MMA and Boxing. So Closed Minded?

Question

Why cant People Just respect eachothers Fighting styles? Some of us Have diffrent reasons why we take it but realy? What drives people to be so Ignorant??

Answer 1

You really want to know why man? .... it's because there's a "big riff" between what Mixed Martial Artists do and what traditional arts are teaching in their dojo's.  Folks that take traditional art forms are pissed about the "ego trips" that a lot of MMA practicioners boast on T.V.  I can't blame the traditionalists for their views, but the decent Mixed Martial Artists out there aren't celebrities at all.  Most of the people I've come into contact with at MMA events are pretty decent people.  My own team, for example, are hard working kids with jobs, families, friendships and bills to pay like anyone else.  The one thing I can say is that most Mixed Martial Artists keep positive attitudes and in turn they effect other people's lives in a positive way, at least that's what I've seen out of my own team's members.  I don't know if you're old enough to remember, but back when I was a young man in the 1980's Mixed Martial Artists schools were laughed at because sensei's were mixing together a little from every art they had learned through out their lives and then teaching these mixed skills in their dojo's and the "traditionalists" were knocking these sensei's left and right as if Mixed Martial Arts was a total joke.  Now in the current situation they hate Mixed Martial Artists even though we've proven our skills in the cage, the ring and other such competitionsl, but we're at least no longer "the joke" that traditionalists used to say we were back when I was a kid.  Now though, all I hear is how the Mixed Martial Arts is only a "sport" and that Mixed Martial Artists have no "self-defense" skills what so ever.  I don't know where all these anti-MMA people came from with that assumption at all.  Why do they think we began practicing the martial arts in the first place? .... what they think just for sport? .... they couldn't be more wrong.  "Traditionalists act as if we're just some "Johnny come lately crowd" in their community, but we've been around for decades upon decades and most of us started out with "a better self-defense in mind" when we started.  Traditionalist a**holes think they could defeat a MMA practitioner with the greatest of ease and I hear that kind of talk all the time, but in truth a "traditionalist" would be in for a big suprise if they ever tried it.  Remarks from "traditionalists" like, "It's only a sport" or "They can only fight where rules protect them and without the rules a MMA practitioner would be toast" and these types of remarks come form pure "lack of knowledge" on the behalf of "traditionalists" that don't understand what being a Mixed Martial Artist is all about.  It doesn't matter what arts we borrow technique from we're still practicing for the benefit of both self-defense and sport competition..... until the "traditionalist" comes to understand these thing about us Mixed Martial Artists they remain in the dark like they were back in the 80's when they kept saying we were all jokes.  In the early days of the UFC back in 1993 traditionalists were getting defeated left and right in the cage and a few "traditionalists" came around to our way of thinking, but then the "tradidtionlists" stop coming because they knew they were out classed in the cage "No rules BTW back then in the UFC".  So let them all keep talking bro. they've been "dogging" us for decades now so why should their closed mindedness change? .... we do what we do that's all that counts ..... We've proven what we know and do and what have they done? ..... stepped away and that's all they'll ever do when it comes down to it.

One more thing it doesn't matter what arts whether boxing, jujitsu, judo, muay thai, wrestling, tae kwon do, karate, that you borrow your skills from, a little from all these, I'd be guessing, you're still better off  as a Mixed Martial Artist than you are as a stuffy "traitionalist" who's unwilling to learn new tricks.

Edit: wow steel .... I could point counterpoint with you all week long on that, but I think you just missed the entire point my young inexperienced friend.

Answer 2

How odd that you pose this question and yet group different methods of Chinese martial arts together (despite their vast differences and contrasts) and regard them as dancing...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;...

EDIT: To William, show me a martial art that isn't mixed in some regard, traditional or otherwise.

EDIT: To William P again:

Why call me inexperienced? I've nearly two decades of experience. Perhaps due to my non-Guru status?

