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107-624: Mixed martial arts ( MMA ) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling , incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place throughout Japan and the countries of East Asia . At the same time, in Brazil there was a phenomenon called vale tudo , which became known for unrestricted fights between various styles such as judo , Brazilian jiu-jitsu , catch wrestling , luta livre , Muay Thai and capoeira . An early high-profile mixed bout

214-409: A combat -based style which blended wrestling , kickboxing and submission grappling . Another promotion formed around the same time by Akira Maeda called Fighting Network RINGS initially started as a shoot-style professional wrestling promotion but it also promoted early mixed martial arts contests. From 1995 onwards it began identifying itself as a mixed martial arts promotion and moved away from

321-530: A cultural universal . Boxing contests date back to ancient Sumer in the 3rd millennium BCE and ancient Egypt circa 1350 BCE. The ancient Olympic Games included several combat-related sports: armored foot races , boxing, wrestling, and pankration , which was introduced in the Olympic Games of 648 BCE. In ancient China , combat sport appeared in the form of lei tai . It was a no-holds barred combat sport that combined boxing and wrestling. There

428-451: A fencer , and his fight against Taiwanese kung fu master Wu Ming Jeet. Wong combined boxing and kickboxing into his kung fu, as Bruce Lee did. Muhammad Ali vs. Antonio Inoki took place in Japan in 1976. The classic match-up between professional boxer and professional wrestler turned sour as each fighter refused to engage in the other's style, and after a 15-round stalemate it was declared

535-666: A gyaku-ude-garami armlock, which later became known as the "Kimura" in Brazilian jiu jitsu. In 1963, a catch wrestler and judoka " Judo " Gene Lebell fought professional boxer Milo Savage in a no-holds-barred match. Lebell won by Harai Goshi to rear naked choke, leaving Savage unconscious. This was the first televised bout of mixed-style fighting in North America. The hometown crowd was so enraged that they began to boo and throw chairs at Lebell. On February 12, 1963, three karatekas from Oyama dojo ( kyokushin later) went to

642-628: A 1905 fight between French savateur George Dubois and a judo practitioner Re-nierand which resulted in the latter winning by submission, as well as the highly publicized 1957 fight between French savateur and professional boxer Jacques Cayron and a young Japanese karateka named Mochizuki Hiroo which ended when Cayron knocked Hiroo out with a hook . Catch wrestling appeared in the late 19th century, combining several global styles of wrestling , including Indian pehlwani and English wrestling. In turn, catch wrestling went on to greatly influence modern MMA. No-holds-barred fighting reportedly took place in

749-410: A base in striking arts became more competitive as they cross-trained in styles based around takedowns and submission holds. Likewise, those from the varying grappling styles added striking techniques to their arsenal. This increase of cross-training resulted in fighters becoming increasingly multidimensional and well-rounded in their skill-sets. The new hybridization of fighting styles can be seen in

856-514: A contest was held in France between French savateurs and English bare-knuckle boxers in which French fighter Rambaud alias la Resistance fought English fighter Dickinson and won using his kicks. However, the English team still won the four other match-ups during the contest. Contests occurred in the late 19th to mid-20th century between French savateurs and other combat styles. Examples include

963-769: A different set of rules (example: eliminating kicking a grounded opponent), which differed from other leagues which were more in favour of realistic, "street-like" fights. The first documented use of the term mixed martial arts was in a review of UFC 1 by television critic Howard Rosenberg in 1993. Originally promoted as a competition to find the most effective martial arts for real unarmed combat, competitors from different fighting styles were pitted against one another in contests with relatively few rules. Later, individual fighters incorporated multiple martial arts into their style. MMA promoters were pressured to adopt additional rules to increase competitors' safety, to comply with sport regulations and to broaden mainstream acceptance of

1070-520: A draw. Muhammad Ali sustained a substantial amount of damage to his legs, as Antonio Inoki slide-kicked him continuously for the duration of the bout, causing him to be hospitalized for the next three days. The fight played an important role in the history of mixed martial arts. The basis of modern mixed martial arts in Japan can be found across several shoot-style professional wrestling promotions such as UWF International and Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi , both founded in 1991, that attempted to create

1177-540: A glove and headguard in maximising the impact energy attenuation. A study conducted by Lystad showed that combat sports with little to no protective gear such as MMA or boxing has an injury incidence rate range of 85.1–280.7 per 1000 athletes in comparison to another striking combat sport like Taekwondo which has a large amount of protective gear such as pads, headgear, mouth guard and gloves, has an injury incidence rate range of 19.1–138.8 per 1000 athletes. This means that injury rates are drastically lowered when protective gear

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1284-489: A hand to hold onto something for balance on a rocking ship's deck, and that the kicks and slaps were used on land to avoid the legal penalties for using a closed fist, which was considered a deadly weapon under the law. It was known as the jeu marseillais (game from Marseille), and was later renamed chausson ( slipper , after the type of shoes the sailors wore). In contrast, at this time in England (the home of boxing and

1391-533: A higher colour rank in savate does not necessarily entail a change in the colour of one's actual gloves, and a given fighter may continue using the same pair of gloves through multiple promotions). Novices begin at no colour. The qualifications for competition vary depending on the association or commission. In the French Federation a yellow glove can compete, and in Belgium a green glove can compete. In

