UFC 171's Hector Lombard: MMA is entertainment business, just ask Ronda Rousey

DALLAS – Hector Lombard has done little to hide his disdain for UFC 171 opponent Jake Shields’ fighting style. But his reasoning is simple, Lombard said. Fighting is all about entertainment, he insists, something the sport’s biggest stars should know.

“He’s boring,” Lombard said of Shields. “That’s the truth. I don’t like to see him fight, and I’m a fight fan. That’s the way it is.”

Lombard (33-4-1 MMA, 2-2 UFC) and Shields (29-6-1 MMA, 4-2 UFC) meet on the pay-per-view-broadcast main card of Saturday’s UFC 171 event, which takes place at Dallas’ American Airlines Center. With former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre vacating his belt and taking an extended break from the sport, the promotion’s 170-pound division is now as exciting as ever, and the Lombard vs. Shields fight will have a big impact on the rankings in the weight class.

But how much of an impact may very well boil down to just how entertaining the bout’s result turns out to be. After all, as UFC President Dana White always says, it’s his job to put on the fights fans want to see.

Lombard is certainly no stranger to either sport or entertainment. With nearly 40 professional fights under his belt, Lombard also boasts experience at the highest level of judo, representing his native Cuba in the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. But the 36-year-old “Lightning” points to a fellow Olympic judoka, UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, as proof that becoming a superstar in MMA requires a fan-friendly style.

“Trust me, I came from the Olympics, and I can mention to you right now, for example, Olympic gold medalists in judo, and you don’t even know who they are,” Lombard said. “Now, I mention to you a bronze Olympic medalist in judo, and you know who she is. Why? Because she had to come here. She had to come to the entertainment business.”

For more from Lombard, check out the video above.

And for the latest on UFC 171, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.