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by: Sarah Aswell
Although Mixed Martial Arts is often described as “anything goes fighting” or “no-holds barred fighting,” that’s not exactly the case. While the sport is much more inclusive of different styles than, say, boxing or kickboxing alone, every organization has a set of rules that outlaw a number of moves. These rules are in place simply to make the fights safer, longer, fairer, and more interesting to watch.
The mistake that many new fight fans make is thinking that the set of illegal moves is constant across the board. In reality, different organizations can have vastly different regulations. For example, the recently- dissolved PRIDE organization in Japan had far fewer rules than most U.S.-based companies, while some of the newer organizations have a longer list of banned moves – perhaps in an attempt to make MMA more accepted as a legitimate sport.
Generally speaking – unless you are fighting an unsanctioned fight in some guy’s backyard – there are some illegal moves that every respected fight company agrees upon. Biting, eye-gouging, hair-pulling, groin attacks, fish-hooking, and small joint manipulation make the list without exception. These moves are seen as unsportsmanlike and would ultimately change the sport’s focus away from martial arts and toward street fighting or brawling.
In the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), other fighting techniques are banned – mostly for the safety of the athletes. For example, fighters cannot:
• Kick, stomp, or knee the head of an opponent who is on the ground
• Punch an opponent in the neck, spine, or back of the head
• Slam an opponent onto his head or neck
• Head-butt an opponent
• Strike an opponent with a downward elbow (although other elbow strikes are legal)
• Stick their fingers into the cuts of their opponents
Other organizations have even more strict regulations. For example, many don’t allow any kind of elbow strikes because they so often lead to excessive bleeding and fight stoppages due to cuts. The broad trend is that the sport is becoming more regulated with time in order to curb stoppages, long-term injury, and permanent damage.
MMA has evolved considerably in the last 15 years – it wasn’t so long ago that the sport didn’t have weight classes or timed rounds. However, with its quickly growing popularity and with both fighters and fans eager to dispel myths that MMA is overly violent or unregulated, the sport’s organizers have over time made their bouts safer and more consistent without taking away the integrity or excitement of the art.
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