History of MMA:
Mixed Martial Arts when many hear this term they immediately think UFC(Ultimate Fighting Championship). While the UFC is in fact Mixed Martial Arts,MMA as it is commonly refered to dates back to as early as 648 BC in ancient Greece where it was introduced to the Olympic games as Pankration.Pankration is a compound word consisting of the two greek words Pan-"All" and Kratos-"Powers",seeing how the sport mixed Hellenic greek boxing with wrestling.The sport of Pankration eventually became the most popular Olympic sport of its time and only consisted of two rules; No biting and No eye gouges.The only way these bouts could end would either be by knockout (Unconsciousness) or by submission (opponent raises his hand to surrender) often time bouts lasted for hours and usually ended in the death of one or both Pankratiast.Pankration is the first ever recorded form of combat sports to later be known as Mixed Martial Arts.Pankration suffered a severe decline in Greece at the rise of the Roman Empire and eventually fell into the shadows for western sports such as wrestling and boxing and traditional asian martial arts.MMA layed dormant from this point on until 1925 until its revival in Brazil.
The revival of MMA took place in Brazil when Mitsuyo Maeda a political figure from Japan taught Gastao Gracie a political figure in Brazil's son Carlos judo. Carlos Gracie trained with Maeda for six years and after Maeda departed back to Japan Carlos taught the art of judo to his brothers Helio, Jorge, Osvaldo and Gastão, Jr. The Gracie brothers did not pertain to the traditions of judo so they adapted the style to better suit their needs. It was in 1925 that Carlos went to Rio De Janeiro and opened a jiu-jitsu academy.After Carlos started this academy he then marketed it with the "Gracie Challenge". The "Gracie Challenge" pitted Carlos Gracie against all comers as he tried to prove which martial art was best in the world much like Pankration thousands of years before it.This challenge was so radical and different that western culture caught on and MMA was revived.When word traveled to Japan about these challenges the Japanese immediately sent over fighters in an attempt to prove their traditions in martial arts was superior. By the end of Carlos' fight career he was in well over a thousand fights.Carlos passed on the traditions to his son Carlson Gracie and later Helio’s sons Rolls, Rickson and Rorion carried on the tradition.
By the 1980's the "Gracie Challenge" was now under a new name Vale-Tudo, it became the nation of Brazil's second most popular sport behind soccer.With regulated things and fight stables Vale-Tudo spread throughout Brazil and the Gracie's decided it was time to branch out into the United States.Rorion Gracie established himself in the U.S. and eventually met a salesman named Art Davie.Davie introduced Rorion to Bob Meyrowitz president of Semaphore Entertainment Group (SEG), a corporation that specialized in putting on live pay-per-view sporting events.These three men eventually started the "Ultimate Fighting Championships" which held its first event in 1993.The Ultimate Fighting Championship had introduced fighting dubbed "no-holds-barred,". The first six Ultimate Fighting Championship events had very few rules. There were no weight classes, no time limits or rounds, and no mandatory safety equipment. The only rules were fighters could not eye gouge, bite, or fish hook, and fights could only end with a referee’s stoppage, knock out, or submission, which could be signified verbally, or by a "tap out,"(Submission by tappin mat or opponent to signify forfeit). The UFC found itself in hot water after being marketed as a "blood sport" which found itself the subject of political view.Senator John McCain started anti-UFC campaigns and had the sport abolished in many states.The UFC lost all Pay-Per-View ties and were forced to return "underground".The UFC remained frowned upon until Zuffa LLC bought the rights and tried to get the sport sanctioned which they did. The UFC returned with a stricter set of rules, which included rounds, time limits, five weight classes, a list of 31 fouls, and 8 possible ways to win. The sport since being sanctioned under Unified MMA rules has done nothing but grow in popularity.
Unified MMA Rules
The Unified MMA rules are a set of rules made up by the New Jersey State Athletic Commission in 2000 they are as follows.
Rounds
Every round is 5 minutes in duration with a one minute rest period in-between rounds. Non-title matches must not exceed three rounds. Title matches can be sanctioned for five rounds.
Attire
All competitors must fight in approved shorts, without shoes or any other sort of foot padding. Shirts, gis or long pants (including gi pants) are not allowed. Fighters must use approved light gloves (4-6 ounces) that allow fingers to grab.
Judging criteria
The ten-point must system is in effect for all fights. Three judges score each round and the winner of each receives ten points, the loser nine points or less. If the round is even, both fighters receive ten points. In New Jersey, the fewest points a fighter can receive is 7, and in other states by custom no fighter receives less than 8.
