Sensei UFC
Training in martial arts for over 50 of my over 60 years alive, it is obviously more than just an activity for me, it's more of a lifestyle, or basically, I could just say it's my life. I'm always learning new things in martial arts. Whether that be a new cool technique, philosophy, or even life lesson. Since martial arts is my life, I am labeled as a martial arts teacher, but since I am learning new things every day about martial arts, I think I am more a student than a teacher.
One of my biggest teachers in martial arts is the UFC. Many of us had preconceived notions about martial arts, our martial art, other peoples martial art. It's easy for people to make up any kind of justification, but it's not quite as easy if they have to pressure test, or even prove their claim. It wasn't very visual, and people didn't have ready access to proving the techniques, or even the philosophy of the martial arts. They were training until the UFC. people now have proof what will work in martial arts, and what won't work, this is the majority, not the entirety of martial arts. But for the first time in hundreds of years of martial arts, people have to put their money where their mouth is, because the phony martial arts, and the real ones are definitely being divided and even exposed.
Before the UFC, school owners would tell you their students that crazy looking techniques and stances were effective, and they would make up a reason. They could then choreograph a set of random and completely arbitrary movements, stances, and even flamboyant techniques that look like they could never work, but your instructor would reassure you that they did work, so you just believe them and it's always been that way in your mind. The UFC changed all of that. They exposed what martial arts techniques were, really effective, and which ones were not.
At first, the UFC was more one dimensional because the people who first started, it had an agenda, and they were preaching one martial art above all others. Since the UFC, inception, many things have changed in the dominance of Grappling over striking. Since it's not just going by words that your instructor told you one day, and even though it was never proved to you, and it made no sense to you, you just always believed it because your instructor told you to. The evolution of martial arts started to rise to the surface as Jiu-Jitsu dominated the UFC, then wrestling dominated the UFC, then, striking, dominated the UFC, and each had its turn for a very short while, because the latest roster of UFC fighters are usually always well-versed in all of the facets of martial arts, and they know also, how important physical conditioning is.
It used to be the fighters in the UFC had one strength, one style, they were loyal to, and just as much as One style versus another style was more talked about than the individuals themselves. That started changing slowly while strikers learned more about wrestling, and jujitsu fighters started learning more about wrestling, then, pretty soon everybody was cross training even more. Pretty soon the strikers were not only learning wrestling, but they were also practicing jujitsu as well, the UFC was definitely evolving, and the fighters were morphing and merging into an MMA fighter, they were losing their specialty status.
Really started getting crazy when one particular martial artist who got his start in a very traditional Japanese style of karate, yet he was considered the best MMA wrestler in all of the UFC, the fighter was George Saint Pierre. The fighters were definitely morphing, and merging, and evolving. We also had an Olympic wrestler known for his knockout punch, much more than he was his wrestling, Dan Henderson, who was known as one of the hardest hitters in all of the UFC history, with his sleep, producing "H bomb”. That's crazy then Olympic wrestler with no striking background is probably the hardest hitter during his rain in the UFC, and a karate guy with no extensive wrestling background is the best wrestler in the UFC. Things are really evolving.
The UFC became much more than just a sport, it became the testing ground for effective martial arts. If he became away for people to see what would really work in a life or death situation, and what wouldn't. The martial arts finally had its ultimate, short of a street fight to the death, proving grounds. Basically, you could test the techniques that you're learning in your neighborhood dojo in a more realistic environment. Watching the UFC has become a learning experience not only approving ground for many martial. Artists out there, who are not actually fighting in a cage, but watching the UFC fighters fight in a cage, And validating or exposing the techniques they've been training in their training facility. I called that Sensei UFC.
