Back Talk: Jason Burgos’ Mailbag
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Welcome, mixed martial arts aficionados, to the latest edition of Back Talk. Surprisingly, the topics for this mailbag column do not focus on UFC 247. With that said, I wanted to take this opportunity to stand at my digital pulpit of opinion and ask you, dear reader, a question: Has Dominick Reyes turned Jon Jones into the babyface of their clash?
For the uninitiated, babyface is a professional wrestling term
signifying the hero. Jones is one of the most divisive figures in
this sport’s history. He is undoubtedly popular and a fighter many
consider to the greatest of all-time. However, from his suspensions
and transgressions outside the cage to adding “picogram” to the MMA
lexicon, he almost has an equal number of detractors. Much of the
public seemed to get behind Daniel
Cormier, Anthony
Smith, Thiago
Santos and Alexander
Gustafsson when they confronted Jones. That has not necessarily
been the case with Reyes once the microphones and tape recorders
were thrown in front of him.
In that time, Reyes has questioned Jones’ boxing skills, claimed he has purposely taken eye pokes in preparation for the champion, suggested previous “Bones” opponents had bought into his hype and placed his athleticism above that of Cormier, Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida and Ovince St. Preux. While his bravado almost seems disconnected from the reality of the monumental task ahead of him, it surely makes for a fascinating battle. How will the crowd react once both men enter the cage?
Kowboy Asks: “What do you think of Kamaru Usman and Jorge Masvidal getting into a verbal altercation? Wolf tickets to promote their fight?”
Burgos: Under normal instances, I would say you’re on to something with those WolfHub tickets, especially if Colby Covington was involved. However, both men have recent histories of public confrontations outside of the cage. In April, Usman and his manager had an altercation with the aforementioned Covington in, of all places, a Palm Springs buffet line. Remember, this was eight months before the two ever met in the cage. Masvidal—he of street fighting legend—had given the ol’ three-piece and a soda a month before to Leon Edwards following his starching of Darren Till in London. Usman and Masvidal are just two individuals open to airing their personal grievances in a public setting, million-dollar bouts and good public relations be damned. In my opinion, the marketing wolves were not out for their Super Sunday bruhaha. It was just an example of two guys being themselves, for better or worse.
* * *
CyrusTheVyrus Asks: “Who should Mauricio Rua fight in his retirement fight?”
Burgos: The thought of “Shogun” retiring is a sad day for the sport of MMA, and it hurts my soul. He truly is one of the last vestiges of a long-dead era that will likely never be surpassed in this journalist’s heart. Considering that Rua is limited by his contract, I won’t go the route of perfect-world fantasy booking. However, there really aren’t many opponents in the UFC 205-pound division that make a lot of sense for Rua in a possible sendoff fight. For me, only two fighters fit the bill. The first would be Glover Teixeira. Yes, he is already booked to face Anthony Smith in April, but I doubt Rua is in a rush to call it a career ASAP. A clash between two of the better light heavyweights of the last decade in the twilight of their careers while they are still relevant would be fun. It’s not every day that a fight between a 40-year-old and a 38-year-old wouldn’t be seen as a total Bellator senior circuit fight. Option 2 would be Johnny Walker. Let’s go all in with the fan-favorite Brazilian berserker of the 2000s versus his successor of the 2020s. Walker already has a strong following, and a win over a legend like Rua would be the perfect addition to his resume. It would provide the Ultimate Fighting Championship booking crew with some ammunition to restore his name; and in the event “Shogun” somehow pulled out a win over these Top 15 fighters, what a fitting final chapter it would be for one of the best light heavyweights to ever do it.
* * *
Istryker Asks: “Who’s the greatest heavyweight to never win UFC gold?”
Burgos: Fedor Emelianenko and Mirko Filipovic seem like obvious choices, but the “The Last Emperor” sadly has never competed in the Octagon and “Cro Cop” put together a forgettable run in the organization that was far less impressive than his dominance in Pride Fighting Championships. With that in mind, I will keep my choices to fighters who actually competed in the promotion—and did some good things while there. For me it boils down to three names, because most fighters who were good enough to become UFC heavyweight champion eventually did so.
The first choice is Francis Ngannou. You’re probably thinking his becoming champion is an eventuality. Well, that was the line of thinking in January 2018, and things did not play out like some expected. He has certainly righted the ship since he suffered back-to-back losses, and he has looked even scarier in this second tear through the division. Still, it has already been proven that “The Predator” is not invincible, so until he does get that championship belt strapped to his waist by UFC President Dana White, he remains in that best-to-never-win-UFC-gold category.
Next up: Alistair Overeem. His reputation entering the UFC was almost as on par with that of Emelianenko, Filipovic and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. The onetime K-1 World Grand Prix winner and former Strikeforce heavyweight champion started his stint in the UFC by running through one of the most popular champions of his time: Brock Lesnar. Since then, he has gone 9-7, experiencing the highs of a title shot against Stipe Miocic and the lows of Ngannou turning him into a human Pez dispenser. Despite it all, he has consistently stayed in the Top 10, fought the best heavyweights in the world and been on the verge of a second title opportunity. He definitely makes the cut.
The last name I offer is old-school in nature. Shane Carwin was similar to Ngannou in the early 2000s—a beast of man who wielded second-to-none thump. He racked up 12 straight wins to start his career and earned his first loss in a near-miss title fight with Lesnar. He followed it with a loss to a future hall of famer in Junior dos Santos. Carwin then disappeared from the sport, never to be heard from again. He left the fight game at 36, an age in which heavyweights are typically in their prime. Carwin was one of the hardest hitters of all-time and had the wrestling pedigree to avoid being labeled a one-tricky pony. That makes him not only one of the best fighters to never win the UFC heavyweight title but one of the great what-ifs in MMA history.
