Shining A Spotlight 04.05.09: The MMA Influence
Posted by Michael Weyer on 04.05.2009
Back from my break, I look at the amazing ways wrestling and MMA are alike and how each influences the other more than you'd expect.
Well, back from my vacation, a nice way to recharge and catching up on various stuff going around. And no, my column isn't moving to another day, just pushed back a bit due to all the Mania stuff. As it happens, during the break I was able to catch up on a book I've been wanting to get to for a while which got me to thinking on my column subject. Consider this a break of sorts from the Wrestlemania talk pretty much everyone else is doing as I look at how wrestling stacks up against that other rather popular fighting industry.
For a sport that's blossomed from nothing to massive success and fame across the globe in only a decade and a half, MMA hasn't gotten a lot of major attention from the publishing world. Sure, you have some bios by stars and the various fighting systems but no one has taken the time to sit down and write a true, nicely detailed history of the entire phenomenon. That's finally happened in the form of Jonathan Snowden's excellent Total MMA (ECW Press, $19.95).
The book is amazingly detailed with hundreds of footnotes as Snowden focuses on the expansion of MMA from its early beginnings to late 2008. Snowden obviously loves the business but doesn't shy away from exposing its darker sides and presenting both sides of arguments. He notes the behind the scenes struggles and while he does sympathize with some of the fighters, he also recognizes how a few can be prima donnas. Most notably, he does away with a lot of the myths of the business, particularly the Gracies and how things were run before the Fertittas took over.
My one complaint over the book is that Snowden wrote it too soon. A nice late entry is on the rise of Elite XC and it might have been interesting to see his chronicling how the promotion fell apart so fast after Kimbo Slice was exposed. But the book is still fantastic and got me to thinking on just how much wrestling and MMA have in common. I don't mean just action but the personalities involved. Indeed, it's interesting to note that in some ways, MMA actually outdoes wrestling in terms of being unbelievably wild.
The parallels between wrestlers and MMA fighters are intriguing. When I read of the intensity of the training at the Lion's Den, I kept remembering stories of Stu Hart's Dungeon. The Hart parallels also came up with the Gracies, who kept pushing themselves as undefeated masters of the craft who took such pride in the business but had a tendency to throw fits if things didn't go their way and demanded certain conditions before they'd do matches. Yes, they helped build MMA to prominence but taking the idea that "all this is because of us" is a bit much.
Not that egos aren't common in MMA. Like wrestling, if you don't have the drive to keep on top and succeed, you don't belong in the business. The Shamrocks, both Ken and Frank, are very intense guys who each take credit for helping things grow. Ken, in fact, is more intense, no doubt due to some steroid use during his WWF run and his training can be rather bullying. Yet, so many Lion's Den guys will still stand by him, a run of loyalty that reminds me of a few guys in wrestling people can get behind despite their flaws.
Like wrestling, the MMA fighters are a mostly singular lot, putting themselves first a lot. Sure, they appreciate the competition and all but at the end of the day, they are in fact competitors, not friends and recognize you have to go to lengths to succeed. It's because of that MMA fighters, like wrestlers, can never form a proper union. For every guy who'd be willing to go on strike for better conditions, a dozen others will leap at the chance to take his spot. It's a shame as, like wrestlers, MMA fighters face problems given all their injuries and promoters always eager to push aside the old in favor of the next new thing.
Indeed, the way MMA promoters match with wrestling ones is eerily similar. There are con men out there, guys who claim to represent the UFC or some other major MMA promotion but don't. But even the main guys who run UFC can get pretty intense with how they do business. I guess that shouldn't be surprising considering their main backers. It's one thing to talk about Vince McMahon being ruthless and running WWE like a mafia. But the Fertittas come from actual, old school, down and dirty mobsters. Say what else about Vince but he hasn't built his company on blood money (despite what some may say) and that background does cast a bit of a shadow on the UFC today.
It's not helped by the fact that this company likes to rewrite history in ways that would do WWE proud. Ask Dana White and the people in charge today and they'll act like the founders of UFC had no rules whatsoever when in fact, the key standards of today are exactly like what SEG came up with. That's not to mention that if you're a UFC guy who decides to leave on bad terms, your entire history can be deleted from UFC records and websites. Even WWE has backed away from that a bit; hell, that new "Encyclopedia" book actually does have an entry on Benoit, albeit not mentioning his final fate. I do find it ironic that for all their intensity, you haven't had any MMA guys going anywhere as far as that. The closest has been Quentin Jackson (although, let's face it, when a guy has the moniker of "Rampage," having him live up to the name in a wild driving spree isn't as big a shock).
