​​By Shawn W. Smith 

While the fight world rolls on, the sport of mixed martial arts seems to have reached a period of disinteresting bouts that have fans calling for the days of old.

Call it a spring thaw, but there seems to be a lack of intriguing bouts on the MMA schedule over the next few months. This stretches all the way back to December; we haven't had a fight grab the sport's full attention since Ronda Rousey versus Amanda Nunes at UFC 207. There's nothing on the horizon that will change that.  

The schedule is a grim one. Two of the four upcoming main events are rematches, with Daniel Cormier defending his UFC light heavyweight title against Anthony Johnson and Stipe Miocic defending his UFC heavyweight title against Junior dos Santos. Neither of the other two upcoming main events is expected to be competitive, as longtime UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson defends his title against Wilson Reis and fan favorite Cub Swanson takes on the seemingly overmatched Artem Lobov in one of the least competitive on-paper main events in the company's history.

Of course, some of this comes down to a lack of star power. Rightful UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones is suspended. Queen of the fight world Ronda Rousey has been dethroned. Conor McGregor is off fighting some retired guy in the boxing world. Brock Lesnar is doing the pro wrestling thing.

It's easy to blame the UFC's new ownership, WME-IMG, and that certainly is part of it. So many of the fighters that fans have fallen in love with are now gone to other companies. The promotion has done their best to retain the fighters at the top of the sport but has made little effort to keep those who could be the future of the UFC, such as Michael McDonald, Nikita Krylov and Kyoji Horiguchi. Other established stars such as Lorenz Larkin, Ryan Bader, Ben Henderson and Rory MacDonald have left for greener pastures elsewhere.

While Zuffa made a focused effort to acquire as many of the best fighters as possible, WME-IMG has not followed a similar pathway. Their focus seems to be on the current stars, and they seemingly have little vision for the future.

Even the release of Mike Goldberg, who more than a few pundits and fans had trouble with, was a telling sign about the direction of the company. While he wasn't always a fan favorite, even his shortcomings became a part of the product you came to know and admire.

The company is cutting costs in an attempt to earn back the $4 billion they spent on the company, and fans can tell.

Some of this isn't the UFC's fault. It's hard to stay interested in a sport 12 months a year. There is no offseason like football or baseball, no break from the constant grind that so many other sports get to enjoy. Sometimes that's a good thing--we miss those team sports when they go away, but it doesn't mean it's always easy. As they say, distance makes the heart grow fonder, but we never get any real distance from MMA.

The sport just continues, and you either watch or you don't, and if you don't, you fall behind. In a sport so intensely based in the world of social media and online conversation, tuning out is not an option if you wish to stay afloat.

During a time when NCAA March Madness is on, not to mention the NBA and NHL playoffs on the horizon as well as baseball season kicking off, MMA has undoubtedly taken a back seat in the mainstream.

But fight fans need to ride the wave. While the sport isn't in peak form, there are things worth getting excited about. Jose Aldo versus Max Holloway June 3 at UFC 212 is an absolute gem of a fight. The Ultimate Fighter's upcoming redemption season, featuring a slew of former UFC fighters looking for a contract, should be a lot of fun. Jon Jones will be back before we know it. Nick Diaz is expected to return sometime this year, as well.

Hold tight, fight fans. We can get through this together.