Here at MiddleEasy, we’ll never write a negative article about anyone. We’re not going to start with Phil Baroni’s loss last night. Dude has given fight fans exciting performances his entire career and maintains a close relationship with all his fans on Twitter. He’s a taco aficionado, swagger guru, and MMA’s only real ambassador from New York. Prior to the referee stoppage, Phil was calm, composed, and fighting like a decade-long veteran of the sport. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough and Brad Tavares emerged the better man at UFC 125, catching the New York Bad Ass with a headkick and capitalizing on a solid opportunity. In American MMA, wins and losses tend to dictate your tenure in the sport and Phil Baroni is fearing that his performance this weekend may be his last for the organization.
Regardless of what happens, we will follow his career anywhere it goes, but Phil Baroni belongs in the UFC and we need to see him get another shot in front of a hometown crowd at UFC 128. The UFC lacks Baddassery, and if Phil Baroni is cut, the remainder of the middleweight division will be forced to turn in their man-cards. A more rational way to look at this would be: If Joe Silva and Dana White care about their female & hetero-curious fanbase, they’d opt to market a fight with Phil Baroni and Yoshihiro Akiyama for some sort of alpha-male bragging rights. NYBA vs. Sexyama is the only fight that could single-handedly humble Mike “the Situation” Sorrentino. [Source]
