It is not often that a mixed martial arts fighter will secure a win and leave the cage quietly. After the referee has raised the hand of the victor, onlookers gaze into the ring waiting to see and hear just what the fighter has to say. The announcer does their best to reel the fighter in, but at a time like that; a fighter can be so excited he or she forgets to say what they had planned altogether.
“Thank the fans, thank the coaches, thank the sponsors, thank the promotion…what was that other thing? What else was I going to say? Hmmm…Oh yeah! Callout an opponent!”
Today the callout has become an art form; from the wrestling style promos of Chael Sonnen to the brash attitude of Conor McGregor, the callout is king. Fighters don’t hold their own destiny when it comes to matchups but a callout is a good way to let a promotions matchmaker know just whom you are interested in fighting. Title shot, top ten opponent, striker, wrestler all the matchups that people are looking for are fair game. Whether a fighter is calling someone out or being called out it seems that the attention the act receives can build a career just as quickly as it can create a rivalry.
Obviously a fighter needs to have skill to work their way to the top of the sport but a callout can be a great shortcut on their way up the ranks. A recent example of this is featherweight standout Conor McGregor. McGregor is an excellent fighter and even before he made his way to the UFC he simultaneously held the featherweight and lightweight titles for the London based fight promotion Cage Warriors. Not lacking in skills, McGregor has looked to capitalize on his exciting fights by calling for a title shot from the word, “Go.” McGregor’s support seems to have grown with each win, and that is due in part to his prefight and post fight interviews. McGregor has called out all of his opponents’ skill sets prior to facing them, pointing to bad footwork, poor discipline in striking exchanges, and even lack of heart. Obviously this will push a challenger’s buttons but it also excites fans. After just his third appearance in the UFC, McGregor said in his post fight interview that all he wants to talk about is fighting in soccer stadiums and fighting for titles. Just one fight later, McGregor made short work of top five featherweight Dustin Poirier and with that, UFC President Dana White was ready to name McGregor the number one contender. Just to put that into perspective, UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones had seven fights before he challenged for the title and he is widely considered the best pound for pound fighter in the world.
Sometimes a fighter is heads and tails the best in a division but still feels the need to call out opponents as a way to show dominance. A classic example of this is UFC Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey. Rousey has had only one fighter put her in a bad position in her entire career and that lasted less than a round before she walked out of the cage with another arm for her collection and her UFC belt around her waist. She uses a less is more approach when it comes to calling out fighters, stating the facts without sounding like a braggart. On the day Dana White announced that Rousey would become the first ever female UFC champion, Rousey immediately called out the top two challengers in her division: Miesha Tate and Sara McMann. While Tate was only a victim of the callout, it would prove to be good for the Pacific Northwest fighter’s career. A rivalry with Rousey would lead Tate to a coaching spot on The Ultimate Fighter where she appeared to gain more fans than Rousey throughout the show’s season. Was that what Rousey planned? Who knows? But the end result was a fight between the two that pitted the heal champ against the baby faced underdog and Rousey’s callout of Tate proved successful.
Then there is the story of the fighter who did nothing but mind their own business but for one reason or another they seem to get called out at every turn. This happens in the rare case a fighter is good enough to amass a bunch of wins but not so good that people are afraid to fight them. When I think of people who fit this mold only one name comes to mind. Michael Bisping. Michael Bisping started his UFC career 7-1 and never once pandered for a title shot. Bisping instead made comments that rubbed people the wrong way as he came off a bit cocky for a guy with no marquee win. It seemed to start with Portland’s Chris Leben. Leben called out Bisping and paid for it; but still fighters would line up to call out Bisping. Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva, Jorge Rivera, Mayhem Miller, Chael Sonnen, Vitor Belfort, Alan Belcher, Tim Kennedy, and Luke Rockhold have all had notable callouts of Bisping. It almost seems as if calling out Bisping is the fashion forward thing to do but what really lies at the heart of these callouts? The reaction. Bisping has proven time and time again that he cannot just take a callout with a grain of salt. For one reason or another, he reacts to his opponent. Whether he is trying to sell the fight or the fighter has actually gotten under his skin, Bisping is going to find a camera, a tape recorder, or a guy with a pad and pen and give the challenger just what they wanted from the beginning, a well-worded reaction.
It seems that no matter how it comes about, a callout is something that both fighters and fans love to see. The fighters are clearly ready to stir the pot if it moves them up the ranks, while fans want someone to cheer and someone to boo. This partnership seems to be working pretty well even if it may not be fair to fighters who are working their way up the ranks the old fashioned way. The callout may be the last act of a desperate man or the ultimate sign of confidence. But through it all one thing is clear the callout is king.
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