MMA (Mixed Martial Arts)

 

 

 

 

Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both standing and on the ground, from a variety of other combat sports and martial arts. Various mixed-style contests took place throughout Europe, Japan and the Pacific Rim during the early 1900s. In 1980 CV Productions, Inc. created the first regulated MMA league in the United States named Tough Guy Contest, later renamed Battle of the Superfighters, sanctioning ten tournaments in Pennsylvania. However, in 1983 the Pennsylvania State Senate passed a bill prohibiting the sport.The combat sport of vale tudo that had developed in Brazil from the 1920s was brought to the United States by the Gracie family in 1993 with the founding of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).[3]

The first documented use of the name mixed martial arts was in a review of UFC 1 by television critic Howard Rosenberg, in 1993.[4] The term gained popularity when the website newfullcontact.com, then one of the largest covering the sport, hosted and reprinted the article.[5] The question of who actually coined the term is subject to debate.[6]

Originally promoted as a competition with the intention of finding the most effective martial arts for real unarmed combat situations, competitors were pitted against one another with few rules.[7] Later, fighters employed multiple martial arts into their style whilst promoters were pressured to adopt additional rules aimed at increasing safety for competitors, to meet compliance and regulation and to promote mainstream acceptance of the sport.[8] Following these changes, the sport has seen increased popularity with a pay-per-view business that rivals boxing and professional wrestling.

Modern sport

Dana White, the current president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, said in an interview that Bruce Lee could be considered the founding father of mixed martial arts. His iconic roles and legendary martial arts techniques still inspire martial artist to this day.

The movement that led to the creation of the American and Japanese mixed martial arts scenes was rooted in two interconnected subcultures and two grappling styles, namely Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and shoot wrestling. First were the vale tudo events in Brazil, followed by the Japanese shoot-style wrestling shows.

Vale tudo began in the 1920s and became renowned with the „Gracie challenge” issued by Carlos Gracie and Hélio Gracie and upheld later on by descendants of the Gracie family.The „Gracie Challenges” were held in the garages and gyms of the Gracie family members. When the popularity grew, these types of mixed bouts were a staple attraction the carnivals in Brazil.[20] Early mixed-match martial arts professional wrestling bouts in Japan (known as Ishu Kakutōgi Sen (異種格闘技戦), literally „heterogeneous combat sports bouts”) became popular with Antonio Inoki in the 1970s. Inoki was a disciple of Rikidōzan, but also of Karl Gotch who trained numerous Japanese wrestlers in catch wrestling.

Regulated mixed martial arts competitions were first introduced in the United States by CV Productions, Inc.. Its first competition named Tough Guy Contest was held on March 20, 1980, New Kensington, Pennsylvania, Holiday Inn. During that year the company renamed the brand to Super Fighters and sanctioned ten regulated tournaments in Pennsylvania. In 1983 Pennsylvania State Senate passed a bill that specifically called for: „Prohibiting Tough Guy contests or Battle of the Brawlers contests”, and ended the sport.[1][2][21] In 1993 the sport got reintroduced in the United States by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).[22] The sport gained international exposure and widespread publicity when jiu-jitsu fighter Royce Gracie won the first Ultimate Fighting Championship tournament, submitting three challengers in a total of just five minutes,[23] sparking a revolution in martial arts.[24][25]

Japan had its own form of mixed martial arts discipline Shooto that evolved from shoot wrestling in 1985, as well as the shoot wrestling derivative Pancrase founded as a promotion in 1993. The first Vale Tudo Japan tournaments were held in 1994 and 1995, both were won by Rickson Gracie. Around the same time, International Vale Tudo competition started to develop through (World Vale Tudo Championship (WVC), VTJ, IVC, UVF etc.). Interest in mixed martial arts as a sport resulted in the creation of the Pride Fighting Championships (Pride) in 1997, where again Rickson participated and won.[26]

