"What's Beef/Beef is when you need two gats to go to sleep/Beef is when your moms ain't safe up in the streets/Beef is when I see you/guaranteed to be in ICU" - Notorious B.I.G.
In the landscape of hip hop, there are two types of feuds. There are real feuds and then there are "real" feuds. Real feuds develop by a natural progression, typically over a number of years, between the two parties which eventually culminates into an "on-wax" battle. On the contrary, "real" feuds develop through manufacturing or constructing a "dispute", typically over a much shorter time span, with a financial payoff or notoriety as the primary motive. Both types of feuds generate interest in the artists and increase album sales. However, in a lot of instances, the general public is able to decipher the difference between what is real and what is "real". "Real" feuds grow tiresome and interest is lost very quickly and can actually do more harm than good to an artist's credibility, while an actual rivalry can last far longer and generally end with a boost of interest for at least the winner.
While the world of Mixed Martial Arts greatly differs from that of hip hop, UFC 114's headliner, Quinton "Rampage" Evans vs. Rashad Evans, a fight to determine the number one contender for the UFC Light Heavyweight title, has been promoted as the biggest feud in MMA this year. The only question, then, is whether this is real or "real"? According to Dana White, this is the real thing. "These kinds of fights happen every once in awhile. Sometimes the guys who fight each other, they just don't like each other," White commented. "There's WWE stuff when the guys are out there trying to hype it up and make it look that way, but these guys seriously don't like each other."
Some sports writers have taken the bait, (a pre-fight conference call in which 'Page and Evans traded back and forth barbs has definitely helped) along with the several hundreds of thousands of fans who will purchase the pay-per view on Saturday, which due to an injury to Forrest Griffin, not only doesn't boast a UFC title fight, but lacks a co-main event as well. Before I can make a determination, I have to wade through the hype that has been amplified by Spike TV's version of "24/7", "UFC Primetime", which through two of three episodes, has only showed me that:
- Rampage feels he is in the best shape of his life, trained with his usual camp at Wolfslair and is now finishing up camp in Vegas
- Evans worked with Shane Carwin to help him with 'Page's strength and wrestling
- There's not much more to the trashtalking than making fun of each other's TKO's, talks of pillows and snuggies and giving each other nicknames
BJ Penn and Jens Pulver had a history prior to their stint on the reality show. A Jens Pulver win over BJ Penn at UFC 35 and subsequent years of trashtalk had culminated to a tension filled stint on the show and an even more heated fight at the Ultimate Fighter Finale 5, where BJ appeared to hold onto the choke a bit longer than needed even after Jens had tapped out.
Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz's feud spans back to their days as training partners and Tito's reluctance to defend his Light Heavyweight title against him, while Ken Shamrock's feud with Tito began over Tito's disrespectful celebration in a win over a member of Shamrock's Lion's Den. The common denominator here that is missing from 'Page vs. Evans is substantial root of the feud.
The UFC has tried to link the history between 'Page and Evans back to their first personal meeting in 2004 where, according to 'Page, Evans picked an inopportune time to approach him about training with him in the future, as a member of 'Pages camp just suffered a loss. If this is true, why are we just now hearing about this? And how sensitive must 'Page be for this to be what planted the seeds of the biggest rivalry in MMA? Evans points to 'Page's defeat of his training partner and friend, Keith Jardine, as a starting point to the feud, but Jardine is no stranger to losing as he's lost five of his last seven fights. Evans certainly isn't lining up to avenge losses to Ryan Bader and Wanderlei Silva.
I don't disagree with the fact that 'Page and Evans do not like each other, but how does this fight differ from Dan Henderson v. Michael Bisbing or Matt Serra v. Matt Hughes? Essentially, we have two fighters who may or may not have had contempt for their opponent previously, spent a month and a half with them on a reality TV show and animosity built until a timely and ultimate pay-off at a scheduled UFC event.
This only "feels" like a real feud for a few reasons:
- A-Team: Unlike previous years, this TUF payoff is occurring five months later because of Page's decision to play B.A. Baracus in the remake of the popular 80's television show. The letdown that came with the cancellation of the original fight, along with a brief retirement and return by 'Page has amplified the build-up to the fight.
- Two Charismatic Personalities: The last time TUF had two charismatic coaches with a knack for trashtalking was in Season 3 with Ortiz and Shamrock. The fact that both, 'Shad and 'Page, are willing to engage and go back and forth with one another has taken this fight above and beyond what Bisbing and Serra were able to do with their fights with Henderson and Hughes, respectively.
With Evans vs. 'Page carrying the marketing for UFC 114, it's clearly worked here as well. Look at this pay-per view under any other light and it's a substandard event and unworthy of a $49.95 purchase. However, with a much hyped grudge match as the main event, UFC 114 now has the look of a solid purchase.
Evans vs. 'Page may or may not be the real thing. It's possible that many months of disrespect and contentment have altered and changed a "real" beef, literally manufactured in-house, into a real one. Either way, the success of UFC 114 doesn't hinge on whether their feud is real or not. It will come down to whether the public is able to successfully migrate through the muddy waters of press conference arguments, weekly hype shows and Twitter fights to gauge the reality of what is really presented before them. The reality is we have an average card and a main event to determine who will fight champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua next for the title.
And that's as real as it gets.