Death in the Cage
It hasn't happened yet, but you have to think, there may be a chance one day that an MMA fighter could lose their life in the ring or cage during or immediately following a fight. It's just reality that in a high risk sport like MMA the chances of it happening are higher then that of someone playing basketball or baseball.
After recent comments by UFC heavyweight contender Frank Mir surfaced saying he wanted to “kill Brock Lesnar in the octagon” and make him the “first death in UFC history,” there has had to be some quick work done by the UFC staff to cover their asses on Mir's comments.
Of course, it's a stupid thing for Mir to say but in some sense, he is right, there could be a death in the octagon, and while it may not be him “killing” Lesnar, what would be the implications of that actually happening?
In a sport that's still gaining acceptance, and that is still not even legalized in Ontario, it would be one gigantic step backwards. MMA has worked its way from being a barbaric street brawl, to a legitimate sport in many aspects, despite not being accepted by all.
A death at this point in MMA would be disastrous, and would possibly sink the sport for a long, long time. I don't know if it would, for lack of a better term, “kill” it but it certainly would do irreparable damage to the sport.
The reason being is because the apparent infancy of the sport, and the fact that it has already had to overcome a lot of obstacles to get to the point where it is now.
In comparison to other sports, we've seen deaths in football, which have unfortunately become more common in recent years then what would like to be seen. Some of the deaths are not sport related, but something that has reared its ugly head is the overly-large linemen dying at practice because they can't take the combination of heat, and a high intensity workout.
Yet, the sport of football hasn't folded at all, the NFL is still running strong, perhaps better then ever right now and it's as if a death in their sport hasn't had any negative affect at all.
This is the main difference between the culture of MMA and the culture of the NFL. Football is a tried, tested and true sport. For people of this generation, it has been around forever, it's just a staple in the sporting life and if a tragedy happens, like a death, the sport has the longevity that it can recover from it. Of course, scrutiny is faced when there is a death, perhaps a questioning of the coach who pushed the players too hard but the sport doesn't take a step back.
In MMA, the general public is still just starting to warm up to the idea of cage fighting. It seems as though there are people that love the sport, hate the sport or are on the fence about it. While brands like the UFC fight to gain those people on the fence to become fight fans, one death in the cage could sway all of them against the sport, and be detrimental.
MMA is still very much in its infancy, and for Mir to come out and say he wants to end another mans life in the cage is something that simply shouldn't happen, especially not coming from the mouth of a former champion. Any backlash that Mir feels from this is much deserved.
After recent comments by UFC heavyweight contender Frank Mir surfaced saying he wanted to “kill Brock Lesnar in the octagon” and make him the “first death in UFC history,” there has had to be some quick work done by the UFC staff to cover their asses on Mir's comments.
Of course, it's a stupid thing for Mir to say but in some sense, he is right, there could be a death in the octagon, and while it may not be him “killing” Lesnar, what would be the implications of that actually happening?
In a sport that's still gaining acceptance, and that is still not even legalized in Ontario, it would be one gigantic step backwards. MMA has worked its way from being a barbaric street brawl, to a legitimate sport in many aspects, despite not being accepted by all.
A death at this point in MMA would be disastrous, and would possibly sink the sport for a long, long time. I don't know if it would, for lack of a better term, “kill” it but it certainly would do irreparable damage to the sport.
The reason being is because the apparent infancy of the sport, and the fact that it has already had to overcome a lot of obstacles to get to the point where it is now.
In comparison to other sports, we've seen deaths in football, which have unfortunately become more common in recent years then what would like to be seen. Some of the deaths are not sport related, but something that has reared its ugly head is the overly-large linemen dying at practice because they can't take the combination of heat, and a high intensity workout.
Yet, the sport of football hasn't folded at all, the NFL is still running strong, perhaps better then ever right now and it's as if a death in their sport hasn't had any negative affect at all.
This is the main difference between the culture of MMA and the culture of the NFL. Football is a tried, tested and true sport. For people of this generation, it has been around forever, it's just a staple in the sporting life and if a tragedy happens, like a death, the sport has the longevity that it can recover from it. Of course, scrutiny is faced when there is a death, perhaps a questioning of the coach who pushed the players too hard but the sport doesn't take a step back.
In MMA, the general public is still just starting to warm up to the idea of cage fighting. It seems as though there are people that love the sport, hate the sport or are on the fence about it. While brands like the UFC fight to gain those people on the fence to become fight fans, one death in the cage could sway all of them against the sport, and be detrimental.
MMA is still very much in its infancy, and for Mir to come out and say he wants to end another mans life in the cage is something that simply shouldn't happen, especially not coming from the mouth of a former champion. Any backlash that Mir feels from this is much deserved.