The sport reached a new peak of popularity in North America in the December 2006 rematch between then UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell and former champion Tito Ortiz, rivaling the PPV sales of some of the biggest boxing events of all time,[27] and helping the UFC\’s 2006 PPV gross surpass that of any promotion in PPV history. In 2007, Zuffa LLC, the owners of the UFC MMA promotion, bought Japanese rival MMA brand Pride FC, merging the contracted fighters under one promotion[28] and drawing comparisons to the consolidation that occurred in other sports, such as the AFL-NFL Merger in American football.[29]

Origin of \’MMA\’

The first documented use of the name mixed martial arts was in a review of UFC 1 by television critic Howard Rosenberg, in 1993.[4] The term gained popularity when the website newfullcontact.com, then one of the biggest covering the sport, hosted and reprinted the article. The first use of the term by a promotion was in September 1995 by Rick Blume, president and CEO of Battlecade Extreme Fighting, just after UFC 7.[30] UFC official Jeff Blatnick was responsible for the Ultimate Fighting Championship officially adopting the name mixed martial arts. Previously marketed as „Ultimate Fighting” and „No Holds Barred (NHB)”, Blatnick and John McCarthy proposed the name \’MMA\’ at the UFC 17 rules meeting in response to increased public criticism.[31] The question on who actually coined the name is a question still in debate.[6]

Regulation

The first state regulated MMA event was held in Biloxi, Mississippi on August 23, 1996 with the sanctioning of IFC\’s Mayhem in Mississippi[32] show by the Mississippi Athletic Commission under William Lyons. The rules used were an adaptation of the kickboxing rules already accepted by most state athletic commissions. These modified kickboxing rules allowed for take downs and ground fighting and did away with rounds but did allow for fighters to be stood up by the referee and restarted if there was no action on the ground. These rules were the first in modern MMA to define fouls, fighting surfaces and the use of the cage.

In March 1997, the Iowa Athletic Commission officially sanctioned Battlecade Extreme Fighting under a modified form of its existing rules for Shootfighting. These rules created the 3, 5 minute round, one-minute break format, and mandated shootfighting gloves as well as weight classes for the first time. Illegal blows were listed as groin strikes, head butting, biting, eye gouging, hair pulling, striking an opponent with an elbow while the opponent is on the mat, kidney strikes, and striking the back of the head with closed fist. Holding onto the ring or cage for any reason was defined as foul.[33][34] While there are minor differences between these and the final Unified Rules, notably regarding elbow-strikes, the Iowa rules allowed mixed martial arts promoters to conduct essentially modern events legally, anywhere in the state. On March 28, 1997, Extreme Fighting 4 was held under these rules, making it the first show conducted under a version of the modern rules.

In April 2000, the California State Athletic Commission voted unanimously in favor of regulations that later became the foundation for the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. However, when the legislation was sent to the California capital in Sacramento for review, it was determined that the sport fell outside the jurisdiction of the CSAC, rendering the vote superfluous.[35]

On September 30, 2000, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board (NJSACB) began to allow mixed martial arts promoters to conduct events in New Jersey. The first event was an IFC event titled Battleground 2000 held in Atlantic City. The intent was to allow the NJSACB to observe actual events and gather information to establish a comprehensive set of rules to effectively regulate the sport.[36]

On April 3, 2001, the NJSACB held a meeting to discuss the regulation of mixed martial arts events. This meeting attempted to unify the myriad rules and regulations which have been utilized by the different mixed martial arts organizations. At this meeting, the proposed uniform rules were agreed upon by the NJSACB, several other regulatory bodies, numerous promoters of mixed martial arts events and other interested parties in attendance. At the conclusion of the meeting, all parties in attendance were able to agree upon a uniform set of rules to govern the sport of mixed martial arts.[36]

The rules adopted by the NJSACB have become the de facto standard set of rules for professional mixed martial arts across North America. On July 30, 2009, a motion was made at the annual meeting of the Association of Boxing Commissions to adopt these rules as the „Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts”. The motion passed unanimously.[37]

In November 2005 the United States Army began to sanction mixed martial arts with the first annual Army Combatives Championships held by the US Army Combatives School.[38]

