UFC 92: Why is Yushin Okami Fighting on the Undercard?

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The UFC has always been filled with ups and downs, surprises and disappointments.  Many times, moves that are made, make perfect sense, at other times they make absolutely no sense at all.  Allow me to paint a picture if you will. 

Many fight fans can recall the less than exciting, overly disappointing, recent match between Anderson Silva and Patrick Cote.  An injury ended a fight that never really began on that night.  While Cote took Silva further in a match than he had been in his UFC career, the complaints about this fight far outweigh the highlights.

What some fight fans may not know is that Cote should have never been in the ring with Silva.  This is not a knock on his skill level, but simply to point out the fact that Silva was scheduled to fight another fighter on that night.  A fighter that had won against him before. 

Yushin Okami was to be Silva’s most recent opponent.  An injury prohibited him from competing, and he was withdrawn from the title fight opportunity he had worked very hard to earn.  While injuries are nothing new to the fighters and the fans, this injury changed the path to a shot at greatness for Okami. 

Cote was the backup plan for the UFC.  Honestly, he never belonged in the ring with Silva, that is a knock on his skill level.  Other than a solid chin, he had nothing Silva wasn’t able to handle with ease.  While Cote is a great “filler” fighter, he is no champion.  He has lost five of his nine fights in the UFC, Silva included in that total.  How was this fight even justified?  One has to wonder. 

Yushin made his UFC debut in August of ’06 against Alan Belcher.  He has only lost one time in his UFC career.  That loss came at the hands of none other than Rich Franklin.  A man who’s only  UFC losses came from the utter devastation Anderson Silva bestowed upon him, not once but twice.  Talk about kryptonite. 

Although Yushin suffered his only UFC loss to Franklin, he did quite well in the fight.  He nearly submitted Franklin in the closing seconds but was stopped due to the round ending.  Let’s face it though, losing to Rich Franklin is not an embarrassment.  Holding your own with him is quite to the contrary, win lose or draw.

So far in the UFC, Okami is 7-1.  His most recent list of opponents include Mike Swick, Jason Macdonald, the late Evan Tanner, and of course the Ace.  Two of those gents, held UFC gold around their waists in their careers.  His record is quite impressive at 23-4.  Consider that Franklin only carries 25-3.  Okami has been putting together a great resume, does not get a lot of credit for it, and truly is under rated.    

As mentioned earlier, Yushin does hold a win over Anderson Silva, in another promotion.  Do not let that win fool you though.  The win was due to an illegal leg strike by Silva to a downed opponent, Okami.  Immediately disqualifying Silva.  Not an impressive win, but a W in the right column none the less.  It really was Silva’s fight to lose either way.

Simply put, Okami is the the best of the possible choices in the Middleweight Division, that is not tied up in some way shape or form, to fight Silva for his title.  This is not the topic of the article though.  That fight may happen, but it is doubtful given the lack of drawing power vs. some of the possibilities if Silva moves up.  A  good topic for another article. 

This article is about the disposal of Okami from the spotlight, and the brushing under the rug of a number one contender who is less than marketable.  If the name was Bisping, this fight would have already happened.  Taking that a step further, a special overseas card would have been developed to make it happen.

On to UFC 92.  Quite possibly the most exciting fight card of the decade, and hands down the best this year.  Now that he is healthy and after some background on Okami, one might figure he is still right there in the mix for not only title contention, but to be marketed a bit as well.

He is a big middle weight, of Japanese descent, who fights an exciting style not common for a Japanese fighter.  He has very strong wrestling, Jiu Jitsu, and loves to ground and pound.  He comes to bang and roll, a nice recipe for an exciting fighter. 

For a sport that hinges on the word martial arts, the Japanese are few and far between in the UFC.  There are some great Japanese fighters, but not many in the spotlight here in the states.  The sport is huge in Japan, and the Japanese are some of the best, loyal, and most knowledgeable fans out there. 

