Mixed Martial Arts for Self Defense?

Recently I read an article from the Gothamist, entitled New Argument For Bringing MMA To NY: Self Defense!  These thoughts perpetuated by the fact that UFC-buff, Joseph Lozito (6’2, 270 lbs) was able to tackle and pin down 3 x murder suspect, Maksim Gelman.  Gelman is accused of stabbing seven individuals as well as fatally injuring a pedestrian with his car.

Lozito was commuting from the suburbs of Philadelphia to his box office job at Avery Fisher Hall.  Gelman, pretending to be a cop, began beating on the motorman’s door, then turned to Lozito and said, “You are going to die,” laughed, and lunged at him with a knife.  A short story even shorter, a transit cop (Terrence Howell) was able to restrain and subdue Gelman.  Heroic conclusion.

The Main Concern

First, Lozito is indeed brave and should be considered a hero to the people.  Without his help (and Gelman’s insanity) Gelman could have gone on to commit many more acts of violence.  My concern comes when people begin to see sport competition as a legitimate self-defense system.  Of which, it certainly is NOT.

Yes, there is some cross-over. Bruce Lee was a Hong Kong champion of the Cha-Cha (video), and believe it or not, it probably made a better martial artist.  If someone was to learn the mixed martial arts (which consist mainly of Thai boxing and Jiu-Jitsu) they undoubtedly will become better fighters, but only for sport competition.  It’s similar to American football versus rugby.  Yes, some football players might become great rugby players because they are familiar with carrying a ball, colliding with one another and running towards a particular end of the field…. but they have different rules and one is a bit more brutal than the other.  The person who trains in a true system of self-defense trains to avoid, escape and survival at-all-costs.

Avoid any confusion…MMA is a Sport.

The heroic figure in this article (Lozito) wasn’t even an athlete, he was just someone with a brief wrestling background and who spent a reasonable amount of time watching the UFC.  The fact is – Lozito outweighed his opponent by a good sum, and was prepared to fight to his death (this gave him great odds in my book).  Brave? Absolutely!  …the slightest bit “qualified” to even assume his time spent watching UFC was what saved his life?… absolutely not!  He would have likely escaped, in my opinion, if he’d spent all that time watching women’s basketball.

That brings me to my next point-

Just because you see a technique on Submissions101 or in some competition, and intellectually you understand the mechanics of the move… it absolutely does NOT mean you can replicate it.  Especially under the stress of an actual encounter.  If someone is to learn proper self-protection skills, that person MUST first understand this article’s underlining message.  And if you don’t yet understand what that message is, you’re either too young or too naïve.

(Let’s hope you’re just too young, because it’s the naïve/stupid that end up getting themselves killed.  Food for thought.)

Let’s here your thoughts Combative Readers!

Silva: Men, Fighting & The God Complex

Anderson “The Spider” Silva is one of the most dominant fighters in the world today.  Dana White, President of the Ultimate Fighting Championships® has said that “Silva is pound-for-pound the best middleweight there is.”  With a record of 26 wins and 4 losses, it’s easy to admire the guy.

A FIGHTER OF (SILVA’S) CALIBER MUST SHOW HIS HUMANITY, AS WELL AS HIS SKILL

What’s even more awe-inspiring is that he lost, in a unanimous decision, in his very first professional mma fight (2000) to Luiz Azeredo.  Three years later he was submitted with a triangle choke in Pride 26 by Daiju Takase.  He was demolishing his opponent Ryo Chonan in another Pride Fighting match until, on a desperation attempt, Ryo shocked the martial arts world with a perfect “flying” scissor takedown into a heel hook.  Finally, Silva’s final blemish to his record came on a disqualification for an illegal kick in Rumble On The Rock 8 (2006)- which, (in many a fan’s mind) felt and probably should have been legal.

Silva has from that point on, fought and won 12 straight fights against world-class fighters such as: Rich Franklin (twice), Dan Henderson, Nate Marquardt, Forrest Griffen, and just recently, Demian Maia.

The Latest Fight: UFC 112® versus Demian Maia

UFC® Pay-Per-View on April 10th, 2010 was met by many with great expectation.  You have Matt Hughes fighting Renzo Gracie, B.J. Penn fighting Frankie Edger and last but not least, Anderson Silva vs. Jiu-Jitsu expert Demian Maia.  In Portuguese (Silva’s native tongue), Silva mentioned to his trainers that he had “something up his sleeve” – what exactly, we don’t know.

From the start of the fight Silva was in control, throwing jabs and leg kicks – and like his last several fights, looking like someone who knew he was in complete control.  Fans and commentators were completely snowed and drawn into the the picture of dominance that Silva was painting – elaborately all over Maia’s face.

What seemed to turn the fight sour was Silva’s continuous in-fight boasting, chest-pounding, and lunges (which seemed to be out of boredom).  I must admit I was happy to see him bring some capoiera-stylings to the fight, but for someone looking to remain in fan favor, he wasn’t giving them the finale that was owed them.  On the one hand, a fighter that can’t match the speed of his opponent (Maia) should “hang it out there” and let loose with whatever’s left in the tank.  On the other, a fighter of Silva’s caliber must show his humanity, as well as his skill.

It is clear that the utter bulldozing of such big names like: Griffen, Franklin, Marquardt, Leben and others have given him (to put it mildly) a God complex.  In my eyes (only personally) his loses have been as a result of those two submissions; one of those being the closest thing to “A miracle” that I’ve seen in MMA (see, Chonan fight).  This last fight, although one may understand why Silva is beginning to flaunt his cloak of invincibility and beat his chest for a tougher challenger, the one thing that he must absolutely… without a doubt prove… is that he can finish him.

Much Respect.

Although I was entertained, I sure hope Silva learned his lesson.

Kudos to Maia for not sticking to his game plan, however “human” and futile it was.

Fight fans, give us your thoughts.

-Michael Joyce