Shanghai Kid
26-10-2006, 06:43
Hello boys.
Ein sehr gut geschriebener Artikel ueber MMA/UFC in USA.
Leider nur in Englisch und die genaue Quelle kenne ich auch nicht, da aus einem anderen Forum kopiert.
Enjoy!
Kid
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By Denny Burkholder
There's a new breed of sports superstar. And if you give them any crap, they'll choke you out.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship might be the fastest-rising sports organization in the United States. Fans are tuning in to UFC specials on Spike TV in large numbers. Pay-per-view buys are surging. Slowly, even legit sports media -- who once scoffed at UFC's barbarism -- is beginning to concede the organization deserves coverage.
And hey -- wasn't that Kevin James in the crowd? Even celebrities are putting their stamp of approval on the Octagon.
In fact, the word "octagon" might have been the biggest buzz term of this year's NBA playoffs. For those not familiar, the Octagon is the eight-sided cage where UFC fights take place. The term is fast becoming a slang term for all fights and quibbles, sports-related or not.
Alright, we give: What's all the fuss about UFC, and why do we keep hearing about this "mixed martial arts" stuff?
Many people only know UFC by the descriptions they get from chest-thumping politicians attempting to get it banned in their jurisdiction, calling it "human cockfighting" or some other outrageous verbage. To call UFC or any major MMA outfit "human cockfighting" implies many laughable things about MMA, all of them false. Such as:
1. They fight to the death.
2. There are no rules.
3. The fighters are barn-raised birds forced into fighting by their legal guardians.
4. Maybe they do wanna be a French fry.
UFC actually has very strict rules, and they have never had a death on their watch (knock on wood). Compare UFC to boxing, which also has rules in place to protect their fighters. Occasionally, we still see boxers die as a result of in-ring injuries and there is no "human cockfighting" uproar about the sport despite the higher body count. In fact, UFC critics (among them Fox News' Bill O'Reilly, in a recent on-air sparring match with UFC president Dana White) accuse the organization of being violent to the point of being unsafe for the fighters ... and back up their argument by mentioning Muhammad Ali's injuries.
In case you haven't heard of Ali, he is a boxer. He is not now, nor was he ever, an MMA fighter ("ultimate" or not). The closest Ali ever came to ultimate fighting was getting his shins kicked inside out by crab-walking wrestler Antonio Inoki in a bizarre 1976 fight in Japan.
So using critic's logic, UFC, not boxing, should be banned because Ali is in bad shape due to years of boxing at a high level. You lost me somewhere between "human cockfighting" and "I'm a clueless tool." Maybe that last quote was in my imagination.
UFC might actually be safer than boxing based upon one crucial thing: Tapping out. At any time, a fighter can decide to give up and avoid injury (although UFC referees would probably stop the fight before it came to that). Unlike in boxing, the MMA community respects the tap out as a smart and necessary element of fighting. In boxing, while the referee or the corner has the authority to stop a fight, it is rare for a boxer to give up. Plus, in boxing, such a thing would be considered cowardly, or even worse, corrupt.
The buzz surrounding MMA in the U.S. is both good and bad. As shown above, the "bad" is often the result of rumor and myth, from people who don't actually watch or follow the spectacle. Here are a few common misconceptions about MMA, and specifically, UFC:
Myth: Ultimate fighting is no holds barred and anything goes.
Erroneous. In fact, a lot of the dirty tactics you got away with as a kid fighting with your baby brother will get you disqualified in UFC. Some of the forbidden tactics, per UFC rules:
* "Biting and hair-pulling." This immediately ends the UFC dreams of most of my ex-girlfriends.
* "Any variation of a groin attack." (Ditto on the ex-girlfriends.)
* "Putting one's fingers into any orifice or open wound on an opponent." You got it: Wet willies are illegal.
* "Clawing, pinching or twisting of the flesh." This rules out Indian burns and purple nurples, also known as terribly painful.
* "Timidity, which includes avoiding contact with an opponent." Apparently, "run like hell" is not a preferred method of escaping a roundhouse kick.
Myth: The sport is called "ultimate fighting."
