FACEBOOK TWITTER RSS APP PODCAST Opinion & Analysis : The Specialists BOOK REVIEW (pt. 3): Matt Hughes's autobiography "Made in America" - Thought on his excuses for losing to GSP, pushing Serra feud, judging Couture's divorce

Jan 25, 2010 - 2:21:58 PM

By Eric Hobaugh, MMATorch Specialist

The following is part three in a four-part series of articles on Matt Hughes's autobiography "Made in America." To read part one, an editorial on the quality of the book, click here or App users click the Opinion category. To read part two, click here.

In this third installment, I react to three controversial subjects he addresses in the book:

-"Then GSP kicked me in the groin. It stung, but I regained my breath and continued. Georges kept kicking me with those low kicks, and I dropped my hands to block. Then he kicked high, faking me out, and caught me."

Matt is referring to his fight with Georges St. Pierre at UFC 65 in Sacramento, California on November 18, 2006. It is surprising to me Hughes is making this excuse his reason for losing the fight. There is no dishonor in losing to GSP. He is one of the best fighters in the world. Saying he lost because GSP was using cheap shots against him is a stretch at best. GSP is the best sport in MMA.

-"When I got to the training center in Vegas, it was like I was looking at a pool table. On one side of the table was Marc Laimon, the grappling coach. He hated the Gracies, hated their arrogance, hated their big talk. On the other side was Matt Serra, the first American black belt under Royce's brother Renzo Gracie. I could get these guys to get into it, I thought. This should be fun. I haven't seen Marc since I beat Royce. He's bound to congratulate me, and that's going to drive Matt nuts. I walked over and sat down next to Marc. He bit harder than a rabid pit bull."

In this paragraph, Hughes is recanting his experience coaching on The Ultimate Fighter television show. First, like many of the sequences and comparisons in this book, I am completely confused about the pool table analogy. I am not sure an explanation for this analogy exists. Second, Matt is clearly attempting to incite a negative reaction from Matt Serra. Maybe this was just good drama for the show, but knowing what I have learned from reading this autobiography, this is no different than what Brock Lesner did after he beat Frank Mir. At best, he is telling his readers what a terrible sport he really is. At worst, we know he is totally void of class. This is not only bad for the sport, it shows us what type of person he is.

-"I did not know all sides of the story, but I didn't have to support divorce to support Randy Couture. He (Randy) kept walking, thinking I didn't want anything to do with him, because for so long, I hadn't. When people go through a rough patch, they find out who their friends are. And I wasn't one of those people for Randy, and I should have been."

Is it possible, because of his religious beliefs (which are well documented in the second half of the book) and personal moral standards, Matt turned his back on Randy Couuture? Even though he tried to make ammends to Randy later, this is something that is hard to understand. Personal relationships should not be the cost of religious affiliation.

Next week, in the fourth and final installment of this book review, read about the most fascinating chapter, the most boring chapter, and the missing chapter. Then up next in two weeks is a review of Randy Couture's book.

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Eric Hobaugh is the new MMATorch book reviewer. The fourth part of his review of Matt Hughes's "Made in America" book will be published next Monday.

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