1498-429: A kick, he ends up falling terribly, prompting stunned reactions from the onlookers. Dazed, Calculus remarks that he is out of practice. In The Black Island , Tintin himself kicks a villain and calls it a savate move. In the 1967 novel Logan's Run , protagonist Logan 3 often uses savate kicks for self-defense. In DC Comics , the character Nightwing is a martial arts expert whose many skills include savate. In

1605-472: A long reach but are slow and punishable, placing him low among competitive 3rd Strike tier lists. John Crawley from Art of Fighting and The King of Fighters uses savate in his martial arts style. In the Tekken series, Brazilian character Katarina Alves uses savate as her fighting syle. In the mid to late 1980s, WWF commentator Gorilla Monsoon would often refer to the reverse kicks thrown by

1712-464: A martial art comprised exclusively of precise kicks using the toe or heel called the "Black Leg" style. While not textually based on savate, individual techniques have names in French, and the character's other interests draw from mainstream French culture (such as cuisine and wine ). Ash Crimson from The King of Fighters fights in a basic savate style that uses his own green flames. Ash himself

1819-560: A mixed match, which catch wrestler Steele won in 35 seconds. 27 years later, Ray Steele's protégé Lou Thesz fought boxer Jersey Joe Walcott twice in mixed style bouts. The first match was a real contest which Thesz won while the second match was a work, which Thesz also won. In the 1940s in the Palama Settlement in Hawaii, five martial arts masters, under the leadership of Adriano Emperado, curious to determine which martial art

1926-487: A mouthguard and must wear suitable gloves. The lack of protective clothing makes competitors vulnerable to concussions and further traumatic head injuries. A scientific experiment, conducted in 2015 by Dr Andrew McIntosh of ACRISP at the Federation University of Australia, tested the impact of seven different head guards in combat sport. The results of the experiment revealed the benefits of the combination of

2033-691: A new peak of popularity in North America in December 2006: a rematch between then UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell and former champion Tito Ortiz , rivaled the PPV sales of some of the biggest boxing events of all time, and helped the UFC's 2006 PPV gross surpass that of any promotion in PPV history. In 2007, Zuffa LLC , the owners of the UFC MMA promotion, bought Japanese rival MMA brand Pride FC , merging

2140-400: A regulated version of chausson and savate (disallowing head butting, eye gouging, grappling, etc.). However, the sport had not shaken its reputation as a street-fighting technique. Charles Lecour created a modern edition of the martial art by 1830. Charles Lecour incorporated boxing techniques with kicking techniques and showed how to use them together. He was the first to see savate as both

2247-411: A result of an increased number of competitors, organized training camps, information sharing, and modern kinesiology , the understanding of the effectiveness of various strategies has been greatly improved. UFC commentator Joe Rogan claimed that martial arts evolved more in the ten years following 1993 (the first UFC event ) than in the preceding 700 years combined. "During his reign atop the sport in

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2354-482: A rooftop fight scene in the 1950s and 1960s, where gangs from rival martial arts schools challenged each other to bare-knuckle fights on Hong Kong's rooftops, in order to avoid crackdowns by colonial British Hong Kong authorities. The most famous fighter to emerge from Hong Kong's rooftop fight scene was Bruce Lee , who combined different techniques from different martial arts schools into his own hybrid martial arts system called Jeet Kune Do . Lee went on to popularize

2461-601: A same federation. These sports can be used in combinations together. In some clubs there is also a rank of aide-moniteur, while in other associations there is no rank of initiateur. Eight to twelve years of training on average are necessary for a student to reach professeur level; eight years average depending on skills. In France the professional professeur must have a French state certificate of specialized teaching (CQP AS, BEES 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree, 1st de CCB BPJEPS, DEJEPS, DESJEPS). These diplomas are university level education in sports with specialisation in savate (supervised by

2568-435: A slight chance to become a DTD (directeur technique départemental). Like any sport federations in France, the French and International Federation of Savate are under the control of France Ministry of Sport and Youth. This makes these two federations extremely powerful federations on the world scene. These two federations have followed a set of national traditions. Nowadays, savate is just a term meaning Savate-Boxe Française. In

2675-474: A sport and self-defense system. Charles Lecour was the first to add English boxing gloves to the martial art which allowed his students to train their punches without injuring their hands. Charles Lecour was exposed to the English art of boxing when he witnessed an English boxing match in France between English pugilist Owen Swift and Jack Adams in 1838. Lecour also took part in a friendly sparring match with Swift later in that same year. Lecour felt that he

2782-547: A total of just five minutes. sparking a revolution in martial arts. The first Vale Tudo Japan tournaments were held in 1994 and 1995 and were both won by Rickson Gracie . Around the same time, International Vale Tudo competition started to develop through (World Vale Tudo Championship (WVC), VTJ , IVC , UVF etc.). Interest in mixed martial arts as a sport resulted in the creation of the Pride Fighting Championships (Pride) in 1997. The sport reached

2889-678: Is Missing", a 1974 episode of The Six Million Dollar Man a savate master named Pierre fights with Steve Austin, using the original kicks-only style of the art. In Marvel Comics , the criminal mercenary Batroc the Leaper , an adversary of Captain America and mentor of Gwen Poole , is a master of savate, training the latter. The X-Men character Gambit is trained in savate. In the issue Flight 714 of The Adventures of Tintin , Professor Calculus states that he used to be proficient in savate in his younger years. However, when attempting