Legal techniques
The Unified Rules continue to allow all elbow strikes except those hitting downwards with the point of the elbow, or those to the back of the head. (See Fouls for details)
Fouls
The following are fouls, as set out by the Nevada State Athletic Commission:
Butting with the head
Eye gouging of any kind
Biting
Hair pulling
Fish hooking
Groin attacks of any kind
Putting a finger into any orifice or into any cut or laceration on an opponent. (see Gouging)
Small joint manipulation
Striking to the spine or the back of the head
Striking downward using the point of the elbow
Throat strikes of any kind, including, without limitation, grabbing the trachea
Clawing, pinching or twisting the flesh
Grabbing the clavicle
Kicking the head of a grounded opponent
Kneeing the head of a grounded opponent
Stomping a grounded opponent
Kicking to the kidney with the heel
Spiking an opponent to the canvas on his head or neck.
Throwing an opponent out of the ring or fenced area
Holding the shorts or gloves of an opponent
Spitting at an opponent
Engaging in unsportsmanlike conduct that causes an injury to an opponent
Holding the ropes or the fence
Using abusive language in the ring or fenced area
Attacking an opponent on or during the break
Attacking an opponent who is under the care of the referee
Attacking an opponent after the bell (horn) has sounded the end of a round
Flagrantly disregarding the instructions of the referee
Timidity, including, without limitation, avoiding contact with an opponent, intentionally or consistently dropping the mouthpiece or faking an injury
Interference by the corner
Throwing in the towel during competition
When a foul is charged, the referee in their discretion may deduct one or more points as a penalty. If a foul incapacitates a fighter, then the match may end in a disqualification if the foul was intentional, or a no contest if unintentional. If a foul causes a fighter to be unable to continue later in the bout, it ends with a technical decision win to the injured fighter if the injured fighter is ahead on points, otherwise it is a technical draw.
General conduct
Fighters are tested for steroids and other illegal substances. [Unified rules provided by Wikipedia]
International MMA Rules
International MMA rules are not a unified set of rules but a set of rules adopted from the Pride Fighting Championships in Japan. These fights were similar to those of original MMA they are as follows.
Rounds
The first round is ten minutes in duration and the second and third rounds are five minutes in duration. There is a two minute rest period between each round. Grand Prix matches are two rounds in length if more than one round is scheduled on one night.
Attire
PRIDE allows fighters latitude in their choice of attire but open finger gloves, a mouthguard and a protective cup are mandatory. It is within a fighter's discretion to tape parts of their body but you can not wear a gi top, gi pants, wrestling shoes, kneepads, elbow pads, shin guards and ankle supports.
Judging criteria
If the match reaches its time limit then the outcome of the bout is determined by the three judges. The fight is scored in its entirety and not round-by-round. After the conclusion of the bout, each judge must decide a winner. Matches cannot end in a draw. A decision is made according to the following criteria in this order of priority:
the effort made to finish the fight via KO or submission,
damage given to the opponent,
standing combinations and ground control,
takedowns and takedown defense,
aggressiveness, and
weight (in the case that the weight difference is 10 kg/22 lb or more).
If a fight is stopped on advice of the ring doctor after an accidental but illegal action, e.g., a clash of heads, and the contest is in its second or third round, the match will be decided by the judges using the same criteria.
Legal techniques
PRIDE allowed the following techniques:
Stomps to a grounded opponent.
Soccer kicks to the head of a grounded opponent.
Knees to the head of a grounded opponent.
Fouls
In addition to the common fouls, PRIDE Fighting Championships considers elbow strikes to the head and face to be fouls.
In the event that a fighter is injured by illegal actions, then at the discretion of the referee and ring doctor, the round is resumed after enough time has been given for the fighter to recover. If the match cannot be continued due to the severity of the injury then the fighter who perpetrated the action will be disqualified.
