You may have seen it or heard it, got it from a friend, saw one on youtube, or even bought one of its t-shirts,
yes, mixed martial arts is everywhere, from network tv, to pay-per-view, the newest fever that hit the sporting industry,
it's called mixed martial arts also known by its cool nickname; M.M.A.

To many casual viewers of combat sports, MMA is the most unusual, one throws a punch, the other a kick, you might think
"uhh ok, its kinda like kickboxing or muay thai", but then one fighter takes the other party down and you'd be like
"oh its a combination of punching, kicking, and taking down the other guy, just like pro wrestling, maybe later they'd
pick up the steel chairs and bash each others heads" but then you'd expect the winning fighter to knock the other guy out
(with anything) but then he pulls his opponent's arms and kind of locks it and the losing guy taps like it hurts and you'd be like
"what the (expletive) is this?", to many casual viewers its a dumbfounding situation, a combination of different fighting techniques rolled
into one sport, you, my friend, just witnessed the sport of Mixed Martial arts.

Mixed Martial arts has many names, variations and evolution, it started 16 years ago in 1993, a starting point in which most MMA analyst agree
of the day of its birth. Currently it has different names like Ultimate fighting and Cagefighting, but to unite both it became Mixed Martial Arts.

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) spawned or Spun-off, if you may, from a popular fighting form in Brazil called "vale Tudo". This form of fighting, as the name describes, is a no-holds barred, anything goes fight, were one uses his skill of fighting in
any shape or form, may it be kicking, head-butting, taking down, choking, breaking limbs, punching or anything that you could think of
which can inflict damage using only your body. This form really was a bar-room-brawl type, wholly dominated and popular among thugs
and people who beat other people for a living (i guess they also call them thugs hehe) but then a spin of evolution came to this fight form;
martial artists started participating in the event.

It was a whole different story, the thugs who used to dominate by overpowering and even just intimidating its opponents were losing to the diminutive but
agile artists, the dawn of a new age has started, this was just not about venting your anger through fighting, it was already about technique.
it was clear that this senseless thugs were'nt going to win against a fighter who has the better technique. As time went, martial artists from different
parts of brazil, and even Japan came to fight, bringing with them their prized possession; their knowledge of their respective martial arts.
It was evident that there was a battle of technique, Karate would always say that their technique is best, so with taekwondo, muay thai, jiu jitsu, judo,
sumo-wrestling and etc. and the question lay; what is the best martial art?

Again, time passed on, Vale tudo was thriving, even though respected martial artists are joining in the latest craze it was still a brawl,
a fight with no rules, a bloodsport.

Then in 1991, Art Davie, an american, and Rorion Gracie, a brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and teacher came up wth an idea that would change the landscape
of combat sport, they devised a show that would pit different martial arts with each other in an 8-man, single elimination tournament.
Gracie came to be Davie's teacher in brazilian jiu jitsu and showed him a video tape of his family performing in Vale tudo matches, this was the spark
that led to the event on November 12, 1993, in Denver, Colorado, the Ultimate fighting championship was born. The intent of the show was to decide what is
the most effective martial arts in real combat, and begs to answer the question who would win in a fight between a karateka and a sumo-wrestler, a boxer
and a jiu-jitsu practitioner, there were no rules then, no weight-classes, just like the vale-tudo matches in brazil, Rorion Gracie picked
his younger brother Royce Gracie, who is a blackbelt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu to represent their family.
In the end, Rorion's brother won the tournament, making brazilian jiu-jitsu or
"gracie" jiu-jitsu as they like to call it, the best martial art that night. However as the time went on, one-dimensioned martial artists did not thrive
in the ultimate fighting championships, Royce Gracie did not like the time limit imposed by the organization because it was limiting his jiu-jitsu capability,
but the real picture was the future has begun for the UFC and MMA is growing.

During its infant years the UFC and MMA as a sport were berated by lawmakers like John Mccain, and coined it with a nickname that MMA fans today cannot forget;
he called it "human cockfightinng", tastless as it was, the senator was spot on, UFC had no rules, no weight classes, no sanctions form any state athletic
commission it was basically a brawl sport.but then the new owners of UFC, who bought the company for a measly $2,000,000,00 (UFC now is worth 1 billion dollars),
came up with the idea to sanction the sport and make it credible to fight fans, their main idea for the sport was not to pit one martial art to the other,
their purpose was to make it a sport, to let 1 fighter train different with martial arts and fight with another who was also knowledgeable in different
martial arts, the new owners (Dana White and Brothers Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta) had great connections with the Nevada State Athletic Commissions which sanctioned it
given that they should adopt rules and weight classes, impose strict rules and guidelines to fighters, it was an evolution of a sport we know now.

