The commercialization of MMA

You remember being in high school and liking a band that nobody knew about? You know, one of those obscure punk bands or hip hop artists that all of the underground people who “really knew music” listened to. Remember how a year or two after you listened to them, they blew up and became “trendy”?

Most people would stop listening to them because they were “old” and “trendy” . I’ve done it. We’ve all done it. Instead of embracing the fact that more people were interested in something you are interested in, you move on. Who wants to listen to the same trendy music that everybody else is listening to. Once they go trendy they start to suck right? I mean, they sell out and do poppy stuff.

What about MMA? With the rise of the UFC’s popularity, is it becoming too trendy? Is it too much?

I haven’t thought so. It’s actually helped improve the sport of MMA as a whole. I remember watching the first couple of UFC events and thinking that it was great but anybody with some serious training would do well. Case in point, Royce Gracie. He brought a well disciplined background in there and beat everybody.

Now that the UFC is so popular, people have to be very good, well trained athletes versed in multiple disciplines to even fight in the UFC. Gyms are improving and creating much better practitioners, some launching a fighter, or fighters, into the big leagues. The sport has improved greatly.

However, I have seen a few things that shine the light on the over commercialization of MMA. The bad thing is, it happens with everything. There are the true practitioners, who have trained for years and will continue to train when some new extreme fad kicks in. There are also the countless numbers who will move on when jiu-jitsu or MMA isn’t as cool.

I’ve seen way too many videos on YouTube of high school MMA clubs with kids “rolling” on the football field or in their front yards trying valiantly to pull of some mutated triangle. Videos of karate instructors trying to incorporate some jiu-jitsu techniques into their classes, many of them made up techniques that are dangerous to the young kids practicing them. Now, that’s bound to happen. There will be bandwagoneers for everything.

I saw one thing though that makes a single tear run down my cheek, Prince style.

Never Back Down, the movie.

From the previews, this movie appears to take place in a high school setting, maybe college. It’s about a bunch of young kids who participate in MMA style fights. Countless shots of knockout punches and Rocky style fights where the fighters don’t get nearly as hurt as they really would.

Now, I’m all up for a good fight movie, but MMA in high school? It’s a smart move on the part of those who created the movie to cash in on the MMA craze but I am picturing the number of kids who fall for the “Hollywoodization” of the whole scene. I’m picturing the number of kids who are going to think that they can do this without the proper training and discipline it takes to do this.

Setting the movie in a high school setting is a cash cow, since most people who go to the movies are high school age but it’s pretty irresponsible. At least Daniel-San competed in a sanctioned tournament.