It was recently announced that Metamoris was returning after not putting on a show since August of 2015. Recently, Metamoris has been a mess. Not paying athletes, putting on sub-par matches, and not having any women compete are all factors of Metamoris’ decline. Polaris and EBI have all taken off, but Metamoris seems to be headed in the opposite direction. Ralek Gracie was forced to take some time off and re-group after AJ Agazarm took over their Instagram and revealed that he hadn’t been paid for his match against Karo Parisyan. Since then, Ralek has been under fire from much of the grappling community. Agazarm wasn’t the only one to complain about payment, but he was the most vocal. Ralek’s empty promises have hurt Metamoris’ credibility, and Metamoris 7 is the last chance for him to earn it back.
At a glance, Metamoris 7 looks like it will be incredibly entertaining, but so did all the other cards. Metamoris has always been able to sign big names, and this card is no different. Tim Spriggs, Dillion Danis, Roger Gracie, Marcus Buchecha, and Ralek Gracie himself, are all scheduled to compete. But, there has already been controversy surrounding this card. Both Tim Spriggs and Marcus Buchecha have said that they did not sign any contract to compete, they had just been asked about it. The event hasn’t even started yet, and they are already having problems. All of these matches look great on paper, but as we have seen before, most of them will turn into tedious affairs that end with a draw.
This card must be successful for Metamoris to stay afloat, and Ralek knows it. That’s why he is stepping onto the mat himself to take on Tim Spriggs. Well, he’ll take on Spriggs if they actually offer him a contract. To me, this looks like a last ditch effort to make this show more exciting than the ones in the past. I can’t knock Ralek for trying, but it might be too late. EBI just signed a deal with the UFC’s Fight Pass program and Polaris is having a huge card on April 2nd. It seems as though Metamoris served its role of bringing submission grappling to a more mainstream audience, but it is no longer the only promotion around. Much like in MMA, others are advancing past what the Gracies have brought.
