Herschel Walker's MMA career continues to confuse those outside the sport. The former NFL and college star is attracting the eyes of many media members who haven't bought into MMA as a legitimate sport, but at what cost? John Canzano can't be the only newspaper columnist thinking the sport is a joke because it's promoting a 48-year-old football star in the cage.
I want to like this sport. I want to understand it. I want to cover it, and write about it, and take it seriously. But how can I while the sport itself aims to be a circus?
Canzano wrote that in the Oregonian on Saturday in advance of Walker's fight this coming weekend against someone named Scott Carson.
[...] This matchup is a joke. It feels like Tonya Harding boxing. And dwarf Eddie Gaedel having an at-bat for the St. Louis Browns in 1951. And it's Chad Ocho Cinco racing against a horse.
Canzano then made sure to point out that Walker is fighting for Strikeforce not the UFC.
It's worth noting that Strikeforce is promoting this bout. That operation is a more sensationalized, more desperate younger cousin of the UFC. Hard-core mixed martial arts fans are quick to point this out and dismiss this as no big deal. Trouble is, the peripheral sports fan who is just getting to know the sport can't, and won't, make this distinction. I can't, either.
He's right, but frankly, in spite of James Toney's lengthy boxing resume, Walker may have stood a better shot in the cage at UFC 118 against Randy Couture. The UFC played the circus game a bit last year too.
Is Canzano, who's also a talk show host on Portland's biggest sports talk station, overreacting or does he speak for many casual and non-MMA fans?
Feel free to reach out to Canzano to debate the topic on Twitter @johncanzanobft, but remember to be civil. There's no reason to represent the MMA fanbase poorly.
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