Jimmy G-Force
Resident PES Fanman
Yet another great Strike-Force card, well impressed. I wrote about the Fedor fight on an MMA forum I frequent - I'll post my thoughts as I cant be bothered writing it out again.
I dont like to hear any fighter talking about retirement, especially before a big fight. As I mentioned in a previous post, their mind and heart is already in the wrong place. And watching Fedor last night (delayed coverage), it was blatantly obvious. In hindsight, I truly believe the Werdum loss was the beginning of the end of a true legend. After the Werdum fight, I was astonished that Fedor was so lax in the guard. He had a couple of opportunities to get out, but he didnt. The notoriously cool, composed and calculating Fedor would not have put himself at that type of risk against a very naughty Jits practitioner. Of course, everybody can get caught, but Fedor isnt everybody. His domination of the sport was based on his skill, technique, heart and most importantly - a very clever fighting brain. I truly believe that when words like retirement are thrown into the mix, the first part of the arsenal to suffer is the mind. And thats the top and bottom of it for me.
The fight against Silva not only confirmed that in my eyes, it brutally rubberstamped it. Right from the offset Fedor didnt look like the fighter we all know. His usual composed and calculated demeanour had been replaced by a reckless abandon. He threw his punches in bunches, but there was nothing clinical or poised about his assaults. He looked messy, there was very little thought in what he was doing. He never set up the right hand, there were no feints, he just winged it in hope. Thats not Fedor, or certainly not the technically cute Fedor we know. To me it looked like he didnt want to be there, he wanted to end it as soon as he could, but there was no thought involved. It reeked of a fighter who had fallen out of love with the sport, it really did.
I'm not sure what hurt the most, seeing AA's eggs get scrambled so easily yet again, or the end of the Fedor era. I think it has to be the latter.
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It looked like a 'mercy' stoppage to me, and I dont think there can be too many complaints in that regard. Even with the ice-cold demeanour and trademark poker-face Fedor exudes, I think if you look close enough, his body-langauge said as much. He looked very unsteady on his feet as he got up at the end of the second round. The heart to not only try to scramble out of the mount on numerous occasions, but also not to tap with what looked like a very tight arm-triangle was a credit to the great mans legacy. There was no quit in him, but sometimes that decision needs to be made for a fighter, and I for one thought it was a great call. As much as I would have loved to see Fedor roll back the years and pull off another victory from the jaws of defeat in a 3rd round, I dont believe he had it in him, mentally or physically. The shot at the end of the fight with Fedor slumped on his stool, battered and bruised reminded me of the infamous 'gumshield shot' of Tyson against Douglas. Shockingly brutal and bordering surreal.
I think those who question his last two defeats need to put it into perspective. I honestly believe Fedor's love and passion had long since passed, and with it, his steely focus. And both performances justify that belief for me personally. I dont think that it's a decline or deterioration in his skill-set, or that MMA has evolved to the point it's passed him by. I just dont feel he has the love or passion anymore, and it's become all about the money. As they say, 10% physical, 90% mental. The strange irony is that after 28 fights and 9 years unbeaten, these back-to-back losses may give him the solace he seeks.
Whatever happens, he can still retire with a legacy that may never be surpassed. And I for one hope does. He has nothing to prove anymore, or at least, he doesnt in my eyes.
The fight against Silva not only confirmed that in my eyes, it brutally rubberstamped it. Right from the offset Fedor didnt look like the fighter we all know. His usual composed and calculated demeanour had been replaced by a reckless abandon. He threw his punches in bunches, but there was nothing clinical or poised about his assaults. He looked messy, there was very little thought in what he was doing. He never set up the right hand, there were no feints, he just winged it in hope. Thats not Fedor, or certainly not the technically cute Fedor we know. To me it looked like he didnt want to be there, he wanted to end it as soon as he could, but there was no thought involved. It reeked of a fighter who had fallen out of love with the sport, it really did.
I'm not sure what hurt the most, seeing AA's eggs get scrambled so easily yet again, or the end of the Fedor era. I think it has to be the latter.
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It looked like a 'mercy' stoppage to me, and I dont think there can be too many complaints in that regard. Even with the ice-cold demeanour and trademark poker-face Fedor exudes, I think if you look close enough, his body-langauge said as much. He looked very unsteady on his feet as he got up at the end of the second round. The heart to not only try to scramble out of the mount on numerous occasions, but also not to tap with what looked like a very tight arm-triangle was a credit to the great mans legacy. There was no quit in him, but sometimes that decision needs to be made for a fighter, and I for one thought it was a great call. As much as I would have loved to see Fedor roll back the years and pull off another victory from the jaws of defeat in a 3rd round, I dont believe he had it in him, mentally or physically. The shot at the end of the fight with Fedor slumped on his stool, battered and bruised reminded me of the infamous 'gumshield shot' of Tyson against Douglas. Shockingly brutal and bordering surreal.
I think those who question his last two defeats need to put it into perspective. I honestly believe Fedor's love and passion had long since passed, and with it, his steely focus. And both performances justify that belief for me personally. I dont think that it's a decline or deterioration in his skill-set, or that MMA has evolved to the point it's passed him by. I just dont feel he has the love or passion anymore, and it's become all about the money. As they say, 10% physical, 90% mental. The strange irony is that after 28 fights and 9 years unbeaten, these back-to-back losses may give him the solace he seeks.
Whatever happens, he can still retire with a legacy that may never be surpassed. And I for one hope does. He has nothing to prove anymore, or at least, he doesnt in my eyes.
