Michael Wilbon suggests MMA is fixed

[jhell]

Some Members of Mainstream Press Are Not Our Allies

by Luke Thomas on Oct 10, 2008 11:28 AM EDT in News

What is becoming quite clear in the wake of this EliteXC bonus pay debacle is that as the mainstream press picks up on it, the historically critical members of that group against MMA are now using this scandal as their pivot point. Absolute charlatans and curmudgeonly groaners like ESPN's/Washington Post's Michael Wilbon (how, exactly, is someone allowed to be a commentator or expert and openly admit ignorance of the topic?) are now using the EliteXC scandal to redouble their anti-MMA views. For those who don't know, Wilbon suggested on PTI yesterday that the entire sport of MMA is fixed.

While I believe the matter surrounding EliteXC is worthy of investigation (and Jeremy Lappen has contradicted himself again), I also have a real concern that as EliteXC is on CBS it becomes the face of MMA. And because of that, there is some sort of conflation of UFC and EliteXC into one entity known as "MMA". According to that line of thinking, there either is no distinction between the UFC and EliteXC or as EliteXC goes, so goes the UFC. Neither situation is accurate nor helpful, but it could be what we're now facing thanks to journalistic disasters like Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon. They are utterly clueless and without the slightest bit of integrity, but they have an audience. If the audience is malleable, then as warped and worthless and Kornheiser's/Wilbon's opinion may be, to the uninitiated it is the only opinion they are hearing.

I am by no means suggesting that the criticisms of EliteXC should stop because of concerns how the sport is being affected. If EliteXC is innocent, they deserve to be proven so and if they are guilty, that fact should come to light as well. But let it be known that the mainstream press is once again doing no one who loves MMA any favors. Dana White may scorn the online media, but we are the only ones with the knowledge to draw distinctions between EliteXC and the UFC or EliteXC and the entire sport of MMA.

So, let's also beat the drum about what MMA is about, why it's a great sport, why it's safe and why not all organizations equal one another. This situation could boil over and eliminate much of the positive growth our sport has witnessed the last two years. If EliteXC is guilty, they have no right to take us down with them. The responsibility to protect our sport is just as much yours as it is mine. Let's be mindful of that going forward.

UPDATE: Another thought: to anyone who now suggests that bloggers can say whatever they want and have no accountability to anyone, you can officially thank Michael Wilbon for completely destroying your argument.

Bloody Elbow - The Official Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Blog of the SB Nation


What an ignorant fucking moron.

[evergleam]

I cannot begin to fathom how somebody could actually think for a second that mma could be fixed. That is beyond ridiculous. So he thinks that Kimbo was supposed to be knocked out by Seth... hmmm yeah and that would be great for XC. This guy is a dumbass.

He just made enemies with millions of fans who love the sport and hundreds of fighters who bust their asses every day to train and prepare for their fights.

[TN94z]

This is completely ridiculous!!! That is all I am going to say.

[VimyRidge]

WE have that stupid show up here in Canada, I turn the channel when it comes on (hate basekball and golf and most things they talk about). When ever I hear them on a subject I actually know something about, they have no clue what they are talking about.

[Intellectual]

MMA CAN be fixed, but it would be evident for the most part.

Coleman vs Takada

enough said^ If you watch that fight, you'd never guess it was fixed until the last 30 sec of the fight.

[Ramma]

MMA fights can be fixed, just like boxing can be fixed, just like kickboxing/K-1 can be fixed, just like Basketball players can be paid off, etc, etc, etc.

But to say all of MMA is fixed is just a bit unrealistic. The guy is a moron.

[mmaalltheway]

I'm gonna be the devil's advocate here on this one.

I watch PTI here and there and I actually kind of like the show. The reason I do is because you always find out the craziest and most newsworthy, if not important, things that happened in sports the days before. Basically I like it because it moves very quickly and you get a general idea of everything that happened in sports th eday before with a minimal amount of debate about each topic, which is what distinguishes it from a regular sports highlight show.

Now unfortunately what draws me to the show is also the greatest flaw of the show. The go through everything at lightning speed and throw out a random opinion, argue stupidly for a minute and move on. Obviously this isn't the best formula for in depth discussion about any one subject. The hosts by definition are meant to simply voice the 'casual' opinion on any subject. They basically re-enact what two dudes chilling at a coller would tlk about if they read one or two articles about any given sporting subject.

Basically my point is that it's all an exaggeration made for television. Someone like Wilbon who (literally) screams out 'MMA is fixed' is a representation of what most dumb-ass people are probably gonna be saying. Then the other guy has to automatically disagree. It's not a coincidence they disagree 99% of the time. When they actually agree it's cause the fucked up. In a way it's almost unfair of us to expect them to understand the effect they ma be having on the sport, and expect them to really care if they did.

Yes it sucks that a bunch of people are gonna beleive them. Those who do are not real fans of the sport anyways so fuck them. As promotions like the UFC continue to do good business, the sport will continue to grow, and the effects of these types of peoples opinions will shrink and shrink until they dissappear. Those 'fans' who claimed it was fixed will be the very same 'bandwagon' fans who will profess their undying love for MMA. We are past the point where MMA can be destroyed by any opinion or event. So for now just smile and laugh when people like Wilbon say MMA is fixed. Honestly, it's not even worth getting upset about. It's just part of the game. You're always gonna have haters. As long as the lovers know what's up we'll be all good.

[Nasty]

I don't think he was arguing that the Kimbo KO was a work, just that the writing is on the wall that EXC was setting Kimbo up for an easy win by paying his opponent a bonus to keep it standing and not take the fight to the mat. If they're willing to shell out some extra cash to steer the fight in the direction they want it to go, then it's not out of the question to think they could've tried to fix the fight.

I just wonder how many of Kimbo's previous fights were done in a similar fashion? I've always thought Bo Cantrell took a dive (and a particularly bad one at that) and I've questioned the Tank Abbott fight as well.

[Y2JUBAE]

I stopped reading when he said, Elite was the face of MMA.

This guy has obviously only watched the latest Elite show and it appears that is the only show he ever watched.

I know promoters set up matches where they are sure the fighter they want to win will win, but, that isnt fixing a fight. Just ask Dana and if he doesn't agree, mention CroCop.

And on that note, Dana White is quickly becoming the most reasonable MMA promoter out there.

[popsicle1228]

I watched the show last night and he kept repeating over and over again that mma is fixed. In the beginning of the argument he insinuated that Kimbo was knocked out by a phantom punch. Then, at the very end of the argument he stated that Seth was a bum and was thrown in there to lose to Kimbo. He completely contridicted himself and I dont think he was even trying to represent his real opinion. I think he was just trying to be the bad cop and the other anaylist was being the good cop. He has also admitted in the past that he is ignorant to mma. Nontheless, he should not be spewing such garbage to the public because he will hurt the sport of mma's reputation. Even if he does not really mean it, the general public will buy his opinion.