Comparing Mixed Martial Arts To Boxing - Essay Example

WHY MIXED MARTIAL ARTS IS BETTER THAN BOXING Mixed Martial Arts {MMA} is presently the most rapidly growing sport in the United s as well as in other parts of the world. MMA involves the ‘mix’ of various martial arts with the aim of turning out a ‘complete’ fighter (Sheridan, 42). MMA fighters possess a mixture of finely honed martial skills including boxing, jujitsu, Greco-Roman wrestling, muy thai and other fighting disciplines (Petersen). They develop skillful moves by taking in the core skill and making it fit them like a glove (Scott, 3). In the U.S., MMA is gaining in popularity at box offices, in venues across the country, on pay-per-view and in gymnasiums (Cozzone). The Brazilian Top Team has emerged as the most successful in the history of MMA (Sheridan, 92), closely followed by the American Top Team based in Florida (Sheridan, 112). On the other hand, boxing {decidedly better than the transparently put up fights by the exponents of professional wrestling} which was until recently the most avid followed aggressive sport in the country has slipped badly due to a variety of factors. Gone are the days when excited spectators thronged the route to the stadium, while those within the stadium paid homage to their boxing heroes like biblical masses (Rendall, 7). Boxing has now been reduced to preening, pompous gaited, one-dimensional public exhibitionists (Rendall, 29). MMA is better than boxing because of many reasons. 1. Blood Sport People have traditionally been attracted to a sport that involves realistic, blood splattering aggression. In ancient times, the coliseums of Rome used to be filled to capacity during fights involving trained gladiators battling for their lives with swords, tridents, chains, nets, daggers and clubs {the recent Hollywood film The Gladiator starring Russell Crowe was a huge hit}. The famed bullfights of Spain where death-defying matadors take on massive bulls are a prime sport in that country, and a must-to-watch for those visiting it. Watching realistic, blood-spurting, spectacular fights stirs the caveman’s instinct within us as nothing else does. With its unique shock and awe approach, MMA satisfies the blood lust craving in sport. It is a ‘rough, rough’ sport where toughness is a vital ingredient (Sheridan, 48). It presents viewers with spectacular violence involving fights during which blood is splattered liberally and profusely, and where even limbs are broken frequently (Peterson) {the crab scissors throw or body scissors are the deadly techniques used to do this [Scott, 2]} as the fighters battle each other in an arena hemmed with black fencing ominously called ‘the octagon’ (Peterson). MMA fighters were small gloves with hardly any padding, thereby adding to the severity of punches. In contrast, boxers use heavily padded gloves that ensure the impact of punches is not severe. Secondly, as compared to boxing, each MMA fighting round is lengthier, thereby giving more time to the fighters to do justice to the fight – MMA rounds are 5 minutes each as compared to 3 minutes in boxing. Thirdly, MMA fighters rely solely upon their toughness and fortitude, unlike boxers who resort to frequent clinches and dodging tactics {like Muhammad Ali’s famous ‘floating around the ring like a butterfly’} while bent on garnering maximum points from ringside judges. MMA fights are also assessed by judges, but their presence and influence is negligible as compared to boxing. Fourthly, unlike boxing, in addition to punching, MMA rules allow fighters to grapple and even employ choke holds to subdue their opponents into submission {called ‘tap out’}, unconsciousness, a broken arm or leg, or a mixture of these (Peterson). MMA fighters are well-versed in techniques like arm-locks; of the 4 types used in grappling situations, the bent arm-lock and cross body arm-lock are preferred to the armpit arm-lock and straight arm-lock (Scott, 8-42-110). The overall result is that, as compared to the distinctly low-key, muted response to boxing, viewers are enthralled at the spectacular display of violent blood splattering aggression put up by MMA, and wait with bated breath for further action to continue (Peterson). To give it credit, blood splattering features in boxing too, but that was long ago when bare knuckle fights were popular. Even in later years there have been some memorable fights such as the 3 fights between Tony Zale and Rocky Graziano {commonly called the ‘Mike Tyson of the 1940s’} that are widely considered as the most brutal in the history of boxing (Rendall, 57). But in an overall analysis, boxing lags very far behind MMA in this regard. 