UFC 87: Jon Fitch Overlooked?

If Jon Fitch defeats Georges St. Pierre on Saturday night at UFC 87, he'll break Royce Gracie's UFC record for consecutive wins, with nine in a row. And yet not many people are paying much attention to that impressive winning streak, or giving Fitch much of a chance.


Fitch has been somewhat overlooked, which he reflected on in comments to the Miami Herald:

''I think because of the way I came up through the UFC, a lot of people didn't see a lot of my fights,'' Fitch said. "People develop an attachment to fighters that they see fight live, when they see you on pay-per-view and when they see you on a live event, they watch you fight. They develop a real attachment to you, rather than just seeing some of your fights on the playback, like the UFC Wired or the Unleashed show.

"I think a lot of fans still don't know who I am really and they haven't developed that type of attachment or appreciation for me. It's not really their fault. We have a stacked weight division, and I kind of just slipped through the cracks.''

I think Fitch is basically right that he slipped through the cracks over the course of his UFC career right now, as his wins, while impressive, have been mostly low-profile. Of course, that all changes if he gets a ninth win Saturday night.