“Do you really want to be on the wrong side of history?”
That was a question my brother once posed when we were discussing how silly it was people were going to vote for John McCain over Barack Obama in 2008. Obama was clearly going to win and with his priorities on the economy over the war he seemed like a more logical choice than McCain, but some people seemed to think McCain was the one. Of course this isn’t a political blog, but the question still holds a lot of weight in everything from politics to sports.
This Saturday is UFC 135 and features one of the most intriguing and exciting main events the Ultimate Fighting Championship will probably ever have. UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon “Bones” Jones defends his title against Quentin “Rampage” Jackson. Rampage is looking to become only the second man to be a two-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, and Bones Jones is looking to continue his quest to become the greatest talent mixed martial arts has ever seen. Predictions for the show will undoubtedly come later in the week, but I’ll state right now I both think and hope Rampage Jackson will lay out Jones to regain his belt. It is with that prediction I step back and think of Jimmy’s question: Do you really want to be on the wrong side of history?
I think of that question and I think of Michael Jordan. MJ is the undisputed greatest athlete in the history of any sport ever. Six championships in eight years, which could have easily been eight straight or even nine straight had he not retired, make him the leader of one of the NBA’s all time great dynasties. I think of how the Bulls made the 1991 NBA Finals and critics said Jordan was too selfish to win a title, but then he went out and the Bulls effectively ended Magic Johnson and the Lakers to become champs. I think of the 1992 NBA Finals in which people said Clyde Drexler was on Jordan’s level and the Portland Trailblazers could stop the Bulls from repeating as champions. I think of how in Game 1 Jordan scores 36 first half points and simply shrugs, cementing his place as the best in the world and Drexler’s inferiority. They won the title that year too, and again next year against a tough Phoenix Suns team people thought could give the Bulls a run for their money.
I think of the last two championships the Chicago Bulls won, in 1997 and 1998, and how there were people who really thought the Utah Jazz could beat them. In ’97 Jordan put on one of the two greatest performances in the history of the NBA when he scored 38 points in Game 5 despite being sick as hell and eventually propelled Chicago to a Game 6 championship win. Of course in 1998 age and injures slowed the Bulls big time, but they had one weapon no other team had: Michael fucking Jordan. In Game 6 Jordan puts on the other one of the two greatest performances in NBA history as the Bulls win title number six. Now I’m sure somebody is wondering why I just gave this longwinded explanation of the Bulls title wins. I’ll get to that.
Now we have Jon Jones. He is an incredible athletic specimen. He’s in great shape; he’s got great speed and great strength. His wrestling is good and his striking has proven to be vicious. If you’ve ever seen him fight then you’ve heard commentators Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg hype Jones up as the guy who very likely may go down as the greatest fighter ever. He has looked like a juggernaut in his first 14 fights, with his only loss coming after an illegal elbow during the midst of demolishing Matt Hamill. Jones has 8 wins by way of knockout and 3 by submission. Everybody he has faced has been beaten and beaten badly. And he is very young, so as he gets older and moves closer to his prime he’s only getting better. It is because of this that I start to wonder if I’m making the right pick.
But there is a chance I’m not wrong. When you look at the list of people Jones has beaten, it isn’t particularly impressive. His big standout win is the one over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua for the championship, but once you get past the surface the win isn’t that impressive. Shogun’s legs were badly hobbled going into the fight and he looked to be in piss poor shape. He had no stamina and no lower half of his leg and clearly had no chance. Of course I went against history and picked Shogun to win because he was amazing back in the day, but that’s not the case anymore. I was in denial at the time and thought he could slow down Jones’ meteoric rise to the top. Whoops.
Shogun’s injuries proved to be too much for him to overcome and he shouldn’t have even been in the octagon fighting. Jones completely overwhelmed him en route to becoming champion. A win over a legend like Shogun Rua makes your legacy, but when you realize Rua was in no condition to even fight it weakens the moment. Jones fought sloppy in that fight and Rua took his back on several occasions, Rua was so small and weak he couldn’t capitalize. That right there serves as my hope that I’m not betting against history by picking Rampage Jackson this Saturday.
If Jones gets inside, tries one of those spinning elbows, and Rampage ends up taking his back he won’t just hold Jones there like Shogun did. Rampage is well known for once having devastating slams, and with the title on the line in such a big moment, I doubt he’d forget about using them. Rampage also has devastating boxing, with an uppercut that could stop a train. Jones has never been hit so we have no idea what his chin is like. If Rampage belts him in the jaw, Jones could very likely be taking a nap. But that’s when I stop and think.
What about those people who said Jordan was too selfish to win in ’91? What about the people who said Drexler could take Jordan off his throne in ’92? What about people who thought Charles Barkley and the Suns could stop the Bulls from getting the historic “three-peat” in 1993? The 1996 Bulls were the greatest team ever so there was no real doubt, but what about the people in ’97 and ’98 who thought John Stockton, Karl Malone, and their coach Jerry Sloan were destined to finally become NBA Champions? Imagine how foolish all of those doubters must have felt by the end of June in 1998. They must have felt like the biggest assholes ever since here they were constantly betting against a guy who ended up being the greatest basketball player of all time.
For the second straight fight now, I’m betting against the fighter who could potentially go down as the best. But Jones has yet to beat a real fighter in prime condition so who knows if the hype is deserved. Of course if Rampage loses a lot of people will say it is because he’s past his prime, but he’s still near the top of the division so should Jones win he’s still proven himself. And if Jones wins I once again have to sit here with egg on my face and claim to know and understand the sport but for some reason keep picking wrong when it comes to the new golden boy. With the potential happiness I’ll feel if I see Rampage Jackson land a few big punches, howl, and become the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, I will take the chance.
