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There are a lot of people who don't understand Mixed Martial Arts. They're either confused by the rules, or they've never studied the mechanics of this kind of fighting. This article is an attempt to bring some understanding of the sport to the uninitiated, though some hardcore fans will also find the guide interesting and helpful

Introduction

What is Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)? Simply put, MMA is a fighting sport that incorporates most of the techniques seen in martial arts around the world. There is kicking, punching, wrestling, knees and elbows, throws and slams, holds, and a myriad of defenses to these attacks. Rather than limit the practitioners to just one martial discipline (such as what you might see at a Karate competition), they are encouraged to cross-train, learning as much about the general art of fighting as possible before stepping into the ring or cage.

The history of mixed martial arts goes as far back as the martial arts themselves. Those who study the way of the warrior have always sought to hone their skills. Whether it was to learn more about their opponents, or to adopt the techniques themselves, many practitioners would observe arts that they had no personal knowledge of, and some would even seek out training in these disciplines. The earliest example of an organized martial art that had a broad mix of different standing and grappling elements was probably Pankration in the Greek Olympic Games (around 648 BC). They have continued to evolve in both eastern and western cultures ever since, with official and unofficial events held all over the world for centuries.

The recent return of Mixed Martial Arts to the mainstream was helped by the popularity of a competitive sport called Vale Tudo in Brazil. Though more raw than modern MMA, Vale Tudo briefly made the transition from underground sport to open spectator event in the late 1980's and early 1990's. This inspired some members of the famous Gracie fighting family to bring the sport to the United States, but in a safer and more consumer friendly package.

The Gracie's helped found the Ultimate Fighting Championship in 1993, which gained a foothold in North America. Ironically, the safety rules adopted by the UFC were shunned by the major Vale Tudo organizations (The WVC and the IVC), and the sport mostly went back to its underground roots by the late 90's after the state of Sao Paulo refused to sanction the events in Brazil.

The UFC was joined by new Mixed Martial Arts organizations springing up all over the world, the largest early booms happening mostly in Japan, Canada, and the U.S. Now there are dozens of MMA organizations, all with their own ideas of the best rules, safety features, fighter promotion, and compensation

The Rules

Though there are multiple summits and constant discussion between the various Mixed Martial Arts organizations, there is no worldwide, unified MMA rules-set. Certain stomps may be legal in the Japanese organizations that the U.S. organizations wouldn't get state athletic commissions to approve. Some elbow strikes that are legal in the U.S. are banned in the U.K. There are many historical, medical, and legal reasons that MMA rules differ and change with time. However here are the most common rules that nearly every MMA organization has adopted:

• You win the contest with a knockout, the submission of your opponent, the disqualification of your opponent, scoring more points by the end of the bout on the judge's score cards, or the stoppage of the event in your favor by the opposing corner, the doctor, or the referee.
• If both fighters commit fouls or an unforeseen accident occurs, the bout may be deemed moot and declared a 'no contest'.
• No headbutts.
• No biting.
• No eye gouging.
• No groin strikes.
  
• No pulling of hair.
• No fish-hooking.
• No grabbing or entangling the trunks or gloves of the opponent.
• No strikes to the brain-stem running up to the crown of the head.
  
• No strikes to the spine.
  
• No striking or grabbing the trachea.
• No small joint manipulation
• No purposely holding the ring ropes or cage fence.
• No intentionally pushing or throwing your opponent out of the ring or cage.
• No fleeing the ring or cage.
• No use of performance enhancing drugs.
• No foreign objects or substances.
  
• Follow the instructions of the referee at all times.
• Wear groin and mouth protection and intelligently defend yourself at all times.

The most common reason for referee stoppage is violation of the final rule. If a fighter is dazed and the referee feels that the continuation of the contest would put his health in jeopardy without any chance of him winning the bout, he will stop the fight and shield the fighter from any further harm.

