http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2009/9/2/1012524/jas…
With the upcoming second season of MTV’s
Bully Beatdown descending upon us, Miller is making the rounds in
the interview circuit. Journalists have asked him similar questions
before, but I found this response to be relatively fresh:
[QUOTE] You’ve had one fight in the UFC, a
loss to Georges St Pierre. Do you want to get back to the
UFC? Not really. Everybody talks about the
UFC. I really respect the fighters in the
UFC, and they are the biggest show in the
United States, but to me everything is a business decision. When
it’s worth it to them for me to be in there and it’s worth it to me
for me to be in there, then I’ll go.
Notice how he twice says the UFC is the
biggest show in the United States, not worldwide. Clearly their
popularity abroad waxes and wanes depending on which country you go
to, but popularity aside, there isn’t a bigger or more important
show than the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
But I buy his point about trade-offs to some extent. Mayhem is
able to brand and sell himself while offering a respectable level
of talent (if something shy of top ten material) in a sport where
both talents are coveted. And while Mayhem certainly has a flair
for the dramatic, he does by and large fight tough, credible
opposition. However, what track is he on? He can win lesser belts
and line his pockets, but he’s not divisionally asserting himself
as many of his UFC counterparts are doing. No
one has to follow such a path and clearly Miller is making a fine
living for himself without doing so. Perhaps more fighters should
follow his lead. I tend to think, though, that UFC fighters who are serious and capable aren’t operating
in a similar model as Miller’s. I judge neither as superior to the
other depending on needs and goals.