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SpikeTV announced this week that UFC interim heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir will serve as coaches for the eighth installment of The Ultimate Fighter reality television series, which is scheduled to debut Wednesday, Sept. 19.
The eighth season will feature two weight classes, lightweights and light heavyweights, and will serve as a prelude to Nogueira defending his title vs. Mir on pay-per-view before year's end.
Thus far, the reaction to the announcement on the MMA blogosphere and the message forums has not been positive. In fact, the reaction has been overwhelmingly negative.
But are Nogueira and Mir really so bad as choices?
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| Mir will be one of the coaches on the next season of 'TUF.' (UFC) |
Diamond's logic is on the money in regard to the show's ability to make new stars. Furthermore, it's important not to lose sight of the fact that the fighters actually do have to coach, and Nogueira and Mir without question bring a lot to the table in that regard. Even the most experienced fighter can learn from the wealth of grappling knowledge that Nogueira and Mir possess.
Do Nogueira and Mir possess the natural comedic ability being displayed by both Forrest Griffin and Quinton Jackson during the current season of TUF? Absolutely not. But how many fighters do?
Mir brings a lot of name recognition to the coaching slot thanks in large part to his former reign as a UFC heavyweight champion and through his color commentary responsibilities on VERSUS during WEC telecasts.
Mir also has a tremendous backstory, having nearly lost his leg during a serious motorcycle accident in 2005 that prematurely ended his title reign. Coming off two consecutive wins, he now finds himself in a position to regain all that was lost, and possibly more.
As for Nogueira, he might not be overly recognizable to mainstream fans, but isn't that all the more reason to have him involved? As Diamond indicated, part of the power of the promotional vehicle that is TUF is the ability to create new stars.
Nogueira is an amazing fighter who carries a tremendous amount of credibility with the sport's hardcore fans. Putting the spotlight on him and exposing him to the North American MMA audience is something that's been long overdue. Of all the promotion's current champions, he's the least known. As such, who can fault the UFC for taking measures to remedy that problem?
If you still don't like the selection of Mir and Nogueira as coaches, that's perfectly fine. However, the reality is that the amount of ideal candidates to appear on the show as coaches is dwindling. A fighter such as welterweight title contender Jon Fitch would benefit greatly by a turn on TUF. However, the welterweight title was already put on ice for an extended period of time after Matt Serra and Matt Hughes served as coaches during the show's sixth season.
Current lightweight champion B.J. Penn and former champion Sean Sherk would have made for an explosive dynamic, but their May 24 title clash has been on the books for quite some time and Penn has gone on the record to say he would never serve as a TUF coach again.
