At the time of writing, elite sports aren’t available for public consumption at all times. I think I speak for everyone when I say “Wow, I miss footy”. Of course, the events in the world right now take centre stage when it comes to what we’re all thinking about, over sports. It’s something I mentioned during the opening weeks of lockdown. Let me tell you, I’m certainly missing The Reds just as much (if not more).
It seemed as though we’d all just have to suck it up without watching sport, and that they’d return one day. That wasn’t the case. Dana White and his team at The UFC decided to improve everyone’s morale. The going-ahead of UFC 249: Tony Ferguson Vs Justin Gaethje on May 10th has given me-along with thousands of fight fans- a great deal of joy. Imagine the numbers that pay-per-view will do. A fight card un-rivalled by any. Admittedly, it’s not the main event I had hoped for. The original headline was Ferguson Vs Khabib, in a bout that would settle who was the King of the lightweights, for now, anyway. Numerous factors saw the Russian pull out of the card, which he has been ridiculed for in the past by the likes of Conor Mcgregor. Nonetheless, this bout for the interim-lightweight title will be an exciting one. Two fighters who give it their all each time they step into the octagon. Gaethje is a striker like no other in the UFC, he’s explosive and will march forward no matter who he’s faced with. Ferguson, a wrestling-inclined fighter, is-too-smart when it comes to striking, he won’t shy away from the aggression that Gaethje will undoubtedly come forward with. Some have questioned Gaethje’s right to be fighting for the interim title, and to a point I understand why. Simply because Khabib pulled out, he’s found himself-potentially-2 fights away from being lightweight champion of the world. It was talked about that Mcgregor was to be his next opponent, surely this would be fair? He’d move up the rankings if he were to win against the Irishman. I don’t see the main event that Dana has assembled as unfair, though. Both fighters are genuine contenders for Khabib’s title. Should Mr. Mcgregor come back to the lightweight division hunting the title that was stripped from him, both Ferguson and Gaethje would be exciting opponents. Of course, the obvious fight that everyone wants is the rematch between Khabib and Conor, whether we’ll see it soon or not is another matter.
Whilst UFC 249 is a card that excites me, there is one man that I’d love to see in action, sooner rather than later: Darren Till. The scouser was set to fight Robert Whittaker in August in Dublin. It would be a shame if the bout didn’t go ahead, as it promises to be an enthralling contest. Whittaker lost his middleweight title to Izzy Adesanya, the current champion-some fighter he is, too. This was Whittaker’s first and only loss at 185 pounds. So, the bout between the two would be extremely enticing to viewers as it would see Darren Till- recently moved up to middleweight, beating Gastellum- facing the former champion. For me, there’s only one winner. Darren is a bonafide star in the MMA world. I can see him becoming middleweight champion in the months to come. What a fight it would be- Adesanya Vs Till. Two of my favourite fighters going head to head. There are those who doubt Till, after his back-to-back losses against Woodley and Masvidal, but look at how he dealt with those losses. The man has the attitude of a champion, he was beaten, he didn’t complain about it, he later congratulated both men. Darren didn’t whine about rematches, he just continued to move forward. Now he finds himself mixing with the best middleweights on the planet. The gorilla has true fighting spirit, it’s got to be because he’s scouse. I’d love to have a chat with the man and find out just how he’s been able to move on so admirably from successive defeats. Before he can get to the champion, though, he is tasked with Whittaker. Whilst I see Till winning, it won’t be easy at all. Both men will pressure each other, and they will never cease to attack. The reason I have confidence in Till winning this bout is simply his clever performance against Kelvin Gastellum. Darren-himself- called Kelvin the “Bulldozer of the middleweight division”, he wasn’t wrong. The man is stocky and is always up for a scrap. Till fought him with a great deal of intelligence, and displayed his various skills in different situations. Admittedly, I enjoy watching the current champion, he is so deservedly where he is. I would love to see Till reign over the 185 pound division, though. Since his fight with Wonderboy he’s been my favourite fighter on the UFC roster. His gorilla mentality is a striking part of his personality. Till has said before that he’ll fight “Anyone, anywhere”. When mos fighters say this, do they mean it? This wasn’t the case when Till did. His words carried weight, you could just tell. This attitude is mad, yet so inspiring. A true contender for the BMF title (that’s bad mother f*cker for any muggles to the UFC world.)
With the upcoming UFC event just around the corner, there are fighters that I’m sure we’d all love to see in action soon. One of those being Jorge Masvidal- the current BMF title holder- boy, does he put on a show. The man finds himself ina period he calls “The Resurrection”. A break from fighting saw him return with such ferocity, obliterating Askren with his knee. We all want to see him fight again, but who does he fight next? The common feeling is that Jorge takes on Usman for the welterweight title. For me, it’s got to be the rematch Vs Nate Diaz. The bout came to an abrupt end when a cut from Diaz’ eye was deemed ‘unsafe’ by the New York State Athletic Commission doctors. Who he fights next will be decided by the company, of course. Another of those that the people want to see fight again is of course, Conor. He is another of those where you can’t see who his next opponent could/should be. Does he take on Khabib at lightweight or Masvidal at welter.
The fight game is far too unpredictable, at times, to think about. As fans of MMA, we’ve got to wait for Dana and his team to put together great fight cards, as they do so time and time again.
MC 