UFC 126: I ditched my loved ones to see my heroes fight

This piece is for the fans. I dedicate it to my girlfriend Chelsey and my family I ditched to watch this event.

Days leading up to UFC 126, I was full of energy, so excited. I couldn’t concentrate at work, my mind was in the gutter thinking about the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s latest event. Two of my heroes from Japan, one making his debut, and one making a return. I hold Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto and Michihiro Omigawa in very high regard. I was looking forward to seeing them show flashes of their greatness from Japan in the Octagon. Growing up as a long time Mixed Martial Arts fan, Vitor Belfort was a name I was very familiar with and respect. His life story is something straight out of a Hollywood movie and all it needs is a Hollywood ending in the Octagon. Even with all the great bouts and fighters featured on this card, these three men are some of the many that always I support. With the tense weigh-ins from Friday afternoon still fresh in my mind, I imagined all the out comes that possibly could happen during these fights. I dreamed of Kid knocking the lights out of Demetrious Johnson. I envisioned Omigawa’s world class Judo coming into play, while showcasing his trademark boxing. In my mind, I saw Vitor Belfort raising his arms in victory, with Dana White wrapping the belt around his waist, and thanking God while Joe Rogan questioned him after the fight.

Today is fight night, I can feel the excitement flowing through my veins. My heart beating at record speed, the hair on my arms standing on end. As a hardcore fan, I invested so much emotional value on these fighters, these warriors, these brave men. I felt like a kid on Christmas day, running down the stairs in my house to open presents. This is a good day to be a fight fan. I dedicated so much to this single event, that I ditched my cousin’s birthday party, and my girlfriend. I know I’m going to be hearing quite a bit from my relatives and my significant other of four years soon, but I felt in my heart that I couldn’t miss this event for the world.

At 5PM PST on the dot, I jumped fresh out the shower and quickly put on some clothes. I ran to the fridge, grabbed a Heineken, grabbed my laptop, and connected it to my beautiful Toshiba LCD TV. Kid Yamamoto’s UFC debut may have been streamed on Facebook, but it was better than not seeing him at all. Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson is a very game opponent, very fast, and very well-rounded. A worthy test for the JMMA superstar. As soon the first round started, I was yelling at the TV “WAR KID, WAR KID”. Both men keeping distance, both men respecting each others power. This was the feeling out process. I said to myself “if Kid can close the distance and get in close, he can throw bombs”. I was praying, I was hoping that it would happen, and out of nowhere Johnson at lightning speed would take down Kid. This is the same Norifumi Yamamoto, world class wrestler, and Olympic caliber grappler. And he was being taken down at will by Mighty Mouse! That blew my mind and for the whole fight, it would happen again and again and again. It was a non-stop takedown festival, thanks to Demetrious Johnson. I never thought in a million years, Kid would get out wrestled like this! In the end, Johnson got the well-deserved “W” and my world as a fan crashed around me. If you’ve seen your hero or your favorite team get crushed by the competition, you know how that heart break feels.

Still recovering from the stunned feeling of Kid’s loss, it was another chance to see another one of my Japanese Mixed Martial Arts favorites step into the cage. Michihiro Omigawa was making his UFC return against a very game opponent in Chad Mendes. Omi had trouble trying to close the distance against Mendes. Chad schooled Michihiro in all aspects of the game, even though Chad wasn’t able to takedown Omigawa. In the 2nd round, while on the ground, Chad landed some nasty elbows to Omigawa resulting in a big cut. Mendes won the unanimous decision and embarrasses his Omigawa in the process. Right after I saw this fight, I knew I was in for a long and depressing night.

Now to be honest, I really didn’t care about any other fight on the main card except for Anderson Silva Vs. Vitor Belfort. The evenings fights went by very quickly, Cerrone’s choke over Paul Kelly was pretty cool. Miguel Torres’ win over Antonio Banuelos didn’t really interest me, although Rocha / Ellenberger had some moments. But seeing Jon “Bones” Jones show some superior ground work over Ryan Bader and earning a title shot against another hero of mine, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua got me really excited about the upcoming bout. Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin didn’t really do much for me, but it was good to see the two fight none the less after a long absence from competition.

After waiting nearly an hour and a half, the moment of truth arrived. It was time to see, if Vitor Belfort was the man to dethrone the Middleweight King of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. That excitement, that feeling I had at the beginning of the card when Kid and Omigawa entered the Octagon, I felt that for Vitor Belfort. Unfortunately the fighter’s entrances and introductions were longer than the whole fight. In fact, it ended with one single kick to the chin from Anderson Silva in the first round. It reminded me of a traditional Karate front kick. It was very precise, very accurate, and it landed clean on the button. Anderson Silva punted my dreams of seeing a brand new UFC Middleweight Champion.

Let us be real ladies and gentlemen, tonight’s event was probably one of the most over-hyped Mixed Martial Arts events in recent memory. It didn’t live up to expectations (has nothing to do with my favorites losing) at all. As fans we are willing to almost pay anything to watch our favorite fighters not only put on a show, but win. Why do we expect the world out of these cards, when there is a chance it might not go as well as previously thought? I’ll tell you why I continue to watch these events. I enjoy the thrill of victory, even with the agony of defeat that is possible for any fighter. I enjoy seeing these modern day gladiators, these superhero like warriors engage in great tests of bravery and physicality. None of these athletes I put on a pedestal managed to impress, entertain, or win their respective matches. But forever, I’ll support these men for the rest of my life win or lose. I’ll never forget these moments, as a fan I’ll stay loyal and true to them. That’s what these fighters mean to me and that’s why I still tune in.

Picture above taken by Ric Fogel for ESPN.com