Canada formally decriminalized mixed martial arts with a vote on Bill S-209 on June 5, 2013. The bill allows for provinces to have the power to create athletic commissions to regulate and sanction professional mixed martial arts bouts.[39]

MMA organizations

Main article: MMA organizations

Promotions

According to MMA portal Tapology.com listings; there are hundreds of MMA promotions around the world producing MMA events.[40]

Since the UFC came to prominence in mainstream media in 2006, and with their 2007 merger with Pride FC and following purchase of WEC and Strikeforce, no companies have presented significant competition,[41] and the UFC has under contract almost all of the top ranked talent.[42] On April 30, 2011, UFC 129 set a new North American MMA attendance record, drawing 55,724 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto; the event also set a new MMA world record for the highest paid gate at $12,075,000[43] and is the highest gate in Toronto for any event.[44]

In 2011, the UFC reached a multi-year deal with the Fox Sports network, a tremendous milestone in the organization, bringing the sport to main stream media.[45] The UFC also broadcasts their shows live to other networks around the world.

Outside of the UFC, the current secondary major MMA promotions that also have on their roster at least 3 top 15 ranked fighters are:

Bellator MMA. Based out of Newport Beach, California, United States. Broadcasts their fights locally on Spike TV and other networks around the world.

ONE Championship. Based out of Kallang, Singapore. Broadcasts their fights locally on ESPN Star Sports and other networks around the world.

World Series of Fighting. Based out of Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Broadcasts their fights locally on NBC Sports and other networks around the world.

Invicta FC (all female MMA). Based out of Enka, North Carolina, United States. Broadcasts their fights on UFC Fight-Pass online subscription service.[46]

Though ranked #20 promotion overall; Japanese, all female MMA promotion JEWELS (DEEP JEWELS) which formed a strategic partnership to cross-promote with Invicta FC since 2012,[47] has many top ranked fighters in their female Atomweight division.[48][49]

Fighters usually get contracts in the above promotions including the UFC after competing successfully in other MMA organisations from around the world.

Some MMA promotions tend to exist more to build up prospects while others have a good mix of prospect/veteran. Some exist only to be feeder leagues to the bigger promotions, others exist to try and be the best in the world. Some promotions only do 4 shows a year while others are doing them monthly. The top 50 regional MMA promotions in the world, compiled on Sherdog forum, have been evaluated by how much talent the promotion currently has, has had in the past, and how notable their fighting venues are while doing so. Popularity has some influence as well. (updated November 2014):[50]

1. Cage Warriors Fighting Championship (CWFC). Based out of London, England, UK. Broadcasts their fights locally on Premier Sports and other networks around the world.

2. M-1 Global. Based out of St. Petersburg, Russia. Broadcasts their fights locally on Russia-2 and on Fight Network internationally.

3. Jungle Fight. Based out of Manaus, Brazil. Broadcasts their fights locally on SporTV and ESPN Deportes in the USA.

4. Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki (KSW). Based out of: Warsaw, Poland. Broadcasts their fights locally on Polsat Sport and on Fight Network internationally.

5. Fight Nights (Russia). Based out of Moscow, Russia. Broadcasts their fights locally on Russia-2 and REN TV, and on UFC Fight-Pass online subscription service internationally.[46]

6. Resurrection Fighting Alliance (RFA). Based out of Kearney, Nebraska, USA. Broadcasts their fights locally on AXS TV Fights.

7. Legacy Fighting Championships (LFC). Based out of Houston, Texas, USA. Broadcasts their fights locally on AXS TV Fights.

8. Titan Fighting Championship. Based out of Kansas City, Kansas, USA. Broadcasts their fights locally on UFC Fight-Pass online subscription service.[46]

9. Shooto South America (ShootoBrazil). Based out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Broadcasts internationally on UFC Fight-Pass online subscription service.[46]

10. British Association of Mixed Martial Arts (BAMMA). Based out of London, England. Broadcasts their fights locally on Channel 5 (UK) and other networks around the world.

See rest of list in main article.

