(editor’s note: Jesse Morgan is a WHSS?Grade 12 student and an ardent and knowledgeable fan of MMA?and UFC. You can follow Jesse on Facebook at Mixed Martial Arts Freak and on Twitter at MMA?Smart Guy.)
Right now, mixed martial arts (MMA) is the fastest growing sport in the world, especially in Canada.
On April 30 this year, the UFC sold out a record 55,000 seats at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, where Canada’s own Georges St-Pierre defended his title against the very game challenger Jake Shields. Also, on Dec. 10, Jon Jones defended the light heavyweight title against Lyoto Machida.
According to Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White, Canada is the mecca of MMA; and the mecca of Canadian MMA is Toronto’s annual expo that allows fans to meet some of the top mixed martial artists in the world. While at the most recent expo on Dec. 3-4, I was able to meet and talk with the first Canadian to win a UFC title, Carlos Newton; one of the most exciting fighters in MMA, Clay Guida; top UFC?contender Carlos Condit; and many more.
I was able to talk with former title challenger Jake Shields, and ask him about his next opponent, Yoshihiro Akiyama, and his greasing incident in 2006. Greasing is when an opponent puts grease on his body, making it extremely difficult to wrestle.
“I?am aware he might try to grease again, and that he has actually greased before in judo competitions, so it’s definitely something to look out for,”?Shields told me.
I also talked with Ultimate Fighter winner Mac Danzig, and asked what was the best and worst part of being in the TUF?house. He struggled to think of a good thing, and the fighter standing next to him, former NFL football player and veteran of the show, Matt Mitrione, simply  said “leaving.”
Danzig laughed and said “the best part was that it kick started my career and got me in the UFC. The worst part was total isolation from the world for six weeks and not knowing what was going on at home.”
Most MMA fighters truly are approachable and love interacting with fans that love the sport. Toronto’s own Sean Pierson proved it when the expo asked him if he wanted to sign autographs the day of the event. He did this, despite the fact he was in the middle of training for a big fight at the end of the month. When he was done, he stuck around to visit with fans.
I spoke to him about his feelings after being let go a year ago by the Toronto police force for using the nickname “Pimp Daddy” given to him by a local promoter 10 years ago.
“It’s in the past,”?he said. “I’m living the dream in the UFC right now.”
He also gave his thoughts on a potential rematch between Anderson Silva, pound for pound the best fighter today, and his chief rival Chael Sonnen.
“I think that it’s a bad match for Anderson. I’m not saying Chael is the better fighter, but styles make fights.”
The expo was a great event and there are surely more to come. This past April, the UFC brought their own expo to Toronto, coinciding with the weekend of the St-Pierre vs. Shields fight, and it was huge. While the MMA?expo brought us some of the top fighters in the sport, the UFC brought the best fighters in the world.
The only champions not there were the ones competing that weekend. Fans were able to meet the godfather of the sport Royce Gracie, the great Chuck Liddell, MMA champions Jon Jones and Nick Diaz, and the greatest of all time, Anderson Silva himself. They even had a submission tournament, which included UFC?superstar Diego Sanchez.
There truly isn’t a better time to be a fan of MMA, and if this past year is any indication, next year is going to be legendary.