General conduct
If fighters commit the following actions, they shall be given a yellow card by officials: Stalling or failure to initiate any offensive attack, making no attempt to finalize the match or damage the opponent, and holding the opponent's body with the arms and legs to produce a stalemate. A yellow card results in a 10% deduction/fine of the fighter's fight purse.[Pride Rules Provided by Wikipedia]
Evolution of Fighters
The evolution of MMA has gone from a sport consisting of style vs style to a sport that pits elite-athlete against elite-athlete who are well versed in various forms of martial arts. Styles included in MMA consist of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,Muay Thai,Kickboxing,Wrestling,Karate,and Sambo to name a few. Masters of their craft, MMA has produced champions of almost every different style. Notable champions using these different styles include;
Wrestling-Randy Couture,Brock Lesnar,Matt Hughes,Rashad Evans,Cain Velasquez,Shane Carwin(Interim)
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu-Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira,Murilo Bustamante,Royce Gracie(Tournament Champion)
Muay Thai-Anderson Silva,Wanderlei Silva,Jose Aldo
Kickboxing-Alistair Overeem,Maurice Smith,Mirko "Cro-Cop" Filipovic
Karate- Bas Rutten,Lyoto Machida,Georges St. Pierre,Vitor Belfort,Chuck Liddell
Sambo-Andrei Arlovski,Fedor Emelianenko
10 Point Must System
The ten point must system was adopted from boxing and brought over to MMA when the New Jersey State Athletic Commission sanctioned the sport. The official 10 point system for MMA is as follows;
13:46-24A.13 Judging New Jersey State Athletic Commission
(a) All bouts will be evaluated and scored by three judges.
(b) The 10-Point Must System will be the standard system of scoring a
bout. Under the 10-Point Must Scoring System, 10 points must be awarded
to the winner of the round and nine points or less must be awarded to
the loser, except for a rare even round, which is scored (10-10).
(c) Judges shall evaluate mixed martial arts techniques, such as
effective striking, effective grappling, control of the fighting area,
effective aggressiveness and defense.
(d) Evaluations shall be made in the order in which the techniques
appear in (c) above, giving the most weight in scoring to effective
striking, effective grappling, control of the fighting area and
effective aggressiveness and defense.
(e) Effective striking is judged by determining the total number of
legal heavy strikes landed by a contestant.
(f) Effective grappling is judged by considering the amount of
successful executions of a legal takedown and reversals. Examples of
factors to consider are take downs from standing position to mount
position, passing the guard to mount position, and bottom position
fighters using an active, threatening guard.
(g) Fighting area control is judged by determining who is dictating the
pace, location and position of the bout. Examples of factors to consider
are countering a grappler's attempt at takedown by remaining standing
and legally striking ; taking down an opponent to force a ground fight;
creating threatening submission attempts, passing the guard to achieve
mount, and creating striking opportunities.
(h) Effective aggressiveness means moving forward and landing a legal
strike.
(i) Effective defense means avoiding being struck, taken down or
reversed while countering with offensive attacks.
(j) The following objective scoring criteria shall be utilized by the
judges when scoring a round;
1. A round is to be scored as a 10-10 Round when both contestants
appear to be fighting evenly and neither contestant shows clear
dominance in a round;
2. A round is to be scored as a 10-9 Round when a contestant wins by a
close margin, landing the greater number of effective legal strikes,
grappling and other maneuvers;
3. A round is to be scored as a 10-8 Round when a contestant
overwhelmingly dominates by striking or grappling in a round.
4. A round is to be scored as a 10-7 Round when a contestant totally
dominates by striking or grappling in a round.
(k) Judges shall use a sliding scale and recognize the length of time
the fighters are either standing or on the ground, as follows:
1. If the mixed martial artists spent a majority of a round on the
canvas, then:
i. Effective grappling is weighed first; and
ii. Effective striking is then weighed
2. If the mixed martial artists spent a majority of a round standing,
then:
1. Effective striking is weighed first; and
2. Effective grappling is then weighed
3. If a round ends with a relatively even amount of standing and canvas
fighting, striking and grappling are weighed equally
MMA has suffered with its lack of MMA judges and the use of boxing judges in their place, leading to many controversial decisions this problem does need addressed but its not something that can be fixed overnight.
