Ultimate Fighting Now Includes Kids
March 27th, 2008 by JOE GANDELMAN, Editor-In-Chief
Social commentators, bloggers, educators and others will have fun with this bit of news: Ultimate fighting — the increasingly popular 21st century sport that combines wrestling, boxing and martial arts — is now expanding to include kids:
Ultimate fighting was once the sole domain of burly men who beat each other bloody in anything-goes brawls on pay-per-view TV.
But the sport often derided as “human cockfighting” is branching out.
The bare-knuckle fights are now attracting competitors as young as 6 whose parents treat the sport as casually as wrestling, Little League or soccer.
The changes were evident on a recent evening in southwest Missouri, where a team of several young boys and one girl grappled on gym mats in a converted garage.
Two members of the group called the “Garage Boys Fight Crew” touched their thin martial-arts gloves in a flash of sportsmanship before beginning a relentless exchange of sucker punches, body blows and swift kicks.
No blood was shed. And both competitors wore protective gear. But the bout reflected the decidedly younger face of ultimate fighting. The trend alarms medical experts and sports officials who worry that young bodies can’t withstand the pounding.
The news article has a parent defending the sport for his kid. It also notes that some things once considered “dirty fighting” in typical fights are banned in the kids version. Sill, ultimate fighting for kids isn’t sweeping the country — YET. But usually once a major news story such as this comes out, it spreads the word.
Tommy Bloomer, father of two of the “Garage Boys,” doesn’t understand the fuss.
“We’re not training them for dog fighting,” said Bloomer, a 34-year-old construction contractor. “As a parent, I’d much rather have my kids here learning how to defend themselves and getting positive reinforcement than out on the streets.”
Bloomer said the sport has evolved since the no-holds-barred days by adding weight classes to better match opponents and banning moves such as strikes to the back of the neck and head, groin kicking and head butting.
Missouri appears to be the only state in the nation that explicitly allows the youth fights. In many states, it is a misdemeanor for children to participate. A few states have no regulations.
Supporters of the sport acknowledge that allowing fights between kids sounds brutal at first. But they insist the competitions have plenty of safety rules.
“It looks violent until you realize this teaches discipline. One of the first rules they learn is that this is not for aggressive behavior outside (the ring),” said Larry Swinehart, a Joplin police officer and father of two boys and the lone girl in the garage group.
And, to be sure, the kids who are doing this version of it are trained by an expert who notes that there are positives:
The 11 boys and one girl on the team range from 6 to 14 years old and are trained by Rudy Lindsey, a youth wrestling coach and a professional mixed martial arts heavyweight.
“The kids learn respect and how to defend themselves. It’s no more dangerous than any other sport and probably less so than some,” Lindsey said.
Lindsey said the children wear protective headgear, shin guards, groin protection and martial-arts gloves. They fight quick, two-minute bouts. Rules also prohibit any elbow blows and blows to the head when an opponent is on the ground.
“If they get in trouble or get bad grades, I’ll hear about it and they can’t come to training,” he added.
On the other hand, the news story quotes Joe Miller, administrator of the Oklahoma Professional Boxing Commission,as saying youth fights are banned in his state and he hopes they will continue to be taboo. Miller contends some of the holds used can be detrimental to young developing joints. But it also quotes an Oklahoma martial arts trainer as noting that the fights are quick and done under the ever-watchful eye of a referee.
The big issue is what it represents.
Is ultimate fighting replacing boxing as we move into the 21st century? If so, kids box…so kids doing ultimate fighting under adult supervision would not be without precedent.
Or, is ultimate fighting in both adults and kids symptomatic of raising/lowering the bar.
You see this in comedy as well: previous generations loved The Three Stooges for violent slapstick comedy. The present generation loves Jackass where they can watch the real thing.
This entry was posted on Thursday, March 27th, 2008 at 6:24 am and is filed under Children, Society, Sports, Entertainment. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
