Issue 107
November 2013
Chartered sport psychologist and one of few mental performance coaches specializing in combat sport, Joe Bell provides tips to improve your approach. The GOAT may have lost his motivation and world title, but can he learn from his mistakes?
For years to come fight analysts will shoot and sprawl over whether or not Chris Weidman actually beat Anderson Silva legitimately at UFC 162, or if the ‘Spider’ beat himself? Regardless, what can’t be denied is in the ring hard work beat talent when talent didn’t work hard.
Like so many fallen champions who reign for an age it is predestined that they’ll eventually lose their hunger, edge and focus – and Anderson proved he’s no exception to this rule.
He even admitted to it in a recent interview on a Brazilian radio show when he said: “The criticism is valid, but I’m only human. I made a mistake, and it was good for me and for the people around me to learn. I lost focus, and now I will get better.”
Silva is a unique case study, because for seven years he has consistently been able to do things in the Octagon that nobody else could. And because of this he is widely considered to be the greatest living mixed martial artist on the planet.
So what is the psychological impact on a man’s motivation when he carries the weight of the label ‘great’? Well, let me tell you: it naturally erodes.
PSYCH WARNING: ONE
This erosion can be explained using Hull’s psychological motivational drive theory (below). It shows the inextricably entwined linear relationship between arousal and performance. The higher the arousal levels (combat mental state) the higher the performance level.
At UFC 162, Anderson’s arousal levels were running on empty, which was clearly demonstrated by his utter lack of respect for Weidman’s skill-set and ability, and his adoption of an overzealous version of his trademark antics: baiting Weidman by placing his hands by his sides and constantly bobbing and weaving his head.
By round two it was no longer a fight for Silva, it was an exhibition to expose and embarrass Weidman. This was Anderson’s downfall. By underestimating his opponent, Anderson’s arousal level plummeted which dragged his performance levels along with it and ultimately cost him the fight.
PSYCH WARNING: TWO
To take it a step further, motivation is the combination of the internal drive within us to achieve our goals and the outside factors which affect it.
With this in mind, motivation has the following two forms: intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation. For any fighter, the intrinsic motivation should always be to strive to continually improve and do the thing you believe you were born to do.
For a champion it’s simply to remain on top for as long as possible.
But sovereigns of the cage are not immune to the ‘human condition’ and are prone to losing focus (which Anderson admitted) as to why they are fighting in the first place because they succumb to extrinsic forms of motivation — the spoils of war.
Imagine waking up every morning in Egyptian cotton sheets, living in the house of your dreams, never having to worry about money again, and being seen as an icon by millions. It takes an exceptional individual to find the internal motivation to hit the gym every single day, year in, year out, especially when every man in the sport wants to test themselves against you, and you know you’ve already reached the goal of being the best there is in any era.
The Octagon has the power to redefine who we think we are even for the likes of Anderson Silva; it has zero room for complacency and takes no prisoners. The self-inflicted fashion in which Silva was dethroned will not be the way he wants to go out and as with all true champions he should not be defined by his loss but by his ability to bounce back and learn from his mistakes.
