The Official Mixed Martial Arts Thread - New Rankings

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Modern mixed martial arts competition emerged in American popular culture in 1993 with the founding of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Initially based on finding the most effective martial arts for real unarmed combat situations, competitors of various arts were pitted against one another with minimal rules for safety. In the following decade, MMA promoters adopted many additional rules aimed at increasing safety for competitors and to promote mainstream acceptance of the sport. The name mixed martial arts was coined by one of the developers of these rules, Jeff Blatnick, a former Greco-Roman wrestler and Olympic gold medallist. Following these changes, the sport has seen increased popularity with pay per view reach rivalling boxing and professional wrestling.

A thread dedicated to the hardcore fans of modern day Mixed Martial Arts, and all the organizations which are currently operational and defunct.

Table of Contents:
1. Introduction
2. History of Mixed Martial Arts
3. List of Champions
4. List of Organizations
5. Upcoming Fights
6. Rumours
7. List of Upcoming Seminars
8. Rules of Mixed Martial Arts Amongst Regions/Organizations
9. List of Popular Gyms
10. Top Trainers
11. Rules
12. Technique Guides
13. Rankings
14. Nutrition

UPDATES:
02/05/09 - Open

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History of Mixed Martial Arts

Foundation of Mixed Martial Arts

While different forms of unorganized, no-rules, unarmed combat predate history, civilization, and even the human species itself (even apes fight hand-to-hand), the earliest documented, organized, minimal-rules fighting event was the ancient Greek pankration, which was introduced into the Olympic Games in 648 B.C. Greek pankration later inspired the more violent Etruscan and Roman pancratium, an event showcased at the Roman Colosseum. Even as late as the Early Middle Ages, statues were put up in Rome and other cities to honour remarkable pankratiasts of Rome.

No-holds-barred events reportedly took place in the late 1800s when wrestlers representing a huge range of fighting styles, including various catch wrestling styles, Greco-Roman wrestling and many others met in tournaments and music-hall challenge matches throughout Europe. In the USA the first major encounter between a boxer and a wrestler in modern times took place in 1887 when John L. Sullivan, then heavyweight world boxing champion, entered the ring with his trainer, Greco-Roman wrestling champion William Muldoon, and was slammed to the mat in two minutes. The next publicized encounter occurred in the late 1890s when future heavyweight boxing champion Bob Fitzsimmons took on European Greco-Roman wrestling champion Ernest Roeber. Reportedly, Roeber suffered a fractured cheekbone in this bout, but was able to get Fitzsimmons down on the mat, where he applied an armlock and made the boxer submit. In Europe, around the 19th century, the Italian Giovanni Raicevich, skilled in Greco-Roman wrestling defeated Akitaro Ono, a Japanese heavyweight fighter skilled in Jujutsu, Judo, and Sumo, throwing him on the mat by one-arm shoulder throw. In 1936, heavyweight boxing contender Kingfish Levinsky and veteran professional wrestler Ray Steele competed in a mixed match, which Steele won in 35 seconds. Another early example of mixed martial arts combat was the martial art of Bartitsu, founded in London in 1899, which was the first martial art known to have combined Asian and European fighting styles, and which saw MMA-style contests throughout England, pitting European and Japanese champions against representatives of various European wrestling styles.

Mixed style contests such as boxing vs. jujutsu were popular entertainment throughout Europe, Japan and the Pacific Rim during the early 1900s. In Japan these contests were known as merikan, from the Japanese slang for "American [fighting]". Merikan contests were fought under a variety of rules including points decision, best of three throws or knockdowns, and victory via knockout or submission.

Professional wrestling died out after World War I and was reborn in two streams: "shoot", in which the fighters actually competed, and "show," which evolved into modern professional wrestling.

In the late 1960s to early 1970s the concept of combining the elements of multiple martial arts had was popularized in America by Bruce Lee via his system and philosophy of Jeet Kune Do. Lee believed that "the best fighter is not a Boxer, Karate or Judo man. The best fighter is someone who can adapt to any style." In 2004 UFC President Dana White would call Lee the "father of mixed martial arts."

The Gracie Family and MMA

The history of modern MMA competition can be traced to mixed style contests throughout Europe, Japan and the Pacific Rim during the early 1900s; the Gracie family's vale tudo martial arts tournaments in Brazil starting in the 1920s; and early mixed martial arts matches (known as Kakutougi in Japan) hosted by Antonio Inoki in Japan in the 1970s. The sport gained international exposure and widespread publicity in the United States in 1993, when Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighter Royce Gracie handily won the first Ultimate Fighting Championship tournament, subduing three challengers in just five minutes, sparking a revolution in the martial arts. Meanwhile in Japan the continued interest in the sport resulted in the creation of the Pride Fighting Championships in 1997.

