The Monday Morning Reverie: All Systems Go
Mike Sloan Aug 14, 2006
It’s been a relatively dry few weeks for the mixed martial arts
world and this weekend saw that trend continue. Luckily, a few
major events are just around the corner and I was able to cover a
solid K-1 event in Las Vegas.
But while there have been just a few scattered MMA events as of late, that’s not to say that there hasn’t been much on the news front.
With Mirko Filipovic
(Pictures) coming to his senses (or
was it DSE?) and former WWE superstar Brock Lesnar (Pictures) signing on with K-1, the fight
world just seems to get more interesting with each passing
sunset.
For starters, this past weekend’s K-1 USA event inside the Bellagio Resort and Casino was solid from top to bottom. Those lucky enough to witness the event will know what I mean when I say it was solid.
I can’t really put my finger on it, but the K-1 card this weekend didn’t deliver like it usually does. The card was stacked with killer match-ups, some all-time greats participated and the ballroom was just under capacity.
Maybe it was the dud of an ending for the grand prix, where Michael McDonald (Pictures) literally turned away from would-be champion Stefan Leko (Pictures) and quit because of a shattered hand.
Maybe it was because out of all the fights on the card — 14 in all — there were only four knockouts or stoppages. Maybe it was because both myself and the guy next to me were squeezed into our seats like sardines because of an enormous reporter (who will remain anonymous) brought his equally enormous wife with him, making for quite an uncomfortable three hours. Or maybe it was because I was starving since K-1 didn’t treat the press to their usual pretzels and cookies?
Whatever the case may be, it wasn’t a horrible time in the least. To be honest, I actually look forward to the Vegas K-1 events more than any other events (send the hate mail now) and after witnessing the sheer brilliance of the April card, my hopes were escalated beyond reason.
Stefan Leko (Pictures) proved once again that he can become the World Grand Prix champion as long as he can stay focused and not make mistakes in the heat of combat. His systematic destruction of good guy Scott Lighty was a thing of beauty and his obliteration of former K-1 USA champion Carter Williams (Pictures) was nothing short of magnificence.
I picked Leko to win the Vegas tournament and, not to toot my own horn or anything, I predicted that he’d beat McDonald in the finals. Had McDonald not shattered his hand and quit mid-fight, we might have seen a tremendous battle between two of the best technicians in the game.
Drab Attendance, PPV MIA
K-1 has never been an enormous attraction Stateside and after several years of dwindling profits, the Japanese company decided in 2005 to cut back on their U.S. marketing and pay-per-views.
What’s even worse: the final two events of last year were either not televised in our country at all or were shown on a few months tape delay. It is disheartening when I have to watch awesome kickboxing weeks or months after the event actually occurs and after I know exactly who beat whom.
Hopefully, if all the planets can be aligned with Orion’s belt while manatees become genuine mermaids, K-1 will turn into a viable fight outlet in America. K-1 is always on ESPN2 but for various reasons, fans just don’t get into kickboxing as much as they do boxing or MMA.
Unless something drastic happens, the presence of K-1 in the United States might eventually be a thing of the past.
What Can Lesnar Do?
Call me old fashioned or clueless, but when I think of pro wrestling superstars, I think of Randy “Macho Man” Savage, Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior and Goldberg.
To be completely honest, I had never in my life heard of Brock Lesnar (Pictures) until the April K-1 in Vegas. The crowd seemed only somewhat intrigued by his presence and after scratching my head wondering who this huge blonde dude was, someone next to me filled me in.
“Oh … really? Never heard of ‘em,” was my embarrassed reply.
Fast forward a few months and thanks to the World Wide Web, I now know a lot about Brock Lesnar (Pictures). I know that he was a stud of a wrestler in college and won the title in the WWE a few times. He is also married to pro-wrestling vixen Sable, or at least I think that was Sable at the post-fight presser on Saturday.
My question now, after it was made official that the burly Brock has signed to fight professionally with K-1 HERO’s, is what will he do for the sport of mixed martial arts?