Groin protection and mouth guards are checked by an outside referee prior to the fighters stepping into the cage. Fighters are checked for excess Vaseline on their face and any oils or other substances on their skin. 4 ounce gloves are the standard hand protection.

Fighter Techniques

The open ended nature of Mixed Martial Arts means that any number of maneuvers can be invented and utilized in a contest. However, we will attempt to cover the most common techniques in MMA in order to give you a lexicon of terms that you can use when describing the action.

Punching: Using the closed fist, or in rare cases the stiff open palm, to strike your opponent is one of the most common strikes in MMA. Depending on the technique, it might also be called a hook, jab, uppercut, haymaker, and the like. The primary targets for such hand strikes is the opponent's head. Punches to the front of the face are meant to open cuts along the lips, nose, eyebrows, and forehead that might cause the referee or doctor to stop the contest. Punches to the jaw, temples, and sides of the head are meant to daze or knock out your opponent. Punches to the body are designed to damage the ribcage, bruise the organs, and generally sap the endurance and the will of your opponent.

Kicking: Using your foot to strike at your opponent is a technique that can be used at range, since the legs are generally longer than the arms. One of the most common leg strikes is to the calves and thighs of your opponent. Kicks to the legs are meant to reduce the mobility of your opponent, sometimes to the point of collapse. Other kicking techniques include side kicks, front kicks, and push kicks to the chest and belly of your foe, meant to frustrate and sap energy. Axe kicks start high and then crash down on your opponent's shoulders or head, but are rare in Mixed Martial Arts due to the possibility of being taken down when balanced for so long on one leg. Finally, kicks to the head are sudden, powerful attempts to daze or knock out your opponent. If not properly defended against, a head kick can bring down an opponent instantly.

Kneeing: The knee is a hard and broad striking surface. With the power of your leg muscles behind it, the knee can be a devastating weapon in close quarters. In a body clinch, knees to your opponent's thighs and stomach are designed to wear their energy down and sap their will. With control of your opponent's head, a fast knee to the jaw can instantly daze or knock them out. Finally, on the ground, launching knees to the hip and side of your foe are designed to bruise organs and ribs. In most Mixed Martial Arts leagues, there are no legal knees to the head of a downed opponent. But in a north-south position, knees can break shoulders and collarbones and quickly end a fight if landed in rapid succession.

Elbowing: Another close quarters weapon, the elbow traverses a tight arc, and carries a lot of speed before impact. Though a standing elbow in a clinch or on the ground can certainly act much the same as a punch, the much more common result of elbows is cutting. Face and head lacerations can quickly end a fight by referee stoppage, and that is the primary aim of multiple elbow strikes.

Jumping: The act of jumping combined with many different strikes can change the angle and impact of strike. A jumping, hooked punch is often called a Superman Punch, and can be quite effective. Jumping with a raised leg leads to a Flying Knee attempt, which an be quite damaging, if not fight ending when landed with precision. In rare cases, you might see jumping spin kicks or jumping side kicks as seen in Karate, though one must be a very competent striker to have the accuracy needed to make it effective on a regular basis. Leaping at your opponent is less orthadox, and can be quite a surprise.

Shouldering: When your opponent has control of your arms and you are in close quarters, a quick jerk and shoulder shrug can rattle their head. Though it is never a finishing blow, and not very punishing, the shoulder shrug is irritating and disorienting. They also count as positive activity on the score cards, and if you don't want the official to break up your position, the referee would rather see you throwing shoulders than doing nothing.

Stomping: In most MMA organizations, the only legal stomping is in the standing position. Stomping is designed to weaken your opponent's feet and ankles, making it difficult for them to remain standing. When combined with thigh kicks, mobility can be quite difficult in later rounds. Forcing someone against the cage and distracting them with foot stomps is a common tactic.

