The guy was clearly a solid fighter, but the sport is littered with guys on par with k-1 champions who no one ever heard of. It a reality of our sport, with a few exceptions, the fan base are themselves either fighters or are practitioners.
I remember a couple of years back when my coach was the target of a “beef” with a “rival” school. Several guys from my gym were discussing this with me after a tournament. I says, “look honestly who gives a shit?”. Everyone asked me what I meant so I elaborated, “Hey on a personal level I love this sport, but it’s right up there with ping pong ball. I have to go through a lengthy explanation when ever someone asks me what I do. They tend to be tangentially interested, but they aren’t about to drop money on tickets to see me fight. So yeah the sport and this pissing contest don’t really mean a damn thing.”