MMA 101 – Class 01

Greetings students. Today is the first day of MMA 101. This will be a short lived series geared toward getting “rookies” up to speed with us “veterans” of the MMA game. How short? Depends on how fast you learn. I hope you are well rested and ready to learn. I will be your instructor. You can call me, R.K., Robert, Mr. Menn, or in Joao’s case, Arlovski. I don’t really care what you call me, but in the end you will call me Master. Maybe not all that, but you’ll learn a thing or two.

Now, I know there are a few of you out there who are “new” to this sport, so today’s class will be short and sweet and to the point. We’ll start with a few basic questions.

What are the weight classes in the UFC?

Lightweight: 146 to 155 lb (67 to 70 kg)

Welterweight: 156 to 170 lb (71 to 77 kg)

Middleweight: 171 to 185 lb (78 to 84 kg)

Light Heavyweight: 186 to 205 lb (85 to 93 kg)

Heavyweight: 206 to 265 lb (94 to 120 kg)

**Note: You are allowed a one pound allowance during the weigh-ins. If you are over and your opponent chooses to still fight, you forfeit some of your fight purse to your opponent.

In addition, there are four other weight classes specified in the Unified Rules which the UFC does not currently utilize: Flyweight (under 125 lb, 57 kg), Bantamweight (126 to 135 lb, 61 kg), Featherweight (136 to 145 lb, 66 kg), and Super Heavyweight ( above 265 lb, 120 kg). The Bantamweight and Featherweight classes are used in another promotion owned by Zuffa, LLC, World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC).

Who is responsible for deciding UFC matches?

As much as there is a tendency to blame Dana White for everything, it is actually Joe Silva who primarily decides the UFC fights. Dana just hypes the s#%t out of them. That’s not to say Dana doesn’t hold any influence over who fights who, but he usually just promotes what Joe Silva draws up.

How can an MMA fight end?

By Knockout (KO), Technical Knockout (TKO), Submission (either by tapout or by technical submission), Disqualification (DQ), judges’ decision (DES), towel being thrown in by the corner, No Contest (NC) (e.g.: accidental headbutt or strike to the groin, with the fighter being unable to continue).

Why are there stand-ups in some fights?

The referee may decide to stand up fighters if the fight is on the ground and there isn’t enough activity. One of the fighters, or even both, may be penalized for that if they continue to stall the action.

Well, that’s it for today. I don’t want to overload your fragile little minds just yet. However, next week we’ll delve into the more exciting world of submission. Be ready.