Mixed Martial Arts: The Counterculture Sport

My main interest is with sports and sports media, so I have to do something with that before this class is done. I have grown to become a big fan of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). Not in the sense that I wear the shirts that say "TAPOUT" or have necklaces embroidered into the shirts. As an aspiring sports journalist, I appreciate the excitement, competitiveness, and athleticism it brings to the table. Unfortunately, I am in the minority when it comes to my admiration for this sport. Sport being the key word here. In many regions and journalistic mediums, MMA is not looked at as a sport. Yet it continues to grow in popularity all over the globe. So it is popular, but the superpower of the sports world (ESPN) does not approve of it. The fans fight for it even without the support of the media, which is who we tend to look to for a sense of approval. Sounds like counterculture to me.

I should not say that ESPN is the evil empire that is wrapping the preverbal chains around the ankles of MMA. It is just many of the high powered journalists that make up the company that deserve the blame. I do not understand any reasoning why this sport should remain blacklisted. It encompasses several different fighting disciplines such as wrestling and boxing. When these disciplines are on their own, they are considered a sport. You can also look at the people that make up the sport. Before they began competing in MMA, many of these athletes participated in karate and wrestling events collegiately and internationally. The only skepticism I can see for someone to have about MMA, is the history of how it was promoted. The people that use to be running this sport use to promote extreme violence and a no holds barred mentality. The sport was definitely counterculture then. However, at their lowest, they recognized their most important qualities and evolved for the better.

This is not a situation where the followers are making the sport counterculture. It is the media that is making MMA counterculture. Many times you will see someone bail on something, because it is not longer counterculture. I guess it has to do with the endless fight of sticking it to the man. In MMA's case, the true fans want the sport to be culturally excepted. They want knowledgeable fans and journalists to be talking about it. The overwhelming popularity for the sport has forced the action. ESPN and Sports Illustrated are now forced to incorporate MMA in their programing and literature. For this sport to truly become part of our culture, the now prominent journalists are going to have to go. Hopefully when our generation replaces them, we will bring an open mind when it comes to this sport, because that is exactly what it is.