andere Teams » mate sport, we have to be the same way.Okamoto: Ye

Each week, Brett Okamoto provides his take on the hottest topics in the world of mixed martial arts. Hes joined this week by Bellator lightweight Benson Henderson. A former UFC champion, Henderson (24-6) will challenge Michael Chandler on Nov. 19 for the Bellator title.?1.?The UFC has allowed Conor McGregor to keep his featherweight title, even though hes unlikely to defend it in 2016. Is the UFC wrong in this situation?Henderson: The UFC is always right, because theyre just about making money. Thats the bottom line for any giant corporation, and it makes sense, right? Thats the world we live in. Theyre great businessmen. The way McGregors win over Jose Aldo [last December] happened, being that quick, and having the respect I have for Aldo, I think he has done his fair share for the company. I can understand his frustration in all this. He has done a lot for that company -- literally fought for them. I know where hes coming from. And I know we go out of our way to do certain things. We get a phone call that says, We need you in Mexico City in two days. Youve got something you promised to do with your wife, but like most of the world, if your boss tells you to do something, you look at your wife and say, Sorry, babe. It is what it is. I definitely understand his frustration, though.Okamoto:?No. Im actually fine with the UFC allowing McGregor to keep the featherweight title in this situation. But that comes with an asterisk. If were going to hold this against the UFC, we should have done it in March, when it allowed McGregor to keep the title and avenge a welterweight loss to Nate Diaz. If he was going to vacate the title, that was the time to do it. OK, Conor. If you want your revenge fight against Diaz, thats fine. But it means you have to drop the belt. Were not holding up an entire division just because you want revenge. Now, its a little different. Theres historical significance in his next fight, and that featherweight belt is part of that. He wants to be the first ever to simultaneously?hold belts at multiple weight classes. The UFC has already said hell have to vacate the 145-pound belt if he wins the 155, so were really not putting the featherweight division on hold when you think about it. This will be over in November. At this point, give McGregor the shot at history, and if hes successful, force him to vacate the 145-pound title.2.?Did McGregor jump the line at lightweight or is he deserving of a shot against Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in November?Henderson: I think there are a lot of guys who are deserving of a shot before McGregor, but this is not the most fair sport. If you want to make this sport as legitimate as the NFL and the NBA, you have to maintain the sports integrity, but the guys who are in charge of that want to sell pay-per-views. I can understand the argument behind his title shot, but I dont necessarily agree with it.Okamoto:?Ive said this before -- I dont have a problem with McGregor jumping the line. You can make cases for other lightweights, of course. Khabib Nurmagomedov has a very strong case that hes the No. 1 contender. But do I think this is a total sham of a title fight? Not at all. McGregor is the No. 1 featherweight. Hes coming off a win against Diaz, a ranked lightweight. He holds a knockout win over Aldo, who is one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in history. Its not as if this title shot is completely unwarranted. Respectfully, this championship fight is far more legitimate than the one that will take place Oct. 8, when Dan Henderson fights Michael Bisping for the middleweight title.3.?Should heavyweight Roy Nelson be punished for kicking referee John McCarthy after his win at UFC Fight Night last weekend in Brazil?Henderson: I meant to look it up but havent seen the video yet. I would just say that no matter what a referee does, you cant disrespect him like that. There are times we dont agree with referees. Trust me, Ive even been upset with John McCarthy in one of my previous fights. But theres nothing a referee can do that makes it OK for you to put your foot on his butt. In the NFL or NBA, you touch an official the wrong way, the repercussions are harsh. I think for this to be a legitimate sport, we have to be the same way.Okamoto: Yes. This is pretty black and white to me. You cant shove a referee with your foot after a fight. You just cant do that. A lot of people are pointing toward an incident in 2014, when the UFC flat out released Jason High for shoving a referee after a loss. Unfortunately, you could absolutely make the argument the UFC should follow that precedent and cut Nelson. Personally, I dont think thats necessary, but once youve set a precedent on something like this, theres an expectation that you follow it. In general, a fighter who shoves a referee should be fined and probably suspended for something like six months, in my opinion. That punishment seems to fit the crime.4.?Should the UFC create a womens 145-pound division, based on the star power of Cris Cyborg Justino?Henderson: I think you take a look at the number of fighters who want it. Its hard to say a division should be created for one person. If that were the case, Id say, Hey, make a division for me. Making 155 sucks, and the guys at 170 are too big. Im fighting at 165 now. Theres not an easy answer in Cris situation, but me personally, Id say she has to make 135 pounds. As rough as that is, you dont have guys in the NFL saying, Im too small to be a running back. Create a position for me, coach. Its hard to justify, in my humble opinion, creating stuff for one person. It opens this whole realm of, You did this for that person, now do it for me. Youve got to go with what the rules are. If thats unfair, thats just the way it is.Okamoto:?No. I believe the UFC should promote Justino as a 145-pounder, but not create a division around her. The reality is, there arent enough women to fill that division. If there were, the UFC would have done this already. So heres what you do: Justino is the all-female promotion Invicta FC featherweight champion. Allow her to defend that title in the UFC. It might be a little confusing, but then again, is it? I think people can process this. Heck, take a page out of boxing and just call her a UFC super champion. Make something up. Whatever. Just promote her as a killer. Thats all people care about. And once youve promoted her in that way and fans are clamoring for her, thats when 140-pound catchweight super fights will come together.5.?Former UFC bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw has offered to bet his $100,000 purse against current champ Dominick Cruz in a proposed rematch. Is a challenge like this a good move or bad?Henderson:?As a fighter, youve got to do what youve got to do to get the big fights. If theyre not giving it to you and you think you can get it done by talking? Then go ahead and get it by talking. I like T.J. Hes a good dude. But personally, I like to do my talking in the cage. Let me do it in the cage and prove Ive earned a title shot. But as we all know, there are plenty of big talkers in this sport of ours. If you can speak well, say some stuff, you can get eyeballs on you and get those big fights.Okamoto:?I love it. Why not? First off, I definitely can understand Dillashaws frustration. He and Cruz fought in January, and that fight was too close to call. Cruz won a split decision, but there was no winner or loser in that fight. You could score it either way. So for Dillashaw to potentially see an entire year go by without a rematch, when he doesnt even feel he lost in the first place, that has to be difficult. So, this challenge -- whats not to like about it, really? You can say, Oh, hes just doing whatever he can to get the title fight. Well, yeah. Thats exactly what hes doing. And unlike lots of other trash talk, this has very real implications to it. Dillashaw just bet Cruz six figures that he can beat him up in a cage fight. Heck yes, Im interested in that. Cheap Jordan 13 Wholesale . -- There were so many positives from the Orlando Magics first victory of the season that it was hard for coach Jacque Vaughn to stop praising his players. Air Jordan 13 China ., and Rudi Swiegers of Kipling, Sask., took sixth spot on Saturday in pairs at the NHK Trophy ISU Grand Prix figure skating competition. http://www.wholesaleairjordan13.com/ . The Islanders dealt Thomas Vanek to the Montreal Canadiens after less than a year on Long Island. Meanwhile, the Oilers dealt long-time sniper Ales hemsky to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday for a fifth-round pick in 2014 and a third-rounder in 2015. 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