I moved away from the Midwest almost a decade ago and since I haven’t watched a pro wrestling match in full since, oh, WrestleMania VI, I don’t even know how popular it is anymore. Sorry, Joe Mullet, but I couldn’t care less about the WWE, WCW, ECW, NWA or even EPMD, so I don’t know what kind of impact Brock will have on MMA in terms of celebrity status.
What I can say is that the various online forums, particularly Sherdog.net, are abuzz about Lesnar’s signing. He’s a tremendous athlete and a champion collegiate wrestler. Hell, he almost made it into the NFL without any sort of previous football experience. He is a menacing figure with more confidence than Bill Clinton in a whore house and he carries himself like a true champion.
It’ll be interesting to see how his fighting career unfolds, and knowing now that he’s been training like a madman with the Miletich camp only furthers my belief that he’ll make some noise in MMA.
Bill Goldberg, now a commentator the World Fighting Alliance, told me that Brock is one of only a handful of guys who will be able to take the sport to a new level. And Goldberg wouldn’t blow smoke to anybody.
Once the announcement came that Lesnar might turn to MMA, I rolled my eyes and started making predictions in my head, trying to figure out exactly when he’ll fail.
But it wasn’t until I thoroughly researched the Adonis-like Lesnar, watched him walk the room and talk to members of the media on Saturday that my thoughts changed.
And now, after conducting an exclusive one-on-one with the easygoing Brock, did I come to terms with how much an impact he can make in MMA.
The video interview will be posted sometime this week and his demeanor may not come off on camera like it does in person, but look out: Brock Lesnar (Pictures) is coming.
The Squawk Box
Just a few e-mails that I have received over the past few weeks. Thought you’d enjoy them.
Mike, you are such a hypocrite! I love it how you stated that you’d never cover the UFC again for the rest of your life as long as you were banned, but here you are doing interviews, stupid columns and ringside reports. As you would say, what a farce! – Don the Don
Hey Don the Don; nice name. Exactly when did I say that I would never cover the UFC again? Sorry, my memory puts most people to shame and I never made that claim. It’s my job to cover the UFC, so why would I not do my job? I did state that I would never buy another UFC pay-per-view, but I never said I’d never cover it. Get you facts straight and then email me.
Whatever, dude. Like boxing will ever go away. So what? De La Hoya kicked ass just like Ali. I didn’t see the Quartey-Forest fight but it sounds to me like you are just a Quartey nut hugger. Who cares? Boxing will never die and the UFC will probably have bogus decisions like the Quartey fight anyway because Dana White is a thief. Boxing sucks and so do your “articles.” - Adrian
Hey Adrian. Your wisdom is unfathomable. Thank you for such an intelligent and well thought-out email. Others should take note of your uncanny ability to get your point across. Outstanding!
Hey Mike. Just wanted to drop you a line to say that Sherdog rules. I know you are not the owner of the site, but your work, as well as the others, always entertains. I may not always agree with your thoughts, but it’s good stuff. By the way; Jake Rossen is hilarious! – Trent in SoCal
Hey Trent. Thanks for the kind words, brother. I wish I could take more credit, but this is an awesome team we have. Glad you enjoy the site. Emails like this make me (at least) try even harder to hook you guys up. And yes, Rossen’s work is the best!
If I was Stephan Bonnar (Pictures), I’d hunt you down and kick the living shit out of you. Who the fuck are you to say that he should be mad at himself because he lost a fight to Rashad Evans (Pictures)? So what? I’d like to see you actually fight. You’d probably get submitted by white belts. – Marco H.
Hey Marco. Okay, Bonnar should kick my ass because he lost to Rashad Evans (Pictures). That’s brilliant thinking. I actually think I am the reason why he lost that fight, to be honest. And as for fighting, I used to train a lot in Las Vegas. I trained in BJJ and Muay Thai and yes; I got submitted by white belts all the time. I even got submitted by a few girls, too. Now I’m pissed at Nick Diaz (Pictures).
Hey Sloan does Sherdog actually pay for this shit you write every week If they do I think they should stop because you are the worst “journalist” in MMA. – Jeremy
Hey Jeremy. Actually, I do get paid from Sherdog, but it’s not money. Jeff sends me four jigsaw puzzle pieces in the mail every week. Right now I have most of the outer border complete. I wonder what the actual puzzle is going to be. Maybe it’s of Ron Jeremy.
