Why mma is the best sport

Learn how your comment data is processed. The relative lack of rules is, of course, the other reason mixed martial arts is so endlessly entertaining. In MMA, though, a lack of technology to worry about fighters wear shorts, promoter-provided gloves and little else combined with a very loose brief make the other person stop fighting makes for endless permutations of violence.

Want more? In the sweet science, your options are limited to a Get punched in the head or b Punch your opponent in the head. Ronda Rousey, former Olympic judoka and current bantamweight champion, makes pay comparable to the top men in the sport, and regularly tops cards just like any other title-holder.

You may also like. Even without streaming, it's easy to access UFC bouts. The UFC itself offers this tool that finds bars airing events. Whatever institution you choose, MMA is at your fingertips. With all these factors, has the UFC lost popularity? We'll take a deeper look at why some combatants and fans have left the UFC. Then, we'll see how the UFC remains popular regardless of these losses. Many UFC fighters have threatened retirement or retired from the organization.

Combatants utilize this threat as a bargaining chip to raise their salaries. This lack of pay contrasts with more significant team sports, where athletes may receive roughly 50 percent.

Additionally, the UFC requires its fighters to sign long-term contracts. These settlements give fighters no choice but to stick with low wages if they wish to remain on the UFC circuit. Many fighters would rather retire from the sport outright than continue to work for less than their perceived value. Countless others have publicly threatened the act as well. In its initial heyday, these fervent, high school and college-aged men sustained UFC.

As they grew up, however, members of these demographics lost the time, money, and energy to commit to the sport. Not only have these fans fallen off, but today's teenagers seem less inclined to watch UFC as well. Menefee explains that "in , around 29 percent of teenage males were avid MMA fans. Today that is closer to 19 percent. Columnist Kevin Iole of YahooSports noted that 3 of the 5 largest pay-per-views have come during the coronavirus era.

Beyond pay-per-view, the UFC is the only sports brand that stayed consistent or grew from its pre-pandemic ratings. Additionally, despite some fans leaving the sport, UFC has seen a growth in interest amongst new demographics. Finally, even prelims like those for UFC have topped cable ratings as recently as this April.

Ratings for rival leagues such as the PFL pale in comparison. UFC may be in danger of losing some of its most fervent fans and stars. When your sport sees a player get concussed at least once a week, it may be time to shift some things around. The sport isn't built to function around corruption.

Fighting is fighting, and it starts and stops with that. The sport doesn't seem to encounter serious scandals, due in part to MMA's integrity wall being iron-clad. Fighters aren't throwing fights, owners aren't stealing video tapes of training camps, coaches aren't being caught seducing young children and Dana White isn't fixing a draft lottery anytime soon. So far in its brief existence, American MMA has been as clean as a sport can be, minus failed testosterone tests.

Now, while many people would say their efforts have been excessive, how can you badger the company for showcasing its product? With eight different weight classes offering numerous entertaining fighters, the UFC has been able to offer its fans worthwhile action all year long.

Most sports, maybe besides tennis and golf, can't say that. Their schedules are limited. And to think, the numbers I'm basing this on are just from the UFC.

Imagine what other MMA promoters can add to the equation. Unlike the bountiful championship belts that wrap themselves around a handful of boxers, mixed martial arts—more specifically, the UFC—only possesses one belt for each weight class.

The sport doesn't just hand a title over to a fighter because he happened to make it to the arena that night. It takes hard work, dedication and a respectful winning streak to capture true championship glory. Despite being the bloodiest sport on the planet, fighters are rarely seriously injured inside the cage. Sure, the occasional injury bug strikes training camps and puts some of the best fighters on the shelf for a couple of months, but nothing close to the ACL tears and Tommy John surgeries that make up every other sport.

Whether it's getting scraped off the football field after a helmet-to-helmet collision or breaking an ankle after sliding into home plate, other sports are sometimes more dangerous than actually fighting.