Mixed martial arts

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) has grown increasingly popular in the US and abroad. The sport, whose fighters have dangerous sounding nicknames like, “Rampage,” “Axe Murderer,” or “Iceman” has seen an explosion of popularity, particularly among the highly coveted male 18-35 demographic. The most popular of these leagues, the Ultimate Fighting Championship or UFC markets itself as ‘Real as it Gets.’ The fights are often seen as brutal or barbaric and legitimized street fighting by some. The mainstream attention MMA has received lately has brought it under the microscope again as it reaches a resurge of interest and clearly poised to overtake boxing as the premier combat sport. How dangerous is it really?Critics say that it is bloody and violent affair where fighters seek to cause as much damage to each other as possible. The application of chokes or submission holds is used as part of an overall strategy, not to cripple an opponent. More importantly the fighter in the choke or hold always has the option to ‘tap out,’ using hands or feet indicating that he or she-yes there are female MMA fighters-have had enough. There is nothing dishonorable in tapping out. In boxing there is no option to cry uncle. The fighter wins or goes unconscious. Very rarely the towel is thrown in, and the fighter has no say in it. The decision to stop an MMA fight rests with the fighter him/herself and there is no shame in it for the fighter or the fans. The sport itself is highly regulated in the US and abroad. Domestically, the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts, drafted by the New Jersey State Athletic Board and adopted by Nevada’s athletic commission-where most of the bouts are held, not only sets standards on attire, ring and points but has 25 fouls that are strictly enforced and penalized. The marketing of MMA fights shows a macho, no-holds barred attitude, but there are significant limits on what a fighter can and can not do. Possibly the biggest criticism of the sport are the dramatic injuries, the blood, the knockouts, the choke-outs. The lack of heavily padded gloves results in cuts and soft tissue damage that may be more dramatic than in boxing. However, the lighter gloves prevent more brain jarring injuries than their heavier boxing glove cousins. Dr. Margaret Goodman, chairwoman of the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s Medical Advisory Board, said in a recent Sports Illustrated article “You’re going to see worse cuts in MMA than in boxing, especially with longer rounds, and there are more knockouts, but overall, is it safer than boxing? I think so. The guys [submit], and it’s over. You don’t have standing eight counts; you don’t have 10 rounds of guys taking shots to the head.” The fight referees aggressively end fights to prevent further injuries. The ‘Rampage’ Jackson/Chuck Liddell fight was over as soon as Liddell was knocked out. He was not given an eight count then brought back up to receive further head trauma. The referee for the fight stopped the bout immediately and a new Light Heavyweight Champion was crowned, without any mention of the fight being too short or boos from the crowd. There has been only one recorded fatality in an MMA fight, an unsanctioned event outside of the US and the New Jersey Athletic Board has stated that there have been no major injuries since the adoption of the Unified Rules, boxing averages about 11 deaths a year. While the lure of violence may be the gimmick that the UFC uses, in terms of injuries it is safer than boxing.