Tonight I watched the ‘Bones’ Jones vs. DC Cormier fight. Over the years I’ve developed a respect and liking for the MMA. I went from someone who didn’t appreciate the mixed martial arts to someone who does. That journey has a lot to do with talking to friends and gaining a better technical understanding of the craft and the underlying martial arts that buoy the matches. Tonight’s slate of matches featured some expert tacticians and a handful of really good hitters. The highlight of the night was the title match, and it did not disappoint–at least not at first.
I think hype plays a really big role in how we perceive things. Take away the months of Jones v. Cormier hype and focus on the in-ring action, and the main undercard fight between Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone and the formerly undefeated Myles Jury was a better fight to watch overall. The main event had a lot of big hits and takedowns, but I really cannot say how much of my enjoyment was the action itself (which lagged considerably in the later rounds–as fatigue often does to fighters) or the hype making the action seem larger.
I feel like hype plays a pivotal role in the enjoyment of a lot of what we do. Commercials and other avenues of social media direct us to be excited about something so that we enjoy it more. I often fall prey to that trap and I see my kids fall prey to it daily. I can’t tell you how little they play with legos until a lego show is on the air or someone posts a building contest. There is a value to the hype we use to excite ourselves, but it is indeed a double sided blade.