But while there have been just a few scattered MMA events as of late, that’s not to say that there hasn’t been much on the news front.
Advertisement
For starters, this past weekend’s K-1 USA event inside the Bellagio Resort and Casino was solid from top to bottom. Those lucky enough to witness the event will know what I mean when I say it was solid.
But I wasn’t thoroughly blown away by “Battle At Bellagio” like I
was back in April when K-1 treated those in attendance to “Mayhem
at the Mirage III,” which I consider to be the best K-1 event in
history, or at least damn near close to it.
I can’t really put my finger on it, but the K-1 card this weekend didn’t deliver like it usually does. The card was stacked with killer match-ups, some all-time greats participated and the ballroom was just under capacity.
Maybe it was the dud of an ending for the grand prix, where Michael McDonald (Pictures) literally turned away from would-be champion Stefan Leko (Pictures) and quit because of a shattered hand.
Maybe it was because out of all the fights on the card — 14 in all — there were only four knockouts or stoppages. Maybe it was because both myself and the guy next to me were squeezed into our seats like sardines because of an enormous reporter (who will remain anonymous) brought his equally enormous wife with him, making for quite an uncomfortable three hours. Or maybe it was because I was starving since K-1 didn’t treat the press to their usual pretzels and cookies?
Whatever the case may be, it wasn’t a horrible time in the least. To be honest, I actually look forward to the Vegas K-1 events more than any other events (send the hate mail now) and after witnessing the sheer brilliance of the April card, my hopes were escalated beyond reason.
Stefan Leko (Pictures) proved once again that he can become the World Grand Prix champion as long as he can stay focused and not make mistakes in the heat of combat. His systematic destruction of good guy Scott Lighty was a thing of beauty and his obliteration of former K-1 USA champion Carter Williams (Pictures) was nothing short of magnificence.
I picked Leko to win the Vegas tournament and, not to toot my own horn or anything, I predicted that he’d beat McDonald in the finals. Had McDonald not shattered his hand and quit mid-fight, we might have seen a tremendous battle between two of the best technicians in the game.
Drab Attendance, PPV MIA
K-1 has never been an enormous attraction Stateside and after several years of dwindling profits, the Japanese company decided in 2005 to cut back on their U.S. marketing and pay-per-views.
What’s even worse: the final two events of last year were either not televised in our country at all or were shown on a few months tape delay. It is disheartening when I have to watch awesome kickboxing weeks or months after the event actually occurs and after I know exactly who beat whom.
Hopefully, if all the planets can be aligned with Orion’s belt while manatees become genuine mermaids, K-1 will turn into a viable fight outlet in America. K-1 is always on ESPN2 but for various reasons, fans just don’t get into kickboxing as much as they do boxing or MMA.
Unless something drastic happens, the presence of K-1 in the United States might eventually be a thing of the past.
What Can Lesnar Do?
Call me old fashioned or clueless, but when I think of pro wrestling superstars, I think of Randy “Macho Man” Savage, Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior and Goldberg.
To be completely honest, I had never in my life heard of Brock Lesnar (Pictures) until the April K-1 in Vegas. The crowd seemed only somewhat intrigued by his presence and after scratching my head wondering who this huge blonde dude was, someone next to me filled me in.
“Oh … really? Never heard of ‘em,” was my embarrassed reply.
Fast forward a few months and thanks to the World Wide Web, I now know a lot about Brock Lesnar (Pictures). I know that he was a stud of a wrestler in college and won the title in the WWE a few times. He is also married to pro-wrestling vixen Sable, or at least I think that was Sable at the post-fight presser on Saturday.
My question now, after it was made official that the burly Brock has signed to fight professionally with K-1 HERO’s, is what will he do for the sport of mixed martial arts?
I moved away from the Midwest almost a decade ago and since I haven’t watched a pro wrestling match in full since, oh, WrestleMania VI, I don’t even know how popular it is anymore. Sorry, Joe Mullet, but I couldn’t care less about the WWE, WCW, ECW, NWA or even EPMD, so I don’t know what kind of impact Brock will have on MMA in terms of celebrity status.
