The Bottom Line: Noble Pursuits

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It wasn’t that long ago that top fighters across the sport were making it clear that their priority above championship or legacy was getting money fights against the top names in their weight class. This was of course most prominent when it came to Conor McGregor, but he was far from the only target of fighters looking to cash in as quickly as possible. Fighters weren’t afraid to declare in the press that they would rather take on a star opponent than fight for the title.

It is of course understandable fighters want to get paid. They are fighting professionally, and the career peak in MMA is typically short. Few will begrudge any fighter for doing what he or she feels is best for family. With that said, fans watch sports to see who is the best, not to see who can make the most money. When title showdowns between the most deserving fighters are sidetracked, it’s a downer. Even more of a downer is when the implicit message is sent that athletic supremacy is a secondary concern.

Part of what made “The Last Dance” destination viewing was the look into the psyche of the most celebrated winner in modern sports. Michael Jordan pushed himself and his teammates to the extreme because it means so much to be the best. We want our athletes to have that drive because it makes the competition feel all the more important. It’s not nearly so enticing to know they don’t really care about proving themselves as the best. Even if money is their top priority by far, it’s more fun for fans if they at least pretend that they’re driven primarily by the competition.

This is something about which Georges St. Pierre was always keenly aware and part of why he had such success inside the Octagon while also capturing the heart of the masses. After having run through top challenger after top challenger for years, St. Pierre targeted a fight with Nick Diaz in 2013. Diaz wasn’t the most deserving challenger by any means and had lost his last fight. However, Diaz was a star and was going to mean big business at the box office. St. Pierre knew that to say he wanted to fight Diaz simply because it was a big-money fight would have undermined the meaning of his title and his public reputation. To avoid losing face in pursuing the fight, St. Pierre fudged his motivations, claiming a personal grudge that Diaz memorably framed as the selling of wolf tickets and which evaporated as soon as the fight was over. After having fought so many top opponents and proven his excellence so definitively, St. Pierre had earned the right to take a money fight against a popular opponent. However, even in doing so, St. Pierre recognized the value in selling the narrative of pride and glory over personal wealth.

In recent years, most fighters haven’t had St. Pierre’s tact. If they are lobbying for an easier fight against a more lucrative opponent, they will openly acknowledge it. While that may be understandable, it does no favors to our romantic vision of sport. That’s why it’s so refreshing to see what has developed in the past year when it comes to Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight titleholder Khabib Nurmagomedov and interim lightweight champion Justin Gaethje.

Nurmagomedov and Gaethje are both well aware of which fight would be the most lucrative for them. The answer is clearly McGregor. The UFC has no compunctions about putting the biggest superstar it has ever had under its umbrella in whatever fight will mean the most money. Thus, there was nothing standing in the way of Nurmagomedov rematching McGregor as soon as the fighters were ready following their first fight. There is likewise nothing standing in the way of Gaethje fighting McGregor right now—before Nurmagomedov is ready to return from his Ramadan fasting.

In each case, it wouldn’t have taken much to get the McGregor fight made. Instead, both Nurmagomedov and Gaethje publicly and vehemently rejected the idea. Nurmagomedov made it clear that he wanted to fight the most deserving challengers, and now Gaethje has made it clear he wants to fight for the title. Neither has ruled out another fight with McGregor in the future; they just want to take the fight that would mean to their reputation as fighters right now.

The rationale for Nurmagomedov is easier to understand. He already beat McGregor, and there is great personal animus between the two men and their camps. Giving McGregor the chance to avenge that loss and win back the lightweight championship isn’t a tempting prospect, even if Nurmagomedov is confident he’ll win the rematch. By contrast, Gaethje doesn’t like McGregor, but the discord doesn’t run nearly so deep. Moreover, Gaethje doesn’t have a win over McGregor, and that fight would be greatly beneficial to his overall notoriety. Still, Gaethje prioritizes the title and the fighter on top.

It remains to be seen if this will be the beginning of a trend or if Gaethje and Nurmagomedov are outliers in being willing to bypass the temptations of the biggest immediate paycheck. Either way, it remains encouraging to see these two competitors fight to get No. 1 vs. No. 2 made when so often in recent years that has not been the priority.