The UFC and MMA in general has low level athletes

[JJCc]

It seems that the dream of making it to the UFC is a lot more realistic and achievable for just about everyone rather than only the microscopic elite athletes.

Look at people like Rob Font, didn't train MMA until late in life, and was a waiter, and he's about to fight for a world title. You could never do this in elite sports like the NFL, MLB, NBA, ect. Someone who was in their late 20s, that have never played basketball, couldn't simply start playing and expect to join the NBA, let alone become one of their best players.

Look at Dominick Reyes, failed to make the cut in football for not being fast enough, then started training MMA in his late 20s and came in and arguably beat the GOAT of UFC.

It feels like with most sports, in order to make it into a top tier league, just working hard isn't enough, you need insane genetics along with dedication.

You don't need that to make it to the UFC, hardwork and decent/average genetics can get you there. It's not realistic that if you play basketball or football since you were 5 and dedicate your life to it that you'd make the cut for the NBA or the NFL. If you trained MMA since you were 5 and were extremely dedicated to it, you have a decent chance of getting into the UFC.

 

[Slatersan]

That’s kind of the whole point of doing martial arts.

 

[TheMessiah]

The talent pool in MMA is more shallow compared to other sports

 

[Volador]

Wait, are you saying that A-level athletes could come in and dominate MMA with ease? Interesting... that’s a good point that I’ve never seen anyone on Sherdog raise before.

 

[KID Yamamoto]

But muh NFL...

 

[mraa1]

as much as I like to shitpost about the UFC and their C-level athletes, the fact is that being a fighter and being an athlete aren't mutually exclusive. It takes certain intangibles. Some of the best athletes in the world couldn't make it in the fight game if they attempted to and I don't mean just MMA

 

[hswrestler]

I'd say most top ranked ufc fighters are at least B level athletes. The D1 wrestlers are at the peak of their field and guys like Cormier and Cejudo are legit olympians, which Kamaru usman almost being at that level. Ditto with top sambo, bjj, and kickboxer/muay thai fighters.
The average joe would not be able to replicate the reflexes of Adesanya, the power of Ngannou, the stamina of Colby or the toughness of Gaethje even with 10000+ hours of training

 

[textwarrior]

Look at people like Rob Font, didn't train MMA until late in life, and was a waiter, and he's about to fight for a world title. You could never do this in elite sports like the NFL, MLB, NBA, ect. Someone who was in their late 20s, that have never played basketball, couldn't simply start playing and expect to join the NBA, let alone become one of their best players.

The question about how much fighting is natural vs skilled is interesting? How long does it take ? did you start too late? AS vs Belfort proved learning karate later in life did not pan out well against a Champ who has been doing Mauy Thai since a kid. So many factors as to why, but, how long does it take a fighter to prime his skills to the max? How much of it is simply natural talent? how do you know? .....I believe fighting is mostly natural and can be learned pretty quickly however there is always experience and technique that is always learned.

 

[D'z]

First thread of it's kind.

10/10

 

[FIghtxIQ]

as much as I like to shitpost about the UFC and their C-level athletes, the fact is that being a fighter and being an athlete aren't mutually exclusive. It takes certain intangibles. Some of the best athletes in the world couldn't make it in the fight game if they attempted to and I don't mean just MMA

This. Physical gifts alone isn't enough for combat sports. You also need the mentality of a fighter. Their personal response to pain and getting hit is what usually separates fighters from the athletes. But an A-Level athlete with the mentality of a fighter would do very well. I picture Jordan and Shaq, doing well with their mentality plus their physical gifts. They would get in fights in practice and in games, the fighter mentality is there with certain players like that.

 

[Mondo Freaks]

Heavy weight for sure. The talent pool is small to begin with then add on the fact that big guys will go to more lucrative sports.

 

[DS66]

That's what makes fighting so intriguing. At the end of the day, it's a fight, and fighting is in everyone's blood. If you have a lot of heart and toughness and an incredible work ethic, along with decent athletic genetics, you can have success as a fighter. Other sports like basketball/football are more about being genetic freaks along with a very specific technical skillset developed from a young age. They're just different. It's not about comparing the athletes.

 

[91 seconds]

If the NFL was 10x larger and had teams for every weight division we would probably see more stories about guys going in and making the cut as long as they know the game. The mainstream sports like NFL/NBA have a lock down on the A level HW athletes starting in elementary school. The rest of us athletic smaller guys can kiss that dream goodbye because we recognize early on we're not physically able to compete. There really would be no incentive to go into MMA when you're potentially making millions doing what you were groomed to do. It will always be filled with guys who couldn't make the cut because they're still larger and more athletic than 99.9 percent of the population.

 

[Post 2 Decision]

The talent pool in those sports are so much deeper. Especially global sports like Footy/Soccer, Basketball, and Tennis.

Also, being an 'elite athlete' doesn't make you good at getting punched and kicked in the head lol

 

[hswrestler]

The talent pool in those sports are so much deeper. Especially global sports like Footy/Soccer, Basketball, and Tennis.

Also, being an 'elite athlete' doesn't make you good at getting punched and kicked in the head lol

Not too sure about tennis, or basketball since basketball is relatively america centric while tennis is usually a sport restricted for rich/middle class.

And being an elite athlete definetely helps with power and conditioning. I'd consider guys like Cormier, Jones, Usman, and Ngannou, Khabib to be elite atheletes

 

[TeenageMutantLesnarTurtle]

Being able to transition into a sport relatively late doesnt mean it has low level athletes. American football and rugby have some of the biggest/strongest/fastest dudes in sports but its possible for an athletic kid to pick it up to pro level much much later than something like soccer or ice hockey.

 

[DaRivv20]

Looking for them yellow cards are we?

 

[Post 2 Decision]

Not too sure about tennis, or basketball since basketball is relatively america centric while tennis is usually a sport restricted for rich/middle class.

And being an elite athlete definetely helps with power and conditioning. I'd consider guys like Cormier, Jones, Usman, and Ngannou, Khabib to be elite atheletes

The difference in the amount of people who play Tennis or Basketball (hundreds of millions) vs training MMA is astronomical.

 

[MeatWagon06]

“Fighting”

 

[kflo]

Ray Mercer started boxing at 23. Wilder at 20. Font was 22.