Pushing Okami into the light should bode well for the UFC and their new plan to go more global.  There is no better fan base to market to, and Okami would make a great face for the UFC to push, if he were to remain succesful.  Not unlike what has been done in the UK with Bisping.  Why is he not part of the design of their plans?  The UFC doesn’t check the mail without a plan.  Perhaps now is not the time, but this man has proven he is capable of competing at a high level, and succeeding there as well. 

He is fighting on the UFC 92 card.  If your not a loyal follower, you would never know.  He is fighting Dean Lister, a decent fighter, but this fight has no implications whatsoever.  To add insult to injury, this fight is being fought on the undercard.  The Ultimate Fighter loser from last season is fighting on the main card, but Okami is getting pushed to the bottom?  Okami’s fight will not even be televised, unless the main event fights happen to be shortened significantly via KO or submission, so as to allow under-card fights to fill air time.

Allow me to recap.  Yushin Okami, a fighter with a great overall record, was scheduled to fight one of the greatest fighters of our generation,  Anderson Silva for his belt.  Okami is injured and cannot compete.  A lesser backup fighter replaces Okami.  Now Okami is slated to fight a lesser known, non marketable fight, with a less than stellar opponent compared to Silva.  This fight is to be held on the under-card of the biggest UFC fight of the year. 

Wait a minute!  Seriously?  How does this guy go from number one contender to under-card filler without ever losing a fight?  Can this one be explained in words that dont include the term pay per view buys? 

Even PPV buys isn’t the best of excuses.  Is C.B. Dalloway any better of a draw than anyone else?  Well, I guess his 1-1 UFC record, and 8-2 overall definitely trumps that measly 7-1, 23-4 that Okami is carrying around.  Dalloway is fighting on the main card, while a number one contender to the Middleweight Crown is left as an extra, a throw away.  This is a damn shame to say the least.  Would Rashad, Alves, or Florian fight on an under-card.  Of course not.  What is the difference here? 

It proves a common theory, that not only are fighter rankings invalid in the UFC, but to take it a step further, even the belts are somewhat without value.  Consider that the very fact that Anderson Silva is willing to move up to 205, and leave his belt behind is proof of that comment.  Shouldn’t that belt be his primary motivation in this sport?  Not super fights, not heavy PPV payouts.  His champions status, his legacy, his pride should be paramount, not dollars that don’t make sense. 

How much is enough Zuffa?  How much will it take to level the playing field?

Alas, folks this is the UFC.  Decisions are made from the wallet, not the brain.  After all this is a business, and the motive is money.  That is obviously understandable.  Something is starting to stink up the room though.  That is the fact that fights are being put together that are more geared at popularity, not entitlement.  There is a delicate balance there.  There is a chemistry to it all, there always has been.  The danger is in leaning too far to one side of the equation. 

If a man like Okami fights his whole life to claw his way to the once in a lifetime chance at a belt, or even a top ten ranking he deserves everything that comes along with that.  High profile fights included. 

Another way of putting that is to say, like Brock Lesnar all you have to do is be a recognizable figure, who has no experience in the sport whatsoever, and you get a title shot after less than one year of training.  Can you see the conflict of interests there?

The UFC must find some balance and play their cards with a little more consistency.  It is becoming painfully obvious what they are doing to the hardcore MMA fan.  They are force feeding us orchestrated record breaking pay per views, all the while forgoing the rankings system based on a fighters hard work and accomplishments.  This is not the first time, it surely will not be the last.  Hopefully the UFC will turn it around, and start recognizing what it is that is happening to their organization. 

Simply put, its starting to look very WWE.  Orchestrated match ups, with orchestrated endings, all intended to appease the simple minds.  Drama, not fights.  Fiction, not fact.  Our Heavyweight champ got his title shot after four fights, one of which he lost.  Okami, has fought 27 fights and won 24, and may never get a shot.  Now you tell me, is something wrong with this?  Or am I trying too hard to see through the trees?

Todd enjoys the MMA fight game tremendously. Not only the physical and entertainment side of things, but also the philisophical, historical, and business side of MMA. Todd will be covering any wide variety of these topics here on Inside Fights, and loves a great discussion. Share your thoughts, whether you agree or not. Your input is not only appreciated but requested. Let us know what you think!