2996-535: Is UFC. Combat sports are generally more popular among men as athletes and spectators. For many years, participation in combat sports was practically exclusive to men; USA Boxing had a ban on women's boxing until 1993. A study conducted by Greenwell, Hancock, Simmons, and Thorn in 2015 revealed that combat sports had a largely male audience. The techniques used can be categorized into three domains: striking , grappling , and weapon usage , with some hybrid rule-sets combining striking and grappling. In combat sports

3103-417: Is an overarching hand-to-hand combat discipline that incorporates knee and elbow strikes as well as joint locks , sweeps , throws , headbutts and takedowns , in addition to punches and kicks. Savate takes its name from the French for "old shoe" or "old boot", referencing heavy footwear (more specifically the boots worn by French sailors at the time the discipline emerged). The modern formalized form

3210-552: Is evidence of similar combat sports in ancient Egypt, India and Japan . Through the Middle Ages and Renaissance , the tournament was popular. Tournaments were competitions that featured several mock combat events, with jousting as a main event. While the tournament was popular among aristocrats , combat sports were practiced by all levels of society. The German school of late medieval martial arts distinguished sportive combat ( schimpf ) from serious combat ( ernst ). In

3317-495: Is mainly an amalgam of French street fighting techniques from the beginning of the 19th century. Savate was then a type of street fighting common in Paris and northern France. According to one theory, in the time of Napoleon Bonaparte , his soldiers publicly displayed their "aptitudes" by kicking their prisoners' behinds. The punishment was known as “Savate”, which can be translated as “old shoe”. Savate originated in France in

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3424-524: Is portrayed by SNK as a character with an unknown origin, because his lineage as descendant of Saiki (Those from the Past's leader), but it says too that he was raised by the Blanctorche clan , a French family. Remy from Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike uses savate in a majority of his kick normals, combined with charge command specials reminiscent of Guile and Charlie Nash . His kick normals have

3531-568: Is used. Gear includes: Savate Savate ( French pronunciation: [savat] ), also known as French Boxing ( French : Boxe Française ) or French Foot Fighting , is a French hybrid martial art and full-contact combat sport that combines principles of western boxing with a wide variety of kicking techniques. Unlike kickboxing styles such as Muay Thai , which allow knee and/or shin strikes in competitive bouts, savate involves striking exclusively with one's feet, but participants can nonetheless target any part of

3638-465: The First World War . Savate de Défense , Défense Savate or Savate de Rue ("street savate") is the name given to those methods of fighting excluded from savate competition. The International Savate Federation (FIS) is the official worldwide ruling body of savate. Perhaps the ultimate recognition of the respectability of savate came in 1924 when it was included as a demonstration sport in

3745-733: The German Renaissance , sportive combat competitions were known as Fechtschulen , corresponding to the Prize Playing in Tudor England . Out of these Prize Playing events developed the English boxing (or prizefighting ) of the 18th century, which evolved into modern boxing with the introduction of the Marquess of Queensberry rules in 1867. Amateur boxing has been part of the modern Olympic Games since their introduction in 1904. Professional boxing became popular in

3852-782: The Olympic Games in Paris . In 2008, savate was recognised by the International University Sports Federation (FISU) – this recognition allows savate to hold official University World Championships; the first was held in Nantes , France in 2010. The 25th anniversary of the founding of the International Savate Federation, in March 2010, was celebrated with a visit to Lausanne , to meet with International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge . FISav President Gilles Le Duigou

3959-753: The Pride Fighting Championships in 1997. In the 1990s, the Gracie family brought their Brazilian jiu-jitsu style , first developed in Brazil from the 1920s, to the United States—which culminated in the founding of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) promotion company in 1993. The company held an event with almost no rules, mostly due to the influence of Art Davie and Rorion Gracie attempting to replicate mixed contests that existed in Brazil and Japan. They would later implement

4066-661: The Queensberry rules ), kicking was seen as unsportsmanlike. Traditional savate was a northern French development, especially in Paris' slums, and always used heavy shoes and boots derived from its potential military origins. Street fighting savate, unlike chausson, kept the kicks low, almost never targeted above the groin, and they were delivered with vicious, bone-breaking intent. Parisian savate also featured open hand blows, in thrusting or smashing palm strikes (la baffe) or in stunning slaps targeted to facial nerves. Techniques of savate or chausson were at this time also developed in

4173-485: The UFC came to prominence in mainstream media in 2006, and with their 2007 merger with Pride FC and purchases of WEC and Strikeforce , it has been the most significant MMA promotion in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent , and level of competition. According to Fight Matrix , these are the promotions with the top ranked talent as of November 2024: There are hundreds of MMA training facilities throughout

4280-574: The karateka was allowed to use his fists, feet and knees, while the boxer could only use his fists. Hadley won the fight via knockout on the first round. In 1988 Rick Roufus challenged Changpuek Kiatsongrit to a non-title Muay Thai vs. kickboxing super fight. Roufus was at the time an undefeated Kickboxer and held both the KICK Super Middleweight World title and the PKC Middleweight U.S. title. Kiatsongrit

4387-642: The "Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts". The motion passed unanimously. In November 2005, the United States Army began to sanction mixed martial arts with the first annual Army Combatives Championships held by the US Army Combatives School . Canada formally decriminalized mixed martial arts with a vote on Bill S-209 on June 5, 2013. The bill allows for provinces to have the power to create athletic commissions to regulate and sanction professional mixed martial arts bouts. Since

