MMA & Philosophy

First of all, Fletch nailed it in MY opinion. Very well said there bro.

Secondly, Dereck is right in many ways himself. I've experienced the same mentality (survival of the fitest). I suppose it depends on the group you're working with. All gyms are generally reflections of the group leader.

I have always been more into philosophy myself. Perhaps that's why I run my gym the way I do. To me, it isn't about winning and feeling the need to "tap everyone out" that's within sight. It's about learning, sharing the art and working to create an environment where EVERYONE helps everyone else to grow and be the best they can become. I preach that a lot so, I suppose I keep all the guys who feel the same way and lose the guys who don't. Doesn't bother me either way -- I'm not in this for the money (which is good 'cause I damn sure am not making any!)


-John

I think Fletch gave the best answer possible. Better than mine would have been.

Well, in more traditional styles there are belts, titles, bowing, chain of commands, and tons of formalities which are part of learning respect right? In boxing / MMA there is still respect, without the symbols and "forced" respect.

If I was working with a boxing trainer who was helping me, teaching me knew things, improving my boxing, etc. Well, they would have my respect. I wouldn't snap to attention everytime they talked, call them "sir" or bow everytime they came near me. Those things are in a sense "Artificial" in that they show respect, but don't have to mean it.

Philosophy is the same. It is there, but the "Artificial" or "For show" stuff isn't there. Either you get it or you don't, you don't get to quote some old Chinese guys and fake it when you don't mean it.

A person can snap to attention, bow, "sir" and show all the respect in the world, and not mean any of it. They can also read and quote off all the traditional philosophy you can find and not get or live by any of it.

oldman, Rorion Gracie and then Maurice Smith are more responsible for MMA than any philosopher.

Oooooh, gotta disagree with that. You stepped in it with that one. Mark?

Perhaps not but I think it could be bestowed upon him or many others. Im not a philo major or anything but I believe they deserve some credit anyway, perhaps not all, but some.

Here let me try again...

By the way, any MMA practioner that doesn't understand what debt he owes to Rorian Gracie and Maurice Smith is missing out.

There that pretty much covers it.

Im not disregarding either of the two, Gracie or Smith, But I dont think they are solely responsible either.

I just said more responsible than a philosopher. Rorion got the UFC going which got everyone paying attention, and Mo Smith was the first guy to get people clued in that crosstraining was necessary. Before him it was still single style grapplers who were dominating. If it hadn't been for them, the philosophes would have been saying the same thing but much less people would be doing it.

Probably so.

I'd say both where inevitable.

Cross training was a concept that existed long before Mo Smith, and MMA was around long before Rorion Gracie. They where just in the right place at the right time.

Martial arts had, as a whole, been building up such a level of mystique, nonsense, and complete crap being passed as "real" that it was only a matter of time before someone threw down the gloves.


Grappling alone worked because no one knew a damn thing about it at the time. Everyone just ignored it "Fighting is done standing" was the mentallity, and rules where always in place to deal with it. If those grapplers had the level of striking knowledge that the strikers had grappling knowledge it would have been even messier in there.

But it was only a matter of time before people learnt both. And to be honest, Ken Shamrock was at the the time, corss trained right from UFC 1. He was a submission specialist that could stand and trade quite well, was even nick named "One punch Shamrock" for his ability to drop people with one punch.

Rorion and Mo where influential, but not to the level you are elevating them too.

Who were more influential then, in your opinion?