2. Scandals Boxing has been a sport tainted by a number of scandals of different intensity. The rot set in as long back as 1947 when Jake LaMotta, reputed for his legendary ‘iron jaw,’ took a dive against Billy Fox in a light heavyweight bout. The second high profile case took place in 1954 when Willie Pepe was alleged to have thrown a fight against Lulu Perez; the suspicions were based on the late stage sudden, inexplicably massive amount of money bets on Perez. The most prominent was arguably the infamous ‘No Mas’ {No More} submission plea by Roberto Duran during the WBC World Welterweight title bout in 1980 against Sugar Ray Leonard. Duran, always considered as an exemplary fighter with a never-say-die attitude, was widely perceived to have committed a cardinal sin against all genuine prizefighters. This was followed by the infamous ear-biting incident perpetrated by Mike Tyson against Evander Holyfield during their heavyweight bout in 1997 that was watched by a huge worldwide audience. ‘The Bite’ became one of many scandals involving Tyson, the other major ones being wife-battering allegations against his former wife Robin Givens, and his conviction of raping Desiree Washington, for which he drew a 3-year prison term. In later years, Fernando Vargas was suspended after the Nevada Commission’s steroid test confirmed positive during his 2002 junior middleweight title bout against Oscar De La Hoya; James Toney tested guilty of similar charges, this time by the New York State Athletic Commission, after he beat Jon Ruiz to win the World Boxing Association heavyweight title in 2005 (Home Box Office). Even the legendary icon of boxing, Muhammad Ali has had his share of scandals. He captured national headlines by becoming a Muslim and changing his name from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali; he was widely perceived to have connived with Sonny Liston to get the latter to throw their fight in 1964; and he refused to do military service, due to which his boxing license was suspended for 3 years (Home Box Office). By contrast, the MMA has not been rocked by any such scandals. It has so far proved to be a clean sport, which is one of the reasons why its popularity has soared to its present high level. 3. Lack of proper organization Organization in the sport of boxing is in total disarray. There is no single legitimate central governing body. As many as 5 international associations are vying against each other for supremacy – the World Boxing Association {WBA}, World Boxing Council {WBC}, International Boxing Federation {IBF}, World Boxing Organization {WBO} and International Boxing Organization {IBO}. There is no way one can predict which association’s titles are most prestigious. MMA has a well-organized structure. It is ruled by ‘Top Leagues’ such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship {UFC} which is very popular in the U.S., and PRIDE, K-1 and IFL which have popular following in other MMA crazy nations like Brazil, Japan and East European countries. MMA fighters originate from all parts of the globe. In a recent development, UFC’s most influential individual, Dana White, purchased all the main MMA competitors that included PRIDE and World Extreme Cage Fighting, bringing them under the control of his company Zuffa (Peterson). The creation of Top Teams such as the Brazilian Top Team and American Top Team has led to the spawning of Top Teams all over the world (Sheridan, 115). 