Are endurance sports a valid “base” for MMA?

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DanMMAleague

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It’s not really a base per se.

Nevertheless you see guys like the Diaz bro’s, Colby etc. stick out like a sore thumb for their cardio.

So could an endurance athlete be fast tracked to the UFC in a relatively short space of time compared to the average guy?
 
I think when taken as a whole that people with an above average athletic trait (elite cardio being one) would probably be able to get up to speed faster than the "average guy". I mean, you take the "average guy" and it's probably going to take him damn near a year just to get into good physical condition. The endurance athlete is already there. He's going to have to adjust his training and put on mass, but he's not going to be getting started from a position of getting winded from walking to the mailbox and needing to shed 30-40 pounds of fat while also adding muscle mass like the "average guy".
 
compared to average people yes. compared to another athlete no. soccer as shitty as it is... is a better base than raw endurance sports.
 
DanMMAleague said:
It’s not really a base per se.

Nevertheless you see guys like the Diaz bro’s, Colby etc. stick out like a sore thumb for their cardio.

So could an endurance athlete be fast tracked to the UFC in a relatively short space of time compared to the average guy?
Click to expand...
no. Colby and Diaz bros have been training other diciplines like striking, jiu-jitsu and striking for a lot of years
 
The Diaz brothers and Colby have a background in combat sports. Part of getting in shape for combat sports is training your endurance. You don't learn to hit or grapple people by running. The only valid base for MMA is combat sports (Unless your a heavyweight or a chick, than you just have to be kinda athletic.)
 
Oh for SURE it is a good base... if you learn to fight running around and draining your opponents energy it is absolutely gold.

That said... if you only have awesome cardio and NO fighting technique and experience, it is just that... a solid cardio base. It will take you at least a few years of training before you come even close to being competitive.
 
Obviously it will let them have big gas tank so they can keep a crazy pace for 25 minutes. So of course, that's an advantage.

As the old saying goes, conditioning is the best finishing move.

But, won't amount to much if you take a good shot to the chin or get caught in a tight submission.

It's just one aspect of the sport.
 
MMA provides a very interesting platform for the sprinter vs marathon runner debate. Both are exceptional athletes, and neither is "better" than the other. Both can succeed at the highest of levels.

It goes without saying that for any given matchup, the likelihood of who will win depends on whether it's scheduled as a 5 round versus a 3 round fight.
 
I don't consider pure endurance sports a base but good cardio is a big advantage.
 
Grijswaarde said:
Oh for SURE it is a good base... if you learn to fight running around and draining your opponents energy it is absolutely gold.

That said... if you only have awesome cardio and NO fighting technique and experience, it is just that... a solid cardio base. It will take you at least a few years of training before you come even close to being competitive.
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? Show me a time ever where the Diaz brothers "run around" you are thinking of Carlos Condit. The only running the Diaz brothers do in the ring is when they are chasing guys that are scared of them.
 
It's the other way around.

Before Diaz & Colby, Randy Couture was winning endurance races in the 90's. Shit like "ride this bike around this lake, whoever does the most laps in 24 hours wins".

He won them because of his wrestling training regimen, not because he was a professional mountain biker or endurance athlete.
 
Depends on how you look at it


When i started boxing, was stuck doing road work and shadowing in the mirror for around 2 months.

You have to be in shape to even put wraps on in any legit gym
 
when i hear "base" for mma, i think fighting style--a background in kickboxing or wrestling or bjj. imo, an endurance athlete doesn't come into the sport with anything but stamina (and a very particular kind of stamina that doesn't always work in mma).
 
Just because someone has cardio won’t make them a good fighter. Michael Phelps and Hussein bolt would fold so fast when they get hit.
 
Only boxercise and Tae Bo imo.

Granted Diaz's Ironman comps must've helped his cardio.
 
If you're an endurance type - you better have a good chin and a strong mindset (not a quitter) - diaz bros, max, RDA at 170.

If you're a sprinter (short and long burst) you have to have power and very high level skills that will allow you to capitalize on the smallest mistakes your opponent makes - Aldo, Yoel, Woodley.

Obviously you need heart in both areas but to generalize a bit.
 
I wouldn't say it is a "base," but I would say it is a good "pool" of talent. Fighting is an endurance sport, so it is reasonable to hypothesize those athletes who play endurance sports like European football, Rugby and Basketball would make good fighters, if they had the psychology for it.

We have so many UFC fighters who can't keep up their performance at a high level for more than 2 rounds. I don't believe this is because "the sport is so touch and blah blah" nonsense that the Hardcore MMA Fans are constantly spewing.

I believe it is because most current UFC fighters don't have the talent to fight 3 or 5 rounds at a high level. If you read most these guys' stories, the vast majority of them were delinquent teenagers who failed at sports, and started fighting because "they loved fighting anyways."
 
muaytao said:
Just because someone has cardio won’t make them a good fighter. Michael Phelps and Hussein bolt would fold so fast when they get hit.
Click to expand...

*Usain Bolt does not have excellent cardio. He is not an endurance athlete. He's the opposite.
 
Boxing is considered an endurance sport. I have friends in the rowing Olympic team of my country and they are monsters, water polo also etc.

But a guy that does marathon, I doubt it.
 
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