THE TORCH: THE #1 WORLDWIDE BRAND IN COMBAT ENTERTAINMENT COVERAGE - OVER 250 MILLION VIEWS & LISTENS PER YEAR REREACHING MORE FANS EVERY WEEK THAN ANY OTHER INDEPENDENT SOURCE • VIA THE WEB, MOBILE, PRINT NEWSLETTER, AND ITUNES
Jan 1, 2009 - 8:54:49 PM By Wade Keller, MMATorch supervising editor This week MMATorch columnist Jason Bent wrote an article about how sometimes if someone criticizes a black athlete he's accused of being racist. Bent was accused of that earlier this week when he was critical of Evans, and he wrote a column disputing that assumption. Since then, some readers have said on the web-version of MMATorch in the reader comment area after Bent's column that Evans hasn't disrespected the sport. I think that's just an argument over terminology. Is it "disrespectful" to show poor sportsmanship and come across as a cocky ass? I'm not sure it disrespects the sport of MMA, but it logically would make some fans want to see him lose.
He comes across as having no sense of humility and no sportsmanship. MMA is a sport built on honor in many respects, and Evans doesn't act in accordance with that informal code of conduct. As a result, it's natural some fans would want to see him lose to knock him down a few notches. He acted cocky last Saturday against Forrest Griffin, he acted the same way in other fights, and he did it on TUF.
Rashad seems like a jerk. I'm not sure that disrespects MMA as much as it makes him someone you might want to see lose.
As pointed out by a reader, Kimbo Slice being pushed by EliteXC as a main eventer MMA fighter disrespected MMA more than Evans. I'd also argue that Rampage Jackson's extra few punches to the face of Wanderlei Silva after the ref stepped in disrespects MMA more than Evans does with his cocky dancing and arrogant showmanship.
I think Evans might be marketing himself as a bad guy to try to stand out and eventually become a bigger attraction, taking the approach of being the guy people pay to see lose. ( I think 90 percent would be rooting for Anderson Silva against Evans.) I doubt, though, that he's the nicest guy in MMA if you bumped into him in public, but you really can't know for sure from what someone does on TV in a fight.
ALERT: Every Tuesday night, listen to the MMATorch Livecast from 9-10:30 p.m. ET or listen now to the most recent shows by clicking here. Listen live this coming Tuesday as Jamie Penick, Rich Hansen, and Matt Pelkey discuss the latest MMA happenings. Online listen at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/mmatorch or call into the show at 646-716-8090 to either just listen or participate.
"There's still a large contingent of people, that they just want to see these guys almost die, or the other guy almost die and come back, and sometimes fights are like that. Certainly they are. But sometimes you get technical masterpieces too, and to hate a beautiful, technical fight - you're not really a fight fan...
Diaz has a granite chin, possesses perhaps the best recovery in the sport, his pace and conditioning are second to none and he sets records with the volume of his punches almost every time he steps into the cage. Nick Diaz is simply designed to fight the way he fights, and not many other fighters are...
"There was a lot of poison going on around there and I'm really disappointed because we had a good thing going. It was a good thing and I think people's egos got in the way. Well, not people just Javier, his ego got in the way, and too many cameras in the gym and him trying to build himself up and his brand, his AKA brand...
PART OF THE USA TODAY UFC GROUP