Brendan Schaub: Having a great chin catches up to fighters
There isn't a ton of fight talk on the latest episode of The Fighter and The Kid podcast (though there is plenty of poop talk and a discussion of daddy issues), but co-hosts Brendan Schaub and Bryan Callen got serious about the major damage UFC heavyweight Mark Hunt sustained Saturday against Stipe Miocic. As you may remember, the always-game Hunt sustained more strikes than anyone ever has in UFC history in his Adelaide main event against Miocic.
As Schaub pointed out, each and every one of those were heavyweight strikes from a big and hard-hitting man. So, there's no way around the fact that Hunt absorbed major, and worrying, damage in his last fight.
"Terrible," Schaub recounted.
"They could have stopped it, probably (in the) second round."
The fight was not stopped until the fifth. "The Hybrid" wisely went on to point out that, while it may be entertaining to fans to watch iron-chinned UFC fighters like Hunt withstand a great deal of punishment and fight on, it often leads to tragic results for the athletes themselves.
"This is where guys who have good chins, it's fun for the fans to watch but towards later years of life, it catches up with you," Schaub explained.
"(People say) 'Oh, he's got a great chin!' Then, later on he's drooling and can barely feed his family."
Countless fighters have eventually met that fate. Hopefully Hunt will not, but it is good that Schaub is reminding us all that MMA fighting is no video game.
It is done by real people, fighting bravely. And that brave fighting comes with real consequences.
Listen to the full episode on iTunes or at the fine outlets below.
How to listen: