Mixed Martial Arts-Learn The Terms
With the rules and sanctioning of certain mma events there has been an explosion of new followers of mma (mixed martial arts) The purpose of this article is to help familiarize the new fans of this sport with some of the terms that are used. If you have a basic understanding with some of the terminology you will find viewing the sport more enjoyable. Keep in mind that this description is not inclusive of every aspect, but more of a guide for the beginner.
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 defenders 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 defenders legs on the ground. The defender gets an attackers arm between his own neck and the defenders 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 attackers 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 defenders 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.
Shawn Sellen is the owner of the mixed martial arts website <A HREF="http://www.mmaarticles.com">MmaArticles.com</A>
Interview with Tito ortiz
MMAToday: How are you doing?
TO: Great! I just got back from a month of vacation and I am feeling good.
MMAToday: Have you returned to training since your last fight?
TO: Just started training again lightly about a week ago getting ready to get all the way into it
MMAToday: How much training time do you plan to put in before your next fight?
TO: About 2 full months
MMAToday: What brought you into competing in MMA?
TO: I was in wrestling in high school and college, started as Tank Abbots training partner. I started really getting into the UFC when they started having weight classes since I competed at 199 so 205 was a natural fit for me. Just the love of competition. I fought my first fight for free because I was still in college and would lose my scholarship if I was paid.
MMAToday: What training and experience did you have that made you know you would be successful at it?
TO: Just wrestling, growing up with older brothers who used to beat me up a lot, and I started training boxing in my garage in high school
MMAToday: What fighters early in your career did you admire and maybe try to model your training and fighting style after?
TO: Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock and Tank, tried to take lessons from what they had done and been successful at and incorporate it all. Guys like Frank Shamrock knew the whole game and his cardio was awesome. I didnt try to be like anyone else really but learn from them and take that and add it all up to make the perfect fighter.
MMAToday: Are there any fighters you look up to now?
TO: Not anyone now currently, but I look at people who put it all together like Ali, Bruce Lee 30 years ago. GSP and BJ are great fighters. I cant respect anyone in my weight class anymore because I get caught up in watching them and being in awe instead of stomping on them, which is what I need to be do doing.
MMAToday: One fight that is noted as making a big difference early in your training and career was against Frank Shamrock, how did that fight affect you?
TO: I trained with Frank after the loss for a couple weeks, got to see what it took to be a top contender. I lost to Frank because of conditioning. Frank helped teach me about heart rate and rest. I learned about recovery times. After only fighting for almost 2 years and training with Frank I was able to go at it with Wanderlei Silva for 5 full rounds at full speed.
MMAToday: How was it the first time you won a UFC Championship? How did you feel afterwards?
TO: When I first won it was amazing but I had another goal and that was to keep the belt. Dont get me wrong I slept with that belt for the first month after I got it, but I wanted to keep it. I wanted to keep it longer than anyone ever had and break the record for it, and be dominant and I did that.
MMAToday: What fight or fights for you are the most memorable of your career?
TO: Theres a few. First beating Silva for the title and my first fight with Ken. The other two fights with Ken just made it more memorable. I really took it to heart the first time against him, that I was good when I beat Ken and was dominant.
MMAToday: Which fight brought you the most satisfaction and which brought you the most disappointment?
TO: Satisfaction: The first fight with Ken, I came off a knee surgery and ACL injury and was dominant after 6 months being healthy. Second against Vladimir Matyushenko and dominated, that was the best shape I have ever been in.
Disappointment: Losing the title to Randy, that hurt the worst, I wasnt right for almost two months after. I had to find the motivation to keep going forward.
The second fight with Chuck this past December, I felt I let my fans down and I was in the best shape and brought my A game.
MMAToday: This past year was a busy one for you, after a year long layoff, with 4 fights. Are you planning on taking it a little slower this year?
