TMAers Cashing in on MMA

[jaypo]

This is what is driving people toward MMA. I'm not saying MMA is better, but there certainly aren't any mixed messages. They train like they fight and fight like they train. This is the same for other arts that have seen a rise in popularity in the last decade or so; BJJ, Kali, Silat, JKD, and Krav Maga, to name a few.

That's the thing about MMA being a "martial art". If I'd fight like I train, I'd go thru sparring partners by the dozen. I'm not allowed to flicker jab to the eyes, bend a knee back 90 degrees, bite, kick a partner in the groin, or punch someone in the throat when I spar. So I can't train like I fight. As a matter of fact, I don't like sparring that much because I don't spar like I fight. That's the difference between a mixed martial art and a mixed competition style. Cage fighting has rules-it's a sanctioned competition. Therefore, when you train "MMA", you train as you would "compete", not fight. A fight to me denotes the lack of rules, IMO. Don't get me wrong- I respect cage fighters with the utmost reverence. I'd never do it. I just think that Martial Arts are different than martial competition sports. I train as I WOULD fight in the street to defend myself, not as I would fight in a sport with rules. Therefore, my training does not allow me to "train like I would fight".