maybe i should start writing columns about stuff i don't know about.

Underboss MMAfia

Head of the West Coast Family
2x Ultimate Challenge Champion

sodomy with goats in grocery store parking lots ... i dont know thing 1 about it but think it would make a good read ... unfortunately it won't cause a lot of webtraffic

maybe if i threw together MMA, notre dame, the yankees, and paris hilton i could come up with something that would create all kinds of hits though

Bosco,
I'd read it...the article about sodomy with goats in parking lots that is...

don't know if anyone sent the dude an email but i did...

"It's why ESPN the Magazine featured ultimate fighter Kimbo Slice on its cover."

correction: "It's why ESPN the Magazine featured mixed martial artist Kimbo Slice on its cover."

..because not every fighter who fights is an ultimate fighter. These are mixed martial artists. There game is MMA. The UFC crowns an Ultimate Fighting champion while EliteXC crowns an EliteXC champion. A fighter who does not fight in the UFC is not an ultimate fighter. I know, ultimate fighting is way easier to say than mixed martial artist...

"I think we can agree that for all the various reasons we might be attracted to blood sports — the incredible dedication, the athleticism, the nobleness of competition — it's the blood we're after most."

I'm looking for a good fight. Blood or no blood it doesn't make a difference for me. I didn't become a fan of MMA for blood. Nor do I not enjoy boxing like I once did for a lack of blood. I prefer MMA because the fight can go more places than in boxing. I can only watch two people punch each other in the face so long. KO's are exciting, it's sudden and a decisive way to win. But submissions are just as exciting. There are a ton of ways to finish a fight. I feel you simply don't understand the ground game well enough to appreciate it. There is a learning curve, but Joe Rogan does a heck of a job telling you whats going on while the fighters are on the ground. You might learn that instead of just "breathing on each other" the two fighters are working for position and setting up submissions. The ground game is technical. Everyone understands a punch and a kick. It takes time to learn what you are seeing while the fight is on the ground.
But with your statement, " Watching one opponent put another in a chokehold leaves me feeling empty." Then I don't know if you are all that interested in learning more about the ground game and you are satisfied writing columns about a sport that you have little knowledge about. Your column does not stand out from the rest of the others that bash MMA, you haven't said anything original or said anything that would make people think. It's just another run of the mill article that will get a few extra clicks because you mentioned ultimate fighter Kimbo Slice.

Thank you,

Garrett Bailey

Underboss MMAfia

Head of the West Coast Family
2x Ultimate Challenge Champion

Very ncely done. I think you could have ended the email with a real umph if you had written "the pound-for-pound best ultimate fighter Kimbo Slice"....

Let us know if you get a response.

that's why you're the pro

i hope i get a response...

Underboss MMAfia

Head of the West Coast Family
2x Ultimate Challenge Champion

What's funny about the column is he keeps telling us he watches MMA all the time. Is it possible to watch for years and not learn to appreciate the ground game?

it's not like you had to be a fan of mma since 93, for some that is kinda impossible...i was like 6 years old. i liked candy and ninja turtles. for me, it took me only like 2 UFC's to know the basic submissions and half understand the ground game...there is too many fights that go to the ground where he should know by now what is going on and not be thinking that all they are doing is breathing on each other. breathing while advancing positions and going for mount, yes, breathing just to breath and stare into your opponents eyes...sounds like he's not real comfortable with 2 dudes grappling each other...probably some other issues he's having...

Underboss MMAfia

Head of the West Coast Family
2x Ultimate Challenge Champion

nice...mine sucks, can i get my email back? haha

Underboss MMAfia

Head of the West Coast Family
2x Ultimate Challenge Champion

MMA is like Baseball wrapped up with a nice dose of violence ( it is afterall, fighting). You have to be a little hard-core to enjoy the sport enough to follow it closely and appreciate the nuances and technical side of things. Much of the 'excitement' is in the very subtle technical aspect of a 'pitching duel' where there might be no action whatsoever for the casual observer, but at the same time a the hard-core enthusiast is beaming with excitement seeing a submissions expert work in to positions and ultimately pull off an finishing move. Most non-hard core fans will get bored watching a majority of games of baseball and prefer only to see the highlights of all the games wrapped up in to a 5 min segment video of double plays and home runs. Just like the KO, the HR is what mass-appeals. Everyone gets it, just like everyone gets a KO. But seeing a pitcher work over batter after batter forcing them in to groud-outs or fly balls is where the true hard-core baseball enthusiest is most excited... and the casual fan gets bored.

Still shocking to see people CLAIM to watch mma for years, but then make references like, ultimate fighter Kimbo Slice...".