4. Lack of sporting Superstars Superstars have traditionally contributed hugely to the popularity of the sport and the creation of a massive fan base. Examples are Babe Ruth {baseball}, Pele {Soccer}, Don Bradman {cricket} and Michael Jordan {basketball}. Boxing too had its share of superstars such as Donald ‘The Lone Star Cobra’ Curry {whose unique style everyone was trying to emulate [Rendall, 14]}, Sugar Ray Robinson {widely regarded as one of the greatest prizefighters in living memory [McIlvanney, 122]}, Joe Louis, George Foreman, Roberto Duran, Joe Frazier and the legendary Muhammad Ali (Evenden). The last of the genuine superstars was Larry Holmes. Mike Tyson did make serious claims to superstardom but they did not last long, eventually fizzling out tamely due to his animalistic nature and tendency to frequently slip into controversies. Sporadic efforts have been made to resurrect interest in boxing by arranging exhibition bouts involving fighters of yester-year eager to make a quick buck {George Foreman in all his tubby glory} or letting others flounder through pitiable performances in order to pay off their crippling debt {Mike Tyson} (Peterson). Today, boxing stands shorn of superstars. Lennox Lewis is America’s best-known fighter, while his nearest challengers are the European based Klitschko brothers, Vitali and Wladimir (Evenden). Floyd Mayweather Jr. is touted as the best of the new crop of boxers (Cozzone). The 4 boxers may be immensely talented, but they do not possess that unique tasty showiness, alluring charm and charismatic appeal that previous superstars were famous for (Evenden). MMA fighters, on the other hand, have reached the status of certified B-listers in Hollywood, increasingly making their presence popular. Prime examples are ‘Iceman’ Chuck Liddell who recently appeared on HBO’s Entourage, and Tito Ortiz who has been linked with porn star Jenna Jameson. Television shows {‘the pulse of popularity’} have MMA shows like The Ultimate Fighter occupying prime-time slots {Spike TV}, while the best boxing can offer – The Contender – languishes in mid-day slots {ESPN2}. Weekly pay-per-view providers in the country have also found that MMA is an increasingly lucrative business proposition as compared to boxing (Peterson). 5. Sham fights While it is now widely accepted that professional wrestling features transparently rigged fights with monotonous regularity, boxing is not far behind in this respect. Boxing largely pampers its fighters, sometimes to such a degree that the public is enraged and allegations of foul play fly thick and fast. This was best exemplified during the June 2003 Lennox Lewis- Vitali Klitschko world heavyweight championship bout. The holder of the title, Lewis, won the fight in the sixth round {winning $ 10 million in prize money} simply because the referee decided that a cut over the challenger’s eye was sufficiently serious enough to end the bout. Klitschko, who considered the injury too minor to warrant such a harsh decision, was understandably livid as well as flabbergasted. His frustrated anger was exacerbated when it was discovered that all the 3 judges had him advantageously placed at 58-56 in their scorecards at the time the fight was so unceremoniously called off (Evenden). On the other hand, because of the toughness of MMA fighters and the various fighting methods used, it is impossible to find a situation where a ‘lucky punch’ {how many times have we seen this happen in boxing?} is the ultimate decider (Sheridan, 41). The MMA does not pamper its fighters. MMA fighters have no recourse to luck; they have to use their physical strength and acquired skills to create their luck. 6. Climb to fame The climb to fame for boxers is riddled with controversy. Some boxers struggle a lot but still end up well below the level that entitles them to challenge for lucrative titles in one of the 5 international boxing associations. All-powerful promoters {can anyone forget the colorful, ‘electrified hair’ Don King?} play a huge role in promoting title fights and if a boxer is lucky enough or has the right connections {very frequently devious in nature, involving anti-social elements like the Mafia}, then future prospects are elevated. Ordinary fighters who have no connections or high-profile promoters are left out in the cold. Incidents like Rocky Balboa’s catapult to international boxing fame is fairy tale stuff churned out by Hollywood that has no place in the real, hard-bitten boxing world ruled by money and power while leaving boxing talent as a distant, ineffectual factor. On the other hand, the umbrella that covers the MMA fighters is unique. There are no grandmasters, or belts or fixed ranking systems (Sheridan, 54). The cream of MMA fighters graduates to a Top Team – a format that was spawned by famous MMA fighter Carlson Gracie when he formed the Brazilian Top Team which was later popularized by Murilo Bustamante (Sheridan, 92). 