What wrote:on that note I used to always hear a friend say, "save some of that energy and good structure for later, you will need it".
yeah some wisdom in there. Sad part is we often don't internalize wisdom until we are forced to experience it directly. Try telling a 20-year old snowboarder to ease up and not put so much impact on his knees and see if he listens, lol
Back to pensions, I keep thinking about it; fighters strive to get the BELT. It is a symbol that as a fighter you have 'made it'... achieved the highest level of the sport, etc. But what is it really worth? Its just a symbol!
Imagine if champions got pensions, it would add a whole other dimension to the accomplishment/goal of wanting to become champ. If you work so hard as to climb to the top and become UFC champ, you not only know you have reached the top, but you also know that reaching top now means that you have succeeded in turning your passion into something that will take care of you and your family for the rest of your life.
The way the sport is now, these poor family-men who have chosen to make MMA their life are just heading off a cliff. Even if they make it to the top the money will NOT last long. Their kids will grow, the fighters will age, and especially in the US where healthcare is so fucked,, etc.
FIghters should get pensions. It is the top prize in the sport. If you achieve it you know you have made it and will be OK, you have earned something more than just a belt.
If you disagree, go think of poor Ken Shamrock. Oh, wait, he was never champ was he?
OK fuck him then.