Is MMA The Most Effective Combat Sport?
Many people do not consider MMA to be a real martial art, but rather a combat sport where athletes fight for money, legacy, and global stardom. But on the other side, no one can deny that “cage fighting” ”is a versatile combat system that is also a very practical system in real life. In fact, it might even be the most effective combat sport out of all others.
Be sure to read this article if think about training in combat sports. In this article, we will determine whether mixed martial arts is better than other combat sports like boxing, Muay Thai, BJJ, and many others. But first, let’s take a close look at MMA as a concept, and what makes it so practical.
The concept and effectiveness of MMA
MMA started to rise in the early 90s with the birth of the famous UFC promotion. The early events used to be barbaric, brutal and promoted as legal street fighting matches. It was a place where all people, regardless of their martial art expertise, could come in and clash horns with fighters from other styles. There were no weight classes, time limits, or rules of any kind, just the rules of the streets. Why this is important you may ask?
Well, though the modern rules differ a lot, notably when it comes to safety, the concept of MMA remained very much the same. Yes, there are strict rules all promotions and fighters must follow. But this set of rules does not limit the effectiveness of the combat system itself that much.
Fighters can still use all limbs as weapons to strike at all ranges, grapple, and fight on the ground in a freestyle match. It remained a brutal combat sport that is still as close as we got to legal street fighting.
This is the main reason why MMA is one of the most popular options for people who want to learn self-defense tactics, despite being a “sport”. It consists of only the most practical techniques which all work in real life and may help you get out of trouble.
To cover all the elements, each fighter must be skilled in the following four martial arts:
- Boxing
- Muay Thai
- Wrestling
- BJJ
The rules in other combat sports, for instance, clearly have a negative impact on the effectiveness of the art itself. For instance, not all, but a lot karate training focuses too much on point fighting (in most styles and schools) while Taekwondo puts too much emphasis on kicks, and again, point fighting. These forms of combat do not emphasize self-defense and real fighting as they used to back in the early days.
Is MMA more effective than boxing?
On paper, MMA is more effective than boxing since it is a more versatile system. Boxing focuses “just “ on mixing hand strikes with upper body movement and footwork. MMA fighters on the other side use all limbs to strike, grapple, and fight on the ground. They are all-around fighters capable of fighting at all ranges and in all places, and against any other style, including boxing.
Self-defense
There are scenarios where boxing can help you more than MMA and vice versa. For instance, let’s all agree that the most common way of an attack on the streets is by throwing a punch, right? No one would bother, notably average people not trained in martial arts, to go for a takedown or throw wild kicks. Swinging a punch with your hand is the easiest and fastest way you can hurt a person. That being said, boxing skills work much better against this type of attack. However, MMA works much better in all other aspects like grappling, clinch fighting, kicking, or ground fighting.
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MMA fighters simply have more weapons at their disposal. It would be just a matter of seconds before they would walk right through the boxing stance to take a boxer down. Once an MMA fighter drops for a low single leg takedown, boxers would have zero chances of stopping the shot. First, they do not know how to wrestle, and second, they don’t know how to counter this attack and catch them coming in with a knee. Or in other, more brutal scenarios, they would start chopping the lead leg of a boxer with painful kicks. The best example was when pro boxer James Tony fought in MMA and got destroyed by Randy Couture at UFC.
Can MMA fighters beat boxers in the ring?
Yes, people trained in MMA also know how to box but are not as good as real boxers. Boxing in MMA differs a lot in terms of stances, guard, angles, and many other elements.
But despite being more effective in freestyle combat, bear in mind that MMA fighters are not good enough boxers to fight in a pro boxing match. Just look at how Conor McGregor, Ben Askren, and Tyron Woodley all got demolished inside the boxing ring if you need any proof.
Is MMA more effective than Muay Thai?
MMA is a total package when it comes to any type of freestyle combat, and more effective than Muay Thai, or that’s how it is on paper.
Self-defense
Muay Thai is often seen as the best striking art, and in the eyes of many people, even more brutal than cage fighting. In terms of the standup fight, it’s fair to say that it is more effective than MMA.
What Muay Thai brings to the table are vicious kicks, brutal dirty boxing inside the clinch with elbows and knees, and basic boxing combos. The emphasis is on throwing each kick with a lot of power and using punches to close the distance and fight in the clinch. On top of that, it is also made up of different trips, throws, and sweeps which are very, very practical and effective in street fighting for example.
