Essay about To Be a Fighter

Submitted By JaipaulPersaud
Words: 741
Pages: 3

“Let’s get ready to rumble” (Bruce Buffer) is the most popular phases that can be associated with professional fighting, but have you but have you ever wondered what it takes to be a fighter. Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is quickly becoming one of the most popular sports in the world, with three major organizations and hundreds of professional and amateur fighters, it seems as though everyone is trying to become the next superstar in MMA. However to become a well rounded MMA fighter you need to posses good mat skills, accurate striking skills and a fighting style. Mat skills or ‘ground game’ as it is more commonly referred to as, is the ability to obtain a more dominant position when fighting on the ground. This is accomplished by using takedowns, submissions and reversals. The major disciplines of mat skills are Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Shoot Wrestling. The main idea behind Jiu-Jitsu is that you will often be fighting larger opponents, therefore the take downs are designed to utilize leverage and speed as well as take advantage of an opponent’s momentum and size. Additionally the submissions associated with Jiu-Jitsu are designed to put strain on pressure points and joints, so you may gain the maximum results to very little energy loss. Further adding to this idea of energy conservation is the defensive aspect of Jiu-Jitsu. When not in the dominant position, fighter are taught to guard and attempt to apply a submission, rather than attempting to overpower the opponent to gain dominance. Shoot Wrestling however is vastly different; takedowns consist of lift and slam mechanics to utilize the strength and size of the attacker. Submission within wrestling are also very power based, chokeholds and scissor locks (squeezing the opponents torso with your legs) are commonly practised techniques. Additionally when seeking the dominant control position, Wrestlers are taught to reverse strikes and attempt to maneuver the opponent out of the control position before continuing. The other fifty percent of MMA is made up of striking techniques. The two most respects and dangerous disciplines within MMA are kick boxing (combo of Tae Kwon do and Boxing) and Muay Thai. Kick boxing focuses on mid range strikes using the full extension of the leg and arm to keep the opponent at a distance. Kick boxing also focuses on exploiting unguarded areas of the body, such as the legs, sides of the torso, and the head. Muay Thai uses very close range attacks, concentrating all of the energy exerted from an attack by using the knees and elbows. Unlike kickboxing Muay Thai emphasizes critical strikes on weaker body parts such as, elbow strikes to the throat, and knee strikes to the kidney or diaphragm region.

Although striking and mat skills are the entire physical aspect of MMA, there is also a strategy based aspect. Committing to a specific fighting style is something most new