Get Familiar With Mixed Matrial Arts Today September 2nd, 2010
MMA or Mixed Martial Arts combines a variety of full contact sport techniques and styles with a competitive edge. This includes both stand-up and on the ground skills such as kick boxing, Karate, Judo, wrestling and Muay Thai. MMA allows one to fight with the whole body by combining throwing, striking and joint manipulating techniques with a competitive edge.
Muay Thai, for example, was utilized for warfare in the 1800’s. Over the years, these fights became spectator sports to entertain Kings in various countries. Muay Thai makes use of eight contact points and its name means “Art of Eight Limbs.” These include knee hits, punches, kicks and elbow strikes performed in a stand-up position. Western boxing holds no comparison to this sport with its use of only two points, hands and feet.
Holding the opponent down through grappling moves similar to wrestling is known as ground fighting. Clinched fighting is when the opponent tries to prevent strikes or get the dominant position while on the ground. The only equipment needed for MMA is small gloves, open-fingered or closed, this also depends upon the country, type of fight and weight category. Victory is resolved by knockout, doctor stoppage, or submission. Referees have the ability to stop a fight if one of the opponents has sustained serious bodily injury or there have been numerous warnings and fouls causing disqualification.
Mixed Martial Arts became an official sport in the US in 1992 when the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was held. The first no-holds-barred fights were disciplined into a sport including time limits and restrictions to prevent bodily harm. The UFC expanded its activities from the United States to Canada in 2008. Pay-per-view events have drawn huge audiences and Calgary is comparative to massive cities such as Los Angeles or Chicago. Shows are sold out within minutes by people of all ages and lifestyles.
Individuals from all over the world travel to Calgary to attend one of the many schools prominent in MMA to learn from the best teachers. If interested in this sport, instructors caution that one should watch a few sessions before committing. Professionals will speak to potential students and enroll them in beginner’s classes to make sure this is an adequate sport. Competitive martial arts differ from self defense and should not be categorized as the same. Some of the techniques may overlap, but many of the strategies are not sensible for someone to utilize in an attack type situation.
This website will provide more information about MMA:
Calgary MMA
Calgary Brazilian Jiu Jitsu