Pride fans never quit being Pride fans.
Shogun Rua was the light heavyweight darling of the Internet forums at one time. Unbeatable, dominant, and unstoppable they said daily. He was Pride’s answer to the UFC’s Chuck Liddell and if only Shogun could make it to that organization he would reign there, too. Unfortunately that wasn’t the case and I was crushed. I’m one of those Pride fan boys.
I watched in horror as the judges at UFC 104 somehow managed to give Lyoto Machida an undeserved decision win over Rua to retain his title. I jumped for joy when Shogun won the rematch by KO at UFC 113 and finally won gold.
And then….some whipper snapper comes in and mucks it all it up.
I was dumbfounded when then 23 year old Jon Jones outclassed Rua at UFC 128 watching the ref step in to save the Brazilian legend two and a half minutes in to round three. I couldn’t believe it, but it happened and boy did the forum fan boys come out in defense.
I will never forget the “Doctor” who “carefully analyzed” Shogun’s knees during the bout and supposedly diagnosed a complex internal injury. The “Doctor” said that a specific unseen injury was what he deduced to be the true cause of Rua’s loss. It was comedy but some people actually refused to give the prodigy that is Jon Jones any kind of credit.
Most do now but I still don’t think some of them have come to terms with Jon taking the belt. It would prove to be an iconic and defining moment in his career.
Check it out.