FRAT
Pre-USADA, post-USADA. The monikers we have chosen to designate timelines of the UFC into two very different categories.
When I look back on the days I hold so dear, the pride days, it is clear it was a very dirty time. If you haven't, YouTube "the smashing machine." I think it is a real glimpse into the madness that was early high level mma. After you've finished that depressing piece of history, mosey on over to fight pass and watch some Japanese classics. These were the days legends were born, where the reality of combat at a high level was cemented into our minds, where GOAT arguments that still hold weight were started. The UFC in the early-mid 2000s, same thing.
Kerr, Coleman, Randleman, Wandy, Sapp, Cro cop, Baroni, Sherk, Jackson, Barnett, Shamrock, Lombard, Belfort, Lesnar, Overeem, Palhares, Coleman, Kerr, Romero, Alves, Mir, Arona, Tibau, Mendes, Cyborg. Just a few names on a list. No reason.
My question is this, do you think the sport we love today would look the same if we lived in a world where PEDS and MMA weren't synonymous? If the answer is no, could you argue that the usage of PEDS was a good thing for the evolution of the sport ?