Over The Hill MMA Fighters Refuse To Let Go

Like in The Wrestler, Ultimate Fighting is packed of over the hill wannabees

In the young and in your face rising sport of Mixed Martial Arts, we got at a turning point, at the end of an era. Nevertheless really new, the sport has a large amount of over the hill combatants who made the success of Mixed Martial Arts in the old days.

Today, they can no more contend in the sport. Are they completely crushed by the wars they have been in? Are their skills not at the level of today competition? It’s often delicate to call since the stars of yesterday contended against fighters that are no more competing.

Still, most over the hill MMA battlers are nowadays abusing their celebrity to get a fight at a level they are not anymore, and a big pay day.

Washed-Up MMA Fighters Refuse To Let Go

Tags: Chuck Liddell, Frank Shamrock, Ken Shamrock, mark kerr, MMA, phil baroni, pride, tank abbott, tim silvia, UFC, Wanderlei Silva

The Costs of Choosing the Wrong Martial Arts Style

A lot of people nowadays are getting into the martial arts and choosing a school without even knowing which style of martial arts the school teaches. Some schools are not totally clear on what their style is as many are practicing and teaching a hybrid mix of multiple arts. Is this a problem? Should you know which style you practice? Are clearly lineated styles even important? The easy answer to all of these questions is yes and no. Unfortunately there are hidden costs involved in choosing the wrong style of martial arts.

Here’s why:

· Choosing a style based on popularity rather than something that fits your personal strengths

Just because a style is the most popular thing going doesn’t mean that it is right for you. Taekwondo has held the interest of many a young person due to its dynamic and spectacular kicks. If you are athletic and flexible then this might be the art for you but if you have bad knees and worse hamstrings, then think twice.

Not too long ago, Tae Bo was the big thing. At first glance some people thought this was a martial art, especially as the founder Billy Blanks was a former karate champion. However, some of them were disappointed to find out that Tae Bo was a new style aerobic workout using martial arts techniques that has little to no self-defense value.

More recently Mixed Martial Arts has become hugely popular and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is attracting record numbers on its Pay-Per-View events. Consequently, many young people are hoping to ride the next wave of popular martial arts. However if you want to keep your good looks, straight nose and nicely-shaped ears you might want to reconsider.

The bottom line is that you should try to find a martial art that matches your strengths and not your weaknesses.

· Picking a martial art that has conflicting values with your core beliefs

The majority of martial arts have a certain amount of traditional “baggage” that comes with them. This “baggage” can sometimes include some rather esoteric practices and mystical thinking that you may or may not be comfortable with. Most people are able to accept these practices at face value and in many cases the various martial arts schools water down some of the stranger customs and forms of etiquette in the interest of blending in with our popular culture.

Some people however feel that their own personal religious preferences and ideals are being compromised and therefore can feel more than a little uncomfortable. If this description fits you then you might want to check out your chosen style’s practices and customs before you make your final decision. This factor is usually not an issue but it doesn’t hurt to check out this aspect of your martial art before making a commitment.

· Enrolling in a martial arts school based on price rather than quality

This factor can work for you and against you. There is no regulation in the martial arts industry that defines what standards a good school should uphold. Also there are a wide range of martial artists who are full-time commercial school owners and some who are part-time hobbyists.

Most people’s perception is that the more expensive the school the better the martial art. Sometimes this is true but sometimes the local community center has a great martial artist offering a great service. Expensive schools usually offer excellent training facilities and great customer service together with well-structured programs.

Cheaper schools or classes generally offer lesser facilities and sometimes inferior instruction, but very often there are some hidden gems to be discovered. Don’t overlook these people just because of price. Conversely don’t overlook the big schools because they are “too expensive”. Make your decision based on quality and not price.

· Opening the Yellow Pages and choosing a karate school just because the ad looked good

Looks can be deceiving and just because an ad in the Yellow Pages looks good doesn’t mean that the karate school is the right one for you. It just means that they are better at marketing and design than some of the other schools listed in the same pages. Check into a few of the schools by calling them and visiting them and then make your decision. It might end up that you still go to the school with the cool ad and that’s fine, but at least you looked around a little first.