The movement that led to the creation of the UFC, and Pride was rooted in two interconnected subcultures. First were the vale tudo events in Brazil, followed by the Japanese shoot wrestling shows. Vale tudo began in the 1920s with the "Gracie challenge" issued by Carlos Gracie and Hélio Gracie and upheld later on by descendants of the Gracie family. In Japan in the 1970s, a series of mixed martial arts matches were hosted by Antonio Inoki, a former star of New Japan Pro Wrestling; this inspired the shoot-style movement in Japanese professional wrestling, which eventually led to the formation of the first mixed martial arts organizations, such as Shooto, which was formed in 1985.

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List of Current Champions

UFC

Heavyweight: Brock Edward Lesnar
Interim-Heavyweight: Francisco Santos "Frank" Mir III
Light-Heavyweight: "Sugar" Rashad Anton Evans
Middleweight: Anderson "The Spider" Silva
Welterweight: Georges "Rush" St. Pierre
Lightweight: Jay Dee "B.J." Penn

Dream

Middleweight: Gegard Mousasi
Lightweight: Joachim Hansen

Strikeforce

Heavyweight: Alistair "Demolition Man" Overeem
Light Heavyweight: Renato "Babalu" Da Cunha Sobral
Middleweight: Cung Le
Lightweight: Joshua Joseph "The Punk" Thomson

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List of Organizations

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

Strikeforce

Dream

Affliction

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Upcoming Fights

UFC Fight Night Condit vs. Kampmann April 1st @ Sommet Center in Nashville, Tennessee

Dream 8 April 5th @ Japan

Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz April 11th @ HP Pavilion in San Jose California

UFC 97 Redemption April 17th in The Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada

DREAM.9 - Featherweight GP 2nd Round May @ Kanto, Japan

XMMA 8 May 16th

UFC 98 Evans vs. Machida May 23rd @ MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada

UFC 99 Franklin vs. Silva June 13th @ Lanxess Arena in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

UFC The Ultimate Fighter Finale 9 Stevenson vs. Diaz June 20th @ Las Vegas, Nevada

DREAM.10 - Welterweight GP Finals July 20th @ Saitama Super Arena in Saitama City, Saitama, Japan

DREAM.11 - Featherweight GP Finals September @ Kanto, Japan

DREAM.12 October @ NOT DECIDED

Dynamite!! December 31st @ Saitama Super Arena in Saitama City, Saitama, Japan

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Rumours

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List of Upcoming Seminars

- Paradise Warrior Retreat March 13th - 15th

- Randy Couture Xtreme Couture MMA - Las Vegas, NV, March 21st

- Kevin Kearns Xtreme Couture Toronto - Etobicoke, ON, March 22nd

- Kenny Florian Xtreme Couture Toronto - Etobicoke, ON, March 22nd

- XCMMA 3 Day Training Camp Xtreme Couture MMA - Las Vegas, NV, June 19th - June 21st

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Rules of Mixed Martial Arts Amongst Regions/Organizations

UFC

Bout duration:
- all non-championship bouts shall be three rounds
- all championship bouts shall be five rounds
- rounds will be five minutes in duration
- one-minute rest period will occur between each round

Fouls:
1. Butting with the head
2. Eye gouging of any kind
3. Biting
4. Hair pulling
5. Fish hooking
6. Groin attacks of any kind.
7. Putting a finger into any orifice or into any cut or laceration on an opponent
8. Small joint manipulation
9. Striking to the spine or the back of the head
10. Striking downward using the point of the elbow
11. Throat strikes of any kind, including, without limitation, grabbing the trachea
12. Clawing, pinching or twisting the flesh
13. Grabbing the clavicle
14. Kicking the head of a grounded opponent
15. Kneeing the head of a grounded opponent
16. Stomping a grounded opponent
17. Kicking to the kidney with the heel
18. Spiking an opponent to the canvas on his head or neck
19. Throwing an opponent out of the ring or fenced area
20. Holding the shorts or gloves of an opponent
21. Spitting at an opponent
22. Engaging in an unsportsmanlike conduct that causes an injury to an opponent
23. Holding the ropes or the fence
24. Using abusive language in the ring or fenced area
25. Attacking an opponent on or during the break
26. Attacking an opponent who is under the care of the referee
27. Attacking an opponent after the bell has sounded the end of the period of unarmed combat.
28. Flagrantly disregarding the instructions of the referee.
29. Timidity, including, without limitation, avoiding contact with an opponent, intentionally or consistently dropping the mouthpiece or faking an injury
30. Interference by the corner
31. Throwing in the towel during competition