Blocking: The mantra of every Mixed Martial Artist is: Keep your hands up. Blocking involves defending against incoming blows by taking them on your hands and arms, instead of more vulnerable areas of your body. Without this defensive technique, most fights would be over in seconds. Fighters are required to intelligently defend themselves at all times, and if they are seen taking multiple unanswered blows without blocking them, the referee will stop the fight. Most fighters take a traditional boxing or kick-boxing defensive posture when blocking. It is rare to see a cross-arm defense adopted in MMA.

Checking: The best defense against low kicks is checking. This involves raising the leg that is being kicked, so that the impact is loose instead of solid. If you have your weight on the leg when it is kicked, it has nowhere to go and absorbs all of the impact exactly where your opponent wants. If you check the kick, the blow is distributed against a loose leg and often along the very strong bones instead of the tender thigh muscles.

Shooting: Shooting refers to the activity of suddenly rushing in with a low stance, and grabbing the enemy's hips and legs in an attempt to wrestle them to the ground. It requires explosive energy and good wrestling pedigree if you expect to down a well trained opponent. The key is closing the distance rapidly without taking too much damage, as a well placed and well timed knee can devastate you.

Sprawling: The defense to someone shooting at your legs is to jack your body forward over their head and shoulders, and extend your legs backwards out of their reach. This is a sprawl. You can frustrate the grappler by pressing down on them with your full body weight. As soon as their forward momentum is stopped and they aren't in danger of taking you down, you can either push away, use your weight to bear them to the ground, or attempt to launch knees or other blows at them.

Clinching: Wrapping your arms around your foe's body or neck is called clinching. It is an attempt to control their posture. You can try to bring their head into the correct position for an elbow or knee strike, for example. Or your body clinch can be used to wrestle them to the ground, slam them, or throw them. The very act of defending against a clinch can sap your opponent's energy, but it can require a lot of energy to maintain a clinch as well. Muay Thai practitioners are particularly adept at head clinches leading to brutal knees to the body and head

Throwing: A throw is the act of hurling your opponent through the air or to the ground, while maintaining light or no contact. It can be an act of finesse or of brute strength. The hope is to damage your enemy through impact with the mat or cage, and put them in a position where you can take advantage of them. Throws are often associated with wrestling and Judo training. It is not necessary to follow up a throw with ground work, a throw itself can be the attack. But more often than not, a throw is followed up by close quarters ground fighting with your disadvantaged opponent

Slamming: When you either pick up or twist your opponent in such a way that you not only take them to the ground, but you maintain a lot of contact with them, this is called a slam. Because you are adding your body weight to the impact of the throw, you increase the potential damage. There can be a lot of stunning force in a slam, resulting in knocking the wind out of your opponent and blunt impact on several parts of their body. However, you are almost forced to engage in ground fighting afterwards, as you've followed your foe all the way through the maneuver. Slams are most often performed by wrestlers who want to do damage and take the fight to familiar territory.

Locking: When you attempt to manipulate one of your opponents limbs or crush their body in an attempt to damage them or make them submit, this is called a lock. Most locks are performed on the ground. Depending on the position and specific technique, it might also be called a bar, a crank, or a hook. Locks around the body with the arms or the legs are commonly used to gain an advantageous position or to compress the chest and belly area, making it hard to breath and bruising organs. Locks and bars to the arms and legs are meant to hyper extend joints, a common way to end the fight by forcing your opponent to submit. There are dozens of ways to gain a submission in this manner, normally covered by the disciplines of Jui Jutsu and wrestling.

Choking: Holds that involve cutting off the circulation or air to an opponent's brain are called chokes. These holds are usually latched around the neck of your foe with both arms or both legs. The rear naked coke is the most common finishing move from the back of your foe, and one of the most common submissions from the guard is the triangle choke. The grabbing of the trachea is universally illegal in MMA, so chokes need to be more sophisticated, for safety's sake. As soon as a fighter submits or blacks out, the hold can be broken by the referee and the fighter revived. Chokes are normally covered by the disciplines of Jui Jutsu and wrestling.

