Boxing v Ultimate Fighting – is there room for both ?

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Boxing v Ultimate Fighting – is there room for both ?

Ultimate fighting has been around for a lot longer than most people think. It has more recently burst onto the scene a few years ago with the emergence of UFC. I am obviously a boxing fan and supporter I can however appreciate and enjoy Ultimate Fighting, the below discusses the pros and cons for each from a none bias perspective (As much as I can) and give my answer to the question will Ultimate fighting take over from boxing or can the two attract equal audiences. Ten of the top questions requested.

1) Which is the best to watch ?

Having had a go at this myself there is so much more skill than people can appreciate from just watching, from the untrained eye a ground battle looks like two men rolling around on the ground. However from a watching point of view it can get a little boring, I much prefer the stand up battles with the likes of Chuck Liddell than the ground work of the likes of Matt Hughes.

There is usually a lot more blood with the smaller gloves and elbows cut are opened on a regular basis. A great fight is fantastic to watch but a poor one can be soul destroying. Even with the top players in the division it doesn’t necessarily mean it will be a great fight look at the match between Andrei Alovski and Frank the Maniac Mir when the two basically jabbed each other for the duration of the 5 x 5 minute rounds.

Unfortunately boxing is going through a bit of a drab patch at the moment, especially the Heavyweights and because of this it is not being given as much air time as it used to. However there are still some great fighters around, the problem for me is that there are too many Title belts around and this is preventing the best fighting the best, if it was reduced back to one title belt for the true champion boxing would improve dramatically.

However this is never likely to happen due to money and politics, but I will stand by my belief that a great boxing match will always be better to watch than the best Ultimate fighting bout. This has been openly admitted by a number of hardcore Ultimate Fighting fans. The fights between the likes of Gatti v Ward, Corrales v Castillo and Holyfield v Bowe will go down in history and be remembered longer than any Ultimate Fighting Bout.

Ultimate fighting is becoming more exciting as there are more and more stand up fighters are doing well, as the ground work although skilful is a little dull to watch. Tito Ortiz has changed his style to be more stand up as it is more appealing to the fans, even Matt Hughes recently attempted it, unfortunately he is by far a better wrestler and proved this in his last fight by trying to fight stand up but losing badly. But surely it is then turning into Boxing with Smaller gloves.

Ultimate Fighting 7/10
Boxing 8/10

2) Which has the potential to create a legend ?

In my eyes the likes of UFC fall down a little at this hurdle, even the Champions considered the best have a number of losses on their records, this is due to the fact that not always the best man wins the bout. A lucky punch due to the small gloves or submission move can see even the poorer fighters best the best. Because of this it will be hard for anyone to really stand out as the best. Very few have actually established themselves as either unbeatable or as the top of their division.

In Boxing only very rarely does the better man not walk away with the win, obviously occasionally there is a outstanding performance from the underdog, but the best seem to float to the top and remain there until someone better comes along or they challenge themselves by moving into another weight class. Over 12 rounds boxing has much more tactics, Boxing has been around for many years and developed into a world wide sport, fighters are know all over the world and remembered for many years after they retire. Ultimate fighting is an up and coming sport but is not there yet.

Ultimate Fighting – 5/10
Boxing 9/10

3) Which has the most blood and gore ?

An obvious winner in this category with knees and elbows flying around fights are cut on a regular basis.

In Boxing there has been some nasty injuries like Sebastian Lujan’s ear swelling up and then exploding, cuts do occur on a regular basis but there is more time to treat them and stop the bleeding

Ultimate Fighting 9/10
Boxing 6/10

4) Which is the best to watch on a live show ?

Apart from the likes of UFC 69 and various similar shows the line ups are looking more and more like boxing every day, one main event and a few smaller bouts, Boxing would learn well from having a big show with a lot of Title fights on the same bill like UFC — and would attract large audiences and great TV air time. Unfortunately money is the key factor in boxing and also it is going that way in Ultimate Fighting as well. The view for ultimate fighting isn’t the best due to them fighting in a cage but venues tend to be tiered to allow everyone to get a good view.

Unless you have a ringside seat or very close live boxing matches will drive you insane even for the hardened fan. Most are held in venues where the seating isn’t tiered and as soon as a decent shot is landed the person in front of you jumps up, so you get up and unless you are 7ft you haven’t got a clue what is happening till everyone sits down again. Probably missing the best part of the fights. The atmosphere however is usually amazing but to be honest when I go to live boxing I tend to watch the video of the fights afterwards as a lot of it I missed.

Ultimate Fighting – 7/10
Boxing 5/10

5) Which is the most socially acceptable ?