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4494-669: The "father of mixed martial arts" stating: "If you look at the way Bruce Lee trained, the way he fought, and many of the things he wrote, he said the perfect style was no style. You take a little something from everything. You take the good things from every different discipline, use what works, and you throw the rest away". A contemporary of Bruce Lee, Wing Chun practitioner Wong Shun Leung , gained prominence fighting in 60–100 illegal beimo fights against other Chinese martial artists of various styles. Wong also fought and won against Western fighters of other combat styles, such as his match against Russian boxer Giko, his televised fight against

4601-641: The 17th century and was practiced by some sailors in the southern port of Marseille . According to historians, it was developed and learned by sailors on board the ships during their trips to the countries of the Indian Ocean and China Seas . Subsequently, in every bar fight in French ports, it was common to see savate kicks. Sailors called this type of combat "Chausson", in reference to the slippers normally worn on board. Contact with African and Brazilian fighting styles also occurred through interaction between French sailors and martial arts practitioners in

4708-606: The 1920s and became renowned through its association with the " Gracie challenge ", which was issued by Carlos Gracie and Hélio Gracie and upheld later by descendants of the Gracie family . The "Gracie Challenges" were held in the garages and gyms of the Gracie family members. When the popularity grew, these types of mixed bouts were a staple attraction at the carnivals in Brazil. In the mid-20th century, mixed martial arts contests emerged in Hong Kong's street fighting culture in

4815-425: The 1970s the term "savate" was rarely used in France to refer to the formalised sport: people mostly used the term Savate boxe française, Boxe-Française Savate, B.F, B.F.S., S.B.F. or simply boxe française. The term savate remains in use mostly outside France or when speaking a language other than French. The global distribution of schools (salles) today is best explained through their stylistic approaches: These are

4922-546: The 1980s and 1990s. Modern MMA developed out of the interconnected subcultures of Vale Tudo and shoot wrestling . It was introduced in Japan in the form of Shooto in 1985, and in the United States as Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in 1993. The Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts were introduced in 2000, and the sport experienced peak popularity in the 2000s. During this period, multiple brands and promotions were established. The most well-known promotion for MMA

5029-585: The American Registry of Savate Instructors and Clubs in 1994 (ARSIC-International). Meanwhile, on the west coast Savate clubs were spurring from the California Association of Savate. A couple years later, under the collaborative assistance of a steering committee made of Gilles le Duigou (FIS), JN Eynard, ARSIC-International (PA), Armando Basulto (NJ) and Norman Taylor, USSF president(NJ) as well as few other individuals from California,

5136-587: The Brawlers contests", and ended the sport. Japan had its own form of mixed martial arts discipline, Shooto , which evolved from shoot wrestling in 1985, as well as the shoot wrestling derivative Pancrase , which was founded as a promotion in 1993. Pancrase 1 was held in Japan in September 1993, two months before UFC 1 was held in the United States in November 1993. In 1993, the sport was reintroduced to

5243-437: The French Federation of BF Savate and associated disciplines ( Canne, Self Defense, Lutte, baton) (i.e.:FFBFSDA). The international federation (FIS), however, is still allowed to award professeur to non-French nationals without requiring such rigid system of education. French nationals have to submit and succeed to the rigid system of education and prove themselves in competition as well as being respected by peers, in order to have

5350-647: The French-Canadian Rougeau Brothers as "savate kicks." Ulrich Stern , occasionally alongside his good friend Yumi Ishiyama, is a practitioner of the French martial art in the 2003-2007 French animated show Code Lyoko In early Alone in the Dark series of survival horror games the main protagonist Edward Carnby was using Savate as unarmed combat method. Bruce Lee also studied Savate and included many techniques to his own Jeet Kune Do style. Mixed martial arts also had influence in

5457-512: The Iowa Athletic Commission officially sanctioned Battlecade Extreme Fighting under a modified form of its existing rules for Shootfighting . These rules created the three 'five-minute round/one-minute break' format, and mandated shootfighting gloves, as well as weight classes for the first time. Illegal blows were listed as groin strikes, head butting, biting, eye gouging, hair pulling, striking an opponent with an elbow while

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5564-491: The Japanese manga series Medaka Box Zenkichi Hitoyoshi is a master of savate, and emphasizes its Open Handed Style Techniques with his "Altered God Mode: Model Zenkichi" which makes his hands as sharp as blades. In the manga series Kengan Omega , Nicholas Le Banner uses a martial art he calls 'Sahate', created by incorporating techniques from Fencing, Savate, and Karate. In the manga series One Piece , Sanji uses

5671-641: The Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Thailand and fought against three Muay Thai fighters. The three kyokushin karate fighters were Tadashi Nakamura, Kenji Kurosaki and AkiFujihira (also known as Noboru Osawa), while the Muay Thai team of three authentic Thai fighter. Japan won 2–1: Tadashi Nakamura and Akio Fujihira both knocked out their opponents with punches while Kenji Kurosaki, who fought the Thai,

5778-610: The National Sporting Club, in his book My Sporting Memories (London, 1925), "Driscoll did not know what he was taking on" when he agreed "to meet the Frenchman at his own game". Angle also said that, "The contest ended in Jerry being counted out to a blow in the groin from the Frenchman's knee." He further alleged that "the timekeeper saved Charlemont several times". After the fight Driscoll bore no grudges, considering

