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Originally Posted by Strange Famous
Yes, violence is an element of boxing, but MMA is violence virtually unrestrained by rules, respect for your opponent, or any concept of conducting oneself as a gentleman.
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Over 30 fouls, Stoppages for cuts, and the ability to say to the ref "I can't see" for abotu a minute of stoppage is not very unrestrained. Striking on the ground is inevitableand not all fighters finsih that way, BJ Penn and Anotnio Minotauro Noguiera can get you on the ground and finish you without ever throwing a punch.
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Originally Posted by guccilvr
huh. wonder why? Maybe because it's alot more taxing on the body to be tangled up struggling for position than just standing around throwing a punch or two every minute. Or.. the fact that in MMA it's actually against the rules to not engange or work.
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Training in grappling is far mroe tiring. You are right. I used to box and am now learning muay thai. and I have no problem sparring four or five 5 minute rounds. But when I grapple with my wrestling and ju-jitsu buddies, I'm basically worn after one round. A lot more energy is wasted pushing people off of you or trying to hold someone down than people think.
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Originally Posted by highthief
boxing is far, far more taxing than that. The training is, at the highest levels, extreme - you punch, you move, you get hit.
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Watch Sean Sherk and Fedor Emelianenko train and talk to me abotu taxing. The training for most is no different, some people parodize their triaing a bit more. Sparring is done in the same fashion but incorporates kicks and take-down defense as well. I've done both, and they are both not fun at all, but they are so worth it.
I'm personally a big fan of both sports and was ecstatic this year when Pavlik destroyed Taylor, because Boxing needs more fighters like him, not dancers who throw 3 punches a round. I cheered through the Gatti-Ward trilogy just like everyone else, and I was abhorred at the De La Hoya-Mayweather "fight to save boxing" just as everyone was.
The point is boxing doesn't need to be saved, it needs to be changed. Not the art, but the pollitics. The ranking system, bribes, dives, and multiple weight class championships are horrible for the sport.
MMA will be on that same level at some day, to think that it will not, would be out-right foolish. Dana White will become the Don King of MMA eventually, just like Tito Ortiz is already the Floyde Mayweather (speaking in terms of attitude of course).
Boxing is a martial art, and is used in MMA as well, Alessio Sakara a UFC 205er was a boxing champion in Italy, and now trains here in Miami with Boca Olivera. Fedor Emelianenko the #1 p4p fighter in the world trained in boxing as well. It is a tool which people need to utilize.
As far as respect goes, there are rivalries that will not be resolved ( course Tito Ortiz is involved in many of them). But for a real look at how the true athletes reslove their issues look at the last Rich Franklin v. Anderson Silva match. In rich's hometown, Silva was getting booed for destroying Rich a second time. Rich instantly grabbed his microphone and told the crowd not to boo him because he is an amazing warrior and an even better person. That to me impressed me more than anything.
The problem with MMA is not the sport itself (yet) the athletes. It's the casual fans. The one's who do only watch for violence, they do exist. People how know nothing about ju-jitsu, submission wrestling, sambo, judo, etc. The same people who boo fighters like Renzo Gracie, Sean Sherk, Andrei Arlovski, Yushin Okami, etc... and champion Chuck Liddell for refusal to taking the fight to the ground for a submission victory. I've met several fo them at my local UFC bars, they are the ones that boxing purists point out. The true fans respect damn-near all fighters and support the sport and anyone involved at all costs.
Given time, maybe the two will be able to co-exist. For now, however boxing feel threatened because people would rather spend 45 dollars an a UFC ppv thab a Boxing ppv. The purists begin the insults and the sheep follow. Prompting the MMA fans to fire back, and their sheep to follow as well. Aside from a select few, the athletes have a mutual respect for one another:
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