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The UFC -
Is It Really That Dangerous?
By Nishan Wilde
The legitimacy of mixed martial arts, known by most as
UFC fighting, has constantly been questioned and
scrutinized since its inception in 1993. Many have said
that the brutal tactics used in mixed martial arts are
barbaric and abhorrent. So much controversy has
surrounded this new-age fighting style that even Senator
John McCain entered the fray. The Senator made it his
personal mission to get the UFC and mixed martial arts
fighting banned in America. However, since his inability
to do so, MMA has been on the rise ever since.
As a result of so much hoopla, one question arises - Is
MMA really that dangerous? Is this sport as primitive
and disgusting as so many people claim? I mean, there is
fighting involved, but is it bad enough to warrant a
nation wide ban? I personally don't think so. And here's
why.
Mixed martial arts is just that - mixed. It is a
conglomerate of many other types of fighting. The UFC
features fighters from wrestling, boxing, muay thai, jui
jitsu and tae kwon do backgrounds. Almost all of which
are Olympic sports. So, ask yourself. If these sports
are good enough to attract the best athletes from around
the world to compete in an event that honors them as
such, why shouldn't a sport that encompasses each of
these styles be good enough? The answer is it should be
good enough and is.
Also, many people say that MMA and the UFC is dangerous
because it teaches children that fighting is alright and
even revered. But that argument holds absolutely no
water at all. If you were to ban anything and everything
violent, then you would have to ban professional
wrestling, video games and yes, our other beloved
Olympic sports mentioned above. But seeing as how
society is not willing to give these things up, there is
no reason to single MMA and the UFC out as the ugling
duckling.
And last, but certainly not least, how is danger
measured? I mean, poeple say that MMA is too dangerous,
but what are they using to guage that danger?
Could it be injuries?
No, that's absurd. MMA fighters, rarely, if ever,
sustain injuries. And when they do, the hospital stay is
no longer than a day. On the other hand, injuries in
sports as "harmless" as football and hockey occur every
day, leaving their athletes laid up in a hospital beds
for months and sometimes years.
Could the danger be measured in terms of the number of
yearly death caused by the sport?
No, because as long as the UFC has been around, there
have been no deaths. However, on the other side of the
token, deaths frequently occur in other major sports
every year. For example, in boxing, the "beautiful" and
"artistic" version of MMA, there have been approximately
900 deaths since 1920. That's an average of just under
13 people a year. People say that those numbers have
dropped significantly as the sport has been made more
safe. Well, the same can be said about the UFC. Each
fight is governed by the Nevada State Athletic
Commission, the same organization that governs boxing
bouts. Also, the sport has definitely evolved since its
inception. Now, unlike in the early days when it was
pretty much no holds barred, the UFC has a long list of
can's and cannot's - a list that has prevented major
injury or death in every single fight to date.
So, to say that MMA and the UFC are barbaric and overly
dangerous is simply not true. The numbers speak for
themselves. The fact that you may not like the
up-in-your-face, new-age style of fighting that the UFC
promotes is your problem. People didn't like boxing at
first either. Football, too, was considered dangerous
because of the lack of padding and the leather helmets
used in competition. But, like football, MMA has evolved
into a safe and exciting sport.
Nishan Wilde is VP of Sales at
RobbinsSports.com, an online resource for Punching
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