good or bad for the sport?

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mayhem203

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hey ya'll
just recently saw that cage fighter clothing is now available at kohls and american fighter clothing is available at walmart. whats your thought on this? I can see it as good and bad...tell me u can see some dirty ass ghetto people wearing american fighter cause "it looks cool man" probably not knowing who rich franklin even is.hahaha.
 
I was really caught off guard when I saw a TapOut and Affliction display in Dillards.

Good or bad I don't know. But these are clothing companies and will sell to whomever gets them the most exposure.
 
I don't think it is either good or bad for the sport it is just clothes.
 
tapout is everywhere...i see it in foot locker and champs sports too...
 
Is anyone familiar with the fortunes of Burberry in the UK? A once designer brand for the rich and famous, it was heavily counterfeited and adopted as the uniform of the British Chav, the redneck equivalent in the UK:

"Burberry's trench coats were soon seen not only as a protective item of clothing for troops but a must-have style for celebrities. With both Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart sporting the coasts in films, the brand's transition from practical outerwear into chic garments was complete.

However, the brand was to become a victim of its own success. The famous Burberry check pattern became popular with football fans, leading it to become the ultimate in "chav" fashion, adorning the heads of football hooligans and C-list celebrities across the country - not the image the company had been hoping for.

"Burberry has the air of being worn by country poshos," says writer and broadcaster Robert Elms. "So if you're a boy on a council estate that's the ultimate thing to take you out of there - looking like the landed gentry."

The market had been flooded with fake Burberry goods demonstrating the now notorious beige check design and the company had become a laughing stock in the fashion world. Burberry had some serious work to do if it wanted to claw back its credibility as a luxury retailer.

Its response was one of the biggest brand reinventions the fashion industry had seen in years. And most importantly the check was ditched. The introduction of design director Christopher Bailey in 2001 heralded a new era of young, sexy advertising fronted by supermodel Kate Moss and the company's prospects started to look up. "

(Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/southeast/sites/treorchy/pages/burberrystory.shtml)


I guess this is the risk of any company being a victim of success, counterfeiting and widespread adornment will devalue it's brand...
 
^^^^ theres a difference lad! burberry clothes cost hundreds of dollars..where mma clothing is MUCH cheaper. why would someone make a fake tapout shirt? U can get a ral one for $20...that might be a lot to you, but its pretty damn cheap if u ask me
 
I think it is good for the sport of mma. It is showing that the sport is becoming much more mainstream. Much like you see people wearing NFL shirts, jerseys and hats you will see people supporting mma. The more people who advertise mma, the more people who will want to see what it is all about. Eventually it has to lead to the fighters getting better pay and more recognition. IMO, it is a very good thing.
 
Cage Fighter/MMA Authentics/Familia Gladiatoria is a terrible brand. They are the worst of the major brands (significant "Octagon" exposure).

Brands like SKO, Jesus Didn't Tap, Beat 2 Sleep, and the like are obviously absolute garbage as far as creativity and intelligent wear are concerned, but nobody buys their product except the unfortunately affiliated (friends, family, training partners, people desperate for free gear).

With major exposure, Cage Fighter/MMA Authentics are guilty of greater fashion transgressions. Familia Gladiatoria actually has a couple neat designs, and is somewhat refreshing in comparison to a million "chain-linked" shirts. The other two are the lamest imaginable. They are a step away from the "I'll KO you and do your mom" basement screened shirts you see at backwoods amateur events.
 
mayhem203 said:
^^^^ theres a difference lad! burberry clothes cost hundreds of dollars..where mma clothing is MUCH cheaper. why would someone make a fake tapout shirt? U can get a ral one for $20...that might be a lot to you, but its pretty damn cheap if u ask me
Click to expand...

I was in Edmonton last month at the famous West Edmonton Mall and there was a lot of Tap Out and UFC knockoffs. You'd be surprised what people will copy if they can make a buck at a kiosk.
 
It's a mixed bag. There's a certain passion for the underground that you will never see anywhere else, no matter what the subject choice is. Whenever any event or idea becomes mainstream, the "uninitiated" who don't understand the subject's history generally become the larger fan base. What everyone really wants to know is if the increased exposure will help or hurt growth.

I believe there is still a misunderstanding to what mixed martial arts really is. The term "cage fighting" is most often used and denotes the image of lawless bar room brawls without rules, not sophisticated contests between professional athletes. If the masses are now exposed to MMA from retail's lowest common denominator, I don't think the sport will improve its mainstream image.
 
Scott McWade said:
It's a mixed bag. There's a certain passion for the underground that you will never see anywhere else, no matter what the subject choice is. Whenever any event or idea becomes mainstream, the "uninitiated" who don't understand the subject's history generally become the larger fan base. What everyone really wants to know is if the increased exposure will help or hurt growth.

I believe there is still a misunderstanding to what mixed martial arts really is. The term "cage fighting" is most often used and denotes the image of lawless bar room brawls without rules, not sophisticated contests between professional athletes. If the masses are now exposed to MMA from retail's lowest common denominator, I don't think the sport will improve its mainstream image.
Click to expand...


Hey, well put man. You hit the nail on the head with a lot of good points. The question of whether or not the increased exposure will help or hurt growth is a good one. All I know is when I am sitting (or should I say standing) at my seat in Montreal on April 19th, and George comes walking out of that tunnel to 22,000 screaming insaniacs, I will have goose bumps bigger than I ever have. This would not be the case if not for the mainstream attention and the largest crowd in UFC history, and when that moment happens I am going to be loving the sport and everything about it. I will appreciate that everyone there is as stoked as I am and I won't give two shits who is wearing what.
 
Well I think you could look at it from a couple different angles.

Some people might be enamored with MMA as a sport, but we all know that it isnt always affordable for everyone to train. Maybe wearing the clothes kind of keeps people in touch with their inner fan. Its similar to people wearing LA Lakers or other team clothing.

Personally, I am a broke college student who devotes a good portion of my sad income to training haha. So I can understand if people cant train, they might still want to wear some related clothing.

On the flipside, I think it is important to understand that it is just clothes. Some of the designs dont necessarily scream "I train MMA" you know?

The more exposure it gets though, ultimately I think is great for the sport. Hopefully enrollment will continue to go up in our local training centers.
 
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