5885-514: The United States in the 1920s and experienced a "golden age" after World War II . Professional wrestling was once competitive catch wrestling , a legitimate combat sport in the late 19th and early 20th century, however it has since evolved into athletic theater. The creation of Brazilian jiu-Jitsu is attributed to the Gracie family of Brazil in 1925 after Asian martial arts were introduced to Brazil. Vale-tudo , wrestling, Muay Thai kickboxing and luta livre gained popularity. Modern Muay Thai

5992-512: The United States by CV Productions, Inc. Its first competition, called Tough Guy Contest was held on March 20, 1980, New Kensington, Pennsylvania , Holiday Inn . During that year the company renamed the brand to Super Fighters and sanctioned ten regulated tournaments in Pennsylvania . In 1983, Pennsylvania State Senate passed a bill known as the " Tough Guy Law " that specifically called for: "Prohibiting Tough Guy contests or Battle of

6099-401: The United States by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). UFC promoters initially pitched the event as a real-life fighting video game tournament similar to Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat . The sport gained international exposure and widespread publicity when jiu-jitsu fighter Royce Gracie won the first Ultimate Fighting Championship tournament, submitting three challengers in

6206-484: The United States) have national federations devoted to promoting savate. Modern codified savate provides for three levels of competition: assaut , pre-combat and combat . Many martial arts provide ranking systems, such as belt colours. Savate uses glove colours to indicate a fighter's level of proficiency (unlike arts such as many modern styles of karate , which assign new belts at each promotion, moving to

6313-530: The United States, the competition levels start at novice (6 months). In Russia there is no requirement for a specific glove colour in order to compete. The ranking of savate: Boxe Française is divided into three roads that a savateur can choose to take. GAT vs GAT# Patches: Pre and Post 1985 patches distinction: Similarly, the former FFBFSDA Professorship of BF-SAVATE requirements included Canne de Combat. New Savate "instructorships" tests do not have these requirements. Both sports have split although still under

6420-472: The assistance of former FFBFSDA/ FIS DTN Bob Alix. Forward thinking, Jean-Noel Eynard registered a series of written worksheets (1983-1999) titled " Prof. Eynard's easy guide to savate" with the U.S. Copyright Office and Library of Congress as copyrighted text, including the word "Savate" as a sport rather than something else. In 1988 the US Registry of Savate was created on the east coast which became

6527-428: The blow to have been "an accident". The French claimed victory for their man by stoppage, following a round-kick to Driscoll's stomach. Savate was later codified under a Committee National de Boxe Française under Charles Charlemont 's student Count Pierre Baruzy (dit Barozzi ). The Count is seen as the father of modern savate and was 11-time Champion of France and its colonies, his first ring combat and title prior to

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6634-416: The body. The sport is also notable for requiring footwear to be worn by the competitors, as would be expected from individuals fighting in the streets. A male practitioner of savate is called a "tireur" while a female one is a "tireuse". Savate de rue ( lit.   ' street savate ' ), the term used to differentiate the original martial art meant for self-defense from the subsequent combat sport,

6741-404: The canvas floor protection from a hard fall. In sports such as Taekwondo, competitors are permitted to wear a trunk protector, head guard, gloves, groin guard and shin and forearm pads. Professional boxing and MMA are two of the most dangerous combat sports in the world due to the lack of protective gear worn (compared to the protected fists). Competitors in these two sports have the option to wear

6848-459: The concept of mixed martial arts internationally. Early mixed-match martial arts professional wrestling bouts in Japan (known as Ishu Kakutōgi Sen (異種格闘技戦), literally "heterogeneous combat sports bouts") became popular with Antonio Inoki only in the 1970s. Inoki was a disciple of Rikidōzan , but also of Karl Gotch , who trained numerous Japanese wrestlers in catch wrestling . Regulated mixed martial arts competitions were first introduced in

6955-522: The conclusion of the meeting, all parties in attendance were able to agree upon a uniform set of rules to govern the sport of mixed martial arts. The rules adopted by the NJSACB have become the de facto standard set of rules for professional mixed martial arts across North America. On July 30, 2009, a motion was made at the annual meeting of the Association of Boxing Commissions to adopt these rules as

7062-530: The contracted fighters under one promotion. Comparisons were drawn to the consolidation that occurred in other sports, such as the AFL-NFL Merger in American football . The first documented use of the name mixed martial arts was in a review of UFC 1 by television critic, Howard Rosenberg , in 1993. The term gained popularity when the website, newfullcontact.com (one of the biggest websites covering

7169-412: The country's colonial holdings. French naval ships between 1820 and 1833 travelled from France to ports in Brazil ( Capoeira ), Martinique ( Danmyé ) and Madagascar ( Moraingy ). In the south, especially in the port of Marseille , sailors developed a fighting style involving high kicks and open-handed slaps. It is conjectured that this kicking style was developed in this way to allow the fighter to use

7276-717: The different stylistic approaches of the French arts of pugilism in the world today. In the United States Jean-Noel Eynard brought Savate Boxe-Francaise & Canne de Combat (FFBFSDA) as a pioneer to the east coast. it is said that Daniel Duby brought Savate (FNBF) to the west coast in Southern California. The first real FFBFSDA/ FIS club of Boxe-Francaise Savate was open in 1983 on the east coast in Philadelphia at St Joseph's University, under Jean-Noel Eynard, FFBFSDA/ FIS Professeur with