Still, the way UFC does treat its fighters can be a bit questionable. Oftentimes, it sounds like WCW used to be, making massive contracts with some guys before they're even sure they can be draws. Often, you'll see guys be pushed big but don't quite pay off right. The problem of course is that, unlike wrestling, MMA bouts aren't scripted and prepared so often you'll see the supposed next big thing punched out in only a minute. That, of course, is how MMA thrives, the unpredictability which adds to the intensity of the sport. It's interesting to note how a lot of MMA guys are like wrestlers such as Flair and Bret Hart, they put everything into the ring action, don't care about the politics and such, just want to fight well. Others, like Bob Sapp, recognize their star power and are able to use it. Sapp is a great example of a Hogan-like guy, knowing he's not a great fighter but his massive celebrity status in Japan keeps him rich. He's also pretty smart as he's worth about $10 million but lives off a fraction of it, a lesson a lot of fighters (and for that matter wrestlers) could learn from.
Reading of the conflicts between UFC and politicians trying to shut them down over the years reminds me of how smart Vince was creating the "sports entertainment" label in order to side-step a lot of these problems. Yes, UFC is successful now but they still carry the stigma of "mindless violence" which doesn't make sense to me as in some ways, it's actually healthier for MMA fighters than boxers. Sure, they can break legs but a leg can heal a hell of a lot faster and better than brain damage of multiple punches over the years. Just look at Benoit for a prime example on how concussions can lead to long-term damage. While MMA fighters are a bit smarter to know how damaging drugs and alcohol can be to training, you still get a party atmosphere about these guys which is probably their way of blowing off steam. They do benefit from a much lighter schedule than wrestlers, only a couple of fights a month at most rather than constant travel and harder work.
Getting back to management, when I read about Dana White, I can't help but see a mixture of Vince, Bischoff and Paul Heyman. The man's leadership has aided UFC massively, make no mistake. But at the same time, the man can be incredibly intense and insulting a lot, dismissing other MMA organizations. The fact is that UFC is not all of MMA but White seems intent on making that happen. The purchase of Pride aided them and in a quick segue, Pride's fall does seem similar to WCW's. Of course the difference is that WCW's collapse from the top was a bit slow while Pride fell apart almost instantly after it was revealed to be a Yakuza front and suddenly this promotion that had been doing $40 million worth of business was bankrupt. But White continues to dismiss any other MMA organization, insisting only UFC matters.
That's a common trait among promoters. Vince certainly felt that way as he steamrolled everyone to get to the top. But I think he now regrets having created that monopoly as without competition, the business stagnated. White appears not to have noticed that, he seems to think if UFC is the only organization around, MMA fighting will be fine. That ignores the fact that you need other places for guys to break in and try to learn the ropes before hitting the big time. Even WWE has their farm organizations like FCW for guys as they've learned the hard way just signing some guy and pushing them instantly has its drawbacks.
White often seems like Bischoff with his mentality of "being one of the boys." You never see him in a suit, just sweats and shirts, being jovial and hanging around backstage all the time, reminding me sometimes of that little guy in high school who hung out with the jocks just to seem bigger. He can be friendly but also exudes a need for control that puts Vince to shame at times. The reason CBS went with Elite XC instead of UFC was because White refused to cede creative input to the network. The key thing was that CBS wanted commentators who might just be a tad critical of UFC and bring up some weaknesses of fighters and that was verboten to White. Despite the fact that the Internet has been a massive support to UFC, White doesn't go around courting those people because they can be critical too. Even Vince accepts a tiny bit of criticism now and then and has rarely copped to mistakes but White refuses to give the public any idea that UFC can have flaws and that is a key thing that prevents the sport from being taken seriously by most in the mainstream. Another issue is how White's perceived. For all his faults, Vince does get respect from most of the workers in WWE. Even those who have beefs with Vince (such as Bret Hart) have to give him his due for his drive and success. But White rubs a lot of UFC guys the wrong way with his ego and his insistence on total control and I've heard some MMA guys are resisting joining UFC because of that reputation. If White wants UFC to be the only game in town, he'd better be sure his attitude doesn't make people not want to play.