While I initially responded to this question with an attempt at humor, allow me to expand a bit as to why people may not give MMA and boxing the respect they may or may not deserve: I call it the "meat-head mentality". This implies that one cannot properly learn intricacies of any specific discipline within a short amount of time and just go around looking to prove themselves in any arena possible. This mentality exists in ALL forms of martial art, and is not specific to MMA!  Both boxing and MMA have the opportunity to exhibit this with television and their increasing popularity to a wider audience, though, which can be misleading for the methods as a whole. However, many MMA artists claim to take what is best from this and best from that, or at least what works from this and what works from that while only gaining a rudimentary or fundamental understanding of these particular arts as a whole. How can one determine what is "best" of Judo after only three years of study? Or BJJ, or Muay Thai, or anything else? This in itself shows a lack of respect for the martial art being studied to begin with. Aside from that, you in particular, William P, are a coach at an MMA gym? Do you cater your program to each individual, because I'll tell you right now, a combination of systems that works best for you won't necessarily work best for somebody else. Anybody can excel at anything with diligence and hard work, but what feels natural for a 5'4" 110lb. woman might not be so natural for a 6'6" 275lb. man.

I am very careful (usually!) in using "system" versus "style" - an individual develops his/her own style from learning a system.

I'll go on record as saying I respect anybody with a good work ethic and who trains hard regardless of the discipline: they can train hard in TKD, MMA, BJJ, or Run DMC - it doesn't matter, but don't presume to know which is "best" from a naive perspective! A system in particular doesn't necessarily deserve to be respected or disrespected - the individual practitioner does or does not. I believe the thumb's down I've received must be from those who come from this naive perspective, because I actually enjoy boxing and MMA...

Answer 3

Everybody should respect everybody else unless they give reason to think otherwise. Martial arts or life.

Traditionalists incorporate moves from other places too. Wouldn't that therefore make them mixed martial arts as well? We'd argue semantics over that! I mean, how many moves from other styles would you have to incorporate to define it as "mixed"?

I agree with Steel about every style has some mixing to some degree.

Not all of us are aging and feel the need to be condescending.

Answer 4

MMA is simply more evolved. There are several world class boxers in MMA. There are no world class MMA practicioners in boxing.

I was always a big fan of the sweet science, but MMA has taken that to the next level.

Mixed martial arts are the culmination and appreciation of all fighting styles. Boxing is simply one component.

Put Floyd Mayweather in the ring with say a BJ Penn, GSP or Anderson Silva and see how that works out.

Answer 5

For one thing, these days there's a whoooooole lotta cash tied up in the mma vs boxing debate; not too long ago, it didn't seem to be a big issue, like MMA was boxing's rowdy little brother, but now they're in competition for viewers, so the debate's getting a little hotter

The debate itself is the same as any of the "which style is better" discussions on these boards, with egos getting in the way of having a real discussion

I do believe there are plenty of people around who are able to see these things objectively, though, and see how practitioners of each style can learn from the others iff they keep open minds

Unfortuntately, their voices don't tend to be anywhere near as loud and rambunctous as the others

Answer 6

Steel makes a good point: you can't expect to preach tolerance and act intolerant.

Frankly, it's unfamiliarity with the other styles. Everyone wants to believe their style is superior to all the others because they feel threatened if it isn't. Typically, they do anything within their power to "prove" their point by demonstrating "evidence" -- what's in competitions on TV, what allows more, what looks better on the poorly conceived chart they've drawn, etc.

The truth is that there are strengths and weaknesses to each. The goal of a true fighter is to maximize their strengths, successfully target the other guys weaknesses, and minimize their own weaknesses.

Too much ego gets wrapped up in fighting. Styles aren't better or worse, fighters are. What's more, there's no winning in a fight. Sure, if you're in a competition and you get an award, you may have won an award, but all you did was not lose. The same is true in a real fight: it's not a matter of winners and losers but the guy who lost and the guy who didn't lose. With any luck, both go home at the end of the day.

Answer 7

MMA and boxing are both great sports and I watch them both.Boxing is a match of cat and mouse trying to create openings in the other person's guard.MMA is fun to watch because the momentum of a match can change so quickly and someone losing the entire match can come up witha kick,punch, or submission in a split second.Boxers and MMA fighters do not seem to respect each other's sports because they claim each is superior.The truth is if you take a boxing champion he will not do very well in MMA and the opposite is also true for taking a MMA champion and placing them in a boxing match.One thing is certain.Both sports have great athletes who are tough as nails and put their bodies at risk every time they enter the ring.