Sam Hoger – Back in the Saddle Again

Mixed martial arts is a game of inches, where victories or defeats can sometimes be decided by a lucky break here or there, a slip while throwing a punch or kick, a fall into a favorable position, or by executing whatever a judge deems to be the right strategy.

Ask Sam Hoger, a member of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ season one cast and a fighter with a 2-2 Octagon record that could have easily been 4-0 if he got the breaks in his bouts with Stephan Bonnar and Rashad Evans, both of which he lost via close decision.

So instead of headlining a Spike TV show like Evans has, or getting a co-featured slot on a pay-per-view show like Bonnar, Hoger will instead make his second pay-per-view card appearance (against highly regarded newcomer Lyoto Machida) in the same position he did his last one – on the untelevised portion of the undercard.

“Of course it’s tough because your ego’s there,” said Hoger. “Your ego eats at you, and then you have everybody telling you about how you were almost there, and it isn’t quite as satisfying as being there. As it’s been said, almost is never quite good enough.”

(Read More)