Happy Tuesday, Sherbros! This is another long post, so the TLDR is at the end if you want to scroll down.
Even though I didn't start following MMA/UFC til 2012/13 or so, the first fighter to capture my imagination is Vitor. My cousin showed me some of his early UFC fights on VHS when I was a kid, and I was enthralled by how quickly and savagely he KOed people. When I did start following the sport closely years later, it was during the height of "TRT Vitor". This was while TRT was still hotly debated, btw. As a new hard-core fan, I was very excited that a guy I remembered as a child was still relevant and doing well.
Fast forward years later, and much has changed. TRT is banned, USADA implemented, Vitor is now in semi-retirement, and his legacy is hotly debated by fans and media.
At this point, I should clarify my own stance on PEDs: I am against PEDs in sport in general, but I accept that some usage is inevitable and the drug testing should be done in a way that respects athletes privacy along with giving them due process. Because of that last part, I'm not in favor of the current system.
With that out of the way, even though I acknowledge that Vitor was a blatant cheater, I also believe that he's been unfairly maligned over the years. He's hardly the first, and won't be the last, fighter who's used PEDs. Many other fighters have been caught using PEDs, and some of them are largely beloved by fans. Then, there's the likely hundreds of elite fighters who have used PEDs and were never busted. When I consider Vitor's career objectively, the only thing that makes him unique to me is that he benefitted from using them in a way that few others have.
All that being said, does anyone agree with me, or am I just being a nostalgic fanboy making excuses for a dirty fighter?
TLDR: Even though Vitor used PEDs in the past, that usage shouldn't define his legacy nor should it make him stand out from the many other users throughout the sport's history.
Even though I didn't start following MMA/UFC til 2012/13 or so, the first fighter to capture my imagination is Vitor. My cousin showed me some of his early UFC fights on VHS when I was a kid, and I was enthralled by how quickly and savagely he KOed people. When I did start following the sport closely years later, it was during the height of "TRT Vitor". This was while TRT was still hotly debated, btw. As a new hard-core fan, I was very excited that a guy I remembered as a child was still relevant and doing well.
Fast forward years later, and much has changed. TRT is banned, USADA implemented, Vitor is now in semi-retirement, and his legacy is hotly debated by fans and media.
At this point, I should clarify my own stance on PEDs: I am against PEDs in sport in general, but I accept that some usage is inevitable and the drug testing should be done in a way that respects athletes privacy along with giving them due process. Because of that last part, I'm not in favor of the current system.
With that out of the way, even though I acknowledge that Vitor was a blatant cheater, I also believe that he's been unfairly maligned over the years. He's hardly the first, and won't be the last, fighter who's used PEDs. Many other fighters have been caught using PEDs, and some of them are largely beloved by fans. Then, there's the likely hundreds of elite fighters who have used PEDs and were never busted. When I consider Vitor's career objectively, the only thing that makes him unique to me is that he benefitted from using them in a way that few others have.
All that being said, does anyone agree with me, or am I just being a nostalgic fanboy making excuses for a dirty fighter?
TLDR: Even though Vitor used PEDs in the past, that usage shouldn't define his legacy nor should it make him stand out from the many other users throughout the sport's history.
