http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/sports/extreme/mixed-martial-arts-learn-the-terms.html http://www.articletrader.com/sports/extreme/mixed-martial-arts-learn-the-terms.html Wed, 19 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0500
Submissions: submissions are techniques that cause the receiver to give up due to pain being applied to a joint or strangulation from a choke. Here are some of the basics.

Kimura: A shoulder lock that applies pressure to the shoulder joint.

Rear Naked Choke: A choke that apples strangulation to both sides of the neck (both arteries) it also impedes breathing.

Guillotine Choke: This is where the defender reaches underneath the attacer's neck and applies upward pressure, with the attackers head under the defender’s armpit. It is usually applied when an attacker attempts a takedown and the defender is able to capture the neck.

Triangle Choke: The attacker is between the defender’s legs on the ground. The defender gets an attackers arm between his own neck and the defender’s leg. The defender then places his ankle behind his knee of his other leg and secures the choke.

Arm Triangle: Similar to the Triangle Choke except arms are used instead of legs. Usually executed from a top or back position.

Arm Bar: When an opponent is able to secure an arm and straighten it out with pressure underneath the elbow.

Knee Bar: Same as an arm bar but causes pain to the joint of the knee.

Ankle Lock: A submission that causes pain to the joint of the ankle or Achilles tendon.

There are way too many techniques to list in this article but these are a lot of the main ones you will hear mentioned. There are also several “control” positions. Here are a few;

Full Mount: This is when an attacker is on top of his opponent with both of his legs on either side of the defender. A bad spot to be in because the attacker can rise up and deliver strikes.

Half Mount: The attacker has only one leg on the outside and the defender is holding the attacker’s other leg between his legs to stop the attacker from achieving a full mount.

Side Mount: The attacker is perpendicular to the defender across the defender’s chest. A transfer to full mount or submission can be accomplished.

North/South: An opponent is on top of the other facing opposite directions.

The sport of mma is an elite sport with various strategies and techniques. Here are a few more terms you might hear.

Ground And Pound: A fighter takes down an opponent, mounts him, and delivers strikes until knock out, referee stoppage, or the defending fighter gives up (taps)

Take Down: A fighter attempts to bring his opponent down to the mat for a submission or to deliver strikes from the mount.

Tap Out: When a fighter taps on the other fighter or the mat to concede the fight. Mostly done when a submission is applied. (kind of like saying uncle.)

This article is not a “catch all” for every term you might here during an mma fight. It will give you a better understanding of the sport and make it a lot more fun to watch.


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Shawn Sellen is the owner of the mixed martial arts website MmaArticles.com

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/sports/extreme/mma-a-brief-history.html http://www.articletrader.com/sports/extreme/mma-a-brief-history.html Sat, 01 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0500
In Brazil there was a competition called vale tudo (Portuguese for anything goes) In the early nineties an elder son of a very respected Brazilian jiu-jitsu (bjj) master came to the United States. This elder son and his younger brother were giving Bjj lessons out of their garage. This elder son partnered with another man and began a very popular competition where fighters of different styles would fight each other abiding by only a few rules. The younger brother of the man you started this competition dominated the fighters that stood before him. Many of the fighters were of a standing style (karate,kung-fu,etc) when this young man would take them down and tie them in a pretzel they were at a loss on how to defend against it. At this time there were no time limits on rounds. This young man would hold on to his competitors like an anaconda; wearing them down and waiting for the right moment to apply a submission hold.

It did not take long for future fighters to start training in this young man’s style and start gaining there own submissions. One mistake was made though. Now they were getting knocked out. The new rules to this competition incorporated rounds, and if they were on the ground too long with no action the ref would stand them back up. Not exactly a grappler’s desire. With these new rules in place a new breed of fighter emerged.

Mma fighters had to find a new way to cope with the double threat of stand up and ground fighting. Many of these fighters started to cross train in both ground fighting and stand up. The world of mma in the United States would never be the same. It was no longer a matter of style versus style, but who had the better stand up OR ground game. It’s very complex if you think about it. Say fighter A is stronger at stand up than on the ground. His competitor, fighter B is equal at both, maybe a little better at standing and just as good a fighter as A on the ground. This scenario can be a combination of a lot of variables. There is strategy in these fights. They do not just go toe to toe with a fighter. They study their competitor and try to exploit their weakness.

Regardless where mma originated from, no one can deny the explosion this sport has seen, or the skill of these athletes. These are not brainless brawlers wanting to duke it out, they are skilled combatants with a strategy wanting to compete with other skilled fighters.




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Shawn Sellen is the owner of the mixed martial arts website mmaarticles.com

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/sports/extreme/mixed-martial-arts-101.html http://www.articletrader.com/sports/extreme/mixed-martial-arts-101.html Thu, 22 Jun 2006 00:00:00 -0500
There are several components to mma. Striking. This is where the fighter attempts to punch, kick, elbow, or knee his opponent into a K.O., submission, or referee stoppage. Submission. This is when a fighter forces his opponent to “tap-out” (give up) due to a joint manipulation technique such as an arm bar, or a strangulation technique like a rear naked choke. Ground and pound. A fighter takes down his opponent, mounts him, and pummels him with strikes until a K.O. or referee stoppage. Take down. When a fighter takes his opponent to the mat with intention of submission or ground and pound. Sprawl. A tactic used when an opponent shoots in for a take down. The defending opponent will place his hands on the shoulders of the attacker and sprawl his legs out behind him to prevent the take down. Shoot. To dive in on an opponent’s legs for a take down. There are many more components to mma, but these are the basics. More will be covered in following articles.

Mma Physical training. Along with their mma training, most fighters incorporate a rigorous Physical training program. Many fighters use weight training styles that increase muscle endurance, cardio styles that include rope skipping, sprints, and other high intensity activities. The goal of this training is to prepare the fighter to withstand several rounds and still have enough energy to fight efficiently.

Mma safety. To this day not one report of serious injury or death has been reported during a sanctioned mma fight. The same cannot be said for boxing. In mma events if you are knocked senseless you do not get a standing count to recover and get pummeled some more. The referees are very careful not to let a fighter get severely injured.

The recent popularity of mma has come to be due to the popularity of a certain reality show. Mma is a difficult sport to be involved in and requires a lot of physical and mental training. It also requires a lot of time to reach the level of the guys that you see on TV. Mma stars are not made over night. Most of them have spent a lot of time competing in smaller amateur circuits.

Mma events are exciting to watch and lets man get in touch with his inner self seeing modern day gladiators go toe to toe with respect in a modern day coliseum!

This article is meant for informational purposes only and is not instruction.



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Shawn Sellen is the owner of the mixed martial arts website mmaarticles.com

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]>