UFC would probably like everyone to think that, but it isn't true. "Ultimate fighting" is a proprietary term of the UFC. The sport is called mixed martial arts, or MMA for short. MMA allows fighters to use different styles of attack -- kickboxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, judo or even old-fashioned freestyle wrestling -- to defeat an opponent. As long as each fighter adheres to the rules, any fighting style is welcome. That is part of UFC's allure: Fans aren't just rooting for the fighters, but they are also intrigued by the methods each fighter uses in the Octagon.
Myth: UFC is the only major MMA organization.
Not even close. Pride is incredibly well-known, and there are many others, such as K-1, WFA and Strike Force. While the rules may vary between organizations, they are all considered MMA. The exception are various seedy, poorly-regulated tough man contests, which often feature amateurs and can be very dangerous.
Myth: Ultimate fighting is like street fighting, and is just as reckless and dangerous.
Yeah, right. Go into the cage with UFC's Diego Sanchez and take a few wild swings. See how fast he ties you into a pretty bow and mails you home to momma. These fighters are incredibly disciplined and skilled, whether in boxing, wrestling, jiu-jitsu or whatever their style is. There is a lot of technique and strategy that goes into a fight, regardless of how primitive it might look in a five-second highlight clip on a sports news show.
To be fair, some of the myths about the UFC are actually perpetuated by its ownership. For example:
Myth: UFC's business is booming because owners Zuffa, LLC and president Dana White revolutionized the way the organization did business and made it more "legit."
While Zuffa and White made some important changes, they take credit for far more than they deserve. Zuffa bought UFC (which has existed since 1993) in 2001. Zuffa and White take credit for being the driving force in UFC's most important changes, such as implementing referee stoppages, the system of rounds and getting the state of New Jersey to sanction MMA. All of those changes were important, and they helped UFC get to where it is today. But they were also in place long before Zuffa and White came into the picture.
All finger-pointing aside, you can't deny that UFC has blown up while under Zuffa's ownership and they have been very smart about cultivating the organization's growth. But don't be fooled into thinking every great stride in UFC's trek to the mainstream is due to these guys.
UFC is still growing and evolving. Who knows? In a few years, guys like "Iceman" Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz could enjoy the same mainstream celebrity status that guys like Sugar Ray Leonard and George Foreman have.
Should we believe the hype? Absolutely. So long as the hype doesn't co-mingle with the myths
Ein sehr gut geschriebener Artikel ueber MMA/UFC in USA.
Leider nur in Englisch und die genaue Quelle kenne ich auch nicht, da aus einem anderen Forum kopiert.
Enjoy!
Kid
---------------------------------------
---------------------------------------
By Denny Burkholder
There's a new breed of sports superstar. And if you give them any crap, they'll choke you out.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship might be the fastest-rising sports organization in the United States. Fans are tuning in to UFC specials on Spike TV in large numbers. Pay-per-view buys are surging. Slowly, even legit sports media -- who once scoffed at UFC's barbarism -- is beginning to concede the organization deserves coverage.
And hey -- wasn't that Kevin James in the crowd? Even celebrities are putting their stamp of approval on the Octagon.
In fact, the word "octagon" might have been the biggest buzz term of this year's NBA playoffs. For those not familiar, the Octagon is the eight-sided cage where UFC fights take place. The term is fast becoming a slang term for all fights and quibbles, sports-related or not.
Alright, we give: What's all the fuss about UFC, and why do we keep hearing about this "mixed martial arts" stuff?
Many people only know UFC by the descriptions they get from chest-thumping politicians attempting to get it banned in their jurisdiction, calling it "human cockfighting" or some other outrageous verbage. To call UFC or any major MMA outfit "human cockfighting" implies many laughable things about MMA, all of them false. Such as:
1. They fight to the death.
2. There are no rules.
3. The fighters are barn-raised birds forced into fighting by their legal guardians.
4. Maybe they do wanna be a French fry.
UFC actually has very strict rules, and they have never had a death on their watch (knock on wood). Compare UFC to boxing, which also has rules in place to protect their fighters. Occasionally, we still see boxers die as a result of in-ring injuries and there is no "human cockfighting" uproar about the sport despite the higher body count. In fact, UFC critics (among them Fox News' Bill O'Reilly, in a recent on-air sparring match with UFC president Dana White) accuse the organization of being violent to the point of being unsafe for the fighters ... and back up their argument by mentioning Muhammad Ali's injuries.
