Is joe Silva overated?

Bubs102

So another WEC show and another cracker. Started watching them two years go and haven't seen a bad one so why on Earth does the WEC matchmaker Sean Shelby not get the publicity that Silva does. There have been plenty of awful UFCs recently so does anybody else think that Shelby should get Silva's job?

Fozzy

The matches that Silva has made have led to one million plus buyrates and record breaking attendances

The matches Shelby has made have led to a few hundred thousand viewers and a couple of thousand in the arenas

Mellor

Fozzy wrote: »

The matches that Silva has made have led to one million plus buyrates and record breaking attendances

The matches Shelby has made have led to a few hundred thousand viewers and a couple of thousand in the arenas

no, the popularity of the UFC have led to those buy rates.
And on the other side, the fighters in the lower weight WEC divs have led to great cards, not just the match maker.

The match maker is obv important, but trying to relation it directly to how good a card was is a bit silly.
Very clsoe fights can be boring too.

Maldini2706

Shelby has only worked with the smaller weights, the fights tend to be more exciting at those weights anyway. Can't wait to see them in the UFC.

Bubs102

Fozzy wrote: »

The matches that Silva has made have led to one million plus buyrates and record breaking attendances

The matches Shelby has made have led to a few hundred thousand viewers and a couple of thousand in the arenas

Silva didn't build Brock Lesnar, he doesn't do the marketing for the UFC and he isn't responsible for the appeal of GSP. You could argue though that his matchmaking is to blame for GSP not having an entertaining fight in a long time.

Shelby on the otherhand you could argue is majorly responsible for the niche market the WEC has by putting on great card after great card of awesomne fights which encouraged almsot everybody who's seen one to come back for more

Maldini2706

GSP hasn't had an entertaining fight because he's the best fighter on the planet and there's nobody who's been able to really put him under pressure in years.

Maldini2706

Maldini2706 wrote: »

GSP hasn't had an entertaining fight because he's the best fighter on the planet and there's nobody who's been able to really put him under pressure in years.

Or because he just loves to gloat about how great he is at wrestling and jabbing.

Maldini2706

Gloat? When have you ever seen him gloat? Displaying unnatural ability and gloating are two very different things!

Mellor

If anything, GSP is the least likely fighter to gloat.
????????

It was a joke. By gloating I meant taking them down at will and jabbing them to bits whenever he wanted. Lighten up guys. Where's the christmas spirit?

MrStuffins

This thread makes my eyes bleed!

Fozzy

Bubs102 wrote: »

Shelby on the otherhand you could argue is majorly responsible for the niche market the WEC has by putting on great card after great card of awesomne fights which encouraged almsot everybody who's seen one to come back for more

That's not true. WEC's highest rating was for the first Faber vs Pulver fight. They had over 1.5 million people watching. They broke the 1 million mark one other time, for Faber vs Brown. Recently they've done in the range of 300,000-700,000 viewers

Lighter weight fighters generally do have more exciting fights. They're less likely to get tired. Shelby doesn't use a system that different from Silva's, but he's using it with fighters who are more likely to have action-packed fights

MrStuffins

They're bloody matchmakers for God sake! This whole conversation is absurd! I can't believe people are actually having it!

kainer2

Sean Shelby is an awesome matchmaker and i'm sure he will continue his good work in the 135/145 division in the UFC.

I've met Sean a few times and he's a really nice guy who does LOADS of stuff behind the scenes for ZUFFA over the years, from researching fighters, implementing internal policies and also working as the main link man between the TV and the UFC production staff at live shows

I also believe he was the guy who created the "Baba O'Reilly" highlight video that is played just before the main card at live events.