Hi,
So, Fight Attack Cup 2008 Frankfurt.
I decided to enter this competition about two weeks ago. It is a competition with the unified MMA rules but with a compulsary headguard with faceplate.
First, the outcome.
I lost in my first match up due to referee discission. We went the distance ( 1 x 5min followed by 1 x 2min), and it was then decided that the other guy had won. Did I agree with the decision? I don't know. I can understand why they judged him to have won, but feel that the decission could (should) just have easily have gone my way.
Am I disappointed?
Yes, to an extent. Of course I would have liked to have won at least one fight, but I went in knowing that I was not ready for that level of competition (I was not sure when I entered, but I was very sure about the level after watching the first few fights).
Did I enjoy it?
Yes, and I will be doing it again.
What did I learn?
Bearing on mind that I entered this partly to judge how much work I needed to do and in what areas, I am glad that I took this step now.
I learnt;
The majority of the people doing this are dedicated to doing it. There were many top quality sportspeople there who obviously have a passion for the sport and enjoy doing it. It is a tough sport, both mentaly and physically and it requires dedication if one wants to compete.
I am probably too old for this. At 38 I was at least 10 years older than all the other competitors, and as much as I hate to say it; it showed.
There is one thing that I have heard time and time again, but chose not to take it seriously - your stamina is what will make or break you in a fight. There is a hell of a lot of difference to hitting the bag or sparring with partners to the intensity that is reached in these fights. Five minutes is a very long time. Five minutes pumped with adrenalin is a very, very long time. Five minutes hitting and grappling at full intensity pumped with adrenalin is a very, very, long time. Starting the next round, after you have just done a very, very, very long round takes a very big heart. If (when) I do this again, my conditioning will take the primary role in my training. You have to be able to go full-out for five minutes and then do it for another five minutes and possably another five after that. The level of intensity that I have experienced in sparring up until now does not come close. There is too much "stop and start". When I was waiting for the referee to lift one of our hands at the end of the fight, part of me wished that it was not my hand, because I knew I would have to fight the next opponent (who by chance did not have to fight in the first round due to having no opponent)within about one hour. After the fight, I went to the toilet with the feeling that I was going to be sick. I wasn't, but I did lie on my back with my feet up the wall of the cubicle for 10 minutes before I was sure that my body had recovered enough and that I was not going to be sick. I was exhausted.
I learnt that I can (still) handle the mental game which accompanies this sort of fight. There is a lot of mental build up which is at worst when one is waiting for ones fight. Anticipation. Head games. My respect goes to everyone who took part in the competition, because it is hard work accepting what can happen and still getting onto the mats.
I learnt that I need to work a lot more at my Ving Tsun.Breites Grinsen
I learnt that I need to work a lot more at my grappling.
I learnt that everyone who fought on the mats that day, respected everyone else who did the same, winner or loser, good or bad. There is a very good side which outweighs the negitive press (ie. brutal / cockfights, etc.) which free fights seem to get. No matter that many of the fighters came in teams, any good move or technique by any fighter on the mats was applauded by the fighters watching. It mattered not if ones teammate was the one delivering the technique or receiving it.
At the end of the day, I was there to test myself (as was, I believe, everyone else who fought). I was not there to prove that I am the best, I was there to see where I am. I think I passed the test ......even if a win would have been nice.
Matt