Trading Shots: Is it hypocritical to criticize Germaine de Randamie for not rushing to fight 'Cyborg'?

In this week’s Trading Shots, did the new UFC women’s featherweight champ get off on the wrong foot by not leaping at the suggestion of a fight with the division’s most dominant fighter? Or is it hypocritical of fans to criticize a fighter for choosing surgery over a fight against an opponent with a tainted past? Danny Downes and Ben Fowlkes discuss.

Fowlkes: Let me set the scene for you, Danny. Germaine de Randamie has just been crowned the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight champion at UFC 208. She’s standing in the cage at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., trying to ignore the dude who’s cursing at her during her post-fight interview, and she hears the name Cristiane Justino – as in, you know, “Cyborg” – tossed out as a likely first challenger.

And wouldn’t you know it? Suddenly de Randamie (8-3 MMA, 4-1 UFC) remembers that hand surgery she needs so badly. Yeah, that’s the ticket. Hand surgery. As a result of an injury sustained two fights and two years ago. But it simply cannot be put off any longer.

To the layperson, this looks like a dodge. It at least looks like a person who is not at all excited about fighting “Cyborg,” and who could blame her? So here’s where you come in with the fighter perspective and tell us that no one brave enough to step into the cage could possibly be trying to avoid a fight, and it’s our own cowardice that we are projecting onto GDR. I mean, right?

Downes: I find it amusing that people who consider going to a restaurant with only four stars on Yelp “dangerous” are willing to call a professional fighter a coward. Also, since when did the so-called media become the head of the “Cyborg” fan club? You’ll hound Vitor Belfort until his majestic Mohawk reaches St. Peter’s gate, but everywhere Justino (17-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) turns she’s a victim.

Did it ever occur to you that after her win over Holly Holm (10-3 MMA, 3-3 UFC), de Randamie can now afford to take time off? She’s been in the UFC since 2013, but Saturday’s title fight was only her fifth bout in the promotion.

You think the company was breaking the bank for her to fight Larissa Pacheco at UFC 185? She probably has more money now than at any point of her career. We all know fighters (myself included) who have stepped into the cage when they shouldn’t have because of monetary concerns. Even UFC fighters can’t afford to take time off and get needed surgeries because the costs would be too great.

The hypocrisy of the “fighter’s health” advocates consistently astounds me. A couple weeks ago you wanted Donald Cerrone’s corner to throw in the towel for him between rounds. Now you want the women’s featherweight champion to delay surgery to fight someone who might not even be eligible to compete. All that time you’re spending at the hockey rink is slowing down the blood flow to your brain.

Secondly, you’ve interviewed a lot of fighters over the years. Have any of them lacked confidence? Most fighters are irrationally optimistic about their chances of victory or crushing opponents. Why would de Randamie be any different?

Now time for me to ask you some questions. Why was the MMA community at large ready to jump all over de Randamie? Was it because UFC 208 was an underwhelming card in general? Because it was a close fight? Or was it because the ref decided not to punish her for throwing punches after the bell on two separate occasions, so you had to take things into your own hands?

Fowlkes: When you land the most significant punch of the fight after the horn sounds to end the round, it doesn’t exactly endear you to people. When you try to do the same thing in the very next round, that doesn’t help either.

But I think de Randamie had a great chance there at the end of the night. She just won the title. She had to know that Justino’s name would come up. The thing to do there is to look right at her and tell her to get her (stuff) together so she can get in there and get beat down. Or, fine, if you don’t have that in you, at least tell us you’re looking forward to the fight and can’t wait to make it happen.

For the record, I don’t think de Randamie is scared of “Cyborg.” She’s been a fighter too long for that. But I do think that sometimes when fighters finally lay hands on that title, they suddenly start feeling like they have something to lose, like the time has come to get picky about their next moves so as to milk that thing for all the cash its worth.

She might not be scared of that fight, but she’s smart enough to know that it’ll be a tough night of work that could very well end with her not being champion anymore, at which point the paydays shrink significantly.

As for Justino’s alleged victim status, I’ll be the first to tell you that she’s done more damage to her own career than anyone else ever could. She’s also the only major draw that division has, and there’s no sense in pretending otherwise. If you’re de Randamie, you need that “Cyborg” fight. We want you to want that fight. If you don’t, inevitably people will fill in their own blanks as to why.

Downes: So you’re not saying that de Randamie is scared of “Cyborg,” she’s just scared of losing to her? That’s the same thing!

I agree that de Randamie should have known that Justino was going to come up. Like you said, she’s the biggest star in the division (although the division only has two people in it currently), and it makes sense for her to get the next shot at the title.

What I don’t agree with is the immediate impulse to discredit fighters because we don’t get our way. Fans and media are disappointed that a date wasn’t set for Justino vs. de Randamie, so they blame someone who needs hand surgery.

There were plenty of things to criticize about the fight. The referee, the pace, the tactics, the decision, and the late hits, all of those are open to criticism. Instead, though, people decided to demean de Randamie’s character. Where’s the line between thoughtful analysis and a temper tantrum?

The first women’s featherweight title fight will not go down as an instant classic. That’s fine. We can acknowledge its underwhelming nature without having to resort to calling another fighter a coward.

Perhaps this isn’t a critique of last night as much as it’s one of the zeitgeist in general. We have a binary logic where everything has to be a 0 or a 1. You’re either liberal or conservative. Our opponents are sensitive snowflakes or literally Hitler. Fighters have to be wildmen or cowards. Good thing Travis Browne and Johny Hendricks have fights this week. We’re sure to get some nuance there.

Ben Fowlkes is MMAjunkie and USA TODAY’s MMA columnist. Danny Downes, a retired UFC and WEC fighter, is an MMAjunkie contributor who also writes for UFC.com and UFC 360. Follow them on twitter at @benfowlkesMMA and @dannyboydownes.