TO: I am trying for 3 fights this year, I like being in the octagon. When I wasnt there it was about the money and paying bills, now its not about the money. I am having fun, and Im fighting to get my title back. I keep working and getting better and trying to be a better fighter. I would like to fight Chuck, I will fight him 5 or 6 times however many times it takes. Im confident now that I stood with him, and Im confident I can fix the mistakes I made. First thing I think of is who I have to fight to get back to the top and be in contention. I will crush anyone in the LHW division. I only lost to the top guys in the game Randy Couture, Frank Shamrock and Chuck Liddell. I still have a bright future ahead and my body feels good. I have no injuries my knee is great and my back is great.
MMAToday: What can we expect from you in 2007?
TO: More movies? My heart is really in fighting right now and Im in fighting mode. I want to keep going with Punishment Athletic. Im a business man then a fighter and then actor man but fighter first and foremost now. My next fight is in May against Keith Jardine.
MMAToday: Where do you see yourself in the UFC title picture at Light Heavyweight?
TO: Im in the top 3. I will fight any of them, I fought Liddell and made some mistakes but that wont happen again. He has been dominant and done what he has done, so have I and I will do it again.
MMAToday: What motivates you to continue fighting and training after an almost 10 year professional career of fighting?
TO: My fans and the drive to be the best. Its a mixture of both.
MMAToday: Who are your favorite fighters to watch?
TO: GSP #1. He has a hard work ethic and is very exciting, what he did to Matt Hughes was impressive. Brandon Vera is exciting and hits hard, hes a good wrestler and has good Jiu-jitsu.
MMAToday: Are there any fighters you want to fight that you havent had a chance to yet?
TO: Shogun Rua would be an awesome fight, Id love to fight him, Wanderlei just lost and Id love to fight him again. Dan Henderson would be great. Ill fight anyone and make it exciting for the fans. I just want to keep people buying pay per views and keep the fans entertained, me and chuck did it right and broke records for pay per view buys.
MMAToday: You have done a small bit of acting in recent years, is something you are looking to pursue?
TO: I was just on CBS Numbers in a small part last week. , I did a MadTV episode that will be airing in April or May. I have to make the right choices and I want to stay away from the fight movies and go more into action films.
MMAToday: Is there anything you would change in the UFC currently to make it safer rules wise for the fighter? Or any changes you would make?
TO: Everything is good; sometimes the referees need to be a little more knowledgeable in a championship fight. The fight with Liddell, the referee (Mario Yamasaki) was never in a huge fight. Big John knows what its like to be in those fights. He should have let us fight; Ill take a lot of damage, but dont stop the fight when Im getting hit in the arms. Let the fight go if Im defending those shots, a lot of them were hitting my forearms.
MMAToday: Can you request a referee for a fight?
TO: Athletic Commissions assign the refs, and they changed it to Yamasaki at the weigh-ins.
MMAToday: What do you think of the recent explosion of MMAs popularity over the last 2 years? Is it beneficial for everyone? The fans, the fighters and the promoters alike?
TO: I think its better for the fighters. As it gets bigger guys will be paid more. Making 2 grand a fight is BS, comes down to the fighters. You have to have more respect for yourself and not let them walk all over you. You have to hold out and demand more money. I think I was the first guy to really hold out; I was willing to hold out for what I believed in. But its a catch 22, if you sign the contract for making less money everyone bitches that you dont make enough, but they bitch if you ask for more. We top fighters are making good money, but its not about the money anymore for me, I just want to fight, I love to compete.
MMAToday: Any chance you would leave UFC?
TO: I really dont want to, I started here and I plan on finishing here. I hope they would promote me more. I dont see going anywhere else but you never know what happens, but my heart sticks with the UFC till they start treating me bad. I and Dana are having good feelings right now though.
MMAToday: Would you consider leaving to fight Silva and Shogun?
TO: I could make that decision but I worked hard to be where I am but I would go if they set it up, I think it just comes down to Ill fight any of them. Ill stomp anyone at 205, Im in the top 3 in the world and Ill beat Shogun, Henderson and Silva if I get the chance.
MMAToday: How did the TUF appearance change anything for you?
