Tommy Morrison "wins" his MMA debut

[mrhnau]

Tommy Morrison won his MMA debut. Some of you guys may remember him as an up and coming boxer about 11 years ago and for his appearance on Rocky V as Rocky's student.

As far as his MMA debut goes, I find it rather pathetic, if we are to believe the words of his opponent:

Stover said he originally agreed to the bout despite a stipulation against grappling, a big disadvantage for the 340-pound Stover, who outweighed Morrison by 125 pounds. But an hour before the fight, Stover said he was told he would not be allowed to strike Morrison with his knees or feet.
That essentially reduced the bout to a boxing match with five-ounce gloves.
"They changed the rules and I just had to roll with it," Stover said. "I did the best I could do."
...
Asked how the fight might have gone under traditional MMA rules, Stover said, "If I could have went to the ground, he would have been done in 30 seconds, maybe."
Morrison also wore shoes, which are typically not allowed in MMA competition.
Morrison, still sucking air, was hustled into a minivan without speaking to reporters.
"Obviously, he's got a different attitude towards everything," Stover said. "He's rude. He's obnoxious. He's got a lot over his head right now."

Can this really be judged an MMA event? No grappling, no knees, no kicks? Isn't that just boxing? Why on earth would they agree to such stipulations? Thats like asking a triple jumper to only use one jump, or a decathalete only to train in three events... I'm assuming of course this guy is speaking the truth. I imagine he could just be giving an excuse for losing...

 

[mrhnau]

I just thought of a term for this... UMA - Unmixed Martial Arts. Sounds like a winner! Or perhaps just call it by its proper name: Boxing

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

Well if they changed the rules and made it just a boxing match it does not count as MMA in my book.

 

[mrhnau]

Well if they changed the rules and made it just a boxing match it does not count as MMA in my book.

Grrr... made me mad. disrespecting MMA, IMHO

I like this part:

But even with the rules tilted in his favor, Morrison struggled to put away Stover, a 36-year-old sheetrock hanger from Pine Ridge, S.D. Early in the bout, Stover tied Morrison up and ran him into the fence. Morrison looked at the ref, his eyes wide, as Stover threw a series of ineffective right hands at the side of his head.

Looked at the ref with eyes wide, as if to say "Why don't you seperate us" or "Don't you know about the rules change? Back him up so I can hit him!"

 

[Tames D]

When they changed the rules, Stover should have changed his mind and walked out on them, forcing them to deal with the disapointed spectators.

 

[Mariachi Joe]

Should Tommy Morrison even be fighting, I though he has Aids.

 

[mrhnau]

Should Tommy Morrison even be fighting, I though he has Aids.

The article I linked discussed that actually... I think a bit more is here

 

[Tong Po]

The whole thing sounds like a joke to me.....the rule changes made to give the edge to "Tommy Gunn" is just pathetic. He just needs to go away and call it a career.

 

[searcher]

I used to train under oneof Tommy's old coaches and we talked heavily about him. The only reason he even made a name for himself is that he was a white heavyweight. This is a former coaches opinion. I have never been a fan of him or his ways.

And yes, he is HIV positive. Last time I saw him he weighed about 300 lbs and looked like he was on his last leg. I guess not. Still pathetic.

 

[Grenadier]

I used to train under oneof Tommy's old coaches and we talked heavily about him. The only reason he even made a name for himself is that he was a white heavyweight. This is a former coaches opinion. I have never been a fan of him or his ways.

He was a decent boxer, but not nearly in the same class as what a real champion should be. Much like his Rocky V personna...

His only quality victories were over Joe Hipp (who had broken Morrison's jaw), Ray Mercer, and a very aged George Foreman, none of whom were exactly championship material either. The title that he won was a very minor title, and even then, he quickly lost it to Michael Bent, if my memory serves me correctly.