More on Penn-St. Pierre, top P4P fighters and MMA on network TV

Georges St. Pierre is set to deliver a left to the face of BJ Penn during their fight last month. AP Josh Gross's Mailbag Submit a comment or question for Josh. Name: Email: Hometown: Question: SEND

With so many stories unfolding in the last 10 days, it felt appropriate to hit on a bunch of topics. Judging from the emails in my inbox, fight fans aren't sure where to focus. There's plenty of clutter from St. Pierre-Penn 2, some positive and negative reaction to my latest rankings, and a sense of excitement following news that MMA would return to CBS and Showtime.

I agree with you that the result of the Penn-St. Pierre fight was inevitable due to George's size, athletic, and technical advantages. However, I don't believe BJ came into this fight in his best cardiovascular condition. BJ seemed spent at the end of the 2nd. Watching the UFC Primetime shows, it appears that BJ's training camp was clearly inferior to George's. What's your opinion on BJ's strength and conditioning going into UFC 94?
-- Vincent, Springfield, Mass.

Tough to say. Both camps said Primetime wasn't an accurate depiction. Some reporters who visited Penn in Hawaii said he was in terrific shape. If he looked tired in the fight, it's because his emotions and St. Pierre's pressure got to him.

Also a note on UFC Primetime: it could've been so much more. While it was shot beautifully, all it felt like was a compilation of guys talking trash and training montages. And even the training sequences weren't all that inspiring. Episode 1 felt contrived with the interaction between Penn and UFC president Dana White. And the final portion of the three-part series didn't leave me chomping at the bit to watch them fight. (Training, trash talking, training, trash talking isn't inspiring stuff.)

Here's hoping the next Primetime follows the lead of HBO's 24/7 and tells the real story of the fighters.

I can't even believe this. Is it even possible that the NSAC will even do anything with BJ Penn's camp complaining?

I am sick and tired of this. GSP gave Penn the pounding of a lifetime. Grease or no grease he was outhustled and at his own game to boot. Do you really think Penn filing a complaint will warrant a serious investigation? I find it hard to believe they will change or overturn the decision of this fight. Phil Nurse is widely respected and I don't believe he did this intentional. I also don't believe that they had time to grease all of GSP's back. As much of a legend as Penn is, he is looking like a bully who cries after someone finally stand up and beats him up.

And this is because I have always liked both fighters.
-- Hilario Gonzalez, San Benito, Texas

I agree. At most Nurse and Greg Jackson will receive a strong censure. Per NSAC rules, the result of the fight can't be overturned.

Also, it's important to realize that St. Pierre has fought nine times in Nevada -- Penn twice, Matt Hughes, Josh Koscheck, Sean Sherk, Frank Trigg, Jason Miller, Jay Hieron, Karo Parisyan -- and NSAC executive director Keith Kizer rightly said the Quebecer doesn't have a history of greasing in Nevada.

My sense is Phil Nurse made a mistake. He was sloppy. And a as a result Penn's legs probably slid down St. Pierre's back a bit more effortlessly than expected. Was there something sinister afoot? I don't think so. Emerging facts might change my mind on that. But for now, I haven't seen or heard anything that leads me to believe otherwise.

In the end, I think this whole thing gets remembered as a footnote.

How well would BJ Penn actually perform at the welterweight division?

With all the talk between the superfight with GSP, I wondered to myself how would BJ actually stack up with the rest of the division? The UFC 94 fight went exactly how I thought it would except GSP was a bit more dominate than I expected. But how do you think BJ Penn would match up against Thiago Alves, Jon Fitch, and Josh Koscheck. I could actually see Penn losing to all three.
-- Greg

I think he would struggle against the best in the division. You're talking a group of strong grapplers who don't get tired. Not a nice combination for Penn.

Although he beat BJ, how in the world do you have GSP above Anderson Silva in your pound-for-pound rankings? GSP hasn't dominated the division like Anderson has yet, he beat a Penn that was fighting out of his weight class, and GSP has yet to fight in, and dominate, anyone outside of his weight class. I just don't, and can't, see justification for it.
-- Andy, Minneapolis

Outside of the slip up against Matt Serra, which was overwhelmingly answered, St. Pierre has been brilliant against the best in his division. There shouldn't be any doubt that since 2005, GSP has fought better opponents than Silva to pretty good results.

Since 2005, this is St. Pierre's history: Dave Strasser, Jason Miller, Frank Trigg, Sean Sherk, B.J. Penn, Matt Hughes, Matt Serra (L), Josh Koscheck, Hughes, Serra, Jon Fitch, Penn.

And Silva (don't forget the stunning sub loss to Ryo Chonan on Dec. 31, 2004): Jorge Rivera, Curtis Stout, Yushin Okami (L - DQ), Tony Fryklund, Chris Leben, Rich Franklin, Travis Lutter, Nate Marquardt, Rich Franklin, Dan Henderson, James Irvin, Patrick Cote.

You could make the case for either at 1, 2, or 3. But I like my order: Fedor, GSP, Silva.

