Guida Gets The Job Done

By Raphael Garcia

On Saturday night, Clay Guida did what a lot of people did not expect, and what even more people did not want to see occur. In the semi-main event of Spike TV’s The Ultimate Fighter Finale, he used his wrestling and stifling ground control to put a stop to the rise of former number one contender Anthony Pettis. With that victory, Guida moved within range of an eventual title shot, however the question still lingers of whether MMA fans are willing to view him as a legit challenger.

Guida ended 2009 trying to bounce back from defeats at the hands of Diego Sanchez and Kenny Florian. Since then the man known as “The Carpenter” has rattled off four victories. Known for his endless stream of energy and his wild hair, Guida was at one time considered an exciting fighter. However, that opinion has begun to change, as he has implemented strategies that do not make for the most “exciting” of fights by some fans’ standards, but gain him the victories.

Against Pettis, Guida worked to avoid any lengthy exchanges on the feet while hitting all of his takedowns effortlessly. Immediately after the victory, an interesting tweet from a MMA news outlet asked if Guida’s style was “annoying.” While that sentiment is understandable, it’s hard to get that upset with an individual who does what is needed to win a highly important fight. Guida’s implementation of strategy to go along with his fighting style is what he needed to do to push himself from gatekeeper to title contender.

Had Guida decided to stay on his feet and try to go toe to toe with Pettis, this fight would have gone the same way that his battle against Florian did in 2009. Florian used his superior striking and length to pepper Guida with shots before knocking him down and choking him out in the second round. For the brief moments that both fighters were on their feet, we saw how far above Guida’s Pettis’s striking was. He would have thrown the fight away if he had stood in front of his younger opponent. On the ground, Pettis went with the right approach of an active guard, yet Guida was still able to avoid his submission attempts.

As MMA continues to grow in popularity, we will see more fans who state that they do not enjoy fighters that compete by using strategies such as Guida’s. While those same strategies have been used to create both champions and contenders, it will be interesting to see whether these fighters begin to get overlooked in favor of fan favorites who walk into the cage and exchange no matter the circumstances. It’s a known fact that “exciting” fighters are kept on contract with the UFC because of their penchant for producing highlight reel battles. Guida’s strategy may not earn him any new fans, but the act of winning will put him closer to his overall goal: the UFC Lightweight Championship.