FanPost

UFC 117: Is Jon Fitch the welterweight contender the UFC forgot?

Currently unbeaten at 11-0, middleweight champion Anderson Silva has the best UFC record of any fighter still active within the organization. Somewhat surprisingly, second place does not go to Georges St Pierre, who stands at 14-2. It actually goes to Jon Fitch, who has a UFC record of 12-1 which, on paper at least, is slightly superior to St Pierre's.

I am not suggesting that having a better record necessarily makes him a more accomplished fighter than "Rush." The Canadian gave us ample proof of his superiority when handing Fitch the first and only loss of his UFC career in 2008.

However I think Fitch's achievement in winning 12 out of 13 fights in what has always been a highly competitive welterweight division is all too easily overlooked.

I spoke to him soon after the loss to "Rush," and he told me that he thought he would need a few more wins to get another title shot.

"I would like another title shot but I don't think I will get the opportunity again until late 2009 or early 2010 and I am going to have to win two, maybe three more fights to get back into contention," he said.

It is now mid 2010 and Fitch has already won four UFC fights since our conversation, but with his American Kickboxing Academy team mate Josh Koscheck next in line for a rematch with St. Pierre, he does not seem any closer to getting a second shot at the welterweight strap.

Part of the problem for Fitch has been his recent inability to finish fights. His last seven UFC outings have all gone the distance with the judges seeing fit to award Fitch the decision on every occasion bar one, the loss to St. Pierre.

It seems winning alone is not enough in today's Octagon. The emphasis is on stoppages, submissions and fan friendly entertainment. Fitch might well have a happy habit of winning fights, but he has yet to find a way of doing so in the sort of style the UFC matchmakers want to see.

Dana White even suggested that Fitch should be forced to fight Koscheck for the right to face St. Pierre. The idea was not one Fitch was willing to countenance and when word of this reached the UFC president he remarked that "[Fitch] doesn’t want the title shot that bad then."

In the unlikely event that Koscheck is able to actually beat St. Pierre, Fitch has announced he will return to the middleweight division where he began his UFC career.

If, as expected, GSP emerges victorious, Fitch feels that he is better equipped to face him than the first time they met. Speaking after his last win against Ben Saunders at UFC 111, the former Purdue wrestling standout said "I’m a better fighter than I was the first time we fought and I want a title shot. I think I’m at the point where I can technically matchup with him and I’m just waiting for the opportunity to prove it."

Before he can even think about such an opportunity he will need to defeat Thiago Alves for the second time. Fitch finished Alves in the second round of their fight in 2006 and he remains to this day the only UFC opponent Fitch has ever stopped with strikes.

Fitch only seems to fights top welterweights and Alves is no exception. He has not fought since losing to St. Pierre a year ago but between the losses to Fitch and GSP, he put together seven straight wins, one of which was actually against Josh Koscheck.

"Kos" has four more fights inside the Octagon than Fitch -- but has two more losses. He has also been defeated by two men who Fitch has already beaten: Paulo Thiago and Thiago Alves. Fitch could be forgiven for feeling that the UFC chose the wrong AKA fighter to face Paul "Semtex" Daley for the right to first coach on TUF 12 against (and then fight) St. Pierre.

If Jon Fitch keeps on winning fights, the UFC will be forced to give him a second title shot eventually. If he manages to stop Alves inside the distance for the second time at UFC 117, that opportunity might come around sooner rather than later.

(FanPost edited and promoted by MMAmania.com)

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

In This FanPost

Events