I agree with your top three P4P fighters. My question is, what makes everyone think Anderson Silva should be number 1? I realize that he is an amazing fighter, but who has he fought that is worth a damn recently? Who is he going to fight that can even give him a challenge? If he were to move up to light heavyweight and stay there, and beat Liddell or Griffin or Rampage, even Wanderlei, I might be more impressed.
-- Shane, Emporia

Well, Silva is very dangerous. That's why he was pushed to No. 1 in the first place. But recent criticism probably means he's a victim of his own success. There's no doubt in my mind that the Irvin and Cote fights did nothing to help him in the P4P discussion, especially not with GSP and Fedor winning the way they have.

I'm sorry, but I have to disagree sincerely with your pound-for-pound rankings. Fedor Emelianenko has only fought two legitimate heavyweights in the last year (arguably one if you're not a Tim Sylvia apologist). He's impressive, but looked sloppy in his last fight at first.

Anderson Silva, meanwhile, is legitimately one of the few Dana White claims that can be considered true: that of pound-for-pound best. No one in his weight division has come close since he entered the fray, and has been convincing in almost every fight or defense. His ability to comfortably shift weight classes also makes him a more versatile fighter.

St. Pierre is properly placed as a close second ... but realistically speaking, Fedor has a lot more to prove before he reaches either Silva or GSP's level. Every other major MMA website lists Silva as pound for pound best with GSP second and Fedor at third.

So why should a lucky shot against Andrei Arlovski make it any different?
-- Rick, Milford, Conn.

Lucky. Unlucky. Fedor landed the shot. He won again. This time against an unquestioned challenger, someone many people picked to defeat him.

Anyhow, Fedor is No. 1 based on his longtime dominance and recent results. No one has put a streak together like the Russian. Six years in a row at the top spot at heavyweight. He has defeated fighters of all skills, sizes, demeanors, tactics. And he's done so convincingly.

Silva is great, and should be commended for being busy. Same with St. Pierre. But it's hard to buy an argument that Fedor is currently undeserving of No. 1 P4P. I had Anderson atop the ranking for a longtime, but only after Fedor slipped because of inactivity. That's no longer the case, with two destructive wins over former UFC champions in about four minutes.

Do you think we will ever see Roger Huerta get a title shot and become one of the top 10 fighters in his division?
-- Jose Vazquez, Columbus, Ohio

I could see Huerta working his way into the Top 10. The UFC title shot might be a bit unrealistic, especially with how outspoken he has been on fighter pay. But another long winning streak seems entirely plausible. Based on his name, Huerta might be a tough guy to keep out of the title picture if he remains in the UFC, that is if both sides can agree to a new contract -- and that's no sure thing.

As an MMA fan, I'm elated that Scott Coker and Strikeforce bought the assets of ProElite. The fact that KOTC and Cage Rage will continue to run and operate is also good news.

Many hardcore fans hated on upstart promotions like the IFL, Affliction, and Elite. They were actually happy to see them struggle. But these same fans failed to take into consideration, how competition or the threat of competition forced the UFC to put on more compelling cards on SpikeTV. The UFC also felt that they had to rush some of their more recent PPV's on free television to fight off the competition. Fights like Brock Lesnar v. Randy Couture does not wind up on free television without the threat of competition. And Quinton Jackson v. Dan Henderson probably winds up as another UFC pay-per-view. So it's always a win-win situation for the fans.
-- Chris, Queens, NY

The news certainly suggests good fortune for fighters moving forward. And, as you said, it seems like nothing but a positive for fans. Even for those who only watch UFC programming -- and there are plenty who do -- the Showtime-Strikeforce relationship probably means better non-PPV fight cards from Zuffa. For the rest of us, there is an incredible variety of MMA available on TV, more so than at any time in the past. The lineups on HDNet and Showtime alone could fill a calendar. Add in everything Zuffa does with UFC on SpikeTV and WEC on Versus, it's enough to make you MMA crazy.

OK, I don't care about the deal (except if it lets the fighters fight again) and who has controlling interest or any of that other foolishness! What I want to know is when will me and my son be able to sit on the couch, wrestle during the commercials and watch an MMA show on one of the big three networks like we did with the EliteXC on CBS? If they're not working on this, then the deal is irrelevant to me. I have five children, I can't afford PPV and don't have Showtime or SpikeTV. When?
-- Don Lirette, Eunice, La.

Don, I bet it'll be all double-legs and full-nelsons in your living room by late Summer or early Fall. After taking some time to get comfortable with the idea of airing MMA again, CBS will feature the sport. I don't think I can emphasize enough how important network television would be to creating new stars. And if the audience is still there, NBC, FOX, or ESPN/ABC could easily decide to add MMA into the rotation. If that's the case, you won't have to wait so long between watching fights with your son.

Josh, your Vitor Belfort potential matchups have me salivating. Here's hoping GB/Affliction can keep it all together! Hasn't Wanderlei Silva opted to go down to middleweight now?
-- Jeffrey, Toronto

We'll see what happens with Belfort. Affliction VP Tom Atencio tells me Belfort is still under contract. But sources close to the fighter indicate he's a free agent. He's talking about fighting Robbie Lawler or, weirdly, Fedor Emelianenko. I hear the UFC has serious interest in bringing the "Phenom" back to the octagon, and has already started talking money. No matter where he fights, there's enough talent at 185 to keep Belfort active and challenged.

Unless Silva's changed his mind, he'll move down to middleweight for his next fight. A Belfort-Silva rematch might be interesting to some.