Yeah yeah I know, it’s an Eagles gameday. We’ll get it back to the Birds momentarily, but first, look at all of these casuals reacting to Merab Dvalishvili ragdolling Sean O’Malley at UFC 306 at the Vegas sphere:

Disagree. Real MMA fans enjoyed those fights because they understand what they’re watching. They’re watching chain wrestling and grappling and constant pressure defeat striking over the course of five rounds and 25 minutes. That’s the whole point. It’s mixed martial arts, and you’re trying to impose your strategy and your game plan and show that your style beats the other guy’s style. If you want to watch two fighters exchange on the feet, then you need to be watching boxing or Muay Thai.

The reactions above were everywhere after UFC 306. People hated the result, probably because they’re kids who put money on O’Malley to knock out Merab the same way he knocked out Aljamain Sterling. They bought into the “O’Malley is the next Conor McGregor” narrative and they like the way he finishes fights. He’s got the wild hair and the tattoos and the style and all of that, and he’s a pretty damn good fighter, regardless of whether or not he got a push from the UFC and regardless of whether or not he stole that fight against Petr Yan. But seeing the volume of anti-Merab stuff out there, it’s seems obvious that the books won big because you could sense that most of the big money was coming in on Sean as a slight favorite.

It reminds me a bit of the early days of mixed martial arts, when people didn’t really know what they were watching. It was new to the uneducated sports fan, who was at some bar, drinking Heinekens, wanting to see two guys punch each others’ heads off. Then some Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt would shoot for a single-leg, drag a meathead to the mat, lock him up with a D’arce choke, and there’s the tap. Eventually, as MMA fans watched more and more of this, they came to appreciate the fighters who had unique skill sets, and they were able to identify the interesting little bits of nuance that defined these clashes of style. They would watch Jose Aldo defend takedowns and they’d see Tony Ferguson throwing elbows from his back. They’d watch guys like Khabib Nurmagomedov put on a masterclass in grappling transition and weight shifting to keep opponents on the ground. You’d see a grappler vs. a striker and pay attention to footwork and distance management. It opened the door to a more educated audience that knew what to look for.

If you’ve watched any Merab fight over the years, you know the guy is anything but boring. He shoots takedown after takedown after takedown, nothing but constant pressure to control the fight and make opponents uncomfortable. The guy has insane cardio and the highest-level motor. He just ran through three former champions before beating the current champ and taking the belt. He picked up Henry Cejudo and carried him across the Octagon before throwing him back down to the mat. If you think stuff like that is killing MMA, you’re watching the wrong sport. Merab is a machine. He is not a “crotch sniffer,” or whatever these dorks on social media say. And if you don’t want the other guy to sniff your crotch, stuff the takedown and/or get off the mat.