Mounting: Mounting is simply an attempt to improve your position on the ground. When you can put your full weight on the center of your opponent's gravity, it is very difficult to get you off. From this position, you can launch effective strikes or force a submission. When you get on top of your foe's chest and belly, this is called a Full Mount. When you are covering the ribs of your opponent without his legs in the way, this is the Side Mount. When you secure your position on your opponent's back, this is called the Back Mount. Your foe will usually attempt to buck you off or escape however they can after being mounted. Wrapping your feet around the body or legs of your opponent in order to maintain the position is called Putting Hooks In.

Guarding: When you use either your feet or the 'V' of your legs to keep your opponent at a distance on the ground, this is called the guard. Your feet on your opponent's thighs can be used to guide or control his motions, which is called the Butterfly Guard. Or you can wrap your legs around the the sides and potentially the back of your opponent in an attempt to control distance, which is called the Full Guard. If your foe manages to get around one of your legs but not the other, it is considered the Half Guard. Pulling your leg up high against your opponent's back and securing it there with one of your hands is called the Rubber Guard. Using the guard as an offensive tool, in order to secure a submission, is a particular specialty of the art of Jui Jutsu, though some wrestling submissions can be found in the guard as well. If one intentionally leaps and entangles an opponent in an attempt to pull them down on top of you, it is called Pulling Guard.

Again, there are infinite possibilities here, as Mixed Martial Arts is always evolving. But these are the main techniques that are seen in the modern sport.

Fighter Strategy

There are a lot of long and short term strategies that can be employed by Mixed Martial Artists. The first is in fight preparation. In addition to learning and practicing techniques, a fighter needs to be able to last for the duration of the fight. So they work on their conditioning, making their body's energy last as long as possible under the strain of combat. General exercise helps of course, but other common methods include high-altitude training so that the body gets used to functioning with less oxygen, and long distance running.

The fighters are generally weighed by the sanctioning commission the day before the fight. So cutting down your water-weight just enough to meet the maximum allowed weight is a common tactic. Then you have an entire day to rehydrate, and at the time of the fight you might be 5 pounds heavier or even more, which can be a distinct advantage as long as you didn't waste a lot of energy making weight.

Once in the ring or the cage, MMA is often about playing to your strengths. A well trained ground fighter will look to shoot and take his opponent to the ground, or possibly pull guard. A Muay Thai artist, Judo practitioner, or 'dirty' boxer will try to clinch. A traditional boxer, Karate artist, or other striker will keep moving and strike at their optimal distance. However, a very well balanced MMA warrior can instead force the fight into their opponent's weakest discipline. If they're just as good at striking, grappling, and the ground game, why not take advantage of their opponent's lack of cross-training?

One of the other common practices in Mixed Martial Arts is to focus your efforts on a single target until you create an opening in your opponent's defenses, or you cause injury. A good example of this is constant accurate jabbing, until your opponent charges in or shoots out of frustration. Another example is launching leg kicks until your opponent's guard drops, or their mobility is impaired.

There are also long term professional considerations that come into play during a fight. In a submission situation, most fighters would rather tap out than risk serious injury, even if they feel that the hold might not be perfect, or they could come back and win the fight if they just last until time runs down for the round. When your body is your livelihood, you cannot risk a foolish permanent injury. Similarly, an independent fighter would much rather submit than be knocked out, because they will get their medical clearance more quickly and can fight again in another contest that much sooner. Fighters under contract might only fight 3 to 4 times a year, regardless.

Conclusion

I hope that this primer covers everything that a new fan needs to know in order to start enjoying this exciting sport. You should now feel more confident talking about what you've seen. And it helps to understand the rules that help make the sport even safer than boxing, with far less long term injuries! So enjoy your favorite Mixed Martial Arts, and please contact me if you have any questions.

By Bill Ricardi of Jigsale.com

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