In case you haven't heard of Ali, he is a boxer. He is not now, nor was he ever, an MMA fighter ("ultimate" or not). The closest Ali ever came to ultimate fighting was getting his shins kicked inside out by crab-walking wrestler Antonio Inoki in a bizarre 1976 fight in Japan.
So using critic's logic, UFC, not boxing, should be banned because Ali is in bad shape due to years of boxing at a high level. You lost me somewhere between "human cockfighting" and "I'm a clueless tool." Maybe that last quote was in my imagination.
UFC might actually be safer than boxing based upon one crucial thing: Tapping out. At any time, a fighter can decide to give up and avoid injury (although UFC referees would probably stop the fight before it came to that). Unlike in boxing, the MMA community respects the tap out as a smart and necessary element of fighting. In boxing, while the referee or the corner has the authority to stop a fight, it is rare for a boxer to give up. Plus, in boxing, such a thing would be considered cowardly, or even worse, corrupt.
The buzz surrounding MMA in the U.S. is both good and bad. As shown above, the "bad" is often the result of rumor and myth, from people who don't actually watch or follow the spectacle. Here are a few common misconceptions about MMA, and specifically, UFC:
Myth: Ultimate fighting is no holds barred and anything goes.
Erroneous. In fact, a lot of the dirty tactics you got away with as a kid fighting with your baby brother will get you disqualified in UFC. Some of the forbidden tactics, per UFC rules:
* "Biting and hair-pulling." This immediately ends the UFC dreams of most of my ex-girlfriends.
* "Any variation of a groin attack." (Ditto on the ex-girlfriends.)
* "Putting one's fingers into any orifice or open wound on an opponent." You got it: Wet willies are illegal.
* "Clawing, pinching or twisting of the flesh." This rules out Indian burns and purple nurples, also known as terribly painful.
* "Timidity, which includes avoiding contact with an opponent." Apparently, "run like hell" is not a preferred method of escaping a roundhouse kick.
Myth: The sport is called "ultimate fighting."
UFC would probably like everyone to think that, but it isn't true. "Ultimate fighting" is a proprietary term of the UFC. The sport is called mixed martial arts, or MMA for short. MMA allows fighters to use different styles of attack -- kickboxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, judo or even old-fashioned freestyle wrestling -- to defeat an opponent. As long as each fighter adheres to the rules, any fighting style is welcome. That is part of UFC's allure: Fans aren't just rooting for the fighters, but they are also intrigued by the methods each fighter uses in the Octagon.
Myth: UFC is the only major MMA organization.
Not even close. Pride is incredibly well-known, and there are many others, such as K-1, WFA and Strike Force. While the rules may vary between organizations, they are all considered MMA. The exception are various seedy, poorly-regulated tough man contests, which often feature amateurs and can be very dangerous.
Myth: Ultimate fighting is like street fighting, and is just as reckless and dangerous.
Yeah, right. Go into the cage with UFC's Diego Sanchez and take a few wild swings. See how fast he ties you into a pretty bow and mails you home to momma. These fighters are incredibly disciplined and skilled, whether in boxing, wrestling, jiu-jitsu or whatever their style is. There is a lot of technique and strategy that goes into a fight, regardless of how primitive it might look in a five-second highlight clip on a sports news show.
To be fair, some of the myths about the UFC are actually perpetuated by its ownership. For example:
Myth: UFC's business is booming because owners Zuffa, LLC and president Dana White revolutionized the way the organization did business and made it more "legit."
While Zuffa and White made some important changes, they take credit for far more than they deserve. Zuffa bought UFC (which has existed since 1993) in 2001. Zuffa and White take credit for being the driving force in UFC's most important changes, such as implementing referee stoppages, the system of rounds and getting the state of New Jersey to sanction MMA. All of those changes were important, and they helped UFC get to where it is today. But they were also in place long before Zuffa and White came into the picture.
All finger-pointing aside, you can't deny that UFC has blown up while under Zuffa's ownership and they have been very smart about cultivating the organization's growth. But don't be fooled into thinking every great stride in UFC's trek to the mainstream is due to these guys.
UFC is still growing and evolving. Who knows? In a few years, guys like "Iceman" Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz could enjoy the same mainstream celebrity status that guys like Sugar Ray Leonard and George Foreman have.
Should we believe the hype? Absolutely. So long as the hype doesn't co-mingle with the myths