Gyms

There are hundreds of MMA training facilities throughout the world.[51][52]

These are the current top 10 MMA Gyms in the world based on how many top 15 ranked UFC fighters they currently train. There are 160 fighters who train at over 80 different gyms at the top 15 rankings in the UFC 10 divisions. The rankings are based on a system where a champion earns their gym a score of 25 points. A #1 contender is worth 15 points, a #2 contender is worth 10 points with a decrease in ranking equaling a decrease of 1 point until the ranking reaches #10. From there, rankings 11-15 are each worth 1 point. (updated July 2015):[53]

1. Nova União located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

2. Jackson-Winkeljohn MMA located in Albuquerque, New Mexico

3. American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) located in San Jose, California. One of only two gyms in the world to currently hold (2) UFC belts, the Light Heavyweight and Middleweight Championships.

4. Team Alpha Male located in Sacramento, California.

5. American Top Team (ATT) located in Coconut Creek, Florida.

6. Kings MMA located in Huntington Beach, California. One of only two gyms in the world to currently hold (2) UFC belts, the Heavyweight and Lightweight Championships.

7. Blackzilians located in Boca Raton, Florida.

8. Serra-Longo located in Long Island, New York.

9. Glendale Fighting Club located in Glendale, California.

10. Black House (Team Nogueira) based out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Media

Web data traffic ranking leader Alexa Internet lists 50 online media outlets under its „MMA news and media” website category. As of October 17, 2015: the top 10 most popular websites covering the sport are:[54]

1. Sherdog.com

2. MMAFighting.com

3. UFC.com

4. MMAjunkie.com

5. MMAMania.com

6. Bloodyelbow.com

7. Mixedmartialarts.com

8. Espn.go.com/mma

9. Foxsports.com/ufc

10. MMAWeekly.com

Fighter development

As a result of an increased number of competitors, organized training camps, information sharing, and modern kinesiology, the understanding of the combat-effectiveness of various strategies has been greatly improved. UFC commentator Joe Rogan claimed that martial arts evolved more in the ten years following 1993 than in the preceding 700 years combined.[55]

„During his reign atop the sport in the late 1990s he was the prototype — he could strike with the best strikers; he could grapple with the best grapplers; his endurance was second to none. „

— describing UFC champion Frank Shamrock\’s early dominance[56]

The high profile of modern MMA promotions such as UFC and Pride has fostered an accelerated development of the sport. The early 1990s saw a wide variety of traditional styles competing in the sport.[57] However, early competition saw varying levels of success among disparate styles.

Two fighters grappling in a mixed martial arts event.

In the early 1990s, practitioners of grappling based styles such as Brazilian jiu-jitsu dominated competition in the United States. Practitioners of striking based arts such as boxing, kickboxing, and karate who were unfamiliar with submission grappling proved to be unprepared to deal with its submission techniques.[58][59][60][61][62] As competitions became more and more common, those with a base in striking arts became more competitive as they cross trained in arts based around takedowns and submission holds.[62] Likewise, those from the varying grappling styles added striking techniques to their arsenal. This increase of cross-training resulted in fighters becoming increasingly multidimensional and well-rounded in their skill-sets.

The new hybridization of fighting styles can be seen in the technique of „ground and pound” developed by wrestling-based UFC pioneers such as Dan Severn, Don Frye and Mark Coleman. These wrestlers realized the need for the incorporation of strikes on the ground as well as on the feet, and incorporated ground striking into their grappling-based styles. Mark Coleman stated at UFC 14 that his strategy was to „Ground him and pound him” which may be the first televised use of the term.

Since the late 1990s, both strikers and grapplers have been successful at MMA, though it is rare to see any fighter who is not schooled in both striking and grappling arts reach the highest levels of competition.

The greatest MMA fighter of all time is considered by experts, fighters and fans to be either heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko or middleweight Anderson Silva.[63] UFC color commentator Joe Rogan responded to a fan\’s question: „Joe, is Fedor the Greatest Of All Time? It\’s him or Anderson, and I could see the argument going either way honestly. Both guys have had truly magical moments in competition against some of the best in the world.”[64]