What now? MMA and Steroids

Girl, Look at that body...He works out!

Greetings Fight Fans!

Let me be the first one to tell you, summer is almost here :) So its time to hit the gym hard so you can hit the beach and look like El Reem. Hopefully you can do that without the 14-1 testosterone ratio. The superfight between he and champ Junior Dos Santos is in limbo as Overeem, the athletic commission and lawyers (no doubt) try to determine the status of his license to fight. Larger than this is what does MMA do to answer the "steroid" question?

Steroids or performance enhancing drugs are an issue that most sports have to deal with in some way. Specifically for MMA, you hear athletes all the time mention that it goes on a lot more frequently than people would imagine. Credit to the UFC in that they have constantly spoken out against PEDs in the sport. Its a dangerous thing to have a guy throwing punches, kicks and cranking submissions with and endless well of strength. As much credit as the UFC gets for speaking out against PEDs they have also acknowledged that random testing for their entire stable of athletes. So where does that leave us?

Baseball is one of the major sports in this country and has gone through major public PED issues. The list of athletes who have been implicated would be a whos-who of MLB. What we found out as the stories kept coming and coming is that eventually FANS DIDNT CARE. The media talking heads screamed a lot about integrity of the game but it was journalist not fans that cared about steroids. I bring this up because it seems to me that MMA fans are different. PEDs were used in baseball to hit balls fathers or to throw fastballs faster. Its still not as direct as a fight. In the cage those PEDs will be used to enhance someones ability to hurt his opponent or to absorb damage. We mma fans dont have a problem with one fighter smashing another..just so long as its done fair and square. Its a fight and there is a higher standard of honor involved. No weapons, no PEDs, No eye poke or groin shots..just two men of similar size climb into a cage to see who the better man is that day.

I believe that the disdain for PEDs in MMA will continue..and its because WE FANS do care! So big kudos to every fan of MMA

The UFC being mainstream..

From this man to Network Television to a mainstream sport??

Greetings Fight Fans!

For those of us who have been watching MMA from the beginning, its still a little weird to see advertisements for cage fighting on mainstream tv. Its good because I do love watching top guys fight. At the same time, it is a little bad as we are getting farther from dudes fighting and more towards the idea that sheer wins matter more than eliminating your opponent. In the NFL and NBA sheer wins matter. There is a season, playoffs etc that decide who the champion is. These are also sports that rely on points being scored through play to determine the winning team. MMA matches are a fight. Pure and simple. Not a street fight..is sanctioned, official and the artists are much more trained. It is a fight however, and nobody goes into a fight thinking im going to out point that guy who pushed my girlfriend down. They think "Im gonna kick that dudes ass". Simple..direct..brutal and THATS WHAT WE LOVE about seeing this happen in a cage with two dudes (or ladies) of similar size with a ref there to make sure nothing dirty happens.

Here is a newsflash, its not for everyone. The blood, the kicks and punches and the broken limbs will make your grandma and parents cringe. The issue is that the UFC is now courting the attention of those grandmas, grandpas and ostensibly anyone who has a passing interest in watching mix martial arts. Realize that once you go mainstream it is no longer about the hardcore fans. No matter how much they complain, they are with you no matter what and you have always been getting their dollars. New dollars requires new fans. Said another way, its ALL ABOUT the casual fan from this point forward. As a result some of the violence will tone down and some of the purity will disappear. Lets hope that its not too much

Quick picks on big upcoming fights..
I got Overeem over JDS via KO in the second round

I got Anderson over Chael by destruction

I got Jones over Rashad by force of arrogance

Thanks for reading and PLEASE share this blog with your friends

The State of US Muay Thai...

Greetings Martial Artists,

Hope everyone is having a good year so far! Among other things I had a chance to check out some Muay Thai action in Vegas for Battle in the Desert 5. The main event here was a winner take all match between Joe Schilling and Simon Marcus. Maybe not the most respectful situation to get into but I do admire these men for raising the stakes as best they could. Ive been to a number of muay thai fights and anyone live at the event would have to admit that the atmosphere was great.

How'd it go? The ending came with a great deal of controversy..Schilling being KOed Marcus but after a previous toss perhaps trip that dazed Schilling, the fight was over before it really got going. I really wanted to see these two really spend some time getting after it in the ring. Finishes are always better than decisions but as a practitioner of the art it is always such a learning experience to observe pro fighters. Anyhow, when the take down happened a few groups of people believed it to be an illegal trip where Marcus hooks his foot. In the moment it did not seem like a trip nor did it seem intentional whatever you may think it to be. Schilling hit the canvas really hard and it was effectively done. Word is that Simon Marcus is up for a rematch. I will definitely be there to check it out and hope they put some rounds in.

"American Muay Thai" on the whole cannot be judged solely by this one event. I believe that the future is very bright. More and more people are training and solid events are happening out here in California more and more. The greatest reason I believe in the future of Muay Thai in the US is that we have good training. As long as quality teachers are here, there will be students who will pursue the art to as high a level as they can. I dont know that I can "Martial Arts is Back" here but as long as more and more people visit Muay Thai gyms, everything about Muay Thai will level up. Dont be so Myopic

ETC..bits and pieces...tidbits...

Congrats to Ben Henderson..the NEW UFC LW Champ.....The Hard Rock is a MUCH better venue for these events than Buffalo Bills. Big Props to the promoters. I went there to support "Sugarcane" Coke in his fight vs Matt Embree. He lost fair and square but big up! Also supporting Jose Palacios. Full disclosure and all. Thank you for reading and please comment so we can make the blog better!!

We are coming back! Thanks for the support

Hello all!

First of all, I want to say thanks and apologies to Matt Roth who gave me this wonderful opportunity to write for this blog. The fact is I got tied up with other things and let this blog slip. I dont care who else is or isnt going to write for unintelligent defense..I LOVE MMA and fight sports of all kinds (Especially Muay Thai) so im going to personally keep this blog updated with fresh opinions, commentary and knowledge on MMA, pop culture and other stuff. Get on board now because this week, we will begin CONSISTENT WEEKLY ARTICLES here at unintelligent defense. Looking forward to talking to you all


Da Genius