MMA: Gladiatorial Combat, or Professional Sport?

     The world of Mixed Martial Arts has been subject to various debates since its inception. One of the leading controversies surrounding it is whether or not it’s a legitimate Sport, or simply a barbaric form of entertainment. Let’s take a quick look at the various aspects of it, and try to figure it out.

     If my memory of classical studies is accurate, the first, and original, form of MMA dates back thousands of years to the ancient Greeks. They had various forms of combat, such gladiatorial combat, wrestling, and what was known as the “pankration”. The pankration included kicking, punching, and wrestling. The matches usually ended by the opponent signalling defeat to the other. The pankration was essentially the archaic predecessor to the modern MMA fighting we know. Centuries later, various forms of lowkey MMA came about in the 19^th century. Skipping ahead to the 20^th century, MMA started to expand throughout Europe and in the Orient. From here, we can trace its evolution to Dana White, and his promotion of the UFC in the early 1990’s. Now that our history lesson is over, we can delve into the matter at hand: is MMA an actual sport?

      When I think of the term “sport”, I tend to think of two individuals or two separate teams, using various and essential skills, in order to defeat the opposing individual or team. Based on what MMA is, I can understand the majority of people stating that MMA is indeed a sport. That being said, I still have outstanding issues with MMA being classified as a sport, as to me, it comes across as more of a barbaric form of entertainment. Let me elaborate with a mock interview:

Journalist: What do you do for a living?

Hockey Player: I play professional hockey.

J: What does that consist of? How do you play?

HP: Well, first off, you have to learn to skate. Then, you learn how to use a hockey stick. Then you learn how to handle the puck with your stick. After that, you learn to pass the puck, and shoot the puck in various forms (slap shot, wrist shot, back hand etc). You also learn how to coordinate yourself wit your team members, as you practice playing offense and defense with them. The goal is to put the puck in the opposing teams net, in order to earn goal/point. The team with the most goals wins.

J: Is there fighting?

HP: Yes. There are occasional scraps/fights. They’re short    lived, but they do happen. The people involved are penalized     after the fight. It’s a part of hockey, but it’s far from the    goal in hockey.

Journalist: What do you do for a living?

MMA Fighter: I’m an MMA fighter, in the UFC.

J: What does that consist of? How does it work?

MMAF: Well, I do vigorous training for a month or two, and then I step in the octagon with another man for our bout.

J: What happens? How is a winner decided?

MMAF: Well, You can win by various means. You can knock the man unconscious, by striking him with your first, elbow, knee or foot, as hard you can, directly in the face. You can also put your opponent in a grappling hold, in an attempt to cut off the circulation to their brain, so that they pass out. Or, you can manoeuvre yourself into a position where you put your opponent in a submission hold, where you then apply large amounts of pressure, and when the excruciating amount of pain is too much to bear, the opponent submits, or “taps out”.

J: I see...and the UFC pays you to do this to other people?

MMAF: That is correct.

     I know this example may seem slightly one sided, but it’s really not far from the truth. For myself, this is the outstanding reason why I don’t consider MMA to be a sporting event. Watching two individuals try to knock each other unconscious, doesn’t seem very sportsmanlike to me. Then again, that’s just my opinion. And at the risk of sounding hypocritical, I actually consider boxing, in some ways, to be a sport. I guess I always found subtle elements of elegance, sophistication, and professionalism in boxing, despite the fact the two individuals are trying to knock each other out. Granted, they can only use their fists, and they have thicker gloves, but I still consider it a “sport”...despite its MMA similarities...

     Just to conclude, in my opinion, MMA fighting is not an actual sport. However, it consists of some of the most athletic individuals I have ever seen, and in turn, it gives me a great amount of respect for them, and the vigorous training exercises they engage in. I just wish they had more humane ways of displaying their athletic prowess.