7383-525: The early 1920s, merged various forms of combat styles such as wrestling, judo and striking into one unique martial art. The popularity of professional wrestling, which was contested under various catch wrestling rules at the time, waned after World War I , when the sport split into two genres: " shoot ", in which the fighters actually competed, and " show ", which evolved into modern professional wrestling . In 1936, heavyweight boxing contender Kingfish Levinsky and professional wrestler Ray Steele competed in

7490-1194: The first televised use of the term. Since the late 1990s, both strikers and grapplers have been successful at MMA, although it is rare to see any fighter who is not schooled in both striking and grappling arts reach the highest levels of competition. MMA fighters are ranked according to their performance and outcome of their fights and level of competition they faced. The most popular and used, ranking portals are: Combat sport Some combat sports (and their national origin) include boxing (Greek-British), Brazilian jiu-jitsu (Japanese-Brazilian), catch wrestling (British-American), jujutsu (Japanese), judo (Japanese), freestyle wrestling (British-American), Greco-Roman wrestling (French), karate (Chinese-Okinawan-Japanese), kickboxing (numerous origins, mainly Southeast Asian), Lethwei (Burmese), mixed martial arts (numerous origins), Muay Thai (Thai), sambo (Soviet/Russian), sanda (Chinese), savate (French), taekwondo (Korean), Vale Tudo (Brazilian), pankration (Ancient Greek), luta livre (Brazilian), and folk wrestling (various). Traditional styles of wrestling exist in most cultures; wrestling can be considered

7597-563: The form of rooftop fights. During the early 20th century, there was an influx of migrants from mainland China, including Chinese martial arts teachers who opened up martial arts schools in Hong Kong. In the mid-20th century, soaring crime in Hong Kong , combined with limited Hong Kong Police manpower, led to many young Hongkongers learning martial arts for self-defence . Around the 1960s, there were about 400 martial arts schools in Hong Kong, teaching their own distinctive styles of martial arts. In Hong Kong's street fighting culture, there emerged

7704-403: The historian E. Norman Gardiner, "No branch of athletics was more popular than the pankration." There is also evidence of similar mixed combat sports in ancient Egypt , India and Japan . The mid-19th century saw the prominence of the new sport savate in the combat sports circle. French savate fighters wanted to test their techniques against the traditional combat styles of its time. In 1852,

7811-705: The jurisdiction of the CSAC, rendering the vote meaningless. On September 30, 2000, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board (NJSACB) began allowing mixed martial arts promoters to conduct events in New Jersey. The first event was an IFC event titled Battleground 2000 held in Atlantic City. The intent was to allow the NJSACB to observe actual events and gather information to establish a comprehensive set of rules to regulate

7918-411: The kickboxing rules already accepted by most state athletic commissions. These modified kickboxing rules allowed for take downs and ground fighting and did away with rounds, although they did allow for fighters to be stood up by the referee and restarted if there was no action on the ground. These rules were the first in modern MMA to define fouls, fighting surfaces and the use of the cage. In March 1997,

8025-451: The late 1880s when wrestlers representing the style of catch wrestling and many others met in tournaments and music-hall challenge matches throughout Europe. In the US, the first major encounter between a boxer and a wrestler in modern times took place in 1887 when John L. Sullivan , then heavyweight world boxing champion, entered the ring with his trainer, wrestling champion William Muldoon , and

8132-466: The late 1960s to early 1970s, the concept of hybrid martial arts was popularized in the West by Bruce Lee via his system of Jeet Kune Do . Lee believed that "the best fighter is not a boxer, karate or judo man. The best fighter is someone who can adapt to any style, to be formless, to adopt an individual's own style and not following the system of styles." In 2004, UFC President Dana White would call Lee

8239-424: The late 1990s he was the prototype – he could strike with the best strikers; he could grapple with the best grapplers; his endurance was second to none. " — Mike Sloan describing UFC champion Frank Shamrock 's early dominance The high profile of modern MMA promotions such as UFC and Pride has fostered an accelerated development of the sport. The early 1990s saw a wide variety of traditional styles competing in

8346-599: The name "MMA" at the UFC 17 rules meeting in response to increased public criticism. The question as to who actually coined the name is still in debate. The first state-regulated MMA event was held in Biloxi, Mississippi on August 23, 1996, with the sanctioning of IFC's Mayhem in Mississippi show by the Mississippi Athletic Commission under William Lyons. The rules used were an adaptation of

8453-509: The official name of United States Savate Federation was given to this combined association. The teaching efforts of Dr. Jean-Noel Eynard, Salem Assli and Nicolas Saignac contributed to the further development of Boxe Francaise Savate in the US. Bob Alix and L. Gillot 's "pedagogie de la Boxe Francaise" Pédagogie de la boxe française : de l'école au club introduced to the world "Contact / Without being touched" mentality (i.e.«être capable de toucher sans être touché»). This teaching methodology

8560-483: The opponent is on the mat, kidney strikes, and striking the back of the head with closed fist. Holding onto the ring or cage for any reason was defined as a foul. While there are minor differences between these and the final Unified Rules, notably regarding elbow strikes, the Iowa rules allowed mixed martial arts promoters to conduct essentially modern events legally, anywhere in the state. On March 28, 1997, Extreme Fighting 4

