Hyden's Take
HYDEN BLOG: UFC 191 hype, Anderson Silva's suspension, and UFC 194 gets stacked
Aug 19, 2015 - 3:05:07 PM HYDEN BLOG: UFC 191 hype, Anderson Silva's suspension, and UFC 194 gets stacked

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By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch contributor

There were no major MMA events this past week so it's time for some Quick Hits.

UFC 191 hype

UFC is coming up on September 5, and it's a strong card. The headliner is UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson, and it should be a great fight. The speed alone will be amazing, these are the two fastest guys in the division and probably any division. If there's a negative about Johnson it's that he can sometimes settle for a grinding decision win rather than truly showing his skills. I think that's taken on a life of its own, though, because Johnson does have several finishes to his record. Whether that's true or not, Johnson won't be able to settle in this fight. Dodson is going to push him and will prove to be a tremendous challenge. I'm going with the upset and saying that Dodson scores the second round knockout.

Added to that is likely/possibly number one contenders fight between Andrei Arlovski and Frank Mir. I say likely because if Arlovski wins it's almost a certainty that he gets a title shot and possibly because if Mir wins it's very possible that he gets a title shot. Mir had lost a handful in a row, but he's knocked out his last two opponents in the first round. I'm going with Arlovski by TKO in the first round, but a Mir win wouldn't surprise me in the least.

Also, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson looks to bounce back from a loss as he fights Jimi Manuwa. You know that Rumble will be looking to send a message so I expect a violent fight. I think Rumble gets the knockout in the first round and starts to rebuild towards another title shot.
I haven't even mentioned a fight between Paul Felder and Ross Pearson and one between Liz Carmouche and Raquel Pennington. UFC 191 is very deep and I think it'll be a very good to great show.


Anderson Silva suspended

Anderson Silva finally had his disciplinary hearing and was suspended by the Nevada Athletic Commission for one year and fined for his positive drug test from the time surrounding his fight at UFC 183. This has brought about the usual chorus of "Will this tarnish his legacy?' and other such questions. The answer is very simple, no. By itself, this won't do a damn thing to tarnish Silva's legacy. The only proof you need of that is Mike Tyson, though I could include Michael Vick or Floyd Mayweather or Alex Rodriguez or any number of other athletes over the years. Silva failed a drug test. I would bet that at least half the MMA fanbase, if not more, doesn't give a single damn about performance-enhancing drugs. Whether that's right or not, wherever you come down on this issue, that's just the fact.

A large percentage of sports fans don't care about PEDs or cheating or any of that stuff. The only exceptions are when it's a team or person who you hate. And even then, time eases those thoughts. That's the only way in which Silva's legacy is diminished, in the short term. Because Silva will likely never fight again, our last memory of him will be this failed drug test. It might take a year or two for most fans to stop caring about that. It would be even less time if Silva were able to come back and pull off a highlight reel stoppage win but even without that, it's still just a matter of time before most stop caring and move on.


UFC 194 gets a co-main event

UFC 194 takes place in December and the main event is UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo vs. Conor McGregor. I suppose I should technically add that it's a unification bout because McGregor is the interim UFC Featherweight Champion but that's only because the UFC is incredibly petty. Anyway, this past week it was announced that the co-main event will be UFC Middleweight Champion Chris Weidman vs. Luke Rockhold. This makes the card enormous. One thing I would like to see the UFC do, though, is utilize the "on-call" fighter strategy. It's very possible that someone gets hurt in the lead-up to the fight. It sucks, but it happens. Having someone ready to step in would add a layer of protection to a degree. Maybe have Frankie Edgar ready to step in for either Aldo or McGregor? And Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza ready to step in for either Weidman or Rockhold? I know it's not ideal, and it puts guys in a potentially bad spot, but I think it's better to cover yourself than not.

I think the UFC is making a mistake by having this card in Las Vegas instead of running a show at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, TX. This is a stacked card. UFC 189 just drew about 850,000 PPV buys the other month, largely on the back (and mouth) of Conor McGregor. His fight with Aldo is one of the most anticipated fights in recent memory. And you have a middleweight title fight between Weidman and Rockhold, which should be extremely exciting as well, but they choose to run the same place that they have UFC Fight Night cards in? Nothing against those cards, but UFC 194 is a bigtime event and it deserves a bigtime venue. They have a chance at running a show in a place where they will easily sell three or four times as many tickets, and get the added boost of the cool factor that arena shows give you, and they choose not to. I understand the logistics might be tough, but come on, you got to at least try.

Either way, it's an event I'm super excited for. With these two main event fights, you're almost guaranteed a great night. Now, let's all cross our fingers and toes that injuries don't ruin it.


Comments and suggestions can be emailed to me at hydenfrank@gmail.com and you can follow me on Twitter at @hydenfrank