GSP vs Hughes and Pac vs Morales

[softturtle]

I like it all. I like mma the most, but I like my mma with a good amount of standup.

 

[rumblesushi]

Yeah I do like that aspect of MMA a lot, always have done ever since the very first UFC.

To be honest though, the main reason I love boxing so much is I just love punching.

It's explosive, it's quick, and it's close quarters.

I get SUCH a kick out of seeing someone get knocked out cold with a quick counter left hook that they had NO idea was coming Compared to say a high kick or spinning round house kick, that's much more telegraphed and slow.

SOmething about punching does it for me, I love punching too. From a world class pro, I just like the punching action and technique to look at too, whether it's a KO punch or a double jab or parry.

The fact that punching is close quarters and fast results in excellent exchanges, trading punches. That's what I really love in boxing, 2 skilled powerpunchers going to war up close. Like the recent Morales - Pacquiao fight, and Pacquiao Barrera, Morales - Barrera 1, and Corrales - Castillo 1. And of course, Hagler Hearns and many Duran fights

That's not to say I don't appreciate the styles in MMA. I do love Muay Thai, I've done it myself. Wandy is a good example. Knees and elbows rock.

But to be honest, one thing that turns me off is wrestling. I've never got into it. Just not fast and explosive enough for me. When you've got some good standup going, and someone like Nog takes it to the ground and.... nothing starts happening I just sigh and think oh for ****'s sake.

It was great when cro cop kept ushering him up in the first round. I was so pissed off in that fight, cro cop absolutely battered him all over the place in the 1st, then just got submitted in the 2nd.

Even ground and pound I don't like, I don't see much skill in it, it's how people fought in school.

Having said all this - ironically I PREFER Pride and UFC to K1.

If you're gonna do MMA, may as well encompass as many styles and possible and allow grappling. I just wish it was MORE standup orientated, with different styles.

I do like the fact that the trend in recent years has been striking. Some of the most prominent fighters are strikers - Fedor, Gomi, Cro Cop, Wandy etc. It's a far cry form the Gracie era and I much prefer it. Once their striking improves and takedown defense improves, we see the true merit of a good striker.

 

[redtailfool]

Funny Joe, but youre sentiment is the exact same as mine. I appreciate
the art and precision of wrestling and grappling in general , but from an entertainment
point of view, it just doesnt do it for me. Only difference bet you and me is that i get equally excited by a strong kick as much as i get excited by a strong punch. Giving a KO via a kick is harder than it looks like. Muay Thai def rocks ...

 

[softturtle]

Even ground and pound I don't like, I don't see much skill in it, it's how people fought in school.

Yeah, I was about to stop watching UFC for a while becuase of all the ground and pound. But 65 was good, lots of stand up.

 

[dacox]

I do like the fact that the trend in recent years has been striking. Some of the most prominent fighters are strikers - Fedor, Gomi, Cro Cop, Wandy etc. It's a far cry form the Gracie era and I much prefer it. Once their striking improves and takedown defense improves, we see the true merit of a good striker.

The thing about the current trend is that most of the top fighters now began as grapplers, mastered that, and then developed a standup game (Fedor - sambo, Chuck - wrestling, Gomi - submission wrestling, Wanderlei - bjj black belt/muay tai training, etc). If they didn't have such a strong background in grappling, I don't think they would have near the success that they have today. I think they would end up like most of the pure stikers who try to convert to mma do and end up getting taken down and gnp'd or submitted (i.e. Kit Cope or Yosuke Nishijima).

It goes both ways though. Look at Matt Hamill. He's a world class wrestler, but would get absolutely anahilated by anyone with a decent standup game.

I think though that in mma, it's more effective to master a ground game and then develop striking, similar to what Matt Hughes did. He's had more success than any ww has with minimal striking ability. Because a fight could go to the ground at any second means that fighters are more wary of their opponents and their attacks, so mma fighters don't need the standup ability that a boxer or k1 fighter would.

 

[oddballer]

The thing about the current trend is that most of the top fighters now began as grapplers, mastered that, and then developed a standup game (Fedor - sambo, Chuck - wrestling, Gomi - submission wrestling, Wanderlei - bjj black belt/muay tai training, etc). If they didn't have such a strong background in grappling, I don't think they would have near the success that they have today. I think they would end up like most of the pure stikers who try to convert to mma do and end up getting taken down and gnp'd or submitted (i.e. Kit Cope or Yosuke Nishijima).

It goes both ways though. Look at Matt Hamill. He's a world class wrestler, but would get absolutely anahilated by anyone with a decent standup game.

I think though that in mma, it's more effective to master a ground game and then develop striking, similar to what Matt Hughes did. He's had more success than any ww has with minimal striking ability. Because a fight could go to the ground at any second means that fighters are more wary of their opponents and their attacks, so mma fighters don't need the standup ability that a boxer or k1 fighter would.

agreed 100%.... but the days of the pure wrestlers are fading quick.... the problem with training exclusively on any one particular discipline is you get into fixed styles and stances..... i remember back in hs during wrestling season i got into a little scuffle with some kid.... went in for a double leg..... slam..... didnt even realize i was in a real fight until he punched my in the eye..... that woke me up quick!!!

i rolled with people from several disciplines...... boxing..... hapkedo?..... BJJ ...... judo...... i gotta say..... takedowns were like taking candy from a baby...... a good sprawl only comes form thousands of practice sprawls where you react second nature...... i must admit though.... once down on the ground...... bjj guys schooled me...... i was surprised how easy it was to take down judo practioners..... their throws usually come from a clinch...... while wrestlers setup from a distance with a shot...... anyways i'm babbling again...... laters....

 

[dacox]

Yeah, I agree. My first ever wrestling win was over a judo kid who just started wrestling. I hadn't been wrestling for that long either, but, like you said, I could take him down at will. He almost tossed me when we were tied up a couple of times, but he couldn't defend a shot if his life depended on it. Even his tosses were just hip tosses that most wrestlers learn to defend against right away anyways.

And I also agree that you need to be fluent in all disciplines of fighting to have success in mma. What I'm saying though is that I think people are most successful when they have a solid ground/grappling game and then branch out in to striking. Just my opinion, but to me it seems like those are the guys who have the most success, even against very strong strikers. I think that's what helped Fedor win over Cro Cop. Even though the fight took place mostly on the feet (an area that, even though Fedor is good, Cro Cop is much better), I think the possibility of being taken down is what kept Cro Cop from going balls to the wall on the feet. Then again, Fedor's aggression and still very good standup game would keep anyone tentative.

 

[softturtle]

Yeah, fedor would have you thinking about to many things. I wouldn't even want to be in the same room as him if I didn't have a tazer or something.