From it’s days of having very little rules in general it is frowned upon, however more recently with the introduction of rules and gloves the sports image has improved, It is a lot bigger in the US than it is in Britain as it doesn’t even appear in the newspapers over here, where as boxing always makes the press and occasionally the front page. With fighters in the UFC now British with the likes of Michael Bisping doing so well and events now being held over here it is becoming more popular.

However boxing is far more acceptable in Britain than Ultimate Fighting, it has a History which can’t be taken away and people love that. It is the ultimate test for a warrior who can give and take punishment for a long period of time while using set rules of combat, Ultimate Fighting has a wider range of rules that that time to understand, and as said before to the untrained eye it can resemble a pub brawl in a cage.

Ultimate Fighting 6/10
Boxing 8/10

6) Which is the toughest ?

This is a tough one, put a boxer in the cage with a Ultimate Fighter and there will tend to be only one result, unless the boxer gets a good punch in quick he will lose. But on the same terms put an Ultimate Fighter in a boxing ring with a boxer and he will get destroyed.

I have recently done some sparring with a top European Ultimate Fighter to improve his stand up, and to say he was poor would be an understatement. Most fights in Ultimate Fighting are only 3 rounds, 5 minutes per round, but I assure you this is hard work, boxing is usually 8-12 rounds 3 minutes each. Having done both I would say they are as hard as each other, 5 minute rounds are very sapping but 10-12, 3 minutes rounds are a killer. You will take a lot more clean punishment in a boxing match, but getting kneed in the face really isn’t pleasant.

I realise the gloves are smaller in Ultimate Fighting but to be honest they are there more to protect your hands than anything else, when ultimate fighting was gloveless there was less punching going on as people would break there hands early on, since the gloves were introduced the punches have become a lot harder. To have been hit with an 8oz glove and 4oz there isn’t a massive difference.

Ultimate Fighting 10/10
Boxing 10/10

7) Who would you rather face a top boxer or a top Ultimate Fighter ?

Easy answer neither, if faced with life or death I would take on the Ultimate fighter, boxers are trained to give and receive punches and they can do substantial damage, also I would say boxers in general are fitter, obviously there are exceptions. But with the choice of getting punched by the likes of Andrei Alovski or Mike Tyson in his prime I would accept Andrei’s ever time, the ultimate fighter would probably break a bone or two but you have more chance of surviving the attack from them rather than a boxer.

Ultimate Fighting 8/10
Boxing 9/10

Is Ultimate Fighting taking over from Boxing ?

Personally I don’t think so, there is space for both forms of fighting to flourish, Ultimate fighting is probably getting more hyped up at the moment as it is a growing sport, but fans from both sides appreciate the other.

Boxing is still massive and you put on a decent show and it will sell out, Ultimate fighting hasn’t reached there yet but in a few years maybe it will, but to say one taking over from the other is like saying is Baseball taking over American Football or is Rugby taking over Football, they are there own separate sports both with matched appeal and attract a lot of fans who enjoy both.

There is a lot more money in Boxing and this is drowning the sport a little, but Ultimate Fighting will experience this as well, at the moment the only real big name is UFC, when a challenging body gets as big which it will it will be the same story.

Ultimate Fighting 8/10
Boxing 7/10

9) What one thing could each sport do to improve ?

For the boxing I would have to go back to the one World Title belt, fair enough have a title for each country, for example the British Championship belt, and for the money making companies a continental title like the European Belt, even regional titles but in regard to the World Champion there should be only one.

The biggest thing for Ultimate Fighting is to have more people competing worldwide which is gradually happening, the majority at the moment are North and South American based with a few thrown in from around the world, that is best the way to get world recognition and worldwide coverage, the likes American Football and Baseball are mainly US based, Baseball’s world series are all American how can a team be named world champions if that country are the only ones competing?

Ultimate Fighting 8/10
Boxing 7/10

10) Which sport appeals to the community the most ?

With the youth section Ultimate fighting defiantly has the edge on this one, I guess the reasons are the younger ones can play ultimate fighting wrestling and submitting one another, as why wrestling is so big, boxing is a more disciplined sport which kids can’t really play as just punching each other wouldn’t be much fun, and could be messy. Kids like something they can copy and be the superstar of their choice. Boxing is more a watching sport and attracts mainly the older section of the community. As far as fan base Boxing is much bigger but has been around for a lot longer, in the future who knows, boxing has stood the tests of time and I am sure Ultimate Fighting will as well.

Ultimate Fighting 8/10
Boxing 7/10

The total scores are in

Ultimate fighting total – 76

Boxing final Total – 76

The final scores were a draw for the questions asked, I didn’t know the totals until I worked them out at the end. I answered the questions as honestly as I could.

At the end of the day they are both great sports and there is room for both to be massively supported. I obviously prefer boxing and if there was a top boxing match and a top UFC match I would watch the boxing every time, but that is me.