately stalking, and Machida immediately being elusive. Machida used leg kicks, movement and misdirection to keep the distance, until Jackson finally chased him and was able to land combinations. After the second flurry of punches, Machida clinched with Rampage. They broke apart, and Machida again the clinch to defend against Jackson's aggressiveness.

The clinching continued in the second round, with little action coming from it until two minutes in, when Jackson completed a takedown. They returned to their feet and the clinch. Machida landed a knee again, followed by Jackson breaking free and then landing a huge uppercut that Machida survived. Machida's elusiveness continued to frustrate Jackson, who did everything he could to get into punching distance of Machida.

Machida finally exploded with offense in the third round, throwing a flurry of punches and then a headkick. Jackson appeared in trouble, then roared back with a few punches of his own until Machida took him down. Then, the two were immobile again. Machida passed guard into full mount and tried to get an arm bar, but Jackson's strength won out. He picked up Machida for a slam, but Machida popped out before he could finish it. Back on their feet, they clinched again for another takedown attempt. Machida tried for one more submission before the fight was over, but the round ended before he could complete it.

"Machida is hard to hit. He's going to be around for a long time," Jackson said after the fight. "Even though I don't want to, I think it would be fair to have an immediate rematch."

Both fighters held and successfully defended the UFC light heavyweight belt and desperately want to get back into the title mix. Both were also coming off losses. Machida lost the belt to Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in May. Later that month, Rashad Evans decisioned Jackson in a grudge match between the two.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Jackson-takes-tight-decision-from-Machida-at-UFC?urn=mma-287737

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