Neue Shooto Regeln!!
With the world of Shooto getting a regulatory overhaul, which includes abandoning the much-maligned knockdown rule as well as strikes to the back of the head, there has been much rejoicing amongst MMA fans. However, there are also some questions as to how these new rules will function in the current Shooto environment.
Earlier this month, the ISC announced that the two most contentious parts of the Shooto rules would be reformed in the near future. After the European Shooto Commission launched a request in March for the ISC to re-evaluate these two guidelines, the ISC decided that in accordance with Shooto's vision of synthesizing "striking, throwing and submitting," as well as issues of medical safety, the rules would be eliminated.
Because Shooto's ongoing rookie tournament series already defined its rules at the year's onset, the knockdown rule will be abolished officially on Jan. 1, 2009. However, strikes to the back of the head will be outlawed as of Sept. 1, due to the more pressing medical issue involved.
However, repealing the knockdown rule poses an interesting question as to judging and scoring criteria within Shooto. In the past, fighters who knocked down their opponent were often afforded a 10-8 round. The issue was particularly problematic in Class B Shooto bouts between up-and-comers, which last only two rounds. With only two stanzas, being knocked down was often a death knell for a fighter if he couldn't finish his foe.
Compounding the difficulty is the catch rule, which acts as a grappling counterpart to the knockdown rule. Under Shooto rules, if a fighter fully locks on a submission hold, the referee will signal a "catch," often resulting in a 10-8 round for the fighter. With the knockdown rule gone, many have begun to question the status of the catch rule.
Thankfully, International Shooto Commission secretary general and lead Shooto official Toshiharu Suzuki is around to clear things up.
"Because the evaluation of striking was [so] large up to now, I think that it is a good balance," explains Suzuki.
Although some may view this new "balance" more grappling-oriented by maintaining the catch rule, Suzuki assures that the flexible scoring that allows for 10-8 and 10-7 rounds will still be present, and now a flash knockdown will no longer be an automatic loss for a fighter.
"Also, KO's will increase by this rule change," adds Suzuki, noting that abolishing the knockdown rule may actually help strikers, who can now pounce on their toppled opponents to finish the fight, which may refute claims of creating a pro-grappling advantage.
However, one debated Shooto rule remains for many fans: the Shooto glove.
While brands and designs may differ slightly, most promotions all over the world typically use a standard MMA glove weighing four or five ounces. However, Shooto has long employed their own style of glove, which is a larger, finger-looped glove with extra padding in the neighborhood of eight ounces. Many fighters and fans alike have long complained of the Shooto "pillows," critiquing them as cumbersome and counterproductive in aiming for the knockout.
"The Shooto glove is the best MMA glove," Suzuki says adamantly. "The Shooto glove is an excellent glove that was researched and developed with leading boxing glove company, Winning. The glove used with the UFC doesn't consider safety at all."
Shooto Changes Spark Discussion, Gono Mends