TO: The misconceptions people had of me. Im two separate people, I have a cocky attitude in the octagon but, but Im a caring person outside. It was a chance for my fans to see another side of me. You have to have charisma to be successful in the ring. When Im in the ring I know the angles I need to take like Muhammad Ali and Hulk Hogan, you have to be cocky and brash and thats how you attract the fans. My team did great and went 9-3; it was nice to know I had even a small part in that.
MMAToday: Would training young fighters be a goal after your fighting career is over?
TO: Maybe not but maybe, maybe do my own TV show, I love training and helping out with guys. I loved training kids when I was in college helping training at the local high school.
MMAToday: Is there anyone currently training with you that we should be on the lookout for?
TO: Not yet, after my fight Ive had a few guys trying to get a hold of me for training but Im picky, you need to be a hard worker and have the right attitude to train with us. Like Melvin Guillard, hes training with us, hes a hard worker and is rising fast. But we need a HW for Team Punishment, a big like around 6-3 to 6-5 around 265 pounds preferably a wrestler. We work hard and theres no one that trains like we do at Team Punishment.
MMAToday: You have been involved in numerous charities over the years, anyone you are working with now in particular?
TO: Doing motivational speaking at high schools and speaking to the Marines. Im going to the Armed Forces Day top speak in front of the Marines that just came back from and some that are going out to Iraq on May 19th in Banning, California from 11am -1pm . Im looking to work with inner city kids and training camps with them, nothing etched in stone yet but I really want to help kids.
Brian Robertson is owner and webmaster of www.mmatoday.com
Keys Of Hung Gar Kung Fu Mastering
1. While polishing your technique you should never stick out your chest or stomach either when fighting or practicing. It stiffens your body and makes your movements awkward. As a result, you are losing control over your body. While practicing always make sure to keep your back bent outward and chest incurved. This is the right sign to distinguish between Kung Fu masters and Kung Fu athletes.
2. Despite the fact that the back should be a bit bent outward, you have to maintain the body centrality; by no means should the body be bent too much. Otherwise it will lose the balance, which can result in loss of equilibrium and steadiness, and make the outgoing energy weak. The back and pelvis must be in the same plane.
3. Bending your head down in fight is like blindfolding yourself, since with your head down you cannot fully control all the actions of your enemy. Moreover, it can lead you to losing the balance.
4. During the fight, your waist should be down. If it is not, it makes Qi to go upward and accumulate in the chest. This accumulation of Qi in the chest causes you to lose the steadiness; your movements will immediately become clumsy and awkward. A man with his Qi in lower Dan Tian can be compared to a weeble wobble, since it is virtually impossible to throw him down on the ground. Now, consider moving the load in the lower part of the weeble wobble upward; the slightest push would overturn the weeble wobble.
5. The hand is rounded in elbow and wrist.
6. Practicing, always make sure to perform movements correctly. Otherwise, you would get bad habits, which is rather harmful than advantageous. Mastering new techniques, you should always act without haste; only when you have repeated movements correctly many times, you can consider increasing speed and strength.
7. It is not good performing already learnt techniques with negligence, so-so, since it is hardly of any use. Performing already mastered techniques you need to fully use your consciousness, i.e., using consciousness (Yi) send your energy Qi to the section of the body engaged in this technique. For example, kicking with your heel the moment the heel touches the enemy (target) you need to fully focus on throwing the energy through the heel.
8. Inside yourself, you should work out your mind, spirit, consciousness and Qi until they join together. Only when this happens you will be able to send your Qi anywhere at your wish.
9. The key to mastering is in everyday work at the thing neither master not disciple can do without, namely polishing the basic technique.
Alexander Popov dedicated about 20 years to Shaolin Hung Gar Kung Fu. He is the successor of Hung Gar Kung Fu tradition in the 8th masters? generation. Kung Fu and Qigong articles and ebooks:
<a href="http://www.shaolin-kungfu-qigong.com" title="http://www.shaolin-kungfu-qigong.com" target="_blank">http://www.shaolin-kungfu-qigong.com</a>
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