Prepare yourself Bill, Jon Fitch has been cut!

Along with these other fighters

http://www.mmafighting.com/2013/2/20/4009518/jon-fitch-among-16-fighters-released-from-ufc-on-tuesday

Wagner Prado, Mike Russow, Jacob Volkmann, Vladimir Matyushenko, Che Mills, Jay Hieron, Terry Etim, Paul Sass, Jorge Santiago, Mike Stumpf, Simeon Thoresen, C.J. Keith, Motonobu Tezuka, Josh Grispi and Ulysses Gomez.

As much as I hate to be right, I told you so.  The UFC started screwing Fitch after the Penn fight, and I had the bad taste to say so in public.  Everyone said, "No, no.  They will start giving him contenders after a win or two."

I countered by saying, "No, I really don't think so.  I think the UFC has determined their direction and it will not tolerate a wrestler who doesn't bang."  And I'm proven right.  Let this be a cautionary tale.

Big warnings to wrestler types.  Phil Davis, Demian Maia, Jake Shields, Colton Smith.  If you come from a grappling background like wrestling, ju-jitsu or judo, you better learn to strike as soon as humanly possible.

Most of them have.  Chuck Liddell, Chris Leben, Melvin Guillard, Rashad Evans, Dan Henderson, Cain Velasquez, Jake Ellenberger, Johny Hendricks, Josh Koscheck, Shane Carwin, Anthony Johnson, Keith Jardine, Rampage Jackson, Jon Jones, Cung Le, Phil Baroni, Diego Sanchez, Carlos Condit, Sean Sherk, Jens Pulver, Gray Maynard, Urijah Faver, Dominick Cruz.

The UFC has set its sails, struck their colors, and hoisted their flag as a strictly Entertainment Promotion, not that unlike WWE.  They have given fair warning in countless ways.  Here are just a few indications that they have no intention of compromising their entertainment values with a bow to sports legitimacy.

1. Whenever the actions slacks off, they either stand them up, or bring them to the center from the fence.
2. They make matches based on whoever they feel is exciting, and even admitted that Official Rankings will not impact their match-making inclinations.
3. They dismiss their title shot promises easily and breezily without apologies whenever they feel another match might draw better.  Did this to Fitch and Hendricks and this will continue.
4. If a fighter has what they consider an exciting striking style, they will ignore their losses.  Liddell, Wanderlei Silva, Leben, Guillard, Chris Lytle, Dan Hardy.  They far prefer you lose looking exciting, than if you win looking technical.
5. The UFC puts far too much emphasis on finishing fights, and Dana White never tires of telling people, "Don't let it go to the judges."

I told you guys all along that the UFC wanted Fitch to go away, and now, exactly 1 fight after fighting exciting in beating Erick Silva, he's gone.  I feared this would happen, but hoped everyone else was right and I was being too timid.

The UFC has taken one ginormous step back from sports legitamacy and one huge step towards WWE type sports entertainment.

What do you do when something you're all but addicted to shows tell-tell signs of heading in the wrong way.

And the UFC can just call them back?  Why the hell would you go back to an organization that treated you like **** and threw you away like Kleenex?  That would be like a woman who cheats on you routinely, finally breaks up with you, and then all she has to do is crook her little finger to get you to run back for more abuse?  I don't think so.

Maybe WolfmanHowl is right.  Dana White is in a panic to see how much damage he can create.  Couture, Cyborg, this.  

* Edited at 02.20.2013, 6:29 PM ET *

I don't agree with everything in that post @bill, but i definitely agree with other parts of it. I like the point about going back to the UFC and all that.

This Hand of God/Dana White **** is ******* nuts.

I want to see Maia walk out in his wrestling singlet now . didnt know he wrestled.

Maia never wrestled.

I know...

Wrestling, Ju-jitsu, judo.  You understood what I intended.  Maia will be blocked from a title shot.  Period.

The UFC is no more excited by his style than they were with Fitch's.  They want strikers.

It sucks to be right.

* Edited at 02.20.2013, 6:13 PM ET *

Bill, I was with you up until you suggested Dana's condition is a result of God smiting him for cutting fightiers.  lol

Yep Rousey is next with that boring Judo...

AnAlias.  I need to use whatever device at my disposal to get your attention.  Creative license.  

*** Dana?, get your ******* head out of your ass!!

I won´t even try to understand because I can´t

Dana just keeps diggin that hole deeper and deeper.

 

You heard me, curt.  I stand by it.  Down the road, Rousey and Maia will 'become problems'.  Count on it.  They best learn to strike or to Bellator they will go.

@Bill... it's called a "poetic license".. not creative... thanks for not disapointing me... I fully expected your novel post. ;)

sorry @curt lol

@bill that was the part that i don't really agree with. just because Maia is a grappler does not mean he won't get a title shot. Maia is well known for having a ridiculous submission game, Fitch really isn't. Maia was not exciting against Fitch because Fitch has fantastic sub defense from training with guys like Dave Camarillo and whoever else rolls through AKA. Maia finishes more often than not, Fitch doesn't. To the average fan, it is harder to appreciate grappling, especially someone like Fitch, who is just really tough, and literally makes people quit. so in a way, i guess i do agree with what you're saying bill, strikers are going to always be placed above grapplers, which kind of sucks.

I was never really a fan of his, but i always appreciated his skills, and he seems like a good guy. Sucks that Fitch is getting cut, really doesn't make sense.

He went 13-1 with the loss being to one of the best ever, then went 1-2-1, which i still don't think warrants being cut. You can argue that Leonard Garcia has lost his last nine or ten fights.

Thanks, Kalibo.  You knew I had to post sooner or later.  And you called it right.  It was a book.  Hope you're reading this on your home screen and not on the road on a texting device.  Looks a lot longer on those tiny screens.

But I did predict this, if you remember.

I see many champions in that list for other organizations to grow on, this is a good thing for mma and the ufc has such a huge pool to pick from now losing is no joke now.

@bill... yes...I actually do remember.

When you think about it, the UFC's behavior makes logical sense.  Punching is more interesting and exciting and easier to appreciate than wrestling or submissions.

That is why boxing, WWE draws well, while legitimate college wrestling, even state finals, does not.  They probably have only parents and the auditoriums are half-empty.  

So, the UFC believes, for the better or worse, that striking-type fighters will draw and fill their coffers, and sell their PPVs, while the non-stikers will not.  Even the best non-strikers like Maia, require some appreciation of technical leveraging, positioning, control of your and your opponents' weight, etc.

The public has no appetite for that kind of technical combat.  If it did, we'd see college wrestling being a marquee sport.  But that isn't so.  More's the pity.  Not much any of us can do about it.  

Business will drive the UFC, not sports.  No matter how much we all want it to.  I can accept that, but my interest just took a hit.  

* Edited at 02.20.2013, 6:58 PM ET *

My interest def didn't take a hit, but I am baffled by what has happened today.  Could care less the reasoning... it was a bad move by the UFC.

wow lots of guys got released i dont agree with fitch ,russow . volkmann  and hieron the rest make sense to me

I don't remember reading that the UFC is looking to cut 100 people.  Does that mean 100 more than they have already cut this year?  That would be draconian.

That would seem to indicate losing will be a mortal sin, not finishing will be a venal sin, and fighting boring or not striking enough will be flagged for a serious talk.

This might indicate that they are having serious cash flow problems.  Maybe the 2012 injuries plague cut deeper than we knew, or the health-insurance policy is bleeding them white.

Too bad we might not be getting all the relevant information that would explain why they cut a top 10 guy.  Giving valued investments to the enemy doesn't make a lot of sense.