MMA and Boxing

[Sleeping in EQ]

You'd be hard pressed to find someone who knows less about either of these sports than me, but the other night some MMA show was on TV and I watched it for about 10 minutes.

The first thing I noticed was how white MMA seemed in comparison to boxing. Is there a race thing going on here?

[MikeWaters]

Yes there is.

[Venkman]

I think the preponderance of white in MMA has alot to do with the fact that boxing has been considered a largely black and hispanic sport for years. White's have gravitated towards karate, kenpo, jiu jitsu, etc. rather than boxing.

As MMA events continue to gain in popularity and payoffs get bigger, my guess is you'll see more blacks get involved.

[8ballrollin]

Originally Posted by Venkman

I think the preponderance of white in MMA has alot to do with the fact that boxing has been considered a largely black and hispanic sport for years. White's have gravitated towards karate, kenpo, jiu jitsu, etc. rather than boxing.

As MMA events continue to gain in popularity and payoffs get bigger, my guess is you'll see more blacks get involved.

MMA is dominated by submission experts. Many of these are converts to jujitsu with heavy wrasling backgrounds. Many wraslers, as you know, are white boys. Standup striking and hand speed are not a premium (boxing skills). 90% of UFC fights are decided on the ground.

[cougjunkie]

Just watched the Ultimate Fighter 5 finale. The fights were as follows

Roger Huerta (mexican) vs Gary Evans (white)
Thales Leites (brazilian) vs Floyd Sword (white)
Brandon Melendez (mexican) vs Joe Lauzon (white)
Andy Wang (chinese) vs Cole Miller (white)
Leonard Garcia (mexican) vs Allen Berube (white)
Manny Gamburyan (armenian) vs Nate Diaz (1/2 mexican)
BJ Penn (hawaiian, asian) vs Jens Pulver (white)


Pretty diverse if you ask me.

[cougjunkie]

let me add that on UFC 73 the following fights are taking place

Jorge Gurgel (brazil) vs. Diego Saraiva (brazilian)
Minotauro Noguera (brazilian) vs Heath Herring (white)
Anderson Silva (brazilian) vs Nate marquardt (white)
Sean Sherk (white) vs Hermes Franca (brazilian)
Kenny Florian (white) vs Alvin Robinson (black)
Frankie Edgar (1/2 mexican) vs Mark Boceck (canadian)
Rashad Evans (black) vs Tito Ortiz (part mexican)

plenty of diversity here as well.

[MikeWaters]

I watched the Ricky Hatton vs. Castillo fight last night. In Las Vegas, and more than half the fans were Brits who had flown over from England. That is amazing.

MMA just doesn't compare to boxing. It's like the difference between watching CFL and NFL.

MMA championships mean nothing. They're gone in a second, and there is no superstar in MMA. Because of the inability to be dominant in the sport (seems like anyone can win depending on their luck), I doubt it will ever have the known fighters like boxing.

[fusnik11]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

MMA championships mean nothing. They're gone in a second, and there is no superstar in MMA. Because of the inability to be dominant in the sport (seems like anyone can win depending on their luck), I doubt it will ever have the known fighters like boxing.

Mike, you obviously don't know anything about MMA.

Emlianko
Gracie
Hughes
Pulver
Coleman
Randleman
Silva
Henderson
Gome
Liddell

Just a short list of fighters who have dominated their weight classes for extended periods of time. Unlike boxing, MMA fighters fight with more frequency than boxing belt holders, making these figher's dominance even more impressive.

[MikeWaters]

Silva and Liddell are the only names I recognize.

What is Liddell up to these days? Counting the canceled endorsements?

Did Liddell drink a 12 pack everyday to ge ready? Freaking amazing gut.

[SteelBlue]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

Silva and Liddell are the only names I recognize.

What is Liddell up to these days? Counting the canceled endorsements?

Did Liddell drink a 12 pack everyday to ge ready? Freaking amazing gut.

You've never heard of Gracie?