Why Not Make Non-Title Fights Five Rounds?

We’ve seen it time and time again: fights that are big enough (Wanderlei Silva-Chuck Liddell) or competitive enough (Clay Guida-Diego Sanchez) that it’s a shame that they aren’t five round title fights.  So far, the rules of mixed martial arts have done a pretty good job of evolving along with the sport, as we’ve recently seen with the announcement that all of Strikeforce’s female bouts will have five-minute rounds.  However, it’s clear that with some fights, three rounds just aren’t enough, and something should be done about that.

I’ve been thinking about writing this column for awhile, but nothing had happened recently to really drive home the point.  I knew I’d get back to thinking about the need for five round fights outside of title bouts by the time that Randy Couture vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira came around, but the fight between Guida and Sanchez on Saturday night provides a perfect example.

Here we had a spectacular fight which may have even determined the number one contender for the UFC Lightweight Championship (unless the also-deserving Frankie Edgar gets it), where both fighters looked more than ready to go two more rounds at the end of the third stanza.  Instead of getting an opportunity to let the fighters decide the outcome themselves, we had to go to the judges for a split decision. 
Who wouldn’t have loved to see two more rounds of that fight?  I know that I would have.  There are more reasons for five round bouts outside of title fights than mere entertainment value, however.

First of all, it’s a mathematical truth that you will simply get less decision outcomes, and of those decisions, less controversial decisions with a five-round fight.  Look at Saturday’s fight, for example.  With two extra rounds, maybe one of the two would finally run out of steam, allowing the other to capitalize.  Otherwise, Guida was looking much better in the third round than he did in the first, which he lost by a 10-8 margin in the opinions of many.  Perhaps he would have continued to beat Sanchez in rounds four and five?  Again, we’ll never know.  In general though, less decisions are a good thing, and with five round fights, you’ll have less of them for sure.

Secondly, MMA athletes have evolved past the point where fifteen minutes of fighting represents some kind of realistic limit.  For the most part, having fighters gas in the second or third round is a thing of the past.  Sure, you’ll still see fighters on the undercard gas out inside of three rounds, but the upper echelon of fighters will not be in that category, and those are the ones that should be fighting five rounds, anyway.  The top fighters in the world are more than capable of fighting for twenty-five minutes, and they should do so.

Finally, it just makes sense to allow the fans to see more of the fights that they want to see the most in the first place.  When you’re paying for a UFC pay-per-view largely on the appeal of a Wanderlei Silva-Rich Franklin fight, you would obviously rather see two more rounds of that matchup than an extra preliminary bout, right?  Especially considering that there is a chance that the fight will come to a conclusion by knockout or submission in those two extra rounds.

We don’t have to make all MMA fights five rounds; though I wouldn’t mind seeing that happen, to be honest.  Why not make all main card fights five rounds, and leave the three round fights to the undercard?  Sure, there will occasionally be cases where three or four fights go to decision and we don’t see any preliminary bouts as a result, but that won’t happen often.  Most UFC fights tend to end within the given three rounds, anyway.  This will not only allow more fights to be decided by the fighters themselves instead of the judges, but also help to show the UFC and the fans which fighters are really ready for a title shot.  If your up-and-coming fighter that’s a fight away from a title shot can’t go into the “championship rounds”, then obviously they shouldn’t be getting a shot.

At the very least, non-title UFC main events should be five round fights.  It’s a crime to see fights like Franklin-W. Silva and Guida-Sanchez go to the judges for controversial decisions, instead of giving the fighters two extra rounds to get the “W” themselves, and giving the fans a chance to see more of the fights that they’re most excited about in the first place.

by Jon Hartley for Fightmania.com

Tags: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Chuck Liddell, Clay Guida, Diego Sanchez, Frankie Edgar, Randy Couture, Rich Franklin, Strikeforce, UFC, Wanderlei Silva