In recent years, I’ve grown an odd fascination with mixed martial arts. I’m hooked. I’m an unabashed fan who can get enough. I’ve spent what has probably amounted to too many hours contemplating exactly why I’m so absorbed by violent kicks to the head, swinging elbows to the jaw, arms and legs being bent in directions that God didn’t intend them to be. More often than not when my wife passes through a room in which I’m watching an MMA match, she’ll ask, “Why do you watch that stuff?” Typically, I start to mutter some kind of a reasonable explanation, only to usually end up slouching down in the couch and turning my head away to avoid the embarrassment she expresses on her face for being married to someone who takes joy in watching two men purposely seek to make one another bleed.
Still, among the those friends I have that share my appreciation for the sport, I’ve seldom felt a stronger kinship concerning some kind of like-minded interest, and that includes such passions I hold dear as kids, music, movies, writing, politics, golf, the Yankees, etc. When I’m talking the finer points of MMA with like-minded souls, I find myself blissfully content. When we’re analyzing upcoming matchups to nth degree by drawing comparisons to previous matches and shared opponents, the strength of a fighter’s ground game vs. his striking ability, or the merit of his jujitsu, I think to myself, “If only I could put this much thought into my own future.” The whole topic baffles me to no end.
That feeling only compounds when I realize that pretty much throughout my entire life, I’ve hated both being in fights and watching them. Even when the fights I’ve seen (and I witnessed too many for my taste) had some kind of justifiable element to them, in that one of the guys/girls had it coming, I’ve hated them. Even when I’ve had to fight due to some reason or another that I really believed in, the feeling that I’d rather be anywhere doing anything else has always been present. To this day, when I see some a physical confrontation occur, it sticks with me for days, and not in a good way. I remember vividly being in a cab years ago near Times Square. The cab in front of us screeched to a halt, only for the driver, a huge man, to jump out and sprint to the front of the limo stopped in front of him, which was being driven by an equally huge man. They two exchanged a few brief words and then set about pummeling each other in the middle of the street. To this day the image of that takes me back, not only because they were senselessly harming one another, but also because seemingly everyone on either side of the street and in the surrounding cars didn’t seem to give a flip or take notice.
Maybe the reason I can rationalize a purpose for MMA is that to me, an MMA “fight” isn’t a fight. Rather, it’s a well-thought out, well-prepared for battle much in the same way two men strategize during a game of chess and execute moves made to attack and defend. Rather than move pieces about a board, however, MMA “players” look to exploit physical weaknesses or vulnerabilities in an opponent. They’re seeking to use their own strengths to exploit the other’s weaknesses. Not everyone who views MMA from the outside recognizes this, and I guess honestly, I wouldn’t expect them to. Violence is violence after all, whether the two participants are willfully engaging or not. Ultimately, there’s too much violence that exists already without men and women willingly engaging in it. Would the world be a better place without UFC pay-per-views beaming into homes around the world every month? Yeah, most definitely. Still, are these “battles” all that much different from the battles that take place in corporate America every day, where CEOs aim to permanently injure or maim competitors? Is it any worse than the political battles that occur every hour in Washington and play out on news TV 24/7 in which drastically divergent sides purposefully seek to discredit and damage one another in ways that are often dishonest and illegal? At least the participants in an MMA fight know they’re engaging in competition where each knows what is allowable and what is not. Everyone knows the risks up front. Everyone knows what’s expected and what’s not. Further, I’d argue that the kind of mutual respect that takes place inside an eight-side square after a MMA fight, especially following the battle, occurs in few other venues with as much genuine sincerity and purpose.
I know this much about my fascination with MMA: At least in part, it’s directly tied to a lifelong appreciation/respect/admiration/etc. for the “warrior” mentality, particularly the samurai culture and lifestyle. I respect beyond all description anyone who is capable of making discipline not just part of his life but the reason he lives his life. So many people, including myself, waver day after day, often just to suit needs presently at hand with little to no thought. So many people push supposedly rigid ideal and morals aside without hesitation if it means propelling them even one step further. So many people walk around an obstacle in front of them instead of climb it. So many people settle for less when more is possible because it might require even a little extra effort. So many people refuse to sacrifice even the slightest because settling for mediocrity is far easier than working a little harder to obtain greatness. I admire anyone who possesses the discipline to push their boundaries and venture into the unknown. To seek what they’re truly capable of.
Are there knuckleheads who merely want to “rip somebody’s head off”? Hell yeah. But you can find “that guy” in any environment, and often you don’t have to look too hard to find him. Few environments, however, provide you the capacity to both mentally and physically tap yourself dry—to really challenge yourself to not only meet fear in the eye but kick it the hell out of the way and stomp all over it as you keep walking to the unknown in the way MMA does. I admire the hell out of that.
That’s how I see MMA. I wish there was an easy way to explain all that when my wife or anyone else when they ask, “Why do you watch that stuff?”
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