The best fighters on the face of the earth enter into the cage confident of their ability to break the will of their opponent. Then something funny happens. They get a shin bone crashing into their jaw. Game over.Just as NBA stars get “in the zone,” a …
The best fighters on the face of the earth enter into the cage confident of their ability to break the will of their opponent. Then something funny happens. They get a shin bone crashing into their jaw. Game over.
Just as NBA stars get “in the zone,” a striker must learn how to make the zone his home. He must see everything in “bullet-time” and allow his body to react off instincts.
Striking is an art not of just technique and timing, but also of intense physical and mental conditioning that takes years to congeal. You may not be as awesome a striker as you think you are when your bones break under the force exerted from your own muscles.
These are the best strikers in the world of mixed martial arts today.
If you want to be a professional MMA fighter, what is the quality that you should possess first and foremost? Athletic ability? No. Childhood karate classes? No. The answer is toughness.All great fighters have the ability to take a punch and fight thro…
If you want to be a professional MMA fighter, what is the quality that you should possess first and foremost? Athletic ability? No. Childhood karate classes? No. The answer is toughness.
All great fighters have the ability to take a punch and fight through it.
Some fighters, however, have a seemingly inhuman ability to receive punishment. Whether over the course of a single fight or over several years, they inspire us with their durability. Many have built reputations off of being able to take a beating. They are indestructible.
In some cases, we see a fighter victimized by a particularly vicious looking strike or technique and we have to take a step back and just say, “Wow, how did he survive that?”
Throughout MMA’s history, there have always been indestructible fighters, but these are the ones that stand out. Even if their durability may have started falling off at some point, their reputations precede them.
These are the 15 most indestructible fighters in MMA history.
Defeating Thiago “Pitbull” Alves without a precise and tenacious grappling-oriented game plan is like taking on Superman, but leaving the kryptonite at home. Even with your best foot forward, you better have the wrestling chops and steel will to to pus…
Defeating Thiago “Pitbull” Alves without a precise and tenacious grappling-oriented game plan is like taking on Superman, but leaving the kryptonite at home. Even with your best foot forward, you better have the wrestling chops and steel will to to push through his formidable takedown defense.
Contender Martin “Hitman” Kampmann has the rounded skill set to give any welterweight a run for their money, but his propensity to stray from game plans could lead him again to trouble when he faces Alves on Friday in the headlining bout for UFC on FX 2.
Both perennial contenders are highly respected for their striking games, but where Kampmann is known for his accuracy and technique, Alves is better known for his power and finishing abilities. Even though Alves might pose more danger on the feet, Kampmann’s pride has trouble in neglecting a firefight.
The test for Kampmann may be in imposing a grappling attack, where he poses the more dangerous submission threat if the fight hits the ground. The trouble is controlling position and getting the fight to the ground against the larger Alves.
Kampmann has submitted fighters bigger than himself. When competing in the UFC middleweight division, and not cutting much if any weight, Kampmann submitted three fighters in the first round. Regardless of the size of his opponent, if there is an opening, Kampmann is excellent at exploiting it.
However, Alves has gotten much better at minding the technical nuances in the ground fighting. Against Georges St. Pierre, Matt Hughes and against Fitch in their second fight, Alves spent periods on the ground where he looked comfortable and free of danger.
Complimenting the rounding of his ground game is his submission of Papi Abedi in his latest contest, the first submission of Alves’ UFC career.
This leaves Kampmann in a tricky spot. Stand and trade with a kickboxer who may possibly be better than you, or press the issue for grappling when it could very well tire you out, neutralize offense on both ends and lead to yet more curiously speculative judging.
Whatever Kampmann’s approach is, the key is to maintain pace and volume of offense, no matter where the fight goes. Kampmann can find success in any area of fighting, but to stop Alves, he better remember not to leave his kryptonite at home.
When Quinton “Rampage” Jackson lost to Jon Jones for the UFC light heavyweight championship, he was a hungry contender.When he lost to Ryan Bader at UFC 144, Jackson officially became a part of the highest order of “old guard” ranks in the UFC.The “old…
When Quinton “Rampage” Jackson lost to Jon Jones for the UFC light heavyweight championship, he was a hungry contender.
When he lost to Ryan Bader at UFC 144, Jackson officially became a part of the highest order of “old guard” ranks in the UFC.
The “old guard” consists of fighters who have earned their living, and even fortunes, off of their reputations as elite MMA fighters, but no longer possess the ability to work upwards towards further glory.
Sure, they still win big fights, but the “old guard” is a generation of fighters who no longer have to sacrifice to satisfy their ends.
They are actually a noble and wise warrior class who’s gate-keeping responsibilities protect the upper treasures of MMA glory from uninspired hot-shots.
The UFC’s return to Japan proved to be a successful and monumental event.Once the premiere destination for mixed martial arts events, Japan represented a homecoming of sorts to the spiritual motherland of martial arts and MMA.The contests did not disap…
The UFC’s return to Japan proved to be a successful and monumental event.
Once the premiere destination for mixed martial arts events, Japan represented a homecoming of sorts to the spiritual motherland of martial arts and MMA.
The contests did not disappoint as a variety of martial arts techniques were on display.
There were wrestling slams, judo throws, jiu-jitsu submission grappling, muay thai strikes, boxing punches, and just about every bit of imagination and ingenuity you could hope to fit in between.
The live Japanese crowd and audiences tuning in worldwide were treated to a spectrum of the wonderful world of mixed martial arts in a memorable event.
With the exception of soccer, mixed martial arts has to be the most international sport there is. It is just universal in its concept.There are probably 20 or so countries that produce elite fighters, but there are certainly marked concentrations of to…
With the exception of soccer, mixed martial arts has to be the most international sport there is. It is just universal in its concept.
There are probably 20 or so countries that produce elite fighters, but there are certainly marked concentrations of top fighters belonging to specific countries.
The U.S., Brazil and Japan are three big countries that come to mind. But who are the top fighters from around the world? Where do they come from?
Here, we take a look at some of the best fighters from the best fighting countries.
Defeating Thiago “Pitbull” Alves without a precise and tenacious grappling-oriented game plan is like taking on Superman, but leaving the kryptonite at home. Even with your best foot forward, you better have the wrestling chops and steel will to to push through his formidable takedown defense.