FanPost

Fairness in the process

Does a good performance justify bad policy? This is the argument that most MMA writers and fans usually advance to justify the practice of "leapfrogging" celebrity fighters ahead of established, deserving ones. The funny thing is that if something similar were to occur to them in their workplace, you can bet those same writers and fans would be the first to scream foul. Look at it this way. A popular co-worker gets the promotion over you, although your work is far superior. Your attorney tells you that you have a case for damages. That employee is promoted anyway and does a good job in the position. Does that mean you no longer have a case? Does the fact that Rousey, Lesnar, and hypothetically Sonnen winning their title fight erase the damage to other fighters who have lost their opportunity? Does it cure the wrong? Let’s talk for a moment about damages - short term and long term as well as the unseen, unknown, and future damages. What is bad for the sport is when deserving fighters like Dan Henderson, Rich Franklin, Phil Davis and others are all financially damaged by the decision. All MMA fighters going forward are hurt by the decision because they know that their fighting efforts alone will not necessarily be rewarded. Furthermore it sends a bad message to other fighters that they have to also conduct themselves like pro wrestlers or Chael Sonnen if they want to increase their chances of a big pay day. This idea is indeed, harmful to the morale of the fighters. How many athletes are looking at and listening to what’s happening with the UFC and are deciding they are going to bring their talents elsewhere? How many? You will never know the extent of the damage. Any football, baseball, or basketball fans out there? How would you like to see a team that worked hard all season long, accruing the most wins, and then be skipped over for a team with an inferior record because it's good for sales? And so what if that team happened to pull off the upset? Does that make everything okay about the way they got their shot? Does that undo the damage to the other teams? Is it too much to ask for some fairness and integrity in the process itself? I think most reasonable people would say that this decision is not fair. There's the issue, I think most Americans are the kind of people who believe that working hard is the way to get ahead. Americans for the most part believe in fair play. Oh sure, you will always have that occasional knucklehead who likes to throw around the old cliché phrase that goes this way: "Guess what? Life ain't fair." Have you noticed that most of the time; people who use that cliché are usually assholes? That's because they live by this predatory philosophy and maybe that helps explain Sonnen's conviction for money laundering, related to mortgage fraud charges. Everyone already knows that life isn't fair. That is all the more reason why fair people always need to speak out against those assholes and situations like this. We obviously can't rely on MMA writers to be objective when it means risking the relationships they have with the UFC and their officials. To the contrary, it’s obvious they are doing their best to sway the fans and sell this fight. Have you noticed any writers publishing a contrasting point of view? What are they afraid of? In my view, Dan Henderson and Forrest Griffin are the real heroes of this story. They have openly said what many fighters and fans are thinking…This is Bullshit! How many? You will never know. Understand this: like Jon Jones – Dan Henderson, and Forrest Griffin are in a unique position that is reserved for a small minority. They have or have had their Championship belts. They have their share of fame and the money that goes with it. Above all, they have the ability to say what most fighters (and apparently some MMA writers) are afraid to say…"This is Bullshit."

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