What I can say is that the various online forums, particularly Sherdog.net, are abuzz about Lesnar’s signing. He’s a tremendous athlete and a champion collegiate wrestler. Hell, he almost made it into the NFL without any sort of previous football experience. He is a menacing figure with more confidence than Bill Clinton in a whore house and he carries himself like a true champion.
It’ll be interesting to see how his fighting career unfolds, and knowing now that he’s been training like a madman with the Miletich camp only furthers my belief that he’ll make some noise in MMA.
Bill Goldberg, now a commentator the World Fighting Alliance, told me that Brock is one of only a handful of guys who will be able to take the sport to a new level. And Goldberg wouldn’t blow smoke to anybody.
Once the announcement came that Lesnar might turn to MMA, I rolled my eyes and started making predictions in my head, trying to figure out exactly when he’ll fail.
But it wasn’t until I thoroughly researched the Adonis-like Lesnar, watched him walk the room and talk to members of the media on Saturday that my thoughts changed.
And now, after conducting an exclusive one-on-one with the easygoing Brock, did I come to terms with how much an impact he can make in MMA.
The video interview will be posted sometime this week and his demeanor may not come off on camera like it does in person, but look out: Brock Lesnar (Pictures) is coming.
The Squawk Box
Just a few e-mails that I have received over the past few weeks. Thought you’d enjoy them.
Mike, you are such a hypocrite! I love it how you stated that you’d never cover the UFC again for the rest of your life as long as you were banned, but here you are doing interviews, stupid columns and ringside reports. As you would say, what a farce! – Don the Don
Hey Don the Don; nice name. Exactly when did I say that I would never cover the UFC again? Sorry, my memory puts most people to shame and I never made that claim. It’s my job to cover the UFC, so why would I not do my job? I did state that I would never buy another UFC pay-per-view, but I never said I’d never cover it. Get you facts straight and then email me.
Whatever, dude. Like boxing will ever go away. So what? De La Hoya kicked ass just like Ali. I didn’t see the Quartey-Forest fight but it sounds to me like you are just a Quartey nut hugger. Who cares? Boxing will never die and the UFC will probably have bogus decisions like the Quartey fight anyway because Dana White is a thief. Boxing sucks and so do your “articles.” - Adrian
Hey Adrian. Your wisdom is unfathomable. Thank you for such an intelligent and well thought-out email. Others should take note of your uncanny ability to get your point across. Outstanding!
Hey Mike. Just wanted to drop you a line to say that Sherdog rules. I know you are not the owner of the site, but your work, as well as the others, always entertains. I may not always agree with your thoughts, but it’s good stuff. By the way; Jake Rossen is hilarious! – Trent in SoCal
Hey Trent. Thanks for the kind words, brother. I wish I could take more credit, but this is an awesome team we have. Glad you enjoy the site. Emails like this make me (at least) try even harder to hook you guys up. And yes, Rossen’s work is the best!
If I was Stephan Bonnar (Pictures), I’d hunt you down and kick the living shit out of you. Who the fuck are you to say that he should be mad at himself because he lost a fight to Rashad Evans (Pictures)? So what? I’d like to see you actually fight. You’d probably get submitted by white belts. – Marco H.
Hey Marco. Okay, Bonnar should kick my ass because he lost to Rashad Evans (Pictures). That’s brilliant thinking. I actually think I am the reason why he lost that fight, to be honest. And as for fighting, I used to train a lot in Las Vegas. I trained in BJJ and Muay Thai and yes; I got submitted by white belts all the time. I even got submitted by a few girls, too. Now I’m pissed at Nick Diaz (Pictures).
Hey Sloan does Sherdog actually pay for this shit you write every week If they do I think they should stop because you are the worst “journalist” in MMA. – Jeremy
Hey Jeremy. Actually, I do get paid from Sherdog, but it’s not money. Jeff sends me four jigsaw puzzle pieces in the mail every week. Right now I have most of the outer border complete. I wonder what the actual puzzle is going to be. Maybe it’s of Ron Jeremy.
