There’s always going to be a large movement of fans (not just of fighting, but of anything) who reject the conventional and the mainstream. Those guys are generally credited with being the first MMA fans; guys who turned their backs on professional boxing and wrestling in order to find something new, something different, something off-beat.

The problem is, now the UFC has become so mainstream, so cultured that the reason they started following it to begin with no longer carries any weight. Where do these fans go?

They can’t go to Pride, since it no longer exists. (many left for Pride after the first TUF season, but they’re now looking for somewhere else to go)

They can’t go to the IFL, because, let’s face it, the IFL has worked way to hard to pull itself into the mainstream.

They can’t go to the WEC, because it follows that same formula as the UFC, only with lighter weight classes. (And, on top of that, many refuse to support Zuffa entirely, because of some of its contractual issues with its fighters)

They can’t go Japan, because they know that those organization are unstable. (and the disillusionment has only furthered itself with Fedor’s free-agency)

They won’t go to Elite XC because, besides about 4 fighters, the whole thing is a gimmick show (these are the fans who have been following the sport long enough to know that Kimbo Slice is not legit).

These guys are stuck in limbo, wandering back and forth between organizations. They watch UFC events because their friends (most of whom they got into the sport) are really excited to watch Anderson Silva (who is not, as many have said, the Mike Tyson if MMA, since he doesn’t commit rape and he has all of his teeth) and Rampage.

I wish I could say that the solution was simple, or that an answer would present itself, but the fact is I don’t think that’s the case. I’ve been out looking for other, exciting organizations for a long time. I’ve watched alot of K-1 (very exciting, but I miss the grappler) and have turned to Cage Rage to get some of my fix. Whether an underground titan will emerge soon, I don’t know, but I hope that when it does, these fans will find it, so that the UFC doesn’t just squash it with it’s giant checkbook.

Roy Nelson, Matt Horwich, and Kim Couture. Not the biggest names in the sport, but they have kicked off a busy weekend of MMA action. The premeiere of the new IFL fight team format was aired late last night on HDNet Fights, followed by the Kim Couture smoker fight. Tonight, we witness a potential fight of the year when Dan Henderson looks to take the belt away from UFC middleweight champion, Anderson Silva. I’m going to take a few minutes to talk about each event.

IFL Premiere: I’ve always tried to be positive about the IFL organization even with the old team format. Although the new team format has improved the overall production, the IFL hasn’t changed too much overall. Luckily, HDNet Fights has decent commentator to help the IFL provide a professional production. Although Bas Rutten is nowhere near as bad as Bill Goldberg, he can be a little over the top at times. Overall, the fights were interesting with the Horwich championship fight against Ryan McGivern going to full five rounds and other fights ending in less than 20 seconds. The problem with the IFL is their drawing power. Many of their fights are great in their own regard, but they don’t have any big draws to bring in the fans. If the IFL went up against almost any other televised MMA production this year, I would probably watch everything but the IFL. There’s not much there above and beyond your smaller local organizations that you can watch semi-regularly on HDNet Fights these days. Overall, I give it a 6/10.

Kim Couture Smoker: I’ll be honest and say right off the bat that I didn’t pay any attention to this until it began immediately following the IFL. I was trying to determine exactly why they were televising a smoker event in the first place. Then I found this excuse.

“This event will give fans insight into where it all starts for fighters,” said Simon. “Earlier in the evening, we will broadcast the live IFL event taking place in front of 6,000 fans and then we’ll show the contrast by going to the Smoker at Xtreme Couture in front of 300 fans.”

While I agree that it’s important to learn where fighters start, I know it’s not the reason why they aired this. If this was Sam Caplan’s wife (who also fights), we wouldn’t see anything like this. The drawing power of the Couture last name is what made this production to HDNet Fights and as long as you knew that before watching, you couldn’t be too disappointed. Good fight between Kim Couture and her opponent, Allison Clarkson, overall. If you have an hour of free time, go watch the smokers!

UFC 82: The UFC couldn’t have set up a better event to lead into UFC 83. While 83 has been considered one of the most stacked UFC cards in a while, UFC 82 shouldn’t dissapoint many. With big names like Dan Henderson, Anderson Silva, Evan Tanner, Chris Leben, Cheick Kongo, Heath Herring, Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck, and Andre Arlovski, there should be no shortage of true MMA action tonight. Aside from the main event, there’s a few other important matches to really watch as well. Can Arlovski bring back the excitement after his boring UFC 70 fight. Can Heath Herring get back to wining like he did in Pride? Will Chris Leben show everyone his heavy hands again? I’m excited to see what happens tonight as it will dictate a lot of what the future will hold for the middleweight and heavyweight divisions later this year.

Let’s face it, the International Fight League is not your typical MMA organization. Mixed Martial Artists who are lucky enough to land in the IFL are rewarded with consistent salaries, health insurance, and regular weekly fight schedules across the country. Forget about unvarying one-on-one training or fighting as well. The IFL utilizes teams that are headed by MMA veterans like Renzo Gracie and Dan Severn and based out of major cities like Los Angeles, Tokyo, Japan and New York City. The shows are televised on MyNetworkTV and Fox Sports Net and include former light-heavyweight fighter Bas Rutten as a ringside color commentator. Welcome to the “fighter friendly” Mixed Martial Arts organization.

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