Why a photo of Michael Clarke Duncan?

In addition to being a monster of a man who I can see posing the titular question in his grumpiest bass, MCD has been a regular presence cageside for the UFC for quite some time.

So when the idea struck me to discuss the complex layers of ridiculousness that is MMA fandom, I figured I'd lead with a guy no one would call a "UFC nuthugger" or mock his level of overall knowledge.

Hey look - a soapbox. Since no one is using it, I might as well climb up here...

Consider yourself warned.

Why in the name of all things holy do we have to be such a competitive, argumentative group riddled with superiority complexes and always in search of the next pissing contest?

(Note: Me very-much included...)

While it would be perfectly fine to be one happy collection of Mixed Martial Arts fans, there are segments of our overall population who just can't let that happen.

Why? Beats the hell out of me...

I consider myself a pretty hardcore fan when it comes to MMA; my spare time is spent playing Six Degrees of Separation using the Sherdog Fighter Finder, watching obscure fight videos on YouTube and becoming friends with just about anyone remotely related to the sport via Facebook and Twitter.

On top of that, my brain is wired so that I can remember useless information like fighter records, affiliations and hometowns with alarming speed and accuracy. While it comes in handy now, it certainly didn't help when I needed to recall formulas for Stats or how to conjugate the verb avoir in French class.

The reason I'm telling you all this is because I think I could go head-to-head with just about anyone on the topic of Mixed Martial Arts and come out okay... but what would be the point?

You see things one way and I see them another.

Last time I checked, there is nothing wrong with that.

No one is handing out awards for being the most knowledgeable fan or having the correct opinion.

Except that some MMA fans act like they are.

My belief that Anderson Silva and Georges St-Pierre are currently better Pound-for-Pound fighters is unacceptable to the legions of Fedor Emelianenko loyalists who will argue to the death making the same three points to "prove" that "The Last Emperor" is the be-all and end-all of MMA.

Of course, that response will elicit the usual round of "Fedor hasn't fought anyone / Pride was a joke" rhetoric that comes from the demographic who believe that the UFC is the only organization that matters.

Those who were planted in Pride's corner during their glory days will immediately take up the fight for their organization and this will go on and on and on and on until someone calls someone a "nuthugger" and tells them that their opinion is wrong.

The same type of scenario can play out between long-time fans and "newbies" as well, with some of those who rented UFC 1 on VHS not accepting "when Anderson Silva knocked out Forrest Griffin" as an adequate answer to the question "What's your favorite fight of all-time?"

And let's not forget the purists versus the pragmatists.

Most recently, that battle has focuses on whether or not Brock Lesnar simply forces the air from his opponents by using his astronomical - and wholly unfair and therefore necessitating a change - weigh...