Mixed Martial Arts Tournaments
MMA tournaments draw millions of people each year, to witness the ultimate battle for domination among extremely talented fighters. MMA promoters have adopted several additional rules in the following decade to gain mainstream acceptance and enhance the safety of the participants, while still maintaining the intense competition and raw style of mixed martial arts.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is a mixed martial arts organization located in the United States. The UFC is recognized as the largest MMA promotion network in the world.
UFC 1 had very limited rules and was touted as a "no hold barred" tournament. Due to pressue within and outside the organization additional rules have been added to protect the participants.
Want to See Some UFC?
Ultimate Fighting Championships Vol. 48: Payback - Shamrock vs. Kimo DVD
UFC Ultimate Knockouts 3 DVD
The UFC currently uses five weight classes:
- Lightweight: 146 to 155 lb (67 to 70 kg)
- Welterweight: 156 to 170 lb (71 to 77 kg)
- Middleweight: 171 to 185 lb (78 to 84 kg)
- Light Heavyweight: 186 to 205 lb (85 to 93 kg)
- Heavyweight: 206 to 265 lb (94 to 120 kg)
UFC bouts occur in an octagonal enclosure with a 32 foot diameter called "The Octagon.". This enclosure is an 8-sided cage with 6 foot high walls composed of black vinyl-coated metal chain link fencing. The top of The Octagon fence is padded with foam as are the areas between the 8 sections. The cage is raised on a 4 foot platform for protection and to enhance viewing by the audience. Participants enter the cage through opposing gates.
All UFC competitors must wear approved shorts during the bout. Shirts, traditional martial arts gis and all pants are disallowed. All UFC Fighters must wear UFC approved gloves, that include a minimum of 1" of padding to protect the knuckles and that allow fingers to grab. These competition gloves enable competitors to strike with less risk to their hands while retaining the ability to grapple.
Determining a Winner of a UFC Fight
UFC bouts end via:
- Submission: defined as when a fighter taps his opponent or the mat three times (taps out) or verbally submits
- Knockout: defined as when a fighter falls from a permitted strike and is determined by the referee to be either unconscious or not able to immediately continue the fight.
- Technical Knockout (TKO): Technical knockouts, defined as when a fighter can no longer continue, can initiated by 3 parties; the referee, ringside doctor and the fighter's own corner team
- Judges' Decision: The winner is determined by points awarded by each judge