Last Word on Sport’s MMA Senior Editor Michael Hutchinson recaps the week in MMA, which saw Stipe Miocic take on Mark Hunt, the Reebok sponsorship deal hitting the fan, and Ronda Rousey appearing on the cover of SI.
Injury Rates of Major MMA Fight Camps: http://old.lastwordonsports.com/2015/05/12/injury-rates-of-major-mma-fight-camps-updated/
An MMA Review with Michael Hutchinson – May 14th, 2015
Transcript:
Welcome to the first episode of An MMA Review. I’m your host Michael Hutchinson and today we’ll be recapping the news and events in MMA from the past week.
The UFC returned to Australia this past weekend for UFC Fight Night: Miocic vs. Hunt. The card did not disappoint as only two fights went to the judges, while 6 of 12 fights ended in the first round. The main event was an absolute beatdown as Miocic overwhelmed Hunt with his striking and grappling. Miocic finished Hunt in the 5th round, winning by TKO, but fans, media and even Dana White thought the fight should have been stopped a round or two earlier. Blame fell on the referee, the cageside doctor and Hunt’s corner-men, who all could have stopped the extra unnecessary punishment.
With the win Miocic has lined himself up to take on the winner of Cain Velasquez vs. Fabricio Werdum, although plans could change depending on the outcome of the Heavyweight title fight.
Last Wednesday the UFC revealed the pay structure system for the Reebok sponsorship. It’s easy to say that fighters, fans and media alike were not too impressed by the numbers released. Several fighters took to Twitter to vent their frustrations, claiming that the deal will see them losing a good portion of money that they are use to getting from sponsors.
The deal goes into affect on July 7th, with UFC 189 Aldo vs. McGregor being the first event with exclusive Reebok sponsorship.
The UFC finally received some good news after dealing with the Jon Jones arrest and the Reebok deal. It was announced on Tuesday the Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey would be gracing the cover of the next issue of Sports Illustrated. Toted as the World’s Most Dominate Athlete, having an UFC Champion on the cover of a major sports magazine for all the right reasons can only further the reach of the sport and the UFC. The issue hits stands on May 18th.
The UFC is holding their first event in the Phillipeans with a heck of a headliner. Frankie Edgar will be taking on the Urijah Faber in a 5 round featherweight fight. This is one of the most intriguing fights of the year between two guaranteed Hall of Famers. The fight also has title implications as it could establish who gets the winner of the much anticipated Aldo vs. McGregor title fight.
Speaking of Faber, yesterday I posted my article on the most Injury Prone Fight Camps in MMA, with Faber’s Team Alpha Male posting the lowest injury rate out of every major mma fight camp. To read the full article, visit Last Word on Sports MMA or find the link in the description.
That’s all for this MMA review. Make sure to follow me on Twitter, at TheMikeyHutch to keep updated on all of the latest MMA news. Goodbye for now, and enjoy the fights.
