MMA Octagon
As MMA is increasingly diverse with many different fighting styles, rules and countries involved, there are a growing number of leagues. UFC is currently the most dominant league, but World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC), another American MMA league, has quickly emerged as a sister promotion to UFC. The WEC is made up of three weight classes, 155, 145, and 135 pounds. It operates under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. To accommodate the smaller-weight fighters, the WEC’s cage is 25 feet in diameter, which is 5 feet smaller than the UFC’s. The UFC and WEC currently feature televised events in the United States and Canada.
Male and female fighters engage in same-gender matches. Although there may be the perception that women are not as prominent as men in mixed martial arts, there is a growing awareness of women in the sport due to popular female fighters. Mixed martial arts competitions take place in a distinct octagonal ring. The rules allow the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both while standing and on the floor. Such competitions allow martial artists of different backgrounds to compete. Originally promoted as a competition with the intention of finding the most effective martial arts for real unarmed combat situations, competitors were pitted against one another with minimal rules. Later, promoters adopted many new rules aimed at increasing safety for competitors and promoting mainstream acceptance of the sport. Following these changes, the sport has seen increased popularity and a boost in its visibility on television.
Boxing, which dates back to the early Greeks, is a combat sport and martial art in which two people fight using their fists. Boxing is typically supervised by a referee during a series of one- to three-minute intervals called “rounds,” and boxers in designated weight classes (of similar weight) engage in boxing matches. There are several weight classifications for boxers, which vary according to the boxing sanctioning organization. They include heavyweight, middleweight, welterweight, lightweight, featherweight, bantamweight, flyweight, and there are varying sub-categories in each weight classification. The entire fight is referred to as a “bout” or “match.”
Boxing Ring
There are three ways to win: if the opponent is knocked out and unable to get up before the referee counts to ten seconds (a “Knockout” or “KO“), or if the opponent is deemed too injured to continue (a “Technical Knockout,” or “TKO“), or, if there is no stoppage of the fight before the agreed number of rounds, a winner is determined either by the referee’s decision or by judges’ scorecards. Amateur boxing can be found at the collegiate level, the Olympic Games, the Commonwealth Games, and in many other venues sanctioned by amateur boxing associations. Amateur boxing has a point scoring system that measures the number of clean blows landed rather than physical damage. Professional bouts are usually much longer than amateur bouts, typically ranging from ten to twelve rounds. Headgear is not permitted in professional bouts, and boxers are generally allowed to take much more punishment before a fight is halted. At any time, however, the referee may stop the match if he believes that one participant cannot defend himself due to injury. For this reason, fighters often employ a “cut man,” whose job is to treat cuts between rounds so that the boxer is able to continue the match despite the cut.
The International Females Boxers Association (IFBA) was formed in February of 1997, and its main endeavor is to promote boxing throughout the world as a genuine, professional and athletic competition for women. It is rapidly growing with an increasing number of matches broadcast on television. It has a number of weight classifications similar to those of male boxers, and matches are determined accordingly.