Each week, ESPN.com writer Brett Okamoto provides his take on the hottest topics in the world of mixed martial arts.
This week, Okamoto squares off with former UFC title contender and recently signed Bellator MMA fighter Chael Sonnen to debate the latest news and trends.
1. Former NFL defensive end Greg Hardy has announced he will pursue a career in mixed martial arts. How much should MMA fans care about this?
Sonnen: They should absolutely care. One, it's attention. We always like that. But two, when you're talking about that size of a guy, the level of athlete does matter. If a guy is big and a good athlete, he can pick this sport up fast. He couldn't do that in wrestling. He also couldn't pick up boxing. But when you throw it all together -- you know, Floyd Mayweather's comment on this was a big insult to us. Even though it was an insult and we all resisted it -- guys could do this sport quickly but can't do that with boxing because boxing is more of a science. As much as he meant it as an insult, he was still right. You can learn this really, really quick. MMA is different. It's a lot more wide open in terms of the rules. Most big guys that level -- the elite athlete -- they usually go into other sports. They go into the NFL and NBA. If you took one of those guys and he was really in it, yeah, we're interested. Is he going to be a champion? No. But yeah, that interests me.
Okamoto: Whether you care about it or not, it's probably going to be hard to ignore it -- which is a little unjust in a lot of ways. If you look at Hardy's history, this move seems, at least on the surface, to be more about a lack of opportunities in football than it does a real change in passion to MMA. It's hard not to view this as a money grab on his part. And whether that is a nice perk about MMA or a liability, money grabs can be had if you're bringing the right name value. I guess I don't like the idea of someone coming into this sport, perhaps getting a preferable matchup and getting paid well when he essentially ran himself out of the NFL. But I also agree with Chael in that, if he is serious about it, there's a halfway decent shot he'll look respectable pretty quick.
2. Conor McGregor was fined $150,000 for his actions during a UFC 202 news conference in August, throwing water bottles at Nate Diaz. Is this penalty just or unjust?
Sonnen: Ugh. Uggghhhhh. I think that's a little steep, man. I don't think anyone else would have gotten that fine. You look at what Conor's making but that's not how that's supposed to work. The other side of it is, he might have got off easy. Here was the deal: I couldn't see where the bottles went. I could only see they were being thrown. The relevance there is, was a fan hit? I heard, and I can't confirm this, that not only was a fan hit, it was a child. I can tell you, from an entertainment standpoint, I thought it was fun. I thought it was funny. But then again, if I saw him hit a kid, I'm not laughing anymore. At the time it happened it was pretty damn funny. That's just the truth. But that's a stiff fine. Daniel Cormier and Jon Jones fought [at a news conference in 2014]. That was a spectacle and a disaster -- and their fines combined [$59,000] didn't represent $150,000.
Okamoto: Yeah, it seems a little high to me. The commission basically got to this number by taking 5 percent of McGregor's purse. Back in 2014 with Cormier and Jones, the commission took 10 percent. So, simple math tells you how much bigger McGregor's fight purse was for UFC 202 than what we've seen in the past. I understand the commission wanting to follow precedent. And in fact, I think it's important for it to follow precedent. But in this case, common sense says that the sport's disclosed pay structure has changed greatly since 2014. The precedent you're following came under vastly different circumstances. And for the record, I was at both the Jones-Cormier brawl and the "water fight" and I thought the brawl was worse. This seems like a lot of money for throwing a few bottles.
3. Should Dan Henderson be upset at the scorecards after suffering a decision loss to middleweight champion Michael Bisping at UFC 204 in England?
Sonnen: So, I didn't see it. I would never miss a fight -- I've only missed three UFC's ever, but I was at a wedding. I feel like I've seen it. I read the play-by-play. I've talked to a lot of people afterwards, some very biased who thought it was a robbery. I talked to one guy who has been with Dan since college -- they're about as close as you get -- and I asked him, "Who should have won?" He said, "I don't know. You could say Dan won -- I'm fine with it. You could say Mike won -- I'm fine with it. It was so close. It was such a great fight." I thought, coming from him, that carried a lot of weight. I'm going to say no. The argument I heard is that the first round should have been a 10-8, and I can only speak historically -- those are unicorns. There are no 10-8 rounds. So, you can't count on that.
Okamoto: As I wrote about this week -- "Hendo" shouldn't lose any sleep on this one. For the record, I scored the fight 49-46 Bisping. That doesn't mean I didn't think the fight was close. I think you can make a case for a 10-8 first round for Henderson, and the fifth was very, very close. Ultimately, though, that's the best-case scenario I can make for him, which would be a draw. If you want to read more of my thoughts of the scoring, check out the Monday column. I also spoke to UFC welterweight and commentator Dan Hardy on scoring in general on the upcoming "Five Rounds" podcast.
4. Henderson announced his retirement after the loss. Do you believe that was his final fight?
Sonnen: Yes, just from talking to him. I don't know how serious this retirement fight was from the jump. I don't know if he ever meant that. That's one of those things you have to be careful about. You're either in or you're out and sometimes you don't even know it. He might have surprised himself. A lot of people are saying he should be the middleweight champion right now, so there's no question he could keep fighting. In my own opinion, and from a little behind the scenes, if he lost that match he was going to go away. I don't know. From a financial standpoint, he doesn't need the money. From a goal-oriented standpoint, which is what got him in this in the first place, he's not getting another title shot. So, I think he's done. And I say that very sad. I don't know that I want him to be done, as a fan. It's an end of an era. I think he's done.
Okamoto: I'll agree, for the same reasons Chael mentioned. I'm not sure why he would come back now. Originally, he fought out his contract at UFC 199. The improbable title shot brought him back into the UFC. Like Chael said, I don't see him getting another one of those. Losing a close fight on the scorecards might leave a bitter taste in his mouth, obviously, but as far as a way to go out, this is a good one, right? He fought the middleweight champion for five rounds at age 46. Even though it's a loss, he's walking out on a high note. It never surprises me when fighters come back out of retirement, and that will hold true if Henderson returns, but if I had to guess, I think he'll stay retired.
5. Chris Weidman fights Yoel Romero on Nov. 12 and Luke Rockhold faces Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza on Nov. 19. As a fan, which UFC middleweight contender would you most want to see challenge Bisping next?
Sonnen: I don't know that either one is a guaranteed semifinal. I think it kind of depends on who wins. As far as the politics go, Jacare has to get a shot sooner rather than later. It's big business in Brazil. Sometimes it comes down to that. You can argue which guy is better or more deserving, and those are fair. But then you go to the next thing which is, "What do people want to see?" Getting a Brazilian into a title fight matters. Jacare is amazing and has had an opportunity taken away from him before. On the other side, I think if Weidman wins, they're going to have to battle it out in the media. I don't think they're in a hurry to get Rockhold back in there, personally. I think there's some moving parts. If I could pick from those four, I would like to see Weidman.
Okamoto: As far as who will get the shot, I think Weidman is the front-runner. As far as whom I'd like to see fight Bisping -- I mean, this is a terrible answer, but I kind of don't have a preference. They're all deserving, really. The Rockhold angle interests me. I still feel, with all respect to Bisping, that those two could fight 100 times and Rockhold wins about 95 of them. Lighting struck for Bisping, and I shouldn't even word it that way. I don't see it as "luck" or "chance." He's a competitor and doesn't beat himself, so he's always a dangerous opponent. But I'd be interested in a third fight. Weidman is still right there as far as considerations for best middleweight in the world. Souza, how long can we deny this man? If he beats Rockhold, I think you have to say he'd be most deserving. Yeah, I don't know. I'm honestly good with any of the four.