Trash talk puts asses in seats and the UFC needs enough asses in seats to pay off a four billion dollar loan, which is a lot. MMA fighters who come from a tradition of martial arts characteristically prefer to approach the sport with dignity and integrity.
Demian Maia is the living embodiment of Jiu-Jitsu – he is calm and innovative and honorable and has been hit just 13 times in the last four fights. On a six-fight win streak, the welterweight wants the winner of division champion Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Thompson, who fight at UFC 209 on Sat., March 4. However, the UFC is offering him other fights. During a recent appearance on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour, Maia offered his explanation.
“I know why,” he said, as transcribed by Adam Guillen Jr. for MMA Mania. “There are two reasons. One, they really don’t care too much If I am going to fight for the title or not. But, the main reason is that they are having problems setting up fights. They have canceled a couple of events and they need names that can sell. I know even if they say I don’t sell, I know I sell something. I’m a name that can be a co-main event if not a main event with another guy people want to see. They need to book fights and I understand their rush for that.”
Further, Maia thinks the trash talk strategy is short sighted.
“That’s another thing I think is a mistake,” he said. “Every sport in the world, football, soccer, every sport that has many years and is consolidated, people like to watch because they want to see the winner. They don’t watch the NBA, or the Australian open in tennis because they want to see the guy who talks more or the guy is more outspoken. They want to see Federer and Nadal because they are the best. They don’t want to see someone just because they play more fancy.
“At the end of the day, who follows sport likes to see who wins. Some people like to see people who talk s***, but those are not the people who are going to carry on the sport forever. If we don’t change as we think as a sport, the sport will be remembered as a nice thing ten years from now, but it has gone. I don’t think it will last for sure like that. People watched the Super Bowl because they want to see the best teams, not go there to see who talked more or plays different, they want to see the best.
“The true fans of the sport are the ones that carry on this sport and will influence others to like. So I think it’s a lie when they say they are looking for money fights, that’s just looking for short-term things. If you just keep looking short term, I think you will ruin the sport and end up ruining UFC and people will start to just give up. People will realize it is not a sport anymore and you can not fool the people all the time.”
Still, Maia is confident that UFC president Dana White will follow through on the title shot. The sole exception he can see would be the return of former champion Georges St-Pierre.
Taking a longer view, while acknowleging the popularity of the King Trash Talker Conor McGregor, Maia points to the success of the respectful GSP as a sign that things don’t have to be this way. He wants the focus on the best athletes, not the noisiest. The alternative, he argues, is a future in which the UFC is remembered as just “another WWE.”
