by Can Tran

Created on: November 09, 2008

Is mixed martial arts the equivalent to human cockfighting? The answer would have to be "yes" and "no."

The only reason that mixed martial arts can be the equivalent to human cockfighting if it is unsanctioned and without rules. I have seen mixed martial arts matches online that could be considered as human cock fighting. This is coming from a person that has trained in mixed martial arts. These are the types of fights which are illegal.

Any type of mixed martial arts match that resembles human cockfighting would be illegal. However, there are barely any unsanctioned mixed martial arts fights in today's world. About a few years ago, the world of mixed martial arts was propelled from the underground and into the mainstream with "The Ultimate Fighter," which was the first ever reality TV series based off the Ultimate Fighting Championships.

TUF became a huge success.

In the past, the UFC was the equivalent to human cockfighting because there were barely any rules. UFC was at risk of being banned from the entire United States
unless it changed its tune. Since then, the UFC has gone through a complete transformation. The world of MMA would then follow suit.

Still, MMA does look violent.

However, MMA fights are safer than Boxing matches. One is going to ask: Why is MMA safer than Boxing? While Boxing is only punches, there have been far more injuries in that sport. The most common injuries in Boxing would be the head injuries. If you compete in Boxing, expect to take many shots to the head.
When they take blows to the head, the boxers shrug it off.

When you look at Muhammad Ali, he had developed Parkinson's disease. This was the result of taking too many blows to the head. There have been many deaths in the sport due to taking serious blows to the head. One well placed punch can cause a person's brain to hemorrhage.

When you look at MMA, there have been no deaths. Also, the fights tend to end faster in MMA than in Boxing. If one person is bleeding above the eye, the fight is stopped immediately. If a person is not in the position to intelligently defend oneself the fight is stopped immediately. There have been less reported injuries in MMA than there have been in Boxing.

There have been no reported incidents of death in an MMA match. However, there have been reported deaths in Boxing matches. Boxing could be far closer to human cockfighting than MMA could ever be.

Those that call MMA human cockfighting are ignorant to the sport. But, those people will get around soon. MMA in the mainstream is still in its juvenile stages. While MMA has been around for the early 90s, it remained an underground sport. MMA has only been a mainstream sport for about two to three years.

I would call MMA the ultimate martial arts testing ground and battle ground. MMA is what it is: mixed martial arts. It brings up the ultimate question: Can one style best another style in combat?

MMA had shattered the mysticism of the martial arts styles that we have seen in the movies, TV shows, and video games. This is the authentic display of martial arts used in practical combat.

In MMA, we have Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Muay Thai, Kung-Fu, Boxing, Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Russian Sambo, and many other interesting styles. It was through MMA that the importance of cross-training was realized.

Those that compare MMA to human cockfighting know nothing about the martial arts.

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