Ways To Win:
1. Submission by
- Physical tap out
- Verbal tap out.
2. Technical knockout by the referee stopping the contest
3. Decision via the scorecards, including:
- Unanimous decision [all judges pick the same fighter as the winner]
- Split decision [One judge picks one fighter, the other two judges pick the other fighter]
- Majority decision [Two of three judges pick the same fighter as the winner, the final judge says the fight was a draw]
- Draw, including:
- Unanimous draw
- Majority draw
- Split draw
4. Technical decision
5. Technical draw
6. Disqualification
7. Forfeit
8. No contest

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List of Popular Gyms

- Xtreme Couture (US)
- Xtreme Couture (Canada)
- Evolution Martial Arts and Fitness Academy
- Kohbukan SISU Judo & Jiu Jutsu
- American Kickboxing Academy
- American Top Team
- Black House
- Brazilian Top Team Canada
- Hammer House (Website Currently Down)
- Jackson's Submission Fighting
- Ken Shamrock's Lion Den
- Guy Mezger's Combat Sports Club
- Minessota Martial Arts Academy
- Miletich Fighting Systems
- The Pit
- Punishment Athletics
- Team Quest Portland
- Team Quest Murrieta
- Team Quest Tualatin
- Universidade da Luta

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Top Trainers

- Dave Camillo of American Kickboxing Academy
- Greg Jackson of Jackson MMA/Greg Jackson's Submission School
- Shawn Tompkins of Xtreme Couture
- Mark DellaGrotte of Sityodtong
- Ricardo Liborio of American Top Team
- Noland Clarke of Thomson MMA

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Rules

1. No link posting to material not related to MMA.
2. Have real discussions not BROCK LESNAR!!!!!!!!@!#@EKJWKLDJLI
3. No insulting individuals based on favourite fighters or statements about other fighters, everyone has an opinion.

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Technique Guides

Judo for Fighting - Karo Parisyan

Minotauro Nogueira's Mastering Mixed Martial Arts: The Guard - Antonio Nogueira

Anderson Silva's MMA Instruction Manual: Striking

If you are looking for guides, I have most if not all and can usually get them to you if need be. I also have all the Secrets of Chute Boxe and Duke Roufus's Muay Thai DVDs.

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Rankings

This is always something that people will fight over but I am going to put up a listing of the top rankings of weight classes for male fighters, based on actual results not a website's belief on who is the best like Sherdog.

Heavyweight:

1. Fedor Emelianenko

2. Josh Barnett

3. Frank Mir

4. Brock Lesnar

5. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira

6. Randy Couture

7. Alistair Overeem

8. Shane Carwin

9. Gabriel Gonzaga

10. Brett Rogers

Light-Heavyweight:

1. Lyoto Machida

2. Quinton Jackson

3. Forrest Griffin

4. Rashad Evans

5. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua

6. Keith Jardine

7. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

8. Gergard Mousasi

9. Renato "Babalu" Sobral

10. Rich Franklin

Middleweight:

1. Anderson Silva

2. Yushin Okami

3. Nathan Marquardt

4. Dan Henderson

5. Damian Maia

6. Jorge Santiago

7. Robbie Lawler

8. Vitor Belfort

9. Jacare De Souza

10. Jason Miller

Welterweight:

1. Georges St. Pierre

2. Jon Fitch

3. Thiago Alves

4. Jake Shields

5. Josh Koscheck

6. Martin Kampmann

7. Mike Swick

8. Matt Hughes

9. Nick Thompson

10.

Lightweight:

1. Shinya Aoki

2. Eddie Alvarez

3. B.J. Penn

4. Tatsuya Kawajiri

5. Joachim Hansen

6. Kenny Florian

7. Gesias "JZ" Calvancante

8. Gray Maynard

9. Satoru Kitaoka

10. Mitsuhiro Ishida

Featherweight:

1. Mike Brown

2. Urijah Faber

3. Wagnney Fabiano

4. Marlon Sandro

5. Hatsu Hioki

6. Takeshi Inoue

7. Akitoshi Tamura

8. Hideki Kadowaki

9. Joe Soto

10. Leonard Garcia

Bantamweight:

1. Miguel Torres

2. Brian Bowles

3. Masakatsu Ueda

4. Koetsu Okazaki

5. Will Ribeiro

6. Takeya Mizugaki

7. Damacio Page

8. Marcos Galvao

9. Manny Tapia

10. Atsushi Yamamoto

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Nutrition & Workout Guides

- Matt Wiggins