That was a question my brother once posed when we were discussing how silly it was people were going to vote for John McCain over Barack Obama in 2008. Obama was clearly going to win and with his priorities on the economy over the war he seemed like a more logical choice than McCain, but some people seemed to think McCain was the one. Of course this isn’t a political blog, but the question still holds a lot of weight in everything from politics to sports.
This Saturday is UFC 135 and features one of the most intriguing and exciting main events the Ultimate Fighting Championship will probably ever have. UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon “Bones” Jones defends his title against Quentin “Rampage” Jackson. Rampage is looking to become only the second man to be a two-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, and Bones Jones is looking to continue his quest to become the greatest talent mixed martial arts has ever seen. Predictions for the show will undoubtedly come later in the week, but I’ll state right now I both think and hope Rampage Jackson will lay out Jones to regain his belt. It is with that prediction I step back and think of Jimmy’s question: Do you really want to be on the wrong side of history?
I think of that question and I think of Michael Jordan. MJ is the undisputed greatest athlete in the history of any sport ever. Six championships in eight years, which could have easily been eight straight or even nine straight had he not retired, make him the leader of one of the NBA’s all time great dynasties. I think of how the Bulls made the 1991 NBA Finals and critics said Jordan was too selfish to win a title, but then he went out and the Bulls effectively ended Magic Johnson and the Lakers to become champs. I think of the 1992 NBA Finals in which people said Clyde Drexler was on Jordan’s level and the Portland Trailblazers could stop the Bulls from repeating as champions. I think of how in Game 1 Jordan scores 36 first half points and simply shrugs, cementing his place as the best in the world and Drexler’s inferiority. They won the title that year too, and again next year against a tough Phoenix Suns team people thought could give the Bulls a run for their money.
I think of the last two championships the Chicago Bulls won, in 1997 and 1998, and how there were people who really thought the Utah Jazz could beat them. In ’97 Jordan put on one of the two greatest performances in the history of the NBA when he scored 38 points in Game 5 despite being sick as hell and eventually propelled Chicago to a Game 6 championship win. Of course in 1998 age and injures slowed the Bulls big time, but they had one weapon no other team had: Michael fucking Jordan. In Game 6 Jordan puts on the other one of the two greatest performances in NBA history as the Bulls win title number six. Now I’m sure somebody is wondering why I just gave this longwinded explanation of the Bulls title wins. I’ll get to that.
Now we have Jon Jones. He is an incredible athletic specimen. He’s in great shape; he’s got great speed and great strength. His wrestling is good and his striking has proven to be vicious. If you’ve ever seen him fight then you’ve heard commentators Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg hype Jones up as the guy who very likely may go down as the greatest fighter ever. He has looked like a juggernaut in his first 14 fights, with his only loss coming after an illegal elbow during the midst of demolishing Matt Hamill. Jones has 8 wins by way of knockout and 3 by submission. Everybody he has faced has been beaten and beaten badly. And he is very young, so as he gets older and moves closer to his prime he’s only getting better. It is because of this that I start to wonder if I’m making the right pick.
But there is a chance I’m not wrong. When you look at the list of people Jones has beaten, it isn’t particularly impressive. His big standout win is the one over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua for the championship, but once you get past the surface the win isn’t that impressive. Shogun’s legs were badly hobbled going into the fight and he looked to be in piss poor shape. He had no stamina and no lower half of his leg and clearly had no chance. Of course I went against history and picked Shogun to win because he was amazing back in the day, but that’s not the case anymore. I was in denial at the time and thought he could slow down Jones’ meteoric rise to the top. Whoops.
Shogun’s injuries proved to be too much for him to overcome and he shouldn’t have even been in the octagon fighting. Jones completely overwhelmed him en route to becoming champion. A win over a legend like Shogun Rua makes your legacy, but when you realize Rua was in no condition to even fight it weakens the moment. Jones fought sloppy in that fight and Rua took his back on several occasions, Rua was so small and weak he couldn’t capitalize. That right there serves as my hope that I’m not betting against history by picking Rampage Jackson this Saturday.
If Jones gets inside, tries one of those spinning elbows, and Rampage ends up taking his back he won’t just hold Jones there like Shogun did. Rampage is well known for once having devastating slams, and with the title on the line in such a big moment, I doubt he’d forget about using them. Rampage also has devastating boxing, with an uppercut that could stop a train. Jones has never been hit so we have no idea what his chin is like. If Rampage belts him in the jaw, Jones could very likely be taking a nap. But that’s when I stop and think.
What about those people who said Jordan was too selfish to win in ’91? What about the people who said Drexler could take Jordan off his throne in ’92? What about people who thought Charles Barkley and the Suns could stop the Bulls from getting the historic “three-peat” in 1993? The 1996 Bulls were the greatest team ever so there was no real doubt, but what about the people in ’97 and ’98 who thought John Stockton, Karl Malone, and their coach Jerry Sloan were destined to finally become NBA Champions? Imagine how foolish all of those doubters must have felt by the end of June in 1998. They must have felt like the biggest assholes ever since here they were constantly betting against a guy who ended up being the greatest basketball player of all time.
For the second straight fight now, I’m betting against the fighter who could potentially go down as the best. But Jones has yet to beat a real fighter in prime condition so who knows if the hype is deserved. Of course if Rampage loses a lot of people will say it is because he’s past his prime, but he’s still near the top of the division so should Jones win he’s still proven himself. And if Jones wins I once again have to sit here with egg on my face and claim to know and understand the sport but for some reason keep picking wrong when it comes to the new golden boy. With the potential happiness I’ll feel if I see Rampage Jackson land a few big punches, howl, and become the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, I will take the chance.
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