How Did Mixed Martial Arts Start Up?
The starting point of mixed martial arts can be a rather complicated topic. For example, the ancient Greeks had pankration, which forbade nothing besides biting and gouging. Likewise, the ancient Chinese had lei tai, which were elevated platforms on which martial artists would fight until there were no further challengers. Theoretically, it can be said that these combat sports as well as their counterparts in other cultures were examples of mixed martial arts because they could incorporate multiple styles. However, they tend not to be what comes to mind for most people when the term comes up.
That is because most people use the term mixed martial arts to refer to the hybrid combat sport that is best-known because of the UFC. Said sport has predecessors in a wide range of events in a wide range of countries in the 20th century, but in particular, it is worth mentioning the Brazilian Vale Tudo, which is its immediate predecessor. In fact, the connection between Vale Tudo and mixed martial arts is so strong that there are actually critics of Vale Tudo who think that practitioners should adopt mixed martial arts rules, which is a position that has been met with a fair amount of hostility because traditional Vale Tudo is low on rules.
How Do Mixed Martial Artists Make Money?
Regardless, mixed martial arts is now a combat sport that has a sizable audience situated in not just the United States but also other countries that can be found all around the world. As a result, while mixed martial arts still can't compete with either boxing or show wrestling, it can nonetheless claim huge profit potential. Something that serves as additional incentive for would-be mixed martial artists who want to earn money by fighting in matches, which can lead to them becoming famous enough to collect endorsements should they prove successful enough.
As for styles, well, suffice to say that mixed martial artists live up to their name. Due to this, there are common styles such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. However, it is not uncommon for mixed martial artists to incorporate other stand-up, clinching, and ground styles such as Judo, Taekwondo, Sanda, Sambo, and submission wrestling. This makes up a fair amount of the appeal of the combat sport by adding that much more variability to the whole thing.
