MMAJunkie.com has been running a series of articles by Ken Pavia, agent to many of MMA’s high-profile fighters, which is to take a “behind the scenes” look at the sport. Frank Trigg also does a similar series of posts for the website that revolve around the bigger mixed martial arts matchups for the upcoming weekend. It’s a great idea on paper, but Ken Pavia seems to have really outdone himself this time:

In round three of that Kala Hose fight last week in ICON Sport, referee Chris West stopped the fight to restart it in the center of the ring. Baroni's left eye had swollen nearly shut. What you couldn't see on the televised version was Baroni actually covered his face with his glove to obstruct West's view to eliminate any chance of a stoppage. In the fourth round, West got a good look at Baroni's face and during a break in the action asked him if he wanted the fight stopped. Baroni's response was, "No DICK, why would you axe ME that?"

Baroni could have taken the easy way out in the first round with a jits sub attempt, but he wanted to make it dramatic; hence the head stomps and soccer kicks. When his gas tank went empty, he didn't offer up an arm or look for a way out as many would have. What the televised portion also did not show was a fan ran into our corner and tried to throw in the towel. Josh "The Punk" Thompson and I had to restrain him until security got him. I fully believed that despite the punishment he was taking, Baroni had that one big punch that, if landed, would have made a Rocky-like finish. I swear as the fight progressed, I was hearing that music from "Rocky I."

As you can see, the biased opinions can be angering to fans, but Pavia's personality is a part of the entire draw to these articles. Many of the fans on the site have real problems with the self-promotion by Trigg and Pavia at times, but overall, the aim of the articles is to give a “behind the scenes” look. To an extent, Pavia does that in this article, but he also blatantly makes some reckless assumptions that are outright ridiculous.

Could Baroni have taken the easy way out and simply submitted Kala Kolohe Hose in the first round? It shouldn’t be assumed. Baroni should have ended the fight if that was the case, but instead relied on his long-time pal, rusty old gas tank, to push him through till the end. We all know Baroni’s cardio hasn’t been spectacular in his recent fights, but telling the fans that Baroni simply wanted to entertain instead of grabbing a win by submission is slapping us in the face.

The article really spews biased opinions due to the friendship between Pavia and Baroni. Baroni’s persona as this tough warrior in the ring who never gives up is likely accurate, but as one MMAJunkie reader pointed out, Baroni was clearly trying to pull himself out of the ring or under the ropes to avoid damage or get a stoppage in the action. Reading the comment threads on some of the articles only confirms that the massive readership at MMAJunkie.com is beginning to wise up and see through the self-promotion and opinions.

Ken does give us a good look inside the sport. His visuals revolving around the actual fight and the things going on during the fight are great to hear about, but telling us that Phil Baroni is one tough guy doesn’t erase the fact that he was crushed by Hose as the fight went on. Maybe I’m asking for too much here, but I’d like to see more about the “behind the scenes” of the sport and less of how the fighter you represent is such a badass even in a loss. It’s a business, I understand that you support these guys and help them make a living, but come on, Baroni could have subbed Hose in the first round, but he wanted to make it dramatic? *sigh*