7. The safety factor Contrary to common perception, MMA is in fact safer than boxing. It is extremely rare for MMA fighters to recover from a knockdown simply because MMA rules allow their opponents to attack them even after knockdown. It is safer for an MMA fighter to get knocked down than it is for a boxer to suffer the same fate (Sheridan, 178). If the knocked down fighter has been rendered defenseless and is unable to resist, then the referee stops the fight (Peterson). One of the significant differences between boxing and MMA is that there is no standing 10 count in the rules of the latter (Sheridan, 65). In boxing however, if boxers suffer knockdowns, boxing rules allow them 10 seconds to recover and resume fighting. Especially in world title bouts {Tom McNeely was knocked down 10 times during his bout against Floyd Patterson for the world heavyweight title in 1961 [McIlvanney, 294]}, this creates a situation where the fallen fighter will resume fighting even against his will and against the prompting of his body in response to the beating it received, thus becoming a target for more grueling punishment; the ultimate overall punishment received by the boxer is much more than what an MMA fighter in a similar situation experiences (Peterson). There have been several deaths in the boxing ring {something that has never happened in MMA} the most exemplary being when Jerry Owen died during his 1980 World Bantamweight Championship bout with Lupe Pintor (McIlvanney, 223). Boxers are known to have been in real danger of losing their lives – boxer Angelo Dundee called George Foreman a ‘killer’ who can beat his opponent to death (McIlvanney, 54); in another instance, the blue and white gown that Ken Norton wore to his fight with George Foreman was widely perceived as his burial shroud to many (McIlvaney 53). Even if the boxing ratio of fatalities to the numbers participating lags behind other dangerous sports like motor racing, that does not constitute a reason to condone it (McIlvanney, Front Matter). MMA fighters, unlike unsafe boxing and desperate boxers, prudently follow the policy: ‘live to fight another match on another day’ (Scott, 7). Conclusion Floyd Mayweather Jr., arguably the Numero Uno pound-for-pound boxer, belittled MMA and UFC’s own Numero Uno fighter Chuck Liddell in April this year, referring to the former as ‘just a [passing] fad,’ and saying the latter would never be able to face a ‘decent heavyweight boxer’ in a duel. UFC supreme Dana White was quick to throw down the gauntlet, challenging Mayweather or any other ‘decent heavyweight boxer’ to a cage fight with Liddell – MMA style (Cozzone). Boxing today is a tiring, battered sport that has been mangled by rancorously fighting associations, restricting laws, dicey fights, mafia links, deaths in the ring and other controversies. Its once high popularity {when even world leaders like the evergreen Fidel Castro of Cuba admitted to being great boxing fans [Rendall, 39]} has been steadily eroded over the years by newly emerging sports such as wrestling and baseball (Cozzone). MMA, the newest sport, has already made significant inroads into whatever is left of boxing’s popularity. Just as the attraction of boxing continues to fall, the allure of MMA goes on rising, and as of this moment, there is no indication that there will be any change in the swing of the pendulum involving both sports. Ominously, MMA is still in its infancy. By comparing it to a ‘passing fad,’ Mayweather is guilty of dropping the ‘mother of all clinkers.’ References: Cozzone, Chris. “Chris Cozzone: MMA Is Here to Say…But Boxing Is Not Going Anywhere.” The Albuquerque Tribune. 2007. 6 Dec. 2007. Evenden, Steve. “Boxing’s Popularity Slowly Getting Knocked Out.” USA: The Brock Press. 2003. McIlvanney, Hugh. “The Hardest Game: McIlvanney on Boxing.” USA: McGraw-Hill. 2001. Peterson, Tobias. “From the Cheap Seats: New American Gladiators – The Rise of Mixed Martial Arts.” Popmatters.com. 2007. 6 Dec. 2007. Rendall, Jonathan. “This Bloody Mary Is the Last Thing I Own: A Journey to the End of Boxing.” USA: ECCO Press. 1997. Scott, Steve. “Armlock Encyclopedia: 85 Armlocks for Jujitsu, Judo, Sambo and Mixed Martial Arts.” USA: Turtle Press. 2006. Sheridan, Sam. “A Fighter’s Heart: One Man’s Journey Through the World of Fighting.” USA: Atlantic Monthly Press. 2007. “The Way Back from Scandal.” Home Box Office. 2007. 6 Dec. 2007. Read More