The only downside of Thai boxing is the lack of ground fighting and maybe advanced boxing skills. But in some way, Thai boxing makes up for that with aggression, intensity, hard methods of training, and emphasis on causing as much damage as possible with every strike. All fighters have a prominent killer instinct, which is maybe the single most important factor for street fighting.
In fact, there is an argument that it might be even more effective than MMA simply because of how brutal it is.
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A great example of what would happen was the fight between Demetrious Johnson, who represented MMA, and Roadtang who represented Muay Thai at ONE FC. These two champions fought under the mixed rules where the first round was all Muay Thai, while the second round was under MMA rules. In the first, Johnson was more than capable of evading shots and firing back. But in the second, it was game over for Roadtang as soon as the fight hit the mat.
Yes, Muay Thai has a lot to offer in standup. However, MMA fighters would have an easier time defending against Muay Thai attacks on the feet, than a Muay Thai fighter to stop a takedown and escape out of submissions.
Is MMA more effective than Karate?
People tend to argue over this all the time, but the conclusion is always the same: MMA can be more effective than karate, regardless of the style.
Self defense
As a much older martial art, karate used to be very popular back in the day and was considered one of the most effective self-defense arts.
But in modern days, the entire emphasis of karate has moved from the self-defense aspect toward competition. Most modern schools focus on preparing students for matches where they compete under the strict “point fighting” rules. In some way, karate students learn how to score points and win matches, not how to fight in real life.
These rules have a negative impact on the effectiveness of karate. First, the emphasis is on scoring points by utilizing a high level of technique, speed, and accuracy. And second, there is no fluid action because the match resets after every point.
In some way, it is the opposite of MMA where fighters are aggressive, stronger, and rely on power and technique to cause injuries and finish their opponent.
Don’t get us wrong here, there are schools that still teach traditional karate, but not as much. MMA is simply more advanced in every aspect of fighting when it comes to modern version of karate, and with that, a better option if you want to learn self-defense.
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The difference in training, rules, emphasis, aggression, techniques, and many other important things are simply too big to even think that a karateka can beat a trained MMA fighter in a freestyle fight.
Yes, MMA fighters might have a hard time dealing with the footwork, speed, and accuracy of karateka, notably if the fight is in the open space. But sooner or later, they would time the entry on a takedown, or get a clinch position, and it is basically game over from then on. There are scenarios where karatekas have an advantage on the feet, but not enough for us to say that they have a better chance of winning.
Is MMA more effective than Taekwondo?
On paper, Taekwondo is a martial art designed with self-defense in mind. This means that it should be more effective than MMA, which is a sport where there are rules, right? Well, in reality, however, MMA is superior in just about every aspect, including actual fighting.
Self-defense
Like karate, the emphasis of modern Taekwondo practice is on competition. Yes, students still do self-defense drills, notably in ITF style. But the main goal of training is to prepare a person to compete under strict rules and win matches.
In training, students learn how to score points for each clean strike, and like in karate, the action resets after every point. On top of that, the rules favor kicks over punches, which is one of the reasons why Taekwondo focuses so much on kicks. In fact, punches are secondary weapons, and contestants are not allowed to land punches to the head, only the upper body area below the neck. All of this has a negative impact on Taekwondo as a self-defense combat system.
Yes, it is always better to know something than nothing. The reactions and timing you develop in training might help you on the streets. But MMA is far more effective.
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MMA fighters are superior in just about any segment of fighting, including standup. Yes, Taekwondo has better kicks, but that’s about it. Technique-wise, MMA fighters are better at punching, moving, wrestling, fighting on the ground, and mixing it all together in a harmony. The concept of training and rules of the competition are also more realistic and do not move too far away from real fighting, neither have a negative impact on the overall effectiveness of the system as it has in Taekwondo.
Is MMA more effective than wrestling?
Wrestling is “just” an integral part of MMA, so it is reasonable to assume that it is not as effective as MMA, right? Though this may be true to some extent, bear in mind that wrestling is a very effective martial art, far more than it looks at first sight.
Self-defense
First of all, wrestlers are among the strongest people on the planet. They are superior to MMA fighters when it comes to body mechanics, explosiveness, cardio, and raw strength. If you combine this with great automatic reactions, timing, and speed, you get a person that is capable of dealing with any situation on the streets.
