FanPost

Thank You Forrest Griffin

This has been too long in coming. Work has been backed up and I no longer have access during work hours (damn you IT!!). Let's get to this.

Forrest Griffin was the hardest working man in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts for many, many years. From his spirited win versus Stephan Bonnar at The Ultimate Fighter 1 Finale, to his choking out the man who was supposed to be best light heavyweight in the world, at the time, to his leg kick destruction of a UFC champ to get the belt, Forrest Griffin overachieved.

Forrest Griffin had no business holding the UFC light heavyweight belt, long considered the most prestigious championship belt in mixed martail arts, but through sheer will, hard-work and determination, Forrest accomplished this goal when very few thought it possible. Forrest reached the pinnacle that very few have ever reached and will deservedly go down in history as a UFC Hall of Fame Fighter when he gets inducted, by UFC owner Dand White, next month.

How many O'Irish cops can say they not only saved a sport from complete financial ruin, but then went on to claim the most prestigious championsip in the sport? Art Rooney was no cop...

Hate all you want. Please do that. Nothing you say can take away what this man has accomplished and what he has done for this sport. If not for Forrest Griffin, there would be no Fox deal. There would be no Brittney Palmer on PPV cards. Jose Aldo never comes to the US. Jon Jones never puts on 5 ounce gloves. Arianny wouldn't even be stripping for new movies (although in my day stripping meant you got a money shot at some point, the dirty tease).

Please bring up the Anderson Silva fight. Make sure you bring up the 14 other guys Silva made look silly as well. Guys like Hendo, who won't ever be in the UFC Hall of Fame since he can't win a fucking belt. Guys like Vitor Belfort, who got really, really, really, really, really (I could keep going) lucky when he won his UFC belt. There will never be shame in losing to the greatest mixed martial artist of all time.

Please bring up the injuries that lead to his beating Shogun. That doesn't change the fact that Shogun got choked the fuck out. If you are that hurt, don't fight you stupid fuck. Shogun made $150k to get choked the fuck out. That is like the entire GDP of Brazil for fuck's sake. He didn't need money that badly.

Please, please, please bring up the TrT. How on Earth does the hardest working man in the sport work harder than everyone else? He uses the rules of this "sport" to his advantage and finishes one of the greatest trilogies the sport has ever seen with the holder of the longest win streak at 205.

Just remember when you are hating on Forrest Griffin that you will never hold a UFC championship belt. You will never even be in the position to consider using TrT (*Holland) to extend your "journalism" fight career. You will never write a New York Times bestseller. You will never have Forrest Griffin money.

I will always remember getting PSYCHED to watch my favorite fighter every time I heard the first two bars of his entrance song, a song that has long been a favorite of mine.

http://www.youtube.com/user/Moshcam?v=RYCWsAy9GcQ

I will always remember the second Bonnar fight, where everyone knew that Forrest was more than a brawler and he had eclipsed his TUF rival in a way that meant he could truly be successful in the UFC at the highest level.

I will always remember the elation and the look of shock, horror and embarrasment on my wife's face as I jumped around like a school girl as Shogun was getting choked the fuck out.

I will always remember watching him beat up Rampage early, to the tune of one of the easiest 10-8 rounds to score in the history of the sport, and being worried he was going to fuck it up before the final bell. He didn't.

There are very few examples in our "right now" society that are genuinely positive examples of how hard work really can get you everything you ever wanted and more. Forrest Griffin is one such example and why he will always be my favorite fighter.





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