when should a loss raise a fighter’s stock?

Goutfather

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imo it should be more than just a close fight, or a valiant effort. the losing fighter should be fighting against low expectations, due to things like weight difference, age, or perceived limitations. there should be some display of skill or heart that causes us to reevaluate the fighter’s legacy. and the fight itself should be close enough that it could be (legitimately) scored for the loser.

i’m talking about fights like bj vs gsp 1, and volk vs islam. obviously bj and volk were taking a risk fighting bigger guys, but it’s not just about that. there should be no points given for seeking out a “challenge” and predictably failing. these guys were smaller, and fought against perceived unbeatable fighters. their performances are almost universally talked about as wins, despite losing. (yes, i know bj fans have a way counting all his losses as wins, but this loss truly made bj’s legacy). you could easily make the case that if the fighters were the same size as their opponents, the result would be different.

so what should be the criteria? any other good examples? i think being entertaining in defeat should be excluded, especially if the fighter loses because he was trying to be entertaining (sorry chandler).
 
It never should. Ever. Putting up a fight or making the bell shouldn't get you credit for anything. Either you win or you lose. Period.
 
It never should. Ever. Putting up a fight or making the bell shouldn't get you credit for anything. Either you win or you lose. Period.
Raising stock vs raising rankings. What if on short notice Horcher had Khabib the hardest fight of his life and almost finished him? Or some other newcomer makes a short notice debut against a #1 contender and does the same thing? I think looking great in a loss is infinitely better than being beaten bell to bell.
 
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in a situation like UFC200 DC/silva because anderson took a fight at a class up like 5 days notice, to save the PPV.
 
Colby Covington made an entire career exclusively off his stock raising from losses. He was so good at it that people vastly overrated Kamaru Usman as champion because of Colby.

On topic:
last minute replacement/short notice fight barely losing to someone that was supposed to win. lots of examples but can't remember.
 
When a massive underdog gives a top 5 fighter hell. See Rory vs Condit, Lando vs Fergs

This. Basically putting up a really good fight in a fight where most everyone thought you were significantly outmatched.
 
Alex stock rose after the first Islam fight IMO. Also, Reyes after his loss to Jones.

As others have said, when someone expected to lose performs above and beyond expectations, it rarely hurts their careers.
 
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Raising stock vs raising rankings. What if on short notice Horcher had Khabib the hardest fight of his life and almost finished him? Or some other newcomer makes a short notice debut against a #1 contender and does the same thing? I think looking great in a loss is infinitely better than being beaten bell to bell.

Too many what ifs. What if he never wins another fight and is cut 4 fights later because that #1 contender spent an entire camp training for someone with a totally different style - and then the 'I have nothing to lose' factor of a situation like that is almost never replicated.
 
Bassil Hafez vs JDM-type fights.

Shame Hafez has taken so long to get back in there though.
 
Raising stock vs raising rankings. What if on short notice Horcher had Khabib the hardest fight of his life and almost finished him? Or some other newcomer makes a short notice debut against a #1 contender and does the same thing? I think looking great in a loss is infinitely better than being beaten bell to bell.

You're answering with logic to a post that was tryhard pseudo macho bullshit. You two are speaking different languages.
 
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