Let me segue a bit into women. One thing that made Elite XC unique was that, unlike UFC, they showed women's matches and showcased how hard hitting and athletic female fighters can be. The company's fall robs fans of a chance to see that as it seems that UFC, like a lot of wrestling promoters, are reluctant to get behind women in the ring as serious athletes. The difference of course is that some might be squeamish seeing women getting bloodied up and such and UFC might fear more reprisals. But the fact is, there's a market out there waiting to be tapped and since WWE and TNA have gotten more serious about actual women grappling, you'd think UFC might be a bit more open as well as other MMA organizations have clicked onto that.
MMA has arrived as a true sport, you can't deny that. They are successful with a huge fan base, as big as boxing if not bigger and have made their presence known. It's no surprise that wrestling would try to emulate it as wrestling promoters always have that odd affinity for true tough guys. Tazz was the first, recreating himself from a wild man character to a shoot fighter that served him well. WWF tried with that disastrous "Brawl For All" but ironically suffered by making it legitimate so you had Steve Williams, who was meant to win, get knocked out in the first round. TNA has been getting MMA influences, with Ken Shamrock the first TNA-NWA World champion and, more recently, Joe and Angle fighting in an MMA-style bout. That shouldn't be surprising as they share a network with the Ultimate Fighter which has been a boon for both UFC and Spike.
Yet you can also argue that wrestling has influenced MMA as well. The entrances fighters make with rock music and smoke and lasers are right out of wrestling and a lot of fighters are taking on the over the top antics of wrestlers in their promos. They face the same challenges as wrestling as well with steroid use although most fighters are smart enough to know they can damage your skills more than enhance them over time. They also have to try to create new stars rather than rely on more marketable names or outsiders like Lesnar and Lashley. The economic crunch may hit them as well with less PPV buys and smaller attendances, not to mention lower pay for their workers. Again, wrestlers and MMA fighters are united in the lack of a union and protection when injuries get too severe, not to mention being pushed aside at a whim by promoters.
MMA is a legitimate sport which will always separate it from wrestling. But the similarities between the two are quite striking both in the ring and behind the scenes. As mentioned, White seems intent on creating the same monopoly on the sport Vince has, ignoring the drawbacks and his refusal to give away control or even acknowledge UFC's weaknesses hurts the UFC's credibility. They are the big game but the other MMA organizations are as good giving new guys breaks. They face challenges in steroids and issues with money and such but, like WWE and TNA, are confident they can break through. The fall of Elite XC is a bit harmful as they did do their best to bring MMA fighting to a nationwide network audience and it's too bad they pinned their major hopes on Kimbo as when he went down in forty seconds to a no-name, it made the whole company look bad for the network. But Elite did get that by doing the one thing UFC won't, which is cede control a bit and change their game. It's like when ECW got the TNN deal and Heyman couldn't quite get that what appealed to a narrow fan base couldn't work as well on a national level and that cost him.
I'm not trying to say one is better than the other as each has their separate fans. Again, the passion of fanbases is similar as some will trash UFC as other champion it and so on for the different organizations. You think wrestling forums have massive arguments about talent, check out MMA forums for some real debating. At the end of the day, wrestling is entertainment while MMA is true sport. But they remain linked in so many ways it's amazing. What also links them is the same mentality that the mainstream has, to look down on both as too violent and cartoonish at times. But as with wrestling, for MMA fans, you don't have to explain why you love it, you just love it. And that's one link between the two businesses I think we can all agree is good.
Posted By: FACTS (Guest) on April 05, 2009 at 10:01 AM
Good idea for an article!
BUT, but, but. Call me a Gracie mark but you seem to be short-selling what they did. There WAS a reason Frank Shamrock was made more than Shawn Micheals by Vince even back in the old days. And the reason was Gracie MADE Shamrock.
Posted By: kk (Guest) on April 06, 2009 at 08:38 AM
Gracie made the sports and opened everyones eyes as to the real-life effectiveness of the variaous martial arts.
Posted By: kk (Guest) on April 06, 2009 at 08:40 AM
