Although MMA may seem to be relatively new, when one considers the history of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), it's been around for quite some time. This is true even if one considers that there are many cultures which did not leave written records for us to know what type of fighting games they may have engaged in. Some evidence is seen from ancient Egypt, Greece and Asia.
There are hieroglyphics in Egypt that shows the practice of martial arts. Asia had a number of them as well in areas such as modern day China and Thailand. Bouts with few or any rules were common in Thailand and continue today.
The Olympics back in the time of ancient Greece included a sport called pankration. This was a type of hand-to-hand combat that had only two rules. You could not bite nor could you gouge the eyes. Some consider this to be the first known forerunner of MMA in the Western World.
Hand to hand combat was obviously commonplace in warfare before weapons began to advance in technology. Many fighters today consider their own style to be superior. However, those who have a focus on fighting effectively realize that there are strengths and weaknesses in every martial art.
For example, many styles do not put much emphasis on ground fighting. However, when they are up against jiu jitsu, a style that spends a lot of time on how to take someone down and what to do if you end up there, they are at a disadvantage. For competition fighting, it became obvious that what was best was being well-rounded and knowing many different approaches.
Back in the early 1900s, there were competitions in the Philippines that resembled MMA and this style of fighting was brought to Hawaii. Japan had a fighting style called Shoot Wrestling which was popular in the 80s and was similar to today's MMA. It was in practice before the first ever Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was held.
Boxing matches without rules were commonplace in early American history. Many famous Americans engaged in some type of fighting art including George Washington. This early interest as well as the States being a melting pot, set the stage well for new arts to be introduced such as Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do.
Jeet Kune Do's a martial art which combines techniques from jiu jitsu, muay thai, kung fu, wrestling, boxing and more. As a fighter, Lee was practical and always wanted to improve. Even though he began as a young boy with kung fu, he always kept looking for what would be most effective.
Brazilian jiu jitsu is probably the biggest influence on modern MMA, as embodied in the Gracies. They learned judo from Mitsuyo Maeda who moved from Japan to Brazil. The Gracies started out holding freestyle matches in their school but they became so popular, they had to moved to stadiums.
Eventually, Helio Gracie's sons moved to the U. S. And this is where the history of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) takes its modern form. They created the Ultimate Fighting Championship which brought no rules fighting to world attention. Although it was revised to have some rules, it succeeded in bringing MMA to its current popularity.
There are hieroglyphics in Egypt that shows the practice of martial arts. Asia had a number of them as well in areas such as modern day China and Thailand. Bouts with few or any rules were common in Thailand and continue today.
The Olympics back in the time of ancient Greece included a sport called pankration. This was a type of hand-to-hand combat that had only two rules. You could not bite nor could you gouge the eyes. Some consider this to be the first known forerunner of MMA in the Western World.
Hand to hand combat was obviously commonplace in warfare before weapons began to advance in technology. Many fighters today consider their own style to be superior. However, those who have a focus on fighting effectively realize that there are strengths and weaknesses in every martial art.
For example, many styles do not put much emphasis on ground fighting. However, when they are up against jiu jitsu, a style that spends a lot of time on how to take someone down and what to do if you end up there, they are at a disadvantage. For competition fighting, it became obvious that what was best was being well-rounded and knowing many different approaches.
Back in the early 1900s, there were competitions in the Philippines that resembled MMA and this style of fighting was brought to Hawaii. Japan had a fighting style called Shoot Wrestling which was popular in the 80s and was similar to today's MMA. It was in practice before the first ever Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was held.
Boxing matches without rules were commonplace in early American history. Many famous Americans engaged in some type of fighting art including George Washington. This early interest as well as the States being a melting pot, set the stage well for new arts to be introduced such as Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do.
Jeet Kune Do's a martial art which combines techniques from jiu jitsu, muay thai, kung fu, wrestling, boxing and more. As a fighter, Lee was practical and always wanted to improve. Even though he began as a young boy with kung fu, he always kept looking for what would be most effective.
Brazilian jiu jitsu is probably the biggest influence on modern MMA, as embodied in the Gracies. They learned judo from Mitsuyo Maeda who moved from Japan to Brazil. The Gracies started out holding freestyle matches in their school but they became so popular, they had to moved to stadiums.
Eventually, Helio Gracie's sons moved to the U. S. And this is where the history of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) takes its modern form. They created the Ultimate Fighting Championship which brought no rules fighting to world attention. Although it was revised to have some rules, it succeeded in bringing MMA to its current popularity.
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