Cage vs Ring
Cage vs Ring is an MMA debate that will go on until long after the sport dies. Many feel the cage's "No Escape" feel gives a fight a more dramatic effect. While defenders of the ring feel the ring leads to better fights and causes fighters to actually use their technique and skill-set instead of engaging in a senseless brawl. The cage is manipulated in every single fight held inside it with every fighter employing a strategy utilizing it to their advantage.Many fighters push their opponents up against the cage, or even move them to it after taking them down aiding in a brawl but negating the technique needed in ground grappling and ground striking.Many cage lovers don't believe this fact but submissions are far less likely in a cage then inside a ring.If you look at the previous history of MMA in Japan and Brazil it was always held in a ring or open floor because traditional martial arts was about technique and discipline.Spectators of combat sports can see the significant difference in the action in a cage opposed to a ring as the cage encourages wall-wrestling and wedged between the wall ground and pound.Action in a ring such as Pride FC which was the pinnacle of MMA until it went defunct contains much more stand-up fighting, more movement, and more exciting action in exchanges and engagements. Even corporate sponsors stay away from the cage, if you look at a boxing ring,DREAM MMA ring or a K-1 ring you see sponsors and advertisements from many multi-million dollar industries such as Nike or the casinos holding the venue. Meanwhile in a cage you see smaller industries such as energy drinks and MMA apparel, ever wonder why Nike wasn't all over the Octagon? Even the very casinos in Vegas which hold the events don't always sponsor events in a cage with an advertisement on the floor.The UFC has hopes of going international and may have to eventually adapt to the ring in order for the rest of the world to catch on but don't count on it happening.
Is MMA Safer than Boxing?
MMA is the fasting growing sport in all the world at this moment, however many casual viewers see it as barbaric or inhumane and this is its only major drawback.These fans see and elbow,knee,or kick and they automatically assume "deathmatch" but will be more likely to watch a boxing match even though MMA is a safer sport.MMA has rules to protect injured fighters as well as less rounds making Dementia Pugilistica and death are extremely rare. Dementia Pugilistica is also known as CTE or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.The condition DP/CTE is believed to affect around 15-20% of all professional boxers.The condition is caused by repeated concussive and sub-concussive blows (blows that are below the threshold of force necessary to sustain a concussion), or both. Due to concern that boxing most likely causes DP, there is a movement among medical professionals to ban the sport entirely. Medical professionals have been calling for such since as early as the 1950s. Symptoms and signs of DP/CTE develop progressively over a long latent period sometimes spanning decades, with the average time of DP/CTE onset being around 12–16 years after the start of a boxing career.The condition, which occurs in boxers who have suffered repeated blows to the head, causes dementia, declining mental ability, memory loss, and parkinsonism (tremors and lack of coordination.) DP/CTE also causes speech impediment and an unsteady gait. Patients with DP/CTE are also prone to inappropriate or combustible behavior and may display pathological jealousy and/or thoughts of paranoia. An Individual displaying these symptoms also can be characterized as "punch drunk", another term for a someone suffering from DP/CTE. The brains of DP/CTE patients atrophy(the partial or complete wasting away of a part of the body) and lose neurons, for example in the cerebellum the corticospinal or pyramidal tract generally dysfunctions and goes haywire.Sufferers can be treated with drugs used for Alzheimer's disease and parkinsonism. In a boxing match that consist of twelve rounds there are between 350 and 600 punches that land 90% of those are to the head each of these rounds is 3 minutes where in MMA a title fight is five five minute rounds and non-title are three five minute rounds. Even training with headgear it only protects the soft tissue from being damaged not the impact the brain withstands, boxers also aren't allowed to fight in the clinch since it is illegal in the sport. Therefore when a boxer suffers a punch that causes damage he instinctively clinches only to be broken up by the referee and allowed to sustain another blow.In MMA fighters are allowed to fight from the clinch and also have to worry about takedowns,kicks,knees,and elbows which doesn't allow them to focus solely on the knockout unlike boxing which is one dimensional and you can focus solely on punching your opponent. Knockouts and injury are the main debate and the numbers don't lie boxers commonly suffer from brain trauma, hemmorages, and swelling of the brain since a fighter can be dropped and have 10 seconds to recover and continue on. "Fight or Flight response in a human will always allow for this recovery unless a state of unconciousness is met. MMA however when a fighter is hurt or intelligently stops defending himself the fight is stopped, also a knockout is a concussion regardless of how you look at it whenever a person loses consciousness its categorized as a concussion. There has only been one recored fatality in state sanctioned MMA competition in the last 16 years, Sammy Vasquez was the victim and he had a pre-existing blood clot in his brain which required surgery and he sustained another causing a coma and eventual death.In the past 16 years there has been over 110 recorded deaths in boxing an astounding number, boxing claims 30 lives a year on average since 1890 there hasn't been one year without multiple deaths in boxing. This doesn't mean MMA doesn't have risk or fighters are unphased by this, its just a safer way for fight sports to be played.
This has been an education in MMA for all who were ever curious about the fastest growing sport in the world.Please set ignorance aside and make an intelligent judgement on whats considered "Blood Sport" also, if you watch MMA and its not for you that's fine at least give it a chance before you throw it under the bus.
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