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<h3><a href="/go=news.detail&gid=446610" target="_blank">
Bocek: Decent skills and bikini shots = UFC
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<p>Mark Bocek recently appeared on the MMA Hour to discuss his recent retirement. Bocek cited rampant PED use in the sport, but also women's MMA:</p>
"The direction of MMA is they're pushing the female-MMA - Ronda (Rousey) technically the pound-for-pound best fighter," Bocek told The MMA Hour. "We'll put experienced, accomplished male MMA fighters on undercards but we'll put females who started training last year in the co-main event. That direction was part of the persuasion that forced me to get out."
"It is difficult for an elite female MMA fighter to get in (the UFC), but if she has some decent skills and some cool bikini shots then she can get in."
I haven't read the article so if he addressed it, I apologize. That said, I think Womens MMA in the UFC should be given some slack. It's a division in MMA that's in it's relative infancy and it's just now gaining legitimacy in sports in general. It's no different than when MMA was just taking off with the beginning of the UFC. There were plenty of fighters that were mainly skilled with one discipline and training/conditioning was freeform from one fighter/gym to the next. There was no model "MMA Fighter" back then and you heard a lot of "Styles make fights" comments when it was clear these fighters weren't skilled in multiple Martial Arts.
I feel it's at that point with Womens MMA, a small pool of fighters starting their career with a base in a single Martial Art and working on expanding as they go along. IMO with enough time, it'll be no different than the mens MMA trajectory took when it went through multiple phases of development.
I'd suggest everyone check out the the entire interview on the MMA Hour. Good listen. He comes across as a thoughtful, respectful guy, and you could tell he was almost holding his tongue. I was surprised when he made a not-so-veiled comment about someone who trains judo all her life facing someone who took up MMA two years ago in a main event. It was straightforward, and kind of put the ridiculous disparity between the men's and women's divisions in perspective. Almost got the feeling this was as big of a kick and the dick as the PED issue for him.
Unfortunately, this comment came just as they were wrapping up the interview. I wish he could have expanded on his thoughts a bit more.
DCyrus - I haven't read the article so if he addressed it, I apologize. That said, I think Womens MMA in the UFC should be given some slack. It's a division in MMA that's in it's relative infancy and it's just now gaining legitimacy in sports in general. It's no different than when MMA was just taking off with the beginning of the UFC. There were plenty of fighters that were mainly skilled with one discipline and training/conditioning was freeform from one fighter/gym to the next. There was no model "MMA Fighter" back then and you heard a lot of "Styles make fights" comments when it was clear these fighters weren't skilled in multiple Martial Arts.
I feel it's at that point with Womens MMA, a small pool of fighters starting their career with a base in a single Martial Art and working on expanding as they go along. IMO with enough time, it'll be no different than the mens MMA trajectory took when it went through multiple phases of development.
I believe Ariel made a similar point in defense of WMMA during the interview. Like I said, worth a listen.
The reality is there would be no WMMA in the UFC if not for Ronda. Dana said as much when he announced the implementation of the division 1.5 years ago. I know it's been beaten to death, but I think the product, if still developing, is much better packaged as it's own league. Bocek made a similar point in the interview. I think it's an insult to the product when you inter-splice a borderline amateur product with the best fighters on the planet in the same card.