The championship belt many thought karate revivalist Lyoto Machida would hang onto for a while is now the property of Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, who looks to sit on it for a while as he undergoes another knee surgery.
Shogun's decisive victory over Machida laid to rest any questions about the former PRIDE legend's potential. Shogun shocked the world last year, literally kicking away Machida's former aura of invincibility. Robbed of the victory many felt he earned the first time, Rua walked into the Octagon this May resolved to
The unfortunate effect of Machida's devastating knockout loss is that the concussion seems to have either erased his memory or altered his judgement. Machida's management is apparently now interested in an "interim" title fight with Rashad Evans, the same fighter Machida knocked out to win the title originally. Evans, a solid contender and technically the first in line for a title shot at Shogun, has nonetheless turned in lackluster lay-and-pray wins in his last two outings against Thiago Silva and Rampage Evans.
The first problem with a Machida-Evans rematch is the notion that a newly-dethroned champion in any division can simply demand an instant shot at the title. Even George St. Pierre, whom most agree simply didn't show up to fight a disrespected Matt Serra, had to earn his dinner by manhandling Josh Koscheck and then destroying Matt Hughes before he earned a rematch with Serra. In fairness to a very competitive 205lb division, Machida needs to get in line and prove he can still swim in the deep end before he gets a shot at redemption.
The second problem with this rematch is that it denies Evans the fruit of his lay-and-pray efforts: a fight with Mauricio Rua. Rules are rules, and there's no rule that says a fighter can't rely heavily on wrestling ability to win fights. Evans, while not an exciting fighter lately, has earned his shot at Shogun's belt, and - Machida - the guy Shogun annihilated to become champion - is in no position to make this demand of Evans and the UFC's matchmakers.
The third problem is more subjective. Machida, in their first outing, matched very well against a tentative and jittery Evans, who got away from his bread-and-butter wrestling ability and tried to trade strikes with an accomplished competitive karate-man. Machida's camp probably like their chances against Evans, and see a rematch with him as an easy way to leap-frog over the rest of the division's contenders back to a title shot with Shogun.
In lobbying for a Shogun rubber match by way of Rashad Evans, Machida's camp is exercising the "Do over!" impulse some fighters demonstrate immediately after a devastating loss, eager to erase the moment from our collective consciousness with a spectacular Mulligan rematch. I haven't ever seen good things ever come of this phenomenon, as it demonstrates emotional binding or attachment. Fighters who tether themselves to an ideal - whether that is a stubborn and inflexible game plan, a refusal to retire, or a personal need to be described by others as the world's greatest - are attempting to secure outcomes of events beyond their control. That's reality.
I would personally like to see Machida rematch Thiago Silva, who has certainly earned his own shot at redemption, or perhaps a tune-up fight against Rampage Jackson. By having to earn his shot the old-fashioned way, like everyone else, Machida will demonstrate the character of a champion by acknowledging his fall and then quietly picking himself up again. I look forward to seeing that happen.
