Chad Griggs Fought For (And Earned) My Respect At "Fedor vs. Silva"

It may have been overshadowed by Sergei Kharitonov brutally demolishing Andrei Arlovski and Antonio Silva crushing Fedor Emelianenko, but Chad Griggs vs. Gian Villante was one of the better fights of the night during strikeforce’s recent “Fedor vs. Silva” show. It wasn’t a long brawl, but it was a very good brawl, with neither man giving an inch and Griggs winning by dramatic TKO. With a record that now stands at 10-1 with a flawless 2-0 in Strikeforce, Griggs recently made an interesting case for himself and why fans should start respecting him.

In an interview with MMA Fighting, with transcription courtesy of MMA Mania, Griggs recently said the following: “Give me some credit, come on boys. I’m trying to be an exciting fighter. I want to stand up and bang and I think I proved it in this one… I know that sounds stupid and there’s a lot more to it… But I know that’s what the fans want to see. They want to see someone stand up and bang, they want to see some heavy hits. I want to do what the fans want and be an exciting fighter.”

I never really had too much of a problem with Chad Griggs, and I think he makes a pretty good point. We should all probably start taking him a lot more seriously now, now that he’s rattled off two straight TKO victories inside the Strikeforce cage and emerged as an alternate in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix.

My main problem with Griggs was that he was lined up as cannon fodder against Bobby Lashley, who I’ve had my issues with in the past. And in that fight, Griggs basically won by letting Lashley punch himself out. It honestly wasn’t that impressive of a victory, But his victory over Gian Villante definitely was. It was a wild brawl between two tough fighters with good chins and strong hands. It wasn’t pretty, but it was certainly entertaining.

Even if you’re a diehard MMA fan, you have to admit that Griggs has a point about giving the fans the type of fights they want to see. At the end of the day, I think this all boils down to one simple concept: not everyone can appreciate the finer aspects of the MMA game, but everyone can appreciate two guys trying to knock each other’s heads off. Even if you look down upon those who can’t appreciate things like the ground game (and you honestly shouldn’t because elitism gets us nowhere), you have to admit that a good brawl reaches across all boundaries. Let’s not forget that a certain brawl that capped off the end of a certain reality TV show is widely regarded as one of the defining moments that took MMA into the mainstream.

So if Chad Griggs wants my respect, he definitely earned it at “Fedor vs. Silva”. I don’t know how far Griggs can go in Strikeforce with his unique style, the “take two to give one” brawler normally doesn’t last long when consistently matched up against the elite of the division. But I do know that Griggs won’t go down without a fight no matter who he’s facing. And you’ve simply got to give credit where credit is due.

And what about you, fans and friends? What’s your opinion on Chad Griggs?