Roundtable: Is Chris Leben Finished?

Roundtable: Is Chris Leben Finished?

 

On Saturday night Chris Leben lost a lackluster, one sided decision (in the eyes of everyone who watch it baring the one judge who scored the fight to Leben) to relatively unknown mid-tier Middleweight Andrew Craig, his third loss in a row.

Prior to fighting Craig, Leben had dropped back-to-back loss, including brutal doctor stoppage loss to Mark Munoz at UFC 138 a fight which later saw Leben pick up a drug suspension when the pain killer Oxycontin (nicknamed Hilly Billy Heroin in The US) was found in his system , and another lackluster performance where he lost to UFC debutante Derek Brunson at UFC 155 upon his return.

Having dropped 3 of his last 4 fights now, that leads up to whats next for Chris Leben....... Tom Rooney, Ben Heather, and Chris Houten discuss.


As a fighter do you think Chris Leben still has something to offer,  or do you feel his performance in his last few fights indict he should retire?

Tom Rooney: I think he's finished, and there's no shame in that. He's 1/4 in his last five fights and at this level of competition that's not good enough. The UFC have been very patient with him and supportive when he's had problems, if he wasn't such a long-time servant he would have been cut by now. He has big enough name in the sport that he could retire and probably get a good coaching gig in one of the better camps.

Ben Heather: In my opinion and I'm saying this as a fan of Leben's. I think he is done... He has been near the top of the division and even at his prime didn't make it all the way but as fans we didn't care. We knew he would put on a show and unfortunately his past two fights seem to prove that has changed now so I think it's time to retire.

Chris Houten: Only Chris Leben can decide when to call it a day but at this stage of his career it might not be a bad idea for some one to steer him in the right direct. Its a fact, he has struggled in his last 2 fight against guys not many people expected him to loss to.

Chris Leben has had a good career, he should be proud of himself, and bow out gracefully. He has already took enough blows to the head, he definitely doesn't need to take any more.

Has being an out and out brawler caught up with Chris Leben, or do you feel his performance can be attributed to his past drug addition  and the lay off due to suspension?

Tom Rooney: It's not that his style has caught up with him, but that the sport has surpassed him. Look, the drug issues will certainly not have helped, but relying on haymakers and having cement-mixer for a skull isn't enough in modern MMA. Today, as supposed to when he got started a decade ago, there are fighters that are as equally tough and hit as hard as Leben, but are also far more well rounded and technically proficient. Also, there are some many up and comers that are hungry as hell that would love to make a name for themselves by taking Leben out, at this stage of his career and where he is in the rankings, he doesn't need that kind of target on his back.

Ben Heather: I think it has to be a mixture of all of them. The damage he has taken in fights and still carried on going forward looking for the win has to take an effect on any mans body. No matter how fit/ goof your chin is going through that many wars over the years has to take away his ability to carry on... Surely!!

Then that combined with his personal issues and abuse of his body which led to time he wasn't able to fight and I think it's get us to where we are today. A Leben that gasses after one round and didn't look like he has the power in him for that big haymaker.

Chris Houten: I think it has to be a little bit of both. There is no way in hell you can keep going out there fight after fight, plodding forward taking shots all in the name of courage. Leben is a brawler, his whole career has been based on dragging guys into slanging matches, taking shots with the aim of landing bigger one - a style that probably got him in trouble with the painkillers in the first place.

At the same time Leben looks a shadow of himself since his return, he looks like he has no soul left. Drug addiction is a nasty place to be, and it feels like it has left him completely empty.

Should Leben continue to fight, do you feel he is likely to get cut from the UFC? If so who do you think he will sign for?

Tom Rooney: Yes. They guy has a lot of miles on the clock and is almost twelve years as a professional and when you take the drug problems into consideration, there is only so much a person's body can take. He looked so lethargic, almost broken on Saturday night. The sport is too dangerous and competitive for a guy to be fighting if he's not firing on all cylinders, that's how serious injuries happen. Dana White seems to really care about him, so if he's cut it will be done very tactfully and he'll probably find Leben a job in the company if he wants it -a la Liddell/Griffin. If chooses to keep fighting, Bellator might snap him up or, if he fancies a change of pace, he can come to Europe and fight for Cage Warriors!

Ben Heather: This one is simple for me. No Leben shouldn't fight again. I wouldn't like to see Leben fight for any other organisation but I also wouldn't want to see him get cut. A sit down with Dana where he is advised to retire even given a role to advise young fighters what could happen and try not to do like he did with his career would be better than to see him fight again.

Chris Houten: At this stage he deserves to get cut, but then so did Dan Hardy and look how he has bounced back. I know Leben has recently moved over to Alliance MMA and you never know it could see a change in fortune for him, but at this point I don't see it.

I also don't see many people willing to take a punt on him, least of all Bellator due to their Viacom ownership. If Leben does fight outside of the UFC, I feel the best he can hope for is World Series of Fighting.

If Leben were to in fact retire what would you fondest memory be of the man?
Tom Rooney: The pre-fight press conference in Birmingham before his might with Mark Munoz at UFC 138. He was in flying form, telling the journalists that the only food you can get in England or Ireland has to be boiled, fried or put between two pieces of white bread. The guy's a character and seemed to have a great rapport with the fans and journalists.

Ben Heather: My highlight on a personal level is him headlining 138 as that was my first live event. But a Leben career highlight was him taking back to back fights on 2 weeks notice. After knocking out Aaron Simpson he didnt just Fight but submitted Akiyama on just two weeks notice!! That sums up Leben in my eyes.

Chris Houten: Moment wise the one that sticks with me is Leben knocking out Wandi in just 27 second - Oh Wow, but I will mostly remember Leben for his heart and courage...... a true warrior!