The thing is, an average person knows how to block strikes or move away because these are our natural reactions. On the other side, average people all have zero chance of stopping a well timed takedown from a wrestler. This is because wrestling is all about leverage, technique, weight distribution, explosion, balance, and many other things.
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On paper, MMA is a more versatile martial art, and with that, its fighters have better chances of beating wrestlers in 1 on 1 freestyle matches, right? Though this is a reasonable conclusion, let’s not underestimate the power of wrestling.
Who is going to win truly depends on where the fight takes place, and the ability of MMA fighters to stop a takedown. You see, MMA fighters know how to wrestle, but having average defensive wrestling is not enough to stop a shot from a wrestler who competes on the international level. This is the main reason why so many top level wrestlers enjoy instant success upon switching over to MMA like Randy Couture or Daniel Cormier had.
If the fight is in a closed space like a bar or room, MMA fighters would have a hard time defending once a wrestler gets a hold of them. They need space to operate to land strikes.
Let’s put it this way: if you take a top level UFC fighter and an Olympic wrestler and put them in a street fighting match in the parking lot, the UFC fighter would probably come out as a winner.
Is MMA more effective than Combat Sambo?
There are two versions of Russian Sambo: Combat Sambo and Sports Sambo. However, bear in mind that even the combat version (used by the military), has a sports variation that resembles modern MMA.
Like MMA, Sambo is a mix of various styles of wrestling, judo, and striking techniques put into one system. But on top of that, training also covers self-defense tactics, including weapon based training.
Self-defense
Combat Sambo is a hand to hand combat system created for the Russian military back in the 1920s. It is an all around system that trains a person how to utilize wrestling and judo moves to grapple, or boxing and kickboxing techniques to strike. On top of that, students learn how to deal with various weapons like knives, staff, and even firearms. All of this makes Sambo very effective for any type of combat.
In training, students learn how to land punches to the throat, kick the groins, gouge eyes, and many other brutal techniques. Though this may sound too brutal, bear in mind that there are no rules on the streets. MMA on the other side is a practical combat sport but won’t teach you to use dirty tactics or defend against this type of attack.
Overall, Sambo might be more effective than MMA for self-defense as it is more versatile.
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Sambo might have an advantage in a self-defense scenario against people with average fighting skills. But it is a different story if a trained MMA athlete is in front. The sports version of Combat Sambo puts a lot of emphasis on mixing basic boxing combos with explosive wrestling. It is an aggressive style where the main goal is to take the fight to the ground as fast as possible. Once the fight hits the ground, the goal is to push for a choke or joint lock or finish the fight with ground and pound.
Though it is very similar to modern MMA, it simply isn’t as advanced and hasn’t evolved as much through time as MMA has. Or in other words, top-level UFC fighter has already seen most of the things top-level Combat Sambo fighter would bring to the table.
Is MMA more effective than Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu?
BJJ plays a big role in modern MMA fighting. In fact, many coaches and experts agree that you can’t expect to do well in MMA without, at least, an average BJJ game. Sooner or later, the lack of ground game and ability to, at least defend, would backfire on you in a painful way.
Self-defense
BJJ is often seen as the best and most practical martial art one can learn for self-defense. However, the biggest downside of this system is the lack of striking, not just in the standup, but on the ground as well. For some reason, BJJ training doesn’t include punches or kicks at all, and in the case it would, it would be much closer to MMA in this aspect.
BJJ is the most dominant at close range, notably in street fighting where there is a lot of grabbing and pulling. Trained fighters need to grab just a single part of your body to advance to the ground. Once there, it would be just a matter of seconds before they place a choke around your neck or a joint lock.
On top of that, it is one of the few martial arts systems that allow a physically smaller person to neutralize a much bigger attacker. But it won’t teach you how to defend against weapons, and you would be vulnerable if you are dealing with more than one attacker.
However, MMA is a clear winner here because first, it teaches you how to mix wrestling and BJJ to grapple. Second, you will learn how to strike, both on the feet and on the ground. Yes, you won’t be as skillful on the ground as BJJ athlete, but you can make up for this with other skills.
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Though BJJ is limited only to grappling, they are still more than capable of beating an MMA fighter of similar skill. However, as in other cases, MMA fighters simply have more weapons at their disposal. They all have good enough takedown defense to stop a takedown, or ground game to escape BJJ attacks, or that’s how it is on paper.
