Why is MMA and Boxing more popular than Kickboxing?

[Allidoiswin]

Serious question here. Boxing and MMA are considered more mainstream but why is that? They're almost the same, like MMA without wrestling or Boxing plus elbows, knees and kicks. So why aren't they as mainstream?

 

[tasticles]

Serious question here. Boxing and MMA are considered more mainstream but why is that? They're almost the same, like MMA without wrestling or Boxing plus elbows, knees and kicks. So why aren't they as mainstream?

I've never really understood it myself. My best theory is there were just funding issues and it never really took off in the states. Kickboxing is very popular in other places in the world. Boxing has always been considered the manliest classic fight that drew a lot of crowds and great fighters. MMA was NHB before and took off for obvious reasons.

 

[FMAxBoxing]

Kickboxing was never marketed right

 

[BROWNPRIDE]

kicking boxing just dont have stars or i think they were never taking to serious

 

[Snubnoze707]

Most people like it when they see it, but most people never see it.

People are exposed to Boxing and MMA all the time, so obviously it's more popular.

 

[Bubblun]

^^^ sorry guys, but you are wrong

kickboxing was a sport dominated by a japanese organization that made events for japanese people.
top fighters are 99% from the Netherlands.
kickboxing always been big in Japan and the Netherlands, and K1 didn't cared about making big events for overseas countries.

only after 2000s people from all over the world started to follow kickboxing, thanks to the internet.

 

[pinoy wrestler]

^^^ sorry guys, but you are wrong

kickboxing was a sport dominated by a japanese organization that made events for japanese people.
top fighters are 99% from the Netherlands.
kickboxing always been big in Japan and the Netherlands, and K1 didn't cared about making big events for overseas countries.

only after 2000s people from all over the world started to follow kickboxing, thanks to the internet.

True. And, re other parts of the world, well, it's not necessarily the lack of interesting personalities (remember Chuck Norris, Don "TheDragon" Wilson, et. al.)...

 

[VolkHan]

Kickboxing (taken as an umbrella term for all striking combat sports that involves even kicks, so even MT, Savate, ...) is far more diffused in Eurasia where I think in a lot of nations is still more diffused than MMA.

Just it never was marketed properly in USA.

 

[VicariousVice]

Boxing in one form or another has been around for thousands of years and is a world wide sport practised by everybody. It's been an Olympic sport since the beginning. It has serious history.

MMA has the benefit of starting out in controversy(atleast in NA) as well as developing in the computer age. It also has Zuffa to thank for bringing all the best fighters and personalities under one roof AND having had The Ultimate Fighter to thank for much of it's mainstream success. Dana has stated numerous times that if it weren't for TUF MMA would not have taken off in the mid 2000's.

Kickboxing unfortunately didn't have any of this going for it. After the early 90's it died in North America. K-1 kept it alive in Japan and Europe, but it never focused on North America and until the internet we couldn't really watch it. I remember thinking about Kickboxing as a kid wondering how to watch it and wondering why it just wasn't around on tv. In the case of Glory it's basically had to start all over again and rebuild the sport. It's actually popular in Europe and Asia. If Glory manages to get on a better channel than that piece of shit Spike or if someone like Scott Coker manages to help them out while they're still there maybe we'll see Glory Kickboxing really take off. I hope it will.

 

[SuperLuigi]

The Anglosphere has cultural ties to boxing, and MMA is popular because it has American stars. If 90% of MMA fighters were Dutch or Thai MMA would lose all its popularity in America. I feel like it already would have happened to boxing if not for guys like Floyd.

 

[MysticNinjaJay]

Kickboxing had problems with marketing in the past as others have said.

Boxing has been popular for over 100 years. It's longevity as a sport is the reason why it is so easy to market. It's become ingrained in our culture as a mainstay sport. People know what Boxing is which is why it's the premier combat sport.

Mixed Martial Arts became popular in North America when Zuffa acquired the UFC and created The Ultimate Fighter show, banking on the popularity of reality TV. It borrowed its model from the WWE, promoting the fighters as interesting personalities that people would buy Pay-Per-Views to watch. Before the Zuffa era the UFC was a dying organization. It was promoted as a spectacle like Tough Man in a cage. It was banned across the USA. Zuffa cleaned up with sport by complying with athletic commissions to instill acceptable rules and regulations. They took Boxing's model for the way the sport was regulated and Professional Wrestling's model for the way they marketed fighters.

I think if Kickboxing learned from MMA's blueprint it would become a more popular sport. It needs more weight classes and a deeper talent pool. I think however that fight fans find MMA to be the more interesting sport because of the ground and pound and all of the moves you can do. You're getting a less restricted fight with MMA than you are with Boxing or Kickboxing which is why I expect MMA to continue to rise in popularity.

 

[PivotPunch]

MMA was marketed perfectly and in the early days it got a lot of casual fans just because of the small gloves, the cage and the bar brawl vibe and skill level (which lead to more exciting fights than if they ahd been very skilled) and nowadays it's big enough to survive as a legit sport.
And modern boxing has been around for over 100 years, bareknuckle boxing and some kind of boxing has been around for several thousand years it's one of the oldest sports in the history of mankind and was even bigger in the 20th century than today at least in the US from the 1920s to the 90s it was huge guys like Dempsey, Ali and others were insanely popular even before anyone knew who Tyson was.
Kickboxing is a young sport and was never marketed well and most who have a talent for striking go to boxing since there's more money to make

 

[Bang Rachan]

One of my friends said that kicking is gay but I didn't bother ask why.

 

[NidNoi]

If 90% of MMA fighters were Dutch or Thai MMA would lose all its popularity in America.

There are few thai fighters in kickboxing.

 

[EndlessCritic]

Marketing is everything.

Also, when your sport revolves around fights that are 3 rounds by 3 minutes... yeah no that was a horrible idea.

 

[BJ@LW&WW]

I think part of it is that boxing really appeals to the older crowds while mma obviously appeals greatly to the younger crowd.

The US also used to have this kickboxing show on cable tv that was horrible. That might contribute to producers views of the sports ability to draw.

I think maybe with glory kickboxing might start expanding though.

 

[Cocakillbana]

Marketing/advertising is irrelevant in why kickboxing isn't as popular as boxing.

Were talking about a sport (modern boxing) that for over a century has an incredibly rich history and tradition. Some of the most recognizable people on earth were boxers.

You could advertise kickboxing to the entire world at once and never would that sport be able to sniff boxings jockstrap.

 

[boneclutcher]

Over here in Holland boxing is virtually dead,MMA is still in its infancy and kickboxing is big.

 

[Bang Rachan]

Over here in Holland boxing is virtually dead,MMA is still in its infancy and kickboxing is big.

Would the average Dutch person know something about kickboing in general?

 

[Yodsanan]

It needs more weight classes and a deeper talent pool.

Do you even Glory?