There is a good reason it is so popular. The business side is well organized, and masterfully promoted. Also, it is a step beyond boxing or wrestling in every way. The ability to throw kicks while standing, and the option to take the fight to the ground adds a complexity that makes boxing pale in comparison. Where wrestling is concerned, the fact that striking is part of the contest adds a level of excitement that wrestling doesn't have, and is essential to the mainstream popularity that catapulted MMA to its current level. Live on Pay-per-View, on Spike and most sports networks it has become a passion for fans, and a lightning rod for controversy from critics.
March 30th will debut the 13 season of TUF (The Ultimate Fighter). A reality show that features mixed martial arts fighters, who train and compete for a six figure contract with the UFC, the largest and most successful MMA organization in the world. With this groundbreaking series about to start a new season The Manic Martial Artist asks a few questions about this sport.
- Is it too violent and dangerous, a Bloodsport?
- How does MMA compare with other combat sports that have been around for years and have empirical data of the long term affects on fighters?
- Does it degenerate the spirit and philosophies of martial arts as a discipline?
- Martial Arts Masters have passed on their styles, techniques and philosophies for hundreds of years. Many never compete and feel that competition of this nature demean martial arts.
- How does it compare with martial arts that have been developed, and studied for hundreds of years?
- If a modern champion of Mixed Martial Arts fought a true Master of Kung Fu, Muay Thai, Jujutsu, Ninjutsu or Capoeira, from the history of these styles, would the outcome be a foregone conclusion?
Interesting questions you pose. In regards to if MMA is a bloodsport, what I find intersting is that while it seems more brutal than boxing is the safegaurds they put in for the participants seems much more logical, I've never been big fan of boxing or MMA but MMA will stop the fight if a person is knocked out where as boxing lets you have until the count of 10 to recover and try to continue. This seems like the likelyhood of serious brain damage is greater than MMA where the fight is over if someone is knocked out. What I do like about MMA is that you get to see so many different styles of fighting. Granted it usually turns into a grapple fest from what I've seen but it's not just two people standing toe to toe seeing how much of beating they can take before losing consciousness. I don't think it degrades the spirit of any martial art as this is more realilistic, I mean how many times have you seen two people in a street fight that both know the same martial art and honor that school of training by exclusively fighting with one style of fighting? You don't, you see people using anything they know to win. It seems to me the more you know the better the chances of you walking away from a fight.
ReplyDeletedarn typos. Correction: Granted it usually turns into a grapple fest from what I've seen but it's not just two people standing toe to toe seeing how much of a beating they can take before losing consciousness.
ReplyDeleteClark, I think you have made some excellent observations.
ReplyDeleteThe safeguards in MMA are more logical. I had thought as well, about the purpose of boxing being to hit each other in the head repeatedly, seeing who could take the most punishment before losing consciousness, but had not thought of the 10 second rule. The assumption that if in ten seconds you can get up then you are okay, is dangerous at best. You may already have a minor concussion and to continue at that point is ridiculous. Look at retired boxers as opposed to retired MMA fighters. You can plainly see cognitive degeneration in a boxer, but the same is not true in MMA.
The different styles and techniques available to a fighter in MMA is also an important distinction. This makes the fights more interesting. Even the grappling, which is a style and set of techniques of their own. Since I started training MMA and learning Jiu Jitsu, I have gained a greater appreciation for the complexity of these techniques. It is very much a chess match in trying to set up your opponent for a submission technique they cannot escape.
In my MMA training we train under the philosophy of Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do. This is meant to be more of a philosophy than an actual style. Bruce Lee no longer believed in styles and that a modern martial artist should train their entire body in many different techniques, not limiting to one style. You have instinctively touched on this with your comment about a real fight on the street. When faced with situations where there are no rules, no refs and no option except win or lose, live or die, then you will do whatever it takes to win.
Thank you for your comments.
1.) I recently watched a boxing match where one boxer had two standing eight counts in one round and was allowed to continue. How anyone can think that MMA is more dangerous to long-term damage than boxing is beyond me.
ReplyDelete2.) Many martial arts have had competition for hundreds of years as well. It can be a way to test your students not only for the physical requirements of a fight but the phychological aspects as well. There are many styles of combat arts that have not or can not be transformed into sport. MMA is a sport. If you attempted to make a sport out of some martial arts it could in affect "cheapen" them. All sports have rules. It is not necessarily a "real" fight if you can't strike the groin, or get out of a submission attempt with a finger lock, etc. There are some fighters than are great at self defense and not good at competition sport fighting and vice versa.
3.) Your third question was kind of the basis for UFC 1 was it not? Almost all of the fighters picked to compete in UFC 1 were style specific. Remember that tournament was invitation only. Fighters that were truely cross trained were (in some cases) not allowed to fight in UFC 1. In today's MMA every fighter is cross trained. So in a sport situation I would expect them to fair well against a traditional martial arts master. Remember Matt Hughes match against Royce Gracie a few years ago? However, going back again to the difference between sport and self defense, most traditional martial arts masters trained for combat and self defense. Not Sport.
@Tim
ReplyDelete1.) Agreed. Wow, I can only imagine what his senses felt like after that fight.
2.) The sport aspect is what makes it safe. It is certainly NOT a real fight, as there are so many techniques in martial arts, which if applied in the cage would be grounds for disqualification. The groin strike and finger lock are great examples. Knife hand or ridge hand strikes to the throat come to mind, as well. I would wonder why a martial artist who is good at self defense is not good at competition. Is it the way self defense works for them is those techniques which are banned from competition are needed to survive? To be successful in MMA, for example, it is likely the conditioning and breadth of knowledge with simple striking and submission techniques that is key. If you get gassed in competition you will likely lose more times than not, but if you can keep an intensive pace and are skilled enough not to get knocked out or submitted, then you win. In real life the key is to not let the fight drag on and finish it any way you can. But, for those who study MMA exclusively as a sport, are they missing a large piece of the martial arts? I train with an MMA academy, and we train for the real world as well as the cage, but is this the case with all academies?
3.) A basis yes, but I do not think it was the reality. Were we seeing true masters in UFC 1 or just people wanting to prove themselves. Also, my question was posed as a hypothetical question on the martial arts in life, and not sport. What would the outcome be if Anderson Silva, George St. Pierre or Urijah Faber had to face Bruce Lee, the original IP Man, or a true Shaolin Master who has dedicated their whole life to training, in a true fight?
Thank you for your comments!
The mental aspects of a real fight vs a sport is very different. Most real fights are going to last less then a minute. When it comes to self defense I love the expression that a true black belt needs the skill and the will to kill. The military has an expression that they have to be undefeated or they are dead.
ReplyDeleteConditioning is a big part of sports. Today's MMA athletes are going to have an advatage being strong, conditioned and their ability to change up the fight. But if they haven't trained in traditional martial arts for self defense then their technics are going to be oriented to fight rules and those holes are a lethal vulnerability.