UFC vs Strikeforce…Can’t We All Just Get Along?
Competition is the way of the world. Has been since life started on this planet. Competition probably started at the beginning of the universe, but for our purposes here on earth let’s go with that first little amoeba came into existence however many millions of years ago fighting the other amoebas for what ever nutrients they could find.
I understand the need to compete. I love to compete myself and I hate losing. I started in sports at the age of 5 and was lucky enough to play on several championship teams over the years and was able to become a champion in individual sports as well. What I don’t understand is the need to rain on someone else’s parade just because.
You are probably wondering what the hell my point is here? Well, let me tell you…
A couple hours after Strikeforce announced their Nashville show will be held on April 17th, the UFC decided to hold an event the same day to do some counter programming. Again, I understand the need to compete, but why hastily put together a card just to try and take viewers away from your competition?
Now I realize that since Strikeforce has now upped its presence in the MMA world, the UFC may feel a bit threatened and needs to send a message. That being said, competition is good and if you take away the competition your fans may get bored.
Let me give you an example why I believe that the UFC should just leave Strikeforce alone…
In the mid 1990′s there was something called the Monday Night Wars. Pro Wrestling took off in the 90′s to a level that no one thought would happen. Reason, competition. The WWE, formally the WWF, was the king of the pro wrestling mountain after consolidating many of the smaller promotions because Vince McMahon knew how to promote and used the up and coming cable TV market better than anyone else in the business.
Then here comes Ted Turner. He turns his regular Saturday TBS wrestling show into a powerhouse called WCW or World Championship Wrestling and finds away to lure the WWE’s big talent to Atlanta and the wars began.
For those pro wrestling fans out there, you know what happened next. McMahon won the war, but the fallout after the war ended, was in my opinion, a major drop off in quality of product. Eventually, the WWE tried to create its own in house competition that didn’t really work out all that well.
In came TNA and after a few years of establishment shows, the new pro wrestling promotion is able to compete with the big boy on the block which will again push the WWE to put on better shows.
I feel that if Strikeforce goes under due to the shear weight of the UFC, the fans will ultimately lose. The reason I say that is because, what organization will be left to push them to be better?
Dream and Sengoku will never be direct competition. Shine Fights, Shark Fights and other regional promotions don’t have the clout and the cash flow to even come close to the level of the Strikeforce let alone the UFC. No offense to any of the regional promotions out there.
The UFC needs Strikeforce even if UFC President Dana White will never admit that. The fighters need Strikeforce to succeed for the fact that not everyone can be in the UFC. And the UFC needs Strikeforce to succeed. The UFC needs Strikeforce to succeed just for the reason of competition. Competition that will make the sport of MMA better. Competition to help educate non and casual fan in what Mixed Martial Arts is truly about. Competition, just for competition’s sake.
As a fan I want the competition to keep the UFC fresh and interesting. The opportunity to see new blood compete on a regular basis. And maybe, some day, by some act of divine intervention…we might be able to see UFC Champion vs Strikeforce Champion or UFC Champion vs Dream Champion or Strikeforce Champion vs Sengoku Champion. Cause I have to say that we have already seen a Dream Champion fight for a Strikeforce Championship twice now. First was Dream Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Champ Gegard Mousasi taking the Strikeforce Light Heavyweight belt. And the second was Dream Welterweight Champ Marius Zaromskis’ unsuccessful bid for the Strikeforce Welterweight belt. The fact that we had Champion vs Champion is pretty freakin’ cool. Not Lightweight Champ vs Welterweight Champ, but we had Dream Light Heavyweight Champ vs Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champ…again, pretty freakin’ cool. And very soon, Dream Lightweight Champ Shinya Aoki will try to take the Strikeforce Lightweight belt.
Ultimately, Mixed Martial Arts, as a sport and a business, needs both the UFC and Strikeforce to succeed as major league promotions. If both are able to succeed at a high level, everyone wins. The parent companies of both promotions will make a lot of money. The fighters will get higher pay days. And most of all, we as fans will have plenty of great fights to look forward to for years to come.
Please, UFC…Strikeforce, there is no real reason to rain on each others parade. Solidify the sport of MMA to last for generations.
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