There are many
professional sports in the world we live in today. Basketball, baseball, football, and hockey
have been around for over 50 years, while soccer has been around for centuries. Even the WWE, if you consider that a sport
has been around for a while, but one sport separates itself from the rest, and
it is likely the newest of them all to be considered one of the best sport of
all time: the UFC. The Ultimate Fighting
Championship, or more commonly referred to as the UFC began 20 years ago, and is
today one of the most watched sports in the world amongst all other
sports. However, despite the gladiator
style conflict that takes place in the octagon, minus the pads and lethal
weapons of the gladiators of old, something special about these athletes is
what makes the sport so popular to so many around the world. It’s the level of humility, discipline, and
mastery of their craft that makes these athletes more than just fighters, but
also respectable and humble men, and now women in this international
sport. In a way, the UFC is like a
melting pot of cultures, disciplines, styles, and abilities that brings
fighters from every country together in the universal language of mixed martial
arts, otherwise known as M.M.A. Many
people only see the blood and exchange of attacks in the ring, but it’s what
goes on outside of the ring that defines the athletes that make up the UFC and
other fighting organizations. The world
of M.M.A. and the UFC are full of humble and very respectable fighters, who
despite the imagery of savages going for blood in the ring are actually quite
the opposite outside the cage.
Humility is
defined as the quality or meaning of being humble. Humble is defined as showing modest or low
estimate of one’s own importance. This
describes not only a handful of the champions of the UFC but also a multitude
of other fighters throughout the UFC. In
an article contributed by Jeffery McKinney, 10 of the sports classiest and most
respectful fighters are discussed. One
thing all 10 of these fighters have in common, as well as noted in each
description, is that they have never talked trash on another fighter in their
careers. Even in the wake of fighting
the most arrogant and loud-mouthed opponents in their careers, not a single
negative word was spoken from any of these elite combatants. Of these fighters described, one being a
former teacher(Rich Franklin), another being a former U.S. marine(Brian Stan),
and the rest having a long career up to today in the sport(Georges St. Pierre),
some dating back to around the time the UFC began(Lyoto Machida, Dan Henderson,
Forrest Griffin, Antonio Nogueira), it only goes to show the level of class and
respect displayed by many fighters in the sport. Although only 10 were discussed in this
article, another 10 fighters along with those from the other post were
chronicled by Matt Molgaard. These other
fighters, though most of them not as successful as the fighters from the
McKinney post, were noted to be just as respectful and humble as the
others. This article from Molgaard
showed that humility can come from anyone, regardless their rank in the UFC, if
they once had a drug addiction(Court Mcgee), or even if they knew they were not
the cream of the crop, but they still push themselves with a drive to become
the best(Jonathan Brookins), they all have humbly made names for themselves and
earned mass respect from fighters and viewers alike. All of these fighters have another similarity
that translates into the humble athletes that they are. They never underestimate or boast about their
own skill. Prior to UFC 167, Georges St.
Pierre was quoted in an article of the Montreal Gazette. St. Pierre says "There are always going
to be challenges," he said. "I'm not above the sport. In saying this he makes not that he's not the
best, or in other words that he’s not the king of the sport and sits upon a
thrown that he will never fall off. He
goes on to say, "Everybody's beatable and I always have to keep my head
straight and stay humble and train hard."
Besides the excitement of the fights themselves, it's this brand of
fighter, this type of athlete that makes the UFC the proud sport it is today.
Now
many people say that the UFC is barbaric.
That it is even “repulsive” as one reporter puts it in this video. At the end of this video they pluck a quote
from the crowds that flood the UFC pay-per-view events, encouraging “More gore!” These reporters continue on to referring to
fighters of the UFC as openers of blood banks and people whose goal is to open
young people’s eyes to extreme amounts of violence. As these ignorant reporters continue to rant
and bash on the sport they overlook what it is they are actually reporting on. This is fighting. Fighting is exactly as its name implies. It's a match up where two people duke it out,
whether its punching, kicking, wrestling, or submissions otherwise referred to
as chokes in order to see who is the better of the two. Rarely ever will a full fight end with either
combatant coming out clean and unscathed, or looking as though they did not
just go through a one-on-one war. There
is always bound to be blood, cuts, gashes, broken bones, or stitches being put
into place by the end of the fight.
However, the fight
is not entirely physical, but equally or more so mental. In an article from Joe.ie, a fighter named
Cathal Pendred explains how important a strong mind is in comparison to a
strong body in M.M.A. and the UFC. He
explains, "Walking down to a ring/octagon to face off against another man
in a fight is something that requires a lot of training, courage, confidence
and a level-head. Of the four things I mentioned, only one is a physical
requirement, the others are all mental aspects." Although it is true that a strong body is
likely to withstand pain and punishment far greater than a weaker body will,
what surpasses a strong body when its limbs are close to being broken, or a
left hook has been delivered to the one spot of the head that would drop any man? The mind is the only valid answer to this
question. As a fighter himself, Pendred
understands more than most this importance in the sport. As a fighter himself, Pendred has been in
these situations numerous times and witnessed countless other occasions where a
fighter has lost due to their body and mind failing, as well as occasions where
a fighter has won because his body was battered and worn, but the mind pushed
on in an effort to obtain victory. He
sums this all up by saying "When your body is beaten, it takes a really
strong mind to overcome the natural desire of the body to give up." The mindset is everything in M.M.A. Its what separates the champions from the rest. The mindset to be number one is what drives many of these fighters to compete so fiercely. Its not that there's a personal vendetta between fighters in the UFC if it becomes outrageously gory, it just symbolizes what fighters will do to win, and what they'll withstand and endure to achieve victory.
The UFC is a great
sport. Despite the grueling matches that
have been fought to this day it is still safer than Boxing, says Dana White,
President of the UFC. In an article from
buddytv.com, White says that “The misconception is, these guys can kick, knee,
punch, elbow, slam to the ground, this has to be more violent and dangerous.
It's not true.” This being in regard to boxing, he comes back later saying,”
people stand in front of each other for 12 rounds, and the goal is to hit each other
so hard in the face that one fighter knocks the other unconscious. In the UFC
two people can fight, and one could beat the other and win, and never punch the
other guy in the head once. Fighters can go right to the ground, start
grappling, and pull off a submission. It's not 25, 30 minutes of blows to the
head non-stop.” This being noted, his
point very simply is that boxing is just as dangerous and brutal as the
UFC. While major injuries have resulted
from boxing, such as deaths and brain trauma in many retired boxers, White
further points out that there’s never been a UFC injury more serious than a
broken arm. He humbly acknowledges however, "At the end of the day it's a
contact sport and anything can happen."
This justifies and disbands the idea that the fighters of the UFC are savages
just looking for blood. Far from it, the gore displayed is just a result of the
sport. The way that tackles and
touchdowns are bound to happen in a football game, so is a little blood on the
canvas of the octagon in the UFC.
Throughout its 20
year history, the UFC has become one of the most popluar sports around the
world. The UFC has become a melting pot
for many skills and diverse backgrounds.
All this diversity amongst the fighters of the UFC is what makes it one
of the greatest sports today. It is not
only for that reason however. The great
fights, along with the many humble champions and other fighters like Georges
St. Pierre and Brian Stan are what make the sport the way it is today. The world of M.M.A. and the UFC are full of
humble and very respectable fighters, who despite the imagery of savages going
for blood in the ring are actually quite the opposite outside the cage.
