Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is an up-and-coming sport that is taking the world by storm. The practice was revolutionized in 1993 when the Ultimate Fighting Championship, commonly known as the UFC, turned the art into an international televised sport. Although the UFC has only been operating for 16 years, the organization has already created intense battles, heated rivalries and long awaited rematches.
I really began to watch MMA in the spring of 2009 in UFC 98 where Rashad Evans lost the light heavyweight belt to my favorite fighter, Lyoto Machida. Ever since that fight I have been addicted to the league and sport. My day now consists of school, food, lifting and watching UFC. I tune in to Spike all the time to watch either UFC unleashed, UFC ultimate knockouts or The Ultimate Fighter. I cannot get enough of the stuff; UFC is to me like Days of Our Lives is to my mom. However, after an entire summer of watching the sport I wanted to stop being a poser and start actually training and dabbling with the art.
I’ve been around the block, I’ve thrown a football and shot a basketball but nothing compares to my favorite sport MMA. Although I am relatively new to the sport, I am learning quickly. In September of 2009 I drove to where my old Karate studio used to be to see if classes were still being taught. To my surprise and enjoyment, it had been changed into a full-fledged MMA center entitled, The Underground Fight Club.
I now go every Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday. This “fight club” specializes in Muay Thai and grappling. Muay Thai is the art of striking and it views the body as having eight limbs: two arms, two legs, two knees and two elbows. If you really don't like your opponent, a Muay Thai knee to the face should do the trick. Grappling is dealing with more ground wrestling and Jiujitsu practices. It also incorporates submissions, such as rear naked chokes, arm bars, leg locks, triangles, arm triangles, guillotines and other ways to make the pain for your opponent so bad they are forced to give up and tap out. It is a great way to stay in shape and learn a fantastic sport. I strongly recommend MMA to anyone who enjoys having fun and learning to fight.
lol you've done it again! "like days of our lives is to my mom"....hahah you never disappoint!
ReplyDeleteHow much lifting has to be done for this sport?
Haha I'm glad that you enjoyed my attempt at humor. It really depends on what weight division one wishes to fight at but 4x a week is a solid foundation to a promising MMA career.
ReplyDeleteWoah that's intense. lol it's definitely a successful attempt at humor...it helps my mind get past the fact that men beat each other up and then justify it by calling it a sport.
ReplyDeletenice article. so what weight division do u compete in?
ReplyDeleteVery nice man. When I'm reading this stuff, I'm picturing it in my head. This stuff is very intense!
ReplyDeleteThis makes me sad, as my gym just relocated. Now I'm back to training in the basement, although it does make me feel a bit more hardcore sometimes.
ReplyDeleteDo you have a favorite submission or combo? If I had to guess, your style fits somewhere between Sokoudjou and Aoki: let them shoot, work off of your back, and keep most of the fights standing with plenty of leg work.
I have a BJJ record (4-6-2) but no MMA record...any plans to actually step into the ring, Zach?
Oh, and the soap opera reference was hilarious!
ReplyDeleteAs of right now, although I really really want to, I am just practicing for more self-defense than competition. Hopefully in the near future I will have the parental consent to actually compete.
ReplyDeleteMight be a great time for UFC to enter the apex, considering recent research on the long term effects of head trauma from boxing... this could be a safer, more skillful alternative to sloppy and dangerous sports.
ReplyDeleteI'll say this: the terms are sure vivid!! Elbow in the face, rear naked chokes?? Holy moley.
ReplyDelete