 Currently MMA is riding in a wave of popularity, especially with the popular promotion of UFC, whom many agree is the premiere proving ground
in Mixed Martial Arts.

Mixed Martial Arts is a combination of different fighting styles which are integrated to one fighter, giving him all the tools needed
to perform in multi-dimensional levels, making him adapt to different fight styles such as;

Striking- Boxing, Kick-boxing, Muay-thai, Taekwondo, Karate, ninjitsu

Grappling- Wrestling (greco-roman/freestyle), sumo-wrestling, brazilian or Japanese (original) jiu-jitsu, sambo, judo.

Submissions (still part of grappling but more on tapping out your opponent or letting him submit, which are not part of Wrestling)
- Bazilian jiu-jitsu, sambo, submission fighting.

Rules

MMA promotions generally adhere to a set of rules called the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial arts:

In 2000, the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts were codified by the New Jersey State Athletic Commission.[1] The rules were originally drawn up by the California State Athletic Commission, who had worked extensively on regulation, but its sanctioning of MMA was not implemented due to state governmental issues surrounding the budgeting process.[2] California officially sanctioned MMA on December 28, 2005, using the ruleset it helped devise five years previously.[3]

Since then, to create uniformity in the United States, many state athletic commissions have assimilated these rules for mixed martial arts into their existing unarmed combat competition rules and statutes. For a promotion to hold mixed martial arts events in a state-sanctioned venue, the promotion must abide by the state athletic commission's body of rules. Promotions that hold events on Indian reservations are under the jurisdiction of the Indian tribe government, which may require sanctioning by their own commission.

[edit] Rounds
Every round is 5 minutes in duration with a one minute rest period in-between rounds. Non-title matches must not exceed three rounds. Title matches can be sanctioned for five rounds.

[edit] Attire
All competitors must fight in approved shorts, without shoes or any other sort of foot padding. Shirts, gis or long pants (including gi pants) are not allowed. Fighters must use approved light gloves (4-6 ounces) that allow fingers to grab.

[edit] Judging Criteria
The ten-point must system is in effect for all fights. Three judges score each round and the winner of each receives ten points, the loser nine points or less. If the round is even, both fighters receive ten points. In New Jersey, the fewest points a fighter can receive is 7, and in other states by custom no fighter receives less than 7.

[edit] Legal Techniques
The Unified Rules used to allow all elbow strikes except those hitting downwards with the point of the elbow.

Recent amendments and clarifications to the unified rules now allow all elbow strikes (except those to illegal striking areas of the body, for example, the groin)

[edit] Fouls
The following are fouls, as set out by the Nevada State Athletic Commission:[4]

Putting a finger into any orifice or into any cut or laceration on an opponent. (see Gouging)
Clawing, pinching or twisting the flesh.
Grabbing the clavicle.
Kicking the head of a grounded opponent.
Kneeing the head of a grounded opponent.
Stomping a grounded opponent.
Spiking an opponent to the canvas on his head or neck. (see piledriver)
Holding the shorts or gloves of an opponent.
Spitting at an opponent.
Engaging in an unsportsmanlike conduct that causes an injury to an opponent.
Using abusive language in the ring or fenced area.
Attacking an opponent on or during the break.
Attacking an opponent who is under the care of the referee.
Attacking an opponent after the bell has sounded the end of the period of unarmed combat.
Flagrantly disregarding the instructions of the referee.
Timidity, including, without limitation, avoiding contact with an opponent, intentionally or consistently dropping the mouthpiece or faking an injury.
Interference by the corner.
Throwing in the towel during competition. (forfeit)

1. MMA has no rules- I again as i've explained before, MMA during the early years initially have no rules, time went on it has evolved into a sport with strict rules and guidelines, and as i've witnessed, strictly adhered to.

2. MMA is Deadly- I'm a fan of boxing, and as much as possible i will not compare them, but to set things straight MMA had only one known incident of death in its 16-year history, unlike american football which has over 4 deaths a year, and of course (i don't wanna do this) boxing which has, as reported, reported 11 deaths a year.

3. MMA is only one level higher than pro-wrestling- Pro-wrestling is not even near the wrestling in MMA, the fighters in MMA train 24/7 their whole lives and are knowledgeable to different fight forms.

4. MMA fighters are bar-room brawlers- i cannot speak for all but generally MMA fighters are degree-holders, and professionals of their trade,some fighters are teachers, some like Rich Franklin who is a math teacher, he used to teach highschool math before he started training, Damien Maia, has a language major,Tito Ortiz, a very popular MMA fighter/businessman,
Chuck Liddell holds a degree in accounting, Randy Couture, former soldier and collegiate wrestler. Furthermore, MMA fighters are collegiate athletes who performs at the highest level and at the same time performs well academically.