Trading Shots: Is that title thing a fairy tale, man?

In this week’s Trading Shots, MMAjunkie columnist Ben Fowlkes and retired UFC and WEC fighter Danny Downes try to separate fairy tale from reality when it comes to fighters, belts, and worthwhile career goals.

Fowlkes: Danny, I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention to the Nate Diaz media tour of late, but for my money it is maybe the most fascinating thing happening in the non-fighting portion of the MMA world right now. What’s so great about it, you ask? Well, it involves Diaz showing up on camera and making people delightfully uncomfortable at times, which is great, but it also involves him speaking some truth.

When discussing plans to have him rematch Conor McGregor at UFC 200, Diaz brushed off concerns about going after a UFC belt, explaining that he thinks “that title thing is a fairy tale, man.”

This is a classic Diaz-ism, because it is at once true and untrue. Is the title a fairy tale? No, it’s real. People really win those. But is it also something that’s dangled in front of fighters like a mirage, this elusive goal they’re supposed to be working toward, this distant future point when, or so they’re told, the money will finally start rolling in? Yeah, I think it is.

So if Diaz is telling us that the thing to do is focus on becoming a name-brand fighter, getting big fights, and going after money instead of belts, is he wrong? And how might that philosophy change the way we look at fighters like Benson Henderson or Matt Mitrione, who fled the UFC for contracts with Bellator, all while being accused of not wanting to fight “the best”?

Downes: Money is the motive. I hear a lot of fighters say, “I’d do this for free,” but I really question that statement. MMA isn’t the most lucrative athletic career, but fighters tend to think they’ll be one of the selected few. One of the lazy comebacks to increasing fighter pay is the refrain, “Well if you win your fights, you’ll make more money.” Technically true, but also missing the larger picture.

Another thing to take into account is that nothing happens inside a vacuum. The only choice in a fighter’s life isn’t, “Should I make money or look for a belt?” Many of them have families to provide for, and money is an essential component of this.

Let’s take you as a writer, Ben. Could you be challenged more by becoming an embedded journalist in a war zone? I would say so, but you have to take other things into account. You talk about the injustices of Reebok instead of geo-political ones, but you have to put food on the table.

Top to bottom the roster in the UFC is superior to Bellator’s. That doesn’t mean Mitrione and Henderson are taking the easy way out, though. They took a path that was in their best interests. Isn’t that exactly what a promoter would do? When a man decides to serve his family instead of his own ego, why is that a point of criticism?

Fowlkes: I think part of the problem is the extent to which all of us – fighters, media, fans – have bought into the idea that the most important thing in this sport is the quest to be the very best. And how do you prove that you’re the best? You win one of those shiny gold belts, preferably one belonging to the UFC.

Not that that’s not a worthwhile goal. For most fighters, it’s probably also the best chance they have to make serious money. At the same time, a lot of things have to go right for you in order for that belt to end up around your waist – and not all of those things are within your control.

Remember the UFC offer that Henderson walked away from? According to UFC President Dana White, it would have paid him “substantially more, like not even in the same ballpark” as what Bellator gave him if Henderson would have become UFC champion again. But, as we’ve seen, you could win a bunch of fights in a row and still not get a title shot, especially in the lightweight and welterweight divisions.

The other thing about those titles is how easily they can be taken away. Two judges score a fight against you? Kiss that hardware goodbye. One lucky punch lands? Same story. Get yourself into legal trouble, or just sit out too long with an injury, and you could lose your belt without ever stepping in the cage. Once it’s gone, if the promoter doesn’t give you a chance to get it back, you’re stuck.

Popularity, on the other hand? It’s harder to define, but you know it when you see it, and it tends to endure a little better in this game. If you’re one the so-called needle-movers, that can’t be taken away from you so easily. It’s also a more reliable indicator of future riches, is it not?

Downes: I would agree that being a needle-mover is better than having a higher spot in the rankings, but that comes with a lot of other baggage. Some fighters can achieve that coveted status by fighting ability alone, but that’s rare. Developing a personality or brand (to use corporate speak) can be far more beneficial than a couple of extra pushups, but that’s heresy around these parts.

Any fighter that does something to promote themselves is immediately accused of not taking their training seriously. You better believe the next time Paige VanZant loses a fight people will be coming out of the woodwork to say, “Maybe if she had spent more time training instead of dancing, she would’ve won!” Tom Lawlor can’t even change the inflection in his voice without someone saying he’s a clown and not a “serious” fighter.

We view shiny gold belts as an objective measure. Even in the era of the participation trophy, we still have certain benchmarks we use to conclude that someone is the best in the world. Whether it’s Kenny Florian or Dan Marino, even athletes with genuinely impressive careers get knocked for never winning a championship.

A belt certainly has meaning, but we should be careful as to how much emphasis we place on it. Fighters especially should realize that you can do a lot of things with a shiny gold belt, but you can’t deposit it in your bank account.

Ben Fowlkes is MMAjunkie and USA TODAY’s MMA columnist. Danny Downes, a retired UFC and WEC fighter, is an MMAjunkie contributor who also writes for UFC.com and UFC 360. Follow them on twitter at @benfowlkesMMA and @dannyboydownes.