FanPost

Poking Once More at the Idea of Sportsmanship

In anticipation of tonight’s highly anticipated grudge match I found myself revisiting select fights of both fighters. In doing this a recurring thought once more slipped into my focus, the essence and fostering of sportsmanship within this sport we love. A topic I touched on in another light some time back. What has troubled me, quite deeply, for some time is the flagrant disregard competitors can show for their contemporaries come combat time. Now personally there are few fighters who hold such a special place in my mma heart as Quinton Jackson. There is something polarizing about the man and something even more deeply infectious to boot. However what disturbed a while back and still does on re-runs is just how callous and unsporting his behaviour against Wanderlei Silva at UFC 92 was. Despite referee Lavigne’s attempts to stymie Jacksons assault on a prone Silva there were clearly extra, uncalled for and critically, unnecessary strikes to an already unconscious Silva.

At first I bought into the talk that Jackson was just "amped up" and in the moment however on repeated viewings the unsporting nature of the incident left a very unsavoury after taste. Yes, there was a heated feud leading into the fight that obviously lent itself to the emotional impairment of judgement but in a professional sport that is weaksauce for an excuse. I wonder now, should we see another savage Jackson hook this evening, will we also be treated to a further display of impetulance? The sad part is that by no means is this the only example of such unsporting conduct, nor is it by any means the most excessive display of unnecessary damage taken by a prone fighter. Another frightening abuse was perpetrated by Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou at Dream 9 against Jan Nortje. Frankly I found this a disgusting affront to the sport and found it even more disgusting that no penalty was imposed upon Rameau. The fact that an inactive fighter can be fined part of their earnings but a fighter who beats on an opponent after they are required to stop, jeopardizing the prone fighters health, is beyond risible. I find myself disillusioned by the whole incident to be honest, but it is what it is. Unsporting.

Every storyline with a villain must have a hero to balance out the forces of evil. Much the same, for every tool in mma who flaunts unnecessarily with the health of others there are those who have earned my respect with their mercy and ultimately, understanding of the sport. At Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg, Gegard Mousasi earned my undying respect for his restraint and mercy whilst fighting Renato Sobral. Mousasi put it on him and demolished him, crucially though when he realised he had knocked Babalu into unconsciousness he immediately and mercifully stopped the onslaught.

I find this commendable and think that this attitude should be the natural watermark and barometer by which competitors are judged. Similarly at UFC 113 we witnessed Mauricio Rua acknowledge his battery of Lyoto Machida into a neural shutdown by halting it.

What’s most striking to me about both these demonstrations of sportsmanship is the iniative of the fighters. There was a clear indication that they were depending on the referee’s involvement or judgement alone, but were in fact more than willing to use their own faculties to adjudicate on the given situations. The referee’s job it to police and officiate the contesting of any given bout, however I don’t believe that the responsibility for conduct lies solely in their hands. Such a scenario would leave us with the horrific violation of sporting decency at WEC 42 when Brian Bowles unimaginably savaged Miguel Angel Torres.


There is no way I buy into the mindset that unless the referee stops it, it’s fair game. That may be the rules granted but in my estimation that excuses abominations like above that tarnish the reputation of the sport as a sport and jeopardize its popularization amongst the public at large. No way in any civilized society should conduct like that be allowed and as such fighters need to demonstrate more willingly a respect for their fellow competitors.

These are only a handful of examples, but they highlight and encapsulate the basis and stimuli for my train of thought. I’ll be intrigued to hear what the community outlook is but I for one would like to see this area of the sport get more acknowledgement and policing. Strict punishments need to be indiscriminantly handed down to offenders, even if that means by the athletic commissions if companies are unwilling to shelve unsporting fighters for unsavoury antics. It’s not too much to ask that professional fighters conduct themselves in a professional manner and heed the rules under which they fight. And, on occasions where they are within the rules, decency and respect for ones fellow competitor go a long way. There but for the grace of God go I. Some day the shoe may be on the other foot.

FanPosts are user-generated content that do not reflect the editorial opinions of MMAmania.com nor its staff.