So what is the moral of the story? Do your research first, before you begin your martial arts practice! A little extra time spent up front will more than likely pay dividends later. The martial arts often turns into a lifetime endeavor. You probably won’t be too happy if you spend some significant time practicing a certain style of martial arts only to find out that there is nowhere else to go unless you change your style.

Tags: Karate, ko, mixed martial arts, Taekwondo, Techniques, training, UFC, ultimate fighting championship

UFC 89 YouTube Prediction Roundup

Here’s a great round-up of YouTube predictions for UFC 89.

From Joanne of MMA Girls

WishKid12

Cannibal Mary eats Ribs and makes her picks.

Dan the Greatest

Cody

BigFatBown

Nunnker

So the intertubes have weighed in, what’s your prediction?

Tags: UFC

UFC 89 Fight Preview

This Saturday, October 18, UFC will rock England with a Pay-Per-View quality fight card, and U.S. fans will get to enjoy all of the action FREE on Spike TV! Michael “The Count” Bisping will have the backing of his home country as he faces a renewed Chris “The Crippler” Leben. Keith “The Dean of Mean” Jardine seeks redemption in his Light Heavyweight battle versus Brandon “The Truth” Vera.

Tags: Brandon Vera, Chris Leben, Keith Jardine, UFC

Who’s watching UFC 89? Bisping vs. Leben

On Saturday, October 18, UFC will rock England with a Pay-Per-View quality fight card, and U.S. fans will get to enjoy all of the action FREE on Spike TV! Michael “The Count” Bisping will have the backing of his home country as he faces a renewed Chris “The Crippler” Leben. Keith “The Dean of Mean” Jardine seeks redemption in his Light Heavyweight battle versus Brandon “The Truth” Vera.

Check out the badass fight preview.

Should be a good fight.  Who’s going to be watching?

Tags: brandon the truth vera, chris the crippler, fight preview, michael the count bisping, spike tv, UFC

Best UFC Knock-outs

Brutal.

Tags: UFC, ufc knock outs

Lamest UFC Fight Ever

Watch this until the end.  It’s well worth it.  Very funny.

Tags: UFC

Book Review: ‘Mixed Martial Arts - The Book of Knowledge’ with BJ Penn

M. A. Reviews has a great book review of ‘Mixed Martial Arts - The Book of Knowledge’ with BJ Penn.

B J Penn is the first American-born winner of the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship (Mundial) in the black belt category (2000). Penn is also the former UFC welterweight champion and was a coach on the The Ultimate Fighter 5 reality show. After winning the lightweight title at UFC 80, he became the second man (after Randy Couture) to win UFC titles in two different weight classes. At time of this article, he is currently ranked by MMAWeekly and Sherdog as the #1 Lightweight fighter in the world.

Here’s an excerpt from the review:

I won’t get into too much detail about what you’ll find in the two fighting parts of the book. I will say this, though. While it looks like a “technique catalogue”, it’s not really. The book shows BJ working many techniques and combinations against opponent’s from his gym. However, each technique fits into his particular fighting structure. What you see here is a collection of the techniques BJ Penn actually uses in a fight and how he strings them together.

If you want to see what BJ would do if he finds himself on his back against a skilled ground ‘n’ pound guy, the answer’s here. So is how to use your striking to set up a takedown (a subject not discussed often enough) and vice versa. Another thing I like is that we see what BJ does from a defensive perspective. We see a lot of defensive postures and escapes, which suits me fine as I’m often the one getting hit. Too often, books like this ignore that part of the strategy and just assume your awesome technique will win out.

Basically, M. A. Reviews indicates this is a “must-read” for anybody involved with Martial Arts.  Check out the full review here.

Tags: bj penn, black belt, combinations, defensive perspective, escapes, lightweight title, mixed martial arts, mixed martial arts the book of knowledge, mmaweekly, randy couture, sherdog, takedown, UFC, ufc welterweight champion, ultimate fighter