Welcome, mixed martial arts aficionados, to the latest edition of Back Talk. Surprisingly, the topics for this mailbag column do not focus on UFC 247. With that said, I wanted to take this opportunity to stand at my digital pulpit of opinion and ask you, dear reader, a question: Has Dominick Reyes turned Jon Jones into the babyface of their clash?
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In that time, Reyes has questioned Jones’ boxing skills, claimed he has purposely taken eye pokes in preparation for the champion, suggested previous “Bones” opponents had bought into his hype and placed his athleticism above that of Cormier, Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida and Ovince St. Preux. While his bravado almost seems disconnected from the reality of the monumental task ahead of him, it surely makes for a fascinating battle. How will the crowd react once both men enter the cage?
Now to the mailbag:
Kowboy Asks: “What do you think of Kamaru Usman and Jorge Masvidal getting into a verbal altercation? Wolf tickets to promote their fight?”
Burgos: Under normal instances, I would say you’re on to something with those WolfHub tickets, especially if Colby Covington was involved. However, both men have recent histories of public confrontations outside of the cage. In April, Usman and his manager had an altercation with the aforementioned Covington in, of all places, a Palm Springs buffet line. Remember, this was eight months before the two ever met in the cage. Masvidal—he of street fighting legend—had given the ol’ three-piece and a soda a month before to Leon Edwards following his starching of Darren Till in London. Usman and Masvidal are just two individuals open to airing their personal grievances in a public setting, million-dollar bouts and good public relations be damned. In my opinion, the marketing wolves were not out for their Super Sunday bruhaha. It was just an example of two guys being themselves, for better or worse.
* * *
CyrusTheVyrus Asks: “Who should Mauricio Rua fight in his retirement fight?”
Burgos: The thought of “Shogun” retiring is a sad day for the sport of MMA, and it hurts my soul. He truly is one of the last vestiges of a long-dead era that will likely never be surpassed in this journalist’s heart. Considering that Rua is limited by his contract, I won’t go the route of perfect-world fantasy booking. However, there really aren’t many opponents in the UFC 205-pound division that make a lot of sense for Rua in a possible sendoff fight. For me, only two fighters fit the bill. The first would be Glover Teixeira. Yes, he is already booked to face Anthony Smith in April, but I doubt Rua is in a rush to call it a career ASAP. A clash between two of the better light heavyweights of the last decade in the twilight of their careers while they are still relevant would be fun. It’s not every day that a fight between a 40-year-old and a 38-year-old wouldn’t be seen as a total Bellator senior circuit fight. Option 2 would be Johnny Walker. Let’s go all in with the fan-favorite Brazilian berserker of the 2000s versus his successor of the 2020s. Walker already has a strong following, and a win over a legend like Rua would be the perfect addition to his resume. It would provide the Ultimate Fighting Championship booking crew with some ammunition to restore his name; and in the event “Shogun” somehow pulled out a win over these Top 15 fighters, what a fitting final chapter it would be for one of the best light heavyweights to ever do it.
* * *
Istryker Asks: “Who’s the greatest heavyweight to never win UFC gold?”
Burgos: Fedor Emelianenko and Mirko Filipovic seem like obvious choices, but the “The Last Emperor” sadly has never competed in the Octagon and “Cro Cop” put together a forgettable run in the organization that was far less impressive than his dominance in Pride Fighting Championships. With that in mind, I will keep my choices to fighters who actually competed in the promotion—and did some good things while there. For me it boils down to three names, because most fighters who were good enough to become UFC heavyweight champion eventually did so.
The first choice is Francis Ngannou. You’re probably thinking his becoming champion is an eventuality. Well, that was the line of thinking in January 2018, and things did not play out like some expected. He has certainly righted the ship since he suffered back-to-back losses, and he has looked even scarier in this second tear through the division. Still, it has already been proven that “The Predator” is not invincible, so until he does get that championship belt strapped to his waist by UFC President Dana White, he remains in that best-to-never-win-UFC-gold category.
Next up: Alistair Overeem. His reputation entering the UFC was almost as on par with that of Emelianenko, Filipovic and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. The onetime K-1 World Grand Prix winner and former Strikeforce heavyweight champion started his stint in the UFC by running through one of the most popular champions of his time: Brock Lesnar. Since then, he has gone 9-7, experiencing the highs of a title shot against Stipe Miocic and the lows of Ngannou turning him into a human Pez dispenser. Despite it all, he has consistently stayed in the Top 10, fought the best heavyweights in the world and been on the verge of a second title opportunity. He definitely makes the cut.
The last name I offer is old-school in nature. Shane Carwin was similar to Ngannou in the early 2000s—a beast of man who wielded second-to-none thump. He racked up 12 straight wins to start his career and earned his first loss in a near-miss title fight with Lesnar. He followed it with a loss to a future hall of famer in Junior dos Santos. Carwin then disappeared from the sport, never to be heard from again. He left the fight game at 36, an age in which heavyweights are typically in their prime. Carwin was one of the hardest hitters of all-time and had the wrestling pedigree to avoid being labeled a one-tricky pony. That makes him not only one of the best fighters to never win the UFC heavyweight title but one of the great what-ifs in MMA history.
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