MMA Spotlight 4.10.08: Sean Sherk Should Not Be Fighting BJ Penn for the Title in May

Posted by Reuel Mante on 04.10.2008

“... it's OK if you mess up, you're my friend so rules don't apply to you!”



Sean Sherk should not be fighting BJ Penn for the title in May.

As many of you know, UFC 84: Ill Will features BJ Penn defending his title against Sean Sherk. The very thought of the title match happening makes me furious.

First of all, let's get down to the truth. Sherk was found guilty of having steroids in his system and was fined and suspended for 6 months. The suspension, of course, had been reduced from a year. Regardless of how much evidence was presented to the CSAC after the Hermes Franca fight or how many polygraphs to prove Sean did not knowingly take steroids, the fact remains that banned substances were ingested by one of the UFC champions.

To be fair, anyone who had the opportunity to see the UFC All Access edition on Sherk saw that along with his workout, he takes a vast amount of supplements to keep his body in shape and maintain his health. Further testing showed that ¼ of over-the-counter supplements that are on the market have banned substances. The one thing that I must point out is the fact that no matter what, Sean is a professional fighter with a strict training regimen. With how strict he is, one would think he took the time to be 100% sure of every pill he puts in his mouth. That is the responsibility of anyone in this business. Giving the man a title shot immediately after serving a suspension is ridiculous. It just looks like a slap on the wrist and no other fighter will take the policy seriously.

I won't dispute whether or not he truly takes steroids. I, along with others, look at his appearance and assume steroids made him look the way he does. Seriously, look at his picture above. He looks like he is a bottle of wine away from killing his family or if given a New York Yankees jersey he'd be ready to pitch baseball!

If he is honest about how he does not engage in performance-enhancing drugs, then my opinion is that he will need to prove it. He should have no less than two fights against top contenders without incidents. For example, have him fight Roger Huerta. When it's over, make sure his piss is clean of any drugs. Then, follow the same process for his next fight. If he tests positive for any banned substances, then he should never get a title shot again.

Regardless of questionable substance usage, I don't think Sean Sherk deserves a title shot right now. For a former lightweight champion, he has a surprisingly low number of lightweight fights. Two, to be exact. His first match was a five round unanimous decision against Kenny Florian for the vacant belt. His second, another unanimous 5 round decision over Hermes Franca. Both matches were long and boring with no real notable action. Not exactly the best start to a lightweight career. As a matter of fact, he has not really finished an opponent in 3 years. The only fight of his that did not go to a decision was when he was TKO'd by Georges St. Pierre at UFC 56.

Most importantly, the UFC's stance on the drug policy does not seem be taking this issue as seriously as they should. Dana White has stated that Sherk has served his suspension and now it's time for him to fight for a title he never lost in the octagon. That's all well and good. But to the general public, how much of his suspension was actually served? It took the UFC 5 months to strip him of the title and the fans had to wait 6 months for a title fight in the most exciting division in the business. How many fighters were putting on show-stealing performances for a division that had no active title? Tyson Griffin, Frankie Edgar, Roger Huerta, Kenny Florian, Clay Guida, and Spencer Fisher to name a few. The lightweight division is without a doubt the most stacked division in the UFC. Who was the man who was representing that division? Sean Sherk. A man who fought in October of 2006 and then July of 2007. Two title fights in two years? Ridiculous! The UFC needs to respect the decision of any athletic commission as they are the law of the land. If they deemed a fighter unfit to continue fighting, for whatever reason, the UFC has to stand behind that. For a company that is constantly battling for legitimacy in the sports world, it's important to recognize the authority behind their shows. As someone so aptly pointed out in the "comments" of my last article, "Wrestling is fake. UFC is real." They need to start acting like it. UFC needs to take their fighters' health statuses seriously and heed all the regulations that are set for them. Sherk needs to serve a probationary period regardless of his innocence or true guilt. Not only will that show the commissions that UFC is serious in their strive to be recognized in the mainstream, it will also show the rest of the contracted fighters that no one will get special treatment when it comes to testing positive.

There's just one more reason why I'm so peeved about this title fight. Last weekend, I saw a toddler sporting a MMA shirt. The next generation of fans has been sprouted and he was tangible proof. What kind of example is the UFC setting by being so lenient with Sherk immediately after his suspension? "Aw, it's OK if you mess up, you're my friend so rules don't apply to you!" Is that a message that should be conveyed to young fans? Illegal substance use isn't "really bad"? If you get in trouble for substance use, there are no repercussions? Most importantly for UFC, would his parents, the viewing audience, want that message passed on to their kid?

No matter what I say or how many columns have been written about it, the fight will still take place on May 24th, 2008. Let's hope that BJ Penn can make a good fight out of it and not get hurt. Penn has done his fair share of trash talking and I pray that he will back up his words when it's time to fight.


Image courtesy of bodoglife.com