UFC 115 Main Event: Chuck Liddell versus Rich Franklin; Tito Ortiz Out

Everyone expected to see Chuck fight Tito on June 12 at UFC 115 in Vancouver however Rich steps in to coach on TUF and will now be part of the main event at UFC 115.

Dana is the president of the UFC and as such he needs to protect certain interests. I know I am going to be called a UFC employee or Dana apologist but the truth is he had to make a business decision and made the one he felt was right for the company. Yes, now that we know it is Chuck versus Rich it spoils TUF a little bit however he did wait until the day before pre-sale tickets went on sale for UFC 115 to make the announcement. Can you imagine the backlash if he would have not spoiled TUF and waited to reveal the coaching change and subsequent fight? People would have bought tickets expecting to see Tito and Chuck go at it again for the third time and then would have had the carpet pulled out from beneath them. The way Dana White handled the situation the best choice in my opinion.

Many fans are upset that Dana lied to them and “guaranteed” them the Chuck and Tito fight was 100% going to still happen. He told the world that Rich was not fighting Chuck, rather he was fighting Fighters.com tenth-ranked “The Natural” Randy Couture (18-10).

Misdirection is all a part of business and I can’t fault the guy for this. If you believe everything that Dana White says and hold it to be the honest truth then you are the one with the problem. Business men lie just like politicians and do so to protect their interests.

Should fans be angry at Dana for lying or should they be angry about the match-up of Chuck versus Rich?

Chuck Liddell is coming off back to back losses and talks of retirement. He now is the main event of a pay-per-view card which will see two men headline a card in the UFC both coming off losses. Rich Franklin has dropped two of his last three fights.

With both men not looking so good in their past fights and the talks of retirement floating around both men, how can one say this is the main event of a card I want you to purchase? Is it crazy or is it amazing marketing?

There has never been a question that Chuck Liddell sells pay-per-views. Rich has also done a very good job for the company at bringing in the buys. Records be damned, these men draw and now they will be fighting each other, even if they are both on the down side of their careers.

A loss for Chuck in this fight will bring him back to thoughts of retirement and Dana insisting Chuck won’t fight again in the UFC. After all, he is not just coming off of back to back losses, but rather back to back brutal beatings. One a KO loss to fourth-ranked “Sugar” Rashad Evans (14-1-1) and the other a TKO at the hands of third-ranked light heavyweight and the man the people call champ, “Shogun” Mauricio Rua (18-4).

Rich on the other hand wants to make a serious run at the light heavyweight title yet neither of his last two fights were in that division. One would think that in order for Rich to make a run he should be given a tougher and higher ranked fighter than Chuck. Beating Chuck right now does nothing for his title bid other than put a very large name on his resume.

If Rich were to beat Chuck it does not push him higher in the division and could very well spell the end of career as a fighter.

The school of thought that all main events need to have some sort of title implication is bogus. Can’t we have a main event that is a fun fight between two of the most respected former UFC champions ever? One thing can be said about this fight and that is we all know it will be a fight and not some odd dance lesson taking place inside the Octagon like we saw at UFC 112.

These two men will without a doubt come to throw down, the crowd won’t boo and no one will be warned for running laps inside the Octagon. Chuck needs a win and has the power to put Rich to sleep so I expect him to be aggressive. Rich always comes to fight and I can’t tell you the last time I watched a slow and painful fight that he was a part of. Rich has the chance to get inside and, work the clinch game and possibly take Chuck down. Then we can see if all that work with Eddie Bravo has taught him anything.

This is the tougher challenge for Chuck and one that will show all of us if he really has worked to change his style and become a better fighter. We can also learn more about Rich and where his head is right now after the long lay-off and the brutal KO loss.

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