Matt Hughes

Matt Hughes is definitely one of the greatest welterweights to ever fight in the UFC. There should be no question about his fighting credentials and that he will be in the UFC Hall of Fame one day. I just question his desire and determination to continue fighting these days. Hughes surprisingly pulled out a unanimous decision win over Matt Serra at UFC 98 which in my opinion should have been a split decision win for Matt Serra. For all of the jaw jacking both fighters were doing before the fight, the outcome really did not settle anything because neither fighter actually lived up to their hype.

MMA Young Guns

The UFC is reportedly in the process of trying to sign a matchup with Renzo Gracie vs. Matt Hughes for UFC 109 sometime in February 2010. Hughes defeated Royce Gracie at UFC 60 in 2006 and would definitely make even greater history if he could defeat another member of the Gracie family. Now, Hughes is facing all sorts of challenges from the up and coming “Young Guns” of the welterweight division.

Paul Daley, 22-8-2 (17 wins by KO), took only 2mins 31secs to force a stoppage of No 1 welterweight contender Martin Kampmann at UFC 103. I, like many others, thought Daley did not stand a chance against Kampmann on two weeks’ notice after Mike Swick was forced to pull out of the fight because of an injury. After the win, Daley calls out Hughes figuring if he could beat a legend it would help his star rise fast in the UFC.

Mike “Quick” Swick and Josh Koscheck also wanted in on the calling out of Matt Hughes. These young fighters are top contenders in the welterweight division and would seem to prove to be formidable opponents for Hughes to fight, but he stated “he only wants to participate in ‘interesting’ fights”. Koscheck called out Hughes after his win over Frank Trigg at UFC 103. Hughes commented on this on his website, Matt-Hughes.com, “I find Koscheck calling me out kind of interesting and I actually don’t know why he is doing that. I was used to kids doing this when I was the champ, but as you know I don’t have the belt now and I’m puzzled as to why Koscheck wants to fight me and not the champion in the weight class. I have no interest in fighting Koscheck and, as he was showing everybody, he’s just a kid. As of yet, the UFC has never come to me and asked me to fight him.”

Even Matt Brown, who is on a winning streak lately, has made it known that he would love to fight Renzo Gracie or Matt Hughes. These “Young Guns” are letting the UFC know they are ready and willing to step up to the plate and face the best. Why have all these young fighters called out Hughes? Maybe it’s because each one of them feel they can beat Hughes. Maybe, beating Hughes even though he does not hold the belt will put them in line for a title shot. Maybe, they realize and respect Hughes’ accomplishments and it would be an honor to take on a fighter with those credentials. Or maybe, they know Hughes is afraid to face a younger version of him after what happened to Frank Trigg and he will always turn them down.

The old Matt Hughes would have taken on the challenge to shut these “Young Guns” down and show them why he is a future Hall of Famer. Hughes taking on any one of these fighters and beating them in a convincing manner would send out word to future challengers, Hughes is not the one to be tested. Unfortunately, Hughes has lost his farm boy swagger and dominating welterweight performances to actually step up to the plate and shut this noise down. Hughes took on Royce Gracie to prove he was better than Gracie’s BJJ. These “Young Guns” just want the same opportunity to prove they are better than his “lay and pray” style of fighting. Hughes, step up or step out of the way!

T-Mack

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