8667-540: The original shoot style. Professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki founded Pancrase in 1993 which promoted legitimate contests initially under professional wrestling rules. These promotions inspired Pride Fighting Championships which started in 1997. Pride was acquired by its rival Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2007. A fight between Golden Gloves boxing champion Joey Hadley and Arkansas Karate Champion David Valovich happened on June 22, 1976, at Memphis Blues Baseball Park. The bout had mixed rules:

8774-403: The ports of northwest Italy and northeastern Spain—hence one savate kick named the "Italian kick" ( chassé italien ). The two key historical figures in the history of the shift from street fighting to the modern sport of savate are Michel Casseux (also known as le Pisseux ) (1794–1869) and Charles Lecour (1808–1894). Casseux opened the first establishment in 1825 for practicing and promoting

8881-562: The precursors of modern MMA are mixed style contests throughout Europe, Japan, and the Pacific Rim during the early 1900s. In Japan, these contests were known as merikan , from the Japanese slang for "American [fighting]". Merikan contests were fought under a variety of rules, including points decision, best of three throws or knockdowns, and victory via knockout or submission. Sambo , a martial art and combat sport developed in Russia in

8988-436: The sole, the top of the foot, the toe, or the heel. Sometimes a Headgear can be worn, e.g. in junior competitions and in the early rounds of Combat (full contact) bouts. In competitive or competition savate , which includes Assaut, Pre-Combat, and Combat types, there are only four kinds of kicks allowed along with four kinds of punches allowed: Savate did not begin as a sport, but as a martial art for self-defence taught in

9095-546: The sport at the time), hosted and reprinted the article. The first use of the term by a promotion was in September 1995 by Rick Blume, president and CEO of Battlecade Extreme Fighting, just after UFC 7. UFC official, Jeff Blatnick , was responsible for the Ultimate Fighting Championship officially adopting the name mixed martial arts. It was previously marketed as "Ultimate Fighting" and "No Holds Barred (NHB)", until Blatnick and John McCarthy proposed

9202-468: The sport effectively. On April 3, 2001, the NJSACB held a meeting to discuss the regulation of mixed martial arts events. This meeting attempted to unify the myriad rules and regulations which had been utilized by the different mixed martial arts organizations. At this meeting, the proposed uniform rules were agreed upon by the NJSACB, several other regulatory bodies, numerous promoters of mixed martial arts events and other interested parties in attendance. At

9309-479: The sport. Following these changes, the sport has seen increased popularity with a pay-per-view business that rivals boxing and professional wrestling . In ancient China , combat sport appeared in the form of Leitai , a no-holds-barred mixed combat sport that combined Chinese martial arts , boxing and wrestling. In ancient Greece , there was a sport called pankration , which featured grappling and striking skills similar to those found in modern MMA. Pankration

9416-477: The sport. However, early competition saw varying levels of success among disparate styles. In the early 1990s, practitioners of grappling based styles such as Brazilian jiu-jitsu dominated competition in the United States. Practitioners of striking based arts such as boxing , kickboxing , and karate , who were unfamiliar with submission grappling, proved to be unprepared to deal with its submission techniques . As competitions became more and more common, those with

9523-523: The streets of Paris and Marseille . This type of savate was known as Savate de Rue (street savate). In addition to kicks and punches, savate de rue incorporates knee and elbow strikes as well as joint locks, sweeps, throws, headbutts and takedowns. The International Savate Federation holds World Championships in three disciplines: Savate Assaut , Savate Combat and Canne de combat . World Savate Combat Championships are being held for Seniors (over 21 years) and Juniors (18 to 21 years). In "Dr. Wells

9630-401: The technique of "ground and pound" developed by wrestling-based UFC pioneers such as Dan Severn , Don Frye and Mark Coleman . These wrestlers realized the need for the incorporation of strikes on the ground as well as on the feet, and incorporated ground striking into their grappling-based styles. Mark Coleman stated at UFC 14 that his strategy was to "Ground him and pound him", which may be

9737-407: The use of these various techniques are highly regulated to minimize permanent or severe physical damage to each participant though means of organized officiating by a single or multiple referees that can distribute penalties or interrupt the actions of the competitors during the competition. In weapon based sports, the weapons used are made to be non-lethal by means of modifying the striking portions of

9844-551: The weapon and requiring participants to wear protective clothing/armor. In combat sports, victory is obtained from blows, punches or attacks to the head to a point of physical injury that the opponent is unable to continue. Different forms of combat sport have different rules and regulations into the equipment competitors have to wear. In Amateur boxing seen at the Olympics, competitors are permitted to wear head guards and correctly weighted padded gloves, mouth guards are optional and

9951-663: The world. MMA gyms serve as specialized training centers where fighters develop their skills across various martial arts disciplines, such as Brazilian jiu-jitsu, wrestling, Muay Thai, and boxing. These gyms provide structured environments for athletes to prepare for competition, offering coaching, sparring, and conditioning programs. Certain gyms, such as the UFC Performance Institute offer facilities like cryotherapy chambers , underwater treadmills , and DEXA machines. The following are popular MMA gyms along with notable fighters that have trained out of them. As

10058-526: Was Bartitsu , which Edward William Barton-Wright founded in London in 1899. Combining catch wrestling , judo , boxing , savate , jujutsu and canne de combat (French stick fighting), Bartitsu was the first martial art known to have combined Asian and European fighting styles, and which saw MMA-style contests throughout England, pitting European catch wrestlers and Japanese judoka champions against representatives of various European wrestling styles. Among

10165-446: Was Kimura vs. Gracie in 1951. In mid-20th century Hong Kong , rooftop street fighting contests between different martial arts styles gave rise to Bruce Lee 's hybrid martial arts style Jeet Kune Do . Another precursor to modern MMA was the 1976 Ali vs. Inoki exhibition bout, fought between boxer Muhammad Ali and wrestler Antonio Inoki in Japan, where it later inspired the foundation of Shooto in 1985, Pancrase in 1993, and

10272-479: Was at a disadvantage, using his hands only to bat his opponent's fists away, rather than to punch. He trained in boxing for a time before combining boxing with chausson and savate to create the sport of savate (or boxe française , as we know it today). At some point la canne and le baton , stick fighting , were added, and some form of stick fencing, such as la canne , is commonly part of savate training. Those who train purely for competition may omit this. Savate

10379-427: Was best, began testing each other in their respective arts of kenpo, jujitsu, Chinese and American boxing and tang soo do . From this they developed kajukenbo , the first American mixed martial arts. In 1951, a high-profile grappling match was Masahiko Kimura vs. Hélio Gracie , which was wrestled between judoka Masahiko Kimura and Brazilian jiu jitsu founder Hélio Gracie in Brazil. Kimura defeated Gracie using

10486-577: Was developed in the 1920s to 1930s. Sambo was introduced in the Soviet Union . Modern Taekwondo also emerged after the Japanese occupation of Korea and became an Olympic sport in 2000. Sanshou as part of modern wushu was developed in the People's Republic of China since the 1950s. Kickboxing and full contact karate were developed in the 1960s and became popular in Japan and the West during

10593-403: Was developed professionally by Lecour's student Joseph Charlemont and then his son Charles Charlemont . Charles continued his father's work and in 1899 fought an English boxer named Jerry Driscoll . He won the match with a round-kick ( fouetté median ) in the eighth round although the English said that it was a kick to the groin. According to the well known English referee, Bernard John Angle of

10700-412: Was finding it increasingly difficult to get fights in Thailand as his weight (70 kg) was not typical for Thailand, where competitive bouts tended to be at the lower weights. Roufus knocked Changpuek down twice with punches in the first round, breaking Changpuek's jaw, but lost by technical knockout in the fourth round due to the culmination of low kicks to the legs that he was unprepared for. This match

10807-466: Was formed by combining the already established wrestling and boxing traditions and, in Olympic terms, first featured in the 33rd Olympiad in 648 BC. All strikes and holds were allowed with the exception of biting and gouging, which were banned. The fighters, called pankratiasts, fought until someone could not continue or signaled submission by raising their index finger; there were no rounds. According to

10914-690: Was held under these rules, making it the first show conducted under a version of the modern rules. In April 2000, the California State Athletic Commission voted unanimously in favor of regulations that later became the foundation for the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts . However, when the legislation was sent to the California capital in Sacramento for review, it was determined that the sport fell outside

11021-476: Was knocked out by elbows. The Japanese fighter who lost, Kenji Kurosaki, was a kyokushin instructor, rather than a contender, and that he had stood in as a substitute for the absent chosen fighter. In June of the same year, karateka and future kickboxer Tadashi Sawamura faced top Thai fighter Samarn Sor Adisorn: Sawamura was knocked down sixteen times on his way to defeat. Sawamura went on to incorporate what he learned in that fight in kickboxing tournaments. During

11128-505: Was presented with a memento depicting the Olympic Rings . In April 2010, the International Savate Federation was accepted as a member of SportAccord (previously known as AGFIS) – a big step forward on the road to Olympic recognition. Despite its roots, savate is a relatively safe sport to learn. Today, savate is practiced all over the world by amateurs from Australia to the U.S. and from Finland to Britain. Many countries (including

11235-677: Was slammed to the mat in two minutes. The next publicized encounter occurred in the late 1890s when future heavyweight boxing champion Bob Fitzsimmons took on European wrestling champion Ernest Roeber . In September 1901, Frank "Paddy" Slavin , who had been a contender for Sullivan's boxing title, knocked out future world wrestling champion Frank Gotch in Dawson City , Canada. The judo-practitioner Ren-nierand, who gained fame after defeating George Dubois, would fight again in another similar contest, which he lost to Ukrainian Catch wrestler Ivan Poddubny. Another early example of mixed martial arts

11342-420: Was the first popular fight which showcased the power of such low kicks to a predominantly Western audience. The movement that led to the creation of present-day mixed martial arts scenes emerged from a confluence of several earlier martial arts scenes: the vale tudo events in Brazil, rooftop fights in Hong Kong's street fighting culture, and professional wrestlers , especially in Japan . Vale tudo began in

11449-606: Was used by the first instructors (Initiateurs, moniteurs) and Professors of SAVATE in the US who got certified by FFBFSDA. ARSIC-International has been instrumental at promoting savate in the US. In official competitions, competitors wear an intégrale or a vest and savate trousers. They wear boxing gloves (with or without padded palms) and savate boots. Savate is the only kickboxing style besides Combat Hopak to use footwear, although some other combat sports such as Shoot Fighting and some forms of MMA sometimes also wear grappling-type shoes/boots. Savate boots can be used to hit with

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