After Losing Silva And GSP, What Does 2014 Hold For The UFC?
UFC 168 is now in the rear view mirror and delivered a sweet but sour end to 2013 in MMA. The main event was the highly anticipated Middleweight title tilt between former boss Anderson Silva current champ Chris Weidman. The bout provided a bitter end to an awesome evening of fights when Silva snapped his leg; mirroring the event’s affect on the year preceding.
Not to say that 2013 was a bad year for MMA, but 168 kind of sums up the year as a whole; lots of awesome action through out, and some disappointment at the finish line. So what did 2013 symbolize most for me? It was a changing of the guard and the chance that two of the greatest athletes in modern MMA will never compete again has become a harsh reality.
Georges St-Pierre ducked out of his responsibilities as UFC Welterweight champ, following an extremely controversial decision win against Johny Hendricks at UFC 167. Having dominated the talent-stacked division for the best part of a decade, St-Pierre will now be replaced by either ‘Bigg Rigg’ or Robbie Lawler after their date at UFC 171.
After being such huge draws for the UFC during their illustrious championship tenures, Silva and St-Pierre face uncertain futures, as do their employers in the wake of such a huge blow. As I mentioned immediately after the event, the shocking finish to Silva’s title hopes and the horrific injury could score big media attention in the short term, but how will it affect 2014?
It’s also worth looking at the situation with Cain Velasquez and Anthony Pettis, as both fighters lay on the sidelines with injuries. Pettis has suffered multiple injuries in the past 18 months, and will likely sit out the first 10 months of his championship tenure. Velasquez is recovering from shoulder surgery and so the Heavyweight division becomes even more congested. These blips could turn in to headaches for the promotion in the coming months.
The UFC’s attempt at launching it’s new digital platform could also be hindered if the promotion can’t fill the void, so what options are available? It’s simple, they have to make do and promote Chris Weidman, Hendricks/Lawler, Ronda Rousey (possibly vs. Cyborg?), the lower weight classes, Jon Jones, Barao/Cruz and the plethora of raw talent that is available to the biggest MMA organization on the globe.
Change isn’t always good, but it doesn’t have to be all bad. Let’s hope that 2014 delivers just as much as 2013 did, although that could be easier said than done. Great finishes, shocking upsets, nasty submissions, new champions and old legends have helped make up the rich MMA tapestry of 2013 (or something). Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
