Fighters are the finest athletes on the planet

[Hi-Tech]

You are terribly underrating how big and explosive these NBA players. They're not your typical lanky guy you knew in high school.

Explosiveness doesn't mean absolutely anything in fighting if you don't have the right timing. You only get that through years of experience, something that those NBA bums will never have

 

[bad seed]

And most tennis and soccer players would be too scared to even train seriously in MMA or boxing.

And most fighters would be too scared to go cliff diving, so what? We're not talking about courage, we're discussing athletic potential based on genetics. And mma has a shallow talent pool to choose from compared to real sports. Deal with it and shut up.

 

[Hi-Tech]

And most fighters would be too scared to go cliff diving, so what? We're not talking about courage, we're discussing athletic potential based on genetics. And mma has a shallow talent pool to choose from compared to real sports. Deal with it and shut up.

Talent doesn't exist, it's all about hard work. Didn't you listen to Conor?

 

[PRESIDENT TRUMP]

What were the quality of his opponents?

Doesn't matter. Dude is 6'9, 265 can do a standing backflip at that size and is reportedly able to spin kick shit off an NBA rim. Both parents were combat instructors. Two days of YouTube clips and he's the UFC GOAT. No question. The UFC hasn't seen that sort of size and athleticism before. It would be scary

 

[KOskater]

You are terribly underrating how big and explosive these NBA players. They're not your typical lanky guy you knew in high school.

Yeah the athleticism is prolly higher because there's way more money in NBA than UFC.

They are very coordinated and athletic when it comes to leaping and controlling a tool, like a ball.

But even with their athleticism NBA player would translate terribly to MMA. Unless maybe they started leaping across the Octagon and landing on guys. At close quarters they'd have a big disadvantage and in grappling. They're also not very strong relatively... NBA is more about skill and coordination than strength. Whereas MMA you need a lot of power and strength to clinch, grapple and wrestle.

Kobe is 6'6" and 202. He's a talent but a lurch. They'd get wrecked by HWs. It's just a different kind of athleticism but they're both impressive.

 

[KOskater]

A 6'11 Dwight Howard with minimal MMA training would destroy Cormier in a fight.

DC had trouble with Jones' reach - add about another 7 inches to that.

Yes because Struve is so successful.

Your greatly underestimating a low center of gravity. This guy is very athletic. But he's so long it'd be very easy to slip his punches, get inside and wreck him. It would take him years of training to learn how to use a jab and maximize his height and avoid TDs

 

[$uicideboy$]

 

[LostMyBlackBelt]

 

[BoosieBoo]

Yes because Struve is so successful.

Your greatly underestimating a low center of gravity. This guy is very athletic. But he's so long it'd be very easy to slip his punches, get inside and wreck him. It would take him years of training to learn how to use a jab and maximize his height and avoid TDs

Struve is a D level athlete and he still KO'd Stipe LoL.

 

[KOskater]

Doesn't matter. Dude is 6'9, 265 can do a standing backflip at that size and is reportedly able to spin kick shit off an NBA rim. Both parents were combat instructors. Two days of YouTube clips and he's the UFC GOAT. No question. The UFC hasn't seen that sort of size and athleticism before. It would be scary

These guys would wreck da UFCs

Athleticism

Height

Coordination

Deadly Precision

 

[kammfreudenstei]

Remember TS, gotta give respect to get it. Can't get mad at them bashing your athletes when you be serving em as such, nomsayn?

 

[KOskater]

Struve is a D level athlete and he still KO'd Stipe LoL.

He may not be a great athlete but he has years of training from childhood in how to punch, grappling and Martial Arts. There's a lot of technique to throwing a punch like there is to throwing a ball.

And Struve, a lower end MMA HW, hits harder than 90% of the NBA guaranteed. Maybe LaBraun may hit harder just cuz he's da ultimate beast. Maybe LaBraun would hit harder with a single shot but he would still lack all the other skill like throwing combos, defense and a ground game.

And NBA player could do amazing things with a ball... they'd have no clue how to punch and would have to spend years training. Same as an MMA fighter would have to take thousands of shots before they could land 'em like NBAers

 

[mjfan23]

Body builders are the only A level athlete in the world based on sherdog logic

 

[Hi-Tech]

Yes because Struve is so successful.

Your greatly underestimating a low center of gravity. This guy is very athletic. But he's so long it'd be very easy to slip his punches, get inside and wreck him. It would take him years of training to learn how to use a jab and maximize his height and avoid TDs

Yeah exactly. Because some long rangy fighters are successful using very specific boxing techniques like sticking the opponent with a well time jab and moving around laterally it doesn't mean these NBA guys could employ their height as some big advantage. More often then not it would be a disadvantage.

I can see wrestlers easily picking up those long legs and toss him around then grab one of those long limbs on the ground for subs. Or just butcher him with body shots on the inside.

 

[magicmarker]

17% chance that you play in the NBA if you are over 7 feet tall and between 20-40 years old. A lot of sports are a combination of athletes and people who have been reverse engineered to be athletic because of their size. "A-level" American sports will often combine these two pools of talent, and the size of the non-athletes make the actual athletes look even more athletic than they really are...

https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/r...playing-nba/fNnbP8zybYfXZtsw0eYPDK/story.html

 

[KOskater]

And most fighters would be too scared to go cliff diving, so what? We're not talking about courage, we're discussing athletic potential based on genetics. And mma has a shallow talent pool to choose from compared to real sports. Deal with it and shut up.

This is bordering on fighter bashing but I'll let it go and won't tell my Mod buddies.

You're exaggerating but I do agree MMA is shallower compared to Billion Dollar team sports that have been around for 50-100 years.

That's just a given.

MMA is still growing but it's growing quickly and there's already been a huge level of athletic growth. Compare Tank Abbott to the guys today.

 

[Kelman]

Roger Federer and Messi wouldn't last a round of boxing. It takes a completely different conditioning.

Pacman is a legend and a warrior. I don't know why we make so much distinction between boxing and MMA anyway, it's all one big fighting family. Pacman is ten times the man Messi will ever know how to be.

Yeah coz my point was that Roger Federer could last a round of boxing. Great stuff.

 

[Tormund]

I'm also 100% positive Aldo made it to the national levels with soccer.

No he didn't, he played in some charity games.

 

[HendricksPunch]

 

[Kelman]

This makes no sense. Fighting and grappling makes you extremely fatigued. Do you think Messi or Federer would be any less tired? Pacquiao is my favorite boxer of all time but all he has to do is box. He doesn't have to shoot/defend takedowns, grapple on the floor, get kicked in the legs, etc. You cannot compare any other sport to MMA. Just because they have good cardio in their sport does not mean it would transfer to MMA.

I agree with a lot of what the OP says. Fighters are the real A level athletes. We might not be as big as NFL guys but that is because we do too much cardio every day. Start training JJ Watt MMA every day and let's see if he can maintain all that muscle mass while also building cardio and developing skills. Because if you train martial arts six or seven days a week it is going to be very hard to also maintain that muscle mass and NFL combine numbers that everybody loves to talk about

It makes fucking perfect sense.

A sportsman should be perfectly attuned to perform well for the maximum possible duration in their own field.

The best footballers, tennis players, boxers etc always are.

Many of the top MMA fighters are often not.

This point was so simple to understand (and so correct) it even feels silly explaining it.