MMA isn't kind to its aging practitioners. Fighters who finds themselves on the wrong side of the aging curve are only a short punch or kick away from staring up at the rafters with a cage-side doctor's flashlight shining in their faces.
Whether it's Chuck Liddell's chin crumbling under the assault of Rashad Evans, Shogun Rua and Rich Franklin, or Anderson Silva's body failing him twice against Chris Weidman, it couldn't possibly be clearer that this sport has no margin for error as fighters lose a step.
That never-ending slide toward increasing danger and finally irrelevance is part of what makes UFC 195's ultra-violent title matchup between Robbie Lawler and Carlos Condit on January 2 so compelling.