Assuming you haven't been on vacation the past two weeks and have managed to keep up with MMA news during the holidays, you know UFC president Dana White's preferred choice for UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans' first title defense is Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.
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| The longer Machida goes unbeaten, the harder it will be to deny him a title shot. (UFC) |
The only problem is Rampage himself might not share the same passion for the potential title shot vs. Evans. Sure, he'd love the opportunity to regain the light heavyweight title he lost to Forrest Griffin at UFC 86 this past July, but not before beating Griffin first.
"I want to fight Forrest because that's the fight that haunts me," Jackson told CBSSports.com's Gary Herman soon after UFC 92. "I want the belt. I want to be champion, but I want Forrest first."
In the UFC, a fighter rarely gets to call his own shots, but this might be one time where White should listen to one of his fighters and give him what he wants. If Lyoto Machida is able to defeat Thiago Silva at UFC 94 on Jan. 31, it might be in the UFC's best interest to give the undefeated Brazilian the first shot at Evans.
If Machida beats Silva, he'll increase his MMA record to 14-0 and his record in the UFC to 6-0. With notable wins over the likes of Stephan Bonnar, Rich Franklin, B.J. Penn, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou and Tito Ortiz, no one can claim Machida has built his perfect record with hollow victories.
Machida has a resume that shouts "No. 1 contender." Whether he deserves that designation over Jackson is up for debate, but a win over Silva clearly makes him a worthy challenger for the light heavyweight title.
The problem with Machida is he's the inconvenient truth. He's one of the best fighters in the world who people have either never heard of or, worse, don't care to watch. Coming from a traditional martial arts base of karate, Machida has a unique counter-fighting style that his supporters have termed as "elusive" and critics have labeled as "boring."
Regardless of what you call Machida, you've got to call him a winner. You can't fault the man for not being exciting because in traditional martial arts, the goal is to learn how to defend yourself. In modern mixed martial arts, the goal is to win. As someone who has trained in both styles, I can tell you that at no point was I ever instructed on how to fight an "exciting" fight. No matter what the school or the theory behind the style, the goal remained the same: Fight effectively.
To penalize Machida for being true to his roots would be a great injustice. Some have been critical of the UFC for not doing more to promote him. But the UFC is no different from any other major sport in that it must blur the lines of pure sport and entertainment.
Those who claim the UFC places too great an importance on exciting fighters conveniently overlook the fact that the NFL employs cheerleaders, baseball offers fireworks displays and the NBA has television timeouts. Furthermore, the UFC wouldn't be the first major organization in pro sports to judge whether it retains its athletes based on their ability to draw paying fans.
But while Machida as light heavyweight champion might not offer the same revenue potential as Evans, Jackson, Griffin, Chuck Liddell or even Wanderlei Silva, to not give him an opportunity to compete for the 205-pound crown if he continues to win would compromise the UFC's integrity. But let's be clear, here: No one with the UFC has said Machida won't get what he deserves, and White has been especially complimentary toward Machida in recent interviews.
"When the Octagon starts to feel like his house and when he starts letting what he can do come out and really lets his talent fly and doesn't hesitate," White began during a recent unaccredited interview that surfaced on YouTube, "he could end up being the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world."
