UFC 123: Rampage vs Machida Edition of the Monday Morning Quarterback: End of an Era

Everyone likes to be ahead of the curve. In fact, I'm certain that's how the whole "Machida era" meme got started to begin with, but we'll talk about that later. Like I was saying, everyone likes to be ahead of the curve, so it's hard for me to say with 100 percent certainty that my "Machida will be beaten" was a matter of my analysis or the inherent desire in most human beings to be "first" to a conclusion or, just simply, a way for me to be an agent provocateur to the suddenly overloaded Machida bandwagon. Though I'd like to think it was strictly analytical, I'm more than willing to concede that it was a combination of all three (maybe 65%, 10%, 25%). Be that as it may, I predicted a while ago that the daunted Machida was beatable. 

We are all familiar with Machida's work in the UFC, utilizing an agonizingly boring style of defensive offense until the Thiago Silva fight where it seemed he finally got some testosterone and showed aggression. He was the next opponent against Rashad Evans and while many gave Rashad no chance, I was hopeful that Rashad (and the so-called King of Gameplans, Greg Jackson) would be able to come up with a great way to use Rashad's skills to beat Machida. I thought that because I had came up with what I thought would be (and actually turned out kind of similar) the style to beat Machida and I'm no gameplanner. Of course, Machida destroyed Rashad in 2 rounds. Joe Rogan exclaimed it was "the Machida era" in one of many UFC marketing tools to flop. He then fought Shogun winning a CLOSE decision and ultimately getting KO'd in the 2nd one. Going into his last match with Rampage, many gave the normally slow-footed and plodding Jackson no chance to defeat the swift Machida. Oh, but defeat he did and that has left a few people with a bitter taste in their mouths (no not Machida urine).

So how did this era get started? Was it even an "era". Was it Joe Rogan's call? Actually it goes back farther than that. Looking back at what I said earlier, it is intrinsic in human nature to be first. When calling the front seat, we yell out Shotgun. When it's choo-choo time, you undoubtedly want to be first. We as humans get so upset at not being first, we make up stupid songs avoid of logic like "First is the worst, second is the best, third is the one with the hairy chest". How is first the worst? Anyway, it's our nature to be first. MMA fans take that to a different level of elitism. In a sport where you seemingly are "cooler" the longer you've followed it, everyone jumps at the chance to crown a prospect the new "Next Big Thing".

I remember hearing about Machida while in college, but never being able to see a fight of his until the BJ fight. (I can bet you right now, there's someone reading this saying "I knew about Machida every since he was a young boy".) Not really impressed that he couldn't finish a man he outweighed by 20 plus pounds who only weighed that much after gaining 40 lbs, I caught back up with him in his only WFA match. This is when the little sparks of fandom started to pop up. it wasn't loud, but I distinctly remember a couple of people on the DVDVR MMA board being on Machida's bandwagon. I watched him get decision after decision in the UFC and while impressed with his apparent skills, I wasn't impressed by his....uh, performance.

By the Sokoudjou fight, it was ridiculous. People were begging for him to get a title shot. His bandwagon swelled with mainly people who liked him simply because he was, I guess, what a martial artist ooks like/acts like. He wasn't TIto Ortiz, he wasn't Chuck Liddell, he wasn't Rashad Evans. By bandwagon, I'm talking the IMMAC, not the live crowd as he wasn't really cheered until he finished Thiago. Everybody wanted to be t he guy who saw him first. "I was a Machida fan since blha blah", "No, I was." I felt like Arnold in Kindergarten Cop. SHUT UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUP.

Then it got worse once he won and Joe said "the Machida era". Every messaageboard was clogged with threads about Machida. 'Machida will be undefeated', 'Who can beat Machida?', 'Machida vs Fedor: Unbiased Analysis'. And on and on and on. It seemed like this era would never end. Oh but from the East came a warrior, a Shogun. After the debacle in the first fight, those same Machida fans fell silent  They knew that they were given the title gift-wrapped and when Dana said "instant rematch", they weren't too happy about that development. The threads slowed down, people's sigs changed. After Shogun KO'd Machida, it was like a ghost town for Machida fans. It looked like a traffic stop in El Paso the way everyone was hopping off the bandwagon. 

And yet when the Rampage/Machida fight was scheduled, people were ecstatic. Here is Quinton Jackson who just got beat by the guy Machida destroyed. Quinton Jackson, fat and lazy and unmotivated. Quinton Jackson, who's been promoting a movie. Quinton Jackson, who's always been slow and plodding on the feet. It was like Dana White was booking Rampage to lose to "humble" him. It was almost safe for those gophers to stick their heads out of the holes. Well "Rampage" came down with the hammer and crushed those dreams. Slow, plodding, fat, lazy and unmotivated Rampage beat Machida. The last few remaining bandwagoners began to play the  trumpet of "bad judging" but their sour notes fell on deaf ears. If it wasn't clear at UFC 113, it was abundantly clear now, the "Machida era" was over, as if it hadn't even begun at all. Did it even? 

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