jimufctna24

Aldo did beat Edgar in a rematch after the McGregor fight. Aldo didn't beat any massive names after the Edgar fight, but he did at least adapt his game (calf kick defence, etc), and secure some decent wins (Font, Munoz, etc). I'm a Fedor fanboy, but he's the example of the opposite His game not only stagnated, but also regressed for various reasons late into his career. I agree that Volk very much broke the age barrier. I don't think it's that remarkable that Aldo's success diminished in his early-mid 30s (Cruz, McGregor, Mendes, and Dillashaw didn't have many notable wins after they reached 30). I think it's more notable that Volk is still a top fighter in a lighter division in his late 30s. As Carbomb mentioned, Aldo did turn professional at a much earlier age (17 going on 18), whereas Volk was 24 when he turned professional, so I guess you could argue that Aldo accumulated more wear and tear before he turned 30. Both Volk and Aldo lost to the two best fighters they fought. Aldo with McGregor and Holloway. Volk with Islam and Topuria. I will add that Volk dealt with Holloway far better than Aldo did. Aldo was far more vulnerable to Holloway's pace and durability than Volk was. Volk's losses are probably a little more forgivable and less damning; moved up in weight against Islam, almost beat Islam the first time, gave Topuria a fight before being stopped, etc. I'm just musing really. Both would easily make my top 10 of all-time. Volk probably higher at this time.

If Volk is indeed now the FW GOAT then he will naturally be a GOAT contender in general. Aldo, the previous FW GOAT, usually charts in top 10 all-time lists, sometimes as high as top 5, even top 3. Therefore, if Volk is above Aldo, it stands to reason that he'll be in the GOAT conversation overall. I will perhaps compare Volk's record and achievements to Aldo and other greats at a later date when I have the time/motivation. For now, I will post that I have been very high on Volk's ability as a fighter for a long time. Thus, in a "best of all-time" debate I would perhaps be one of Volk's high voters. It bugged me that Volk was so close to beating Makhachev the first time they fought. Had one exchange or two gone better for Volk that night then he would have probably won a deserved decision, and arguably have the greatest MMA victory of all-time on his record.

Semmy Schilt. Lost to every major heavyweight he faced in the early to mid 2000s including Fedor, Big Nog, Barnett x2, and Sergei, yet went on to become one of the greatest heavyweight kickboxers in history.

The UFC fanbase are indeed largely made up of gambles rather than fight fanatics nowadays. No doubt they pump a lot of money into the UFC through betting sponsors. There is a theory however that the UFC have been fortunate with their TV deals. Major streaming companies have started up with a desperate need for sporting content (ESPN, Paramount) around the same time as when the UFC's previous TV deals expired. Therefore, the likes of ESPN and Paramount probably overpaid the UFC. It's possible that when their Paramount deal expires another lofty streaming deal will not be on the table for them.

Aye. They sacked off the Heavyweight divisions in 2006 when Zuffa bought it. Then the Light Heavyweights and Middleweights were merged with the UFC's in late 2008. Between 2006 and 2008 there would probably be 2 or 3 fights from those divisions on each card at the very most. The rest of the fights were at 170lbs and below. IIRC, the commission only banned knees to the head of a grounded opponent because they attended a fight where Barnett used them in the early 2000s. I sadly can't find a source, but that is my recollection. Edit: It was actually a Gan McGee fight in September 2000 in IFC.

Quick note: the cage the UFC uses for Apex events is roughly the same size as the WEC cages. But otherwise, the cages the UFC use are still bigger than the WEC cages. Strikeforces' cage was similar in size to the UFC apex and WEC cages, but also a different shape.

I don't recall the WEC's ruleset being significantly different to the UFC's, but I could well be mistaken. The WEC's cages were smaller than most of the cages the UFC use. That was the big downside of the UFC/WEC merger. The smaller fighters were obliged to compete in the larger UFC cages; cages designed for much bigger men. All the extra space therefore penalised smaller pressure fighters and limited exchanges in their fights. I recall Slack suggesting that there was a way in which the cage's size could be extended or narrowed between fights to address this issue. However, I've never seen the UFC or anyone else seriously entertain implementing it.

Yeah, I wouldn't blame Wardley if he called it a day. Massively overachieved in the sport and has probably banked plenty of dough. Nothing left to gain or prove.

Ahhhh, I was unaware. I'll keep that in mind.

It's the same for me on both laptop and phone.

Well said @wandshogun09 Ray Hatton asking for clarity and transparency when it comes to money is fucking hilarious.

I haven't seen any of Basharat's fights, and the highlight reels of his I've just watched on YouTube revealed little. What is his style?

Both have achieved more than I expected. I would have never guessed that Wardley would beat Parker and win a version of a world title. Especially after he scraped a draw against Frazer Clarke. I was also never really on the Dubois bandwagon either. I still don't think he's an ATG heavyweight, but he did a lot better against Joshua and Hrgović than I expected him to. As for their rematch this weekend, I'm picking Dubois. I'm not sure if Wardley's durability will be the same after the beating he sustained during their first meeting, and I don't have much faith in Wardley's team to make the needed adjustments. Always a chance that Wardley lands big and secures a stoppage, but I lean towards that not occurring.

I personally found that the novelty of attending combat sports shows wore off pretty quickly. It was great the first few times, but I didn't really have any motivation to attend further events afterwards. Part of that will be due to me being quite introverted and disliking large crowds, but I also think the TV experience is a lot more enjoyable. As Wand posted above, better view, better and cheaper refreshments, etc.

Over 400 quid to sit in the bleachers at 1am on a December night to see a fight 5 years past its sell by date? Yeah, I'll take my comfy bed and a cup of Yorkshire tea over that.

White has argued in the past that raising fight purses would make fighters lazy. Yet the likes of Canelo and Fury are worth hundreds of millions of pounds and are still boxing. All the other major United States sports leagues have collective bargaining agreements. And boxing, while not subject to collective bargaining, actually pays most of its best talents very well (this could change if Zuffa wins the promotional war) The UFC is not only anti-fan in many ways, it's anti-athlete too.

He was, but now it seems they are trying to book him against Amir Khan on another card.

I watched the Affliction episode of Dark Side of the Cage last night. It was a decent watch. I was unaware (or had perhaps forgotten) about Tom Atencio essentially acting as a front-man for Todd Beard, so all that was new information. The rest of the documentary was old news, but a welcome trip down memory lane. A rumour on Twitter has it that Team Fedor wanted Lashley to step in and replace Barnett on their Trilogy card, whereas Affliction wanted Belfort to replace Barnett instead. Ultimately the card was cancelled and the promotion folded, so neither proposed fight occurred. However, it's interesting to consider why Team Fedor (which is now believed to be Fedor and a band of yes-men) pushed for Fedor to fight Lashley and not Belfort. Did Fedor not trust his chin by mid-2009? Belfort had fast hands and power. Did Fedor think he could deal with Lashley's wrestling? I can't recall how good Lashley was at MMA to be honest, but freestyle wrestlers had traditionally given Fedor more issues than strikers, clinch wrestlers, and submission artists.