> The rules of football, boxing, MMA, etc. have been continuously changed to make them safer
I disagree, at least in part.
Pretty much all of the rules of boxing make it unsafe, and it seems to have evolved to be increasingly so. Boxers have to ignore every instinct that their body has to protect them, from continuous clinching to grabbing to taking the fight to the ground.
If a boxer falls to the ground, dizzy with head trauma, the referee will literally count to 10, and if that boxer can stand up, they can stand in front of their opponent and be hit in the head some more. Like they're a piece of meat.
MMA is much, much better in this regard, but still has some bad parts, and many of the changes have made things worse and not better.
The original UFC rules banned hand wraps, which allow fighters to throw wide, fastball-style overhand punches that would otherwise be impossible without breaking hands.
The original rules also did not provide for referee stand-ups, which have nothing to do with the sport and are instead a purely subjective move to make the fight more exciting. Leaving the fight on the ground is always safer (and, IMO, almost always more exciting, but that's a different topic).
The system of weight-determination in MMA (typically a single weigh-in, 24-40 hours before the fight) absolutely incentivizes deep weight cuts, and that's disgusting. Changes to these rules have often made things worse instead of better (options for an early weigh-in, a ban on IV rehydration, etc). Although OneFC is doing brilliant work in this field I will say; they are an exception.
MMA is a great sport and almost certainly much safer than Football or Boxing, but it's up to fans to stand up and demand re-examination of some of the rules that have gone in the wrong direction.
I disagree, at least in part.
Pretty much all of the rules of boxing make it unsafe, and it seems to have evolved to be increasingly so. Boxers have to ignore every instinct that their body has to protect them, from continuous clinching to grabbing to taking the fight to the ground.
If a boxer falls to the ground, dizzy with head trauma, the referee will literally count to 10, and if that boxer can stand up, they can stand in front of their opponent and be hit in the head some more. Like they're a piece of meat.
MMA is much, much better in this regard, but still has some bad parts, and many of the changes have made things worse and not better.
The original UFC rules banned hand wraps, which allow fighters to throw wide, fastball-style overhand punches that would otherwise be impossible without breaking hands.
The original rules also did not provide for referee stand-ups, which have nothing to do with the sport and are instead a purