Editor’s note: This column is about mixed martial arts, and it appears on a biweekly basis on Thursdays.Hafa Adai, people of Guam.
Thanks again for stopping by. Stepping back, looking at our developments in mixed martial arts, I can regretfully see that we have neglected to develop prerequisite sports that can strengthen a more competitive environment. It’s essential in not only developing the strategies, but the skills of our debut and future fighter-athletes. As a result, the standard of
being labeled a professional in our sport is virtually non-progressive and the overall status of our fighter-athlete community has compromised its merit.
If you want to say that you’ve been training hard for three months and that you can run ten miles so that you’re ready to fight, perhaps you should be referred to one of the many jiujitsu, boxing or kickboxing champions, who have committed years of diligent training, discipline and sacrifice. Bring your notebook, it should be an interesting conversation.As fighter-athletes, we ought to be patient and put in our time before we think we’re ready to compete as professionals. Yet, as promoters at the same time, we collectively need to try to develop this atmosphere for not only a few or only for the elite, but for the prosperity and dignity of our sport and for the sake of our continued identity as an asset to World MMA.
There is a campaign from our island’s MMA industry that is pushing for the honor and recognition of our sport and the dignity of our fighter-athletes. But what honor and dignity do we bring to our sport and to our fans when we come to the show unprepared?
Really, we hope to be professionals and to be professionals we have to sacrifice. In order for our sport to be professional, we must reveal merit and create opportunities for those who sacrifice.
Why can it be so easy for some of us to jump into the cage and so difficult for the same people to show up to practice? Are we competing because we just like to fight and we don’t care to train, or are we showing up because we know we’ve been studying properly and working hard for the big show? We need to take steps to better differentiate MMA athletics from no-holds-barred-tough-man competitions. And for our sport to be respected as professional and for our athletes to be respected as professionals, we all need to do our homework.
Somebody said 10,000 times makes the move, 10,000 times makes the move, 10,000 times makes the move. As many times as I hear it, I’m still having a hard time getting that past my thick skull. Oh well, 9,997 more to go.
For Guam. Since ever since.
