We're in a time right now that has seen more dominance by champions than I can remember in the five or six years I've been following mixed martial arts. This is coming at a time that the sport is being put onto a bigger, more widespread, stage. It's gaining popularity at an alarming rate and snowballing into mainstream status, if it hasn't already reached that point.(That's a discussion for another time.)
When discussions are brought up about the GOAT(Greatest of All Time) or even the best at the moment in any popular, mainstream sport, there are always a few names that top the list. It's maybe comparing apples to oranges, or even kiwis, but there's still a comparison to be made. Ask an avid NBA fan who the greatest of all time is and you'll likely hear two or three responses depending on what generation they're from: Michael, Magic, Bird, Wilt or Russell. Ask an NFL enthusiast and they'll likely come up with a short list of players: Rice, Unitas, Marino, Elway.
Mixed martial arts is a bit different when it comes to similar discussions. It has to be taken into account that it is an individual sport, and that these top level martial artists only compete on an average of three times per year. Their performances seem to hold a lot more water than other team sports. Peyton Manning goes through a three game stretch where he throws 11 interceptions; everyone goes crazy saying he's washed up. Next week he comes back and throws two touchdown passes and over 300 yards, and everything is right with the world. It's not so easy for a mixed martial artist to regain his footing with fans and critics alike.
The main example of this might be in the WEC(now UFC), where saw Urijah Faber and Miguel Torres rose to prominence in their respective weight classes. Both climbed the pound for pound charts/discussions after they asserted their dominance fight after fight. Then all of the sudden Urijah Faber gets caught and he's suddenly fallen out of favor with fans. Miguel Torres gets caught and again discussions about him being exposed start to mount. Torres was widely considered the king of the Bantamweight division and rightly so, but after suffering only his second blemish in over 30 fights, he's somehow fallen out of favor amongst fans and critics alike. Suddenly his wild and aggressive style that was so beloved by fans is now the reason critics are dogging him.
Fans and critics can be very fickle in sports, but seem to be even more so in the realm of combat sports; namely mixed martial arts. These fighters who fall out of the discussion, really have to work their way back up the list.
It will be interesting to see what the discussions sound like in the next few years. Right now it seems like Jose Aldo, Georges St. Pierre, and Anderson Silva are unstoppable at the moment. If any of the three lose, will they drop off the lists in their respective weight classes?
--Tim Herb
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