Why Shouldn’t Hughes, Liddell Continue Fighting?

Some may have been surprised by Matt Hughes’ recent statements (made in an interview with MMA FanHouse) that he plans to continue fighting and would even like rematches against Thiago Alves and current UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre.  While I don’t know that I really want to see Hughes-GSP 4, I like that Hughes seems to want to continue fighting no matter the outcome of his fight with Matt Serra. 

I realize that many MMA fans would disagree with this feeling, as many of them would also be perplexed by my thoughts that Chuck Liddell doesn’t need to retire.  This is because of a fundamental difference of opinion between myself and them (and even the fighters and them) regarding why fighters fight in the first place.

If you look at it as if fighters shouldn’t continue competing when they no longer have a reasonable chance to win a world championship, then yes, Hughes and Liddell should retire.  So should just about every fighter in the world outside of the top five or ten in every weight division, and everyone not named “Anderson Silva” at 185 pounds.  However, I know that fighters don’t think that way, and there’s no reason that they should think that way, either.

Chuck Liddell wants to be the world champion again, sure.  But is that the only reason he fights?  I would suspect not, and his previous interviews and statements would seem to agree with my opinion.  Why should Liddell not be able to continue fighting?  Look at Matt Hughes, for example.  Right now he is at least two to three wins out of title contention, but his fight against Matt Serra (also not in the title picture right now) is an anticipated one, because of the history between the men and the fact that it is an intriguing matchup.

Can’t Liddell and others continue to have such fights?  We may very well have seen the last of Randy Couture and “Minotauro” Nogueira as UFC champions, but that doesn’t make their fight any less appealing.  I don’t have any problem with Liddell or others that are advancing in age (or declining in skill, as the case may be) continuing to fight.  Simply pair them with fighters of similar ability or age and make sure that the fight is a good matchup.

Contrast someone like Liddell, who is having trouble keeping up with the likes of Rashad Evans or Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, with a fighter like Ken Shamrock, who is having trouble even beating no-names and mediocre fighters at small shows.  If anything, Shamrock and others (Tank Abbott, anyone?) should be retiring.  Liddell, Hughes, and the rest shouldn’t be pushed into retirement simply because they can’t beat the top five guys in their weight classes.

Some would say that watching fighters compete when they are unlikely to ever get into title contention is “meaningless”, but those people are either hypocrites or are constantly disappointed, because the majority of the fights we see in the UFC or elsewhere have no real effect on the top ten rankings or title pictures.  If the only fights that should be seen were those directly affecting the titles themselves, we would miss out on some of the best fights.  Isn’t that what being an MMA fan is all about, anyway- watching a couple of fighters square off to see who’s best and who can overcome the challenges that the other fighter brings to the table?  Why does there have to be a title belt involved?

This thinking that fighters should retire as soon as they appear to be out of the title picture for good is small-minded and nonsensical.  The most important things should be whether a fighter still wants to compete, and whether the fans still want to see him do so.  Of course, whether a fighter is physically capable of competing is also of the utmost importance, but not faring well against the top fighters in your division doesn’t mean you’re incapable of competing at all.  Let’s let our former heroes and champions go out the way that they want to go out, and support their wishes to fight as long as they’re physically able and mentally willing to keep on competing.

by Jon Hartley for Fightmania.com

Tags: Anderson Silva, Chuck Liddell, Georges St. Pierre, Matt Hughes, Matt Serra, Randy Couture, Rashad Evans, Thiago Alves, UFC