Ever since mixed martial arts made its transition to the American sports world, hardcore boxing fans have been sparking competitive arguments as to which action sport is more relevant.
The discussion between MMA and one of America’s most prestigious and infamously wealthy sports has forced many people to chose sides.
Is there a clear-cut difference between organizations like the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the World Boxing Association?
Yes, there is—and boxing enthusiasts know this.
Simply put, boxing is the sport of punching, and MMA is the sport of fighting.
Does that automatically discredit either one? Not at all. In fact, it helps separate the two sports and plays a major role in forming a hypothesis as to why boxing fans refuse to, or genetically don’t understand, mixed martial arts.
A few reasons distinctly come to mind, but before we continue, it’s important that you accept the rise of MMA in the United States and realize that statistically, it’s getting bigger by the moment.
With that said, the gap between the two sports may never be bridged.
Boxing fans wholeheartedly refuse to accept that MMA and the UFC are a competitive alternative to contact sports. Fans and martial arts enthusiasts will always make the argument that boxing simply doesn’t possess the all-around competitive nature that MMA has to offer.
So, which side has the advantage in this decade-long debate?
With a completely unbiased opinion, it’s MMA fans, and here’s why.
Boxing is always going to have a spot in American sports. There’s no arguing that. It’s been around far too long and holds too much prestige to just fade away behind the shadow of another rising sport.
Fighters like Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. are the shoulders that the boxing world is currently leaning on. Once those two fighters meet in the middle of the ring, or retire for that matter, boxing will be left scrambling for other marketable champions.
Whether or not the sport has enough left in the tank to maintain its productive nature has yet to be seen, and there’s a reason for this.
Boxing is not what it once was.
Many aspiring fighters see boxing as a second choice to MMA and ultimately decide to take their chances at making the UFC, Pride or K-1 in Tokyo, Japan. This covers the decline of professional wrestling as well, but that’s better left for another day.
For boxing fans, diving into viewing UFC events, gaining the knowledge of the sport and putting their beloved sport in the back seat often becomes too difficult to manage.
Personally, I completely understand why boxing fans would be hesitant to drop $44.99 on a UFC event when they barely have an idea as to who’s fighting and how they score points in the octagon.
Price isn’t the only issue.
As far-fetched as it sounds, boxing fans sometimes find that mixed martial arts is more violent and often barbaric in comparison to punching a guy in the face 200 times with 10-ounce gloves.
But, MMA fighters actually endure less long-term damage than boxers do. It’s scientifically proven. Instead of getting repeatedly bashed in the skull for 36 minutes in every career fight that goes the distance, MMA fighters could simply take an elbow to the chin and the fight is stopped.
That distinction between damage and gladiator-esque sportsmanship often gets in the way of boxing fans understanding the nature of MMA and the safety precautions that MMA organizations adhere to.
What else?
There’s always the macho boxing fans’ argument that MMA is simply two guys wrestling on the ground in short, tight spandex shorts. Those people are the exact reason why ignorant boxing fans will never open their minds to a more diverse, competitive contact sport.
Those people are better left watching a sport that’s currently dwindling. Those are the people that simply don’t get the world of MMA, what it has to offer, how fighters train 24/7 and how organizations like the UFC are finally reaching mainstream markets.
What it comes down to is the fact that many boxing fans will never let go of their sport.
MMA is boxing’s bitter rival, for whatever reason. The difference between the two worlds isn’t that far apart, but the inability to adapt to another sport of fighting has left boxing fans dangling.
The possibility for change is there, but for the moment, trying to skew the minds of people who disregard MMA as a credible sport is a lost cause.
For the most part, the reason why boxing fans don’t get the sport of MMA is because they choose not to.
The training that MMA fighters and boxers go through is roughly similar. Each sport produces nearly identical advertising. Money is presumably not the culprit, and the skill level of each fighter has never been the issue.
The problem is boxing fans’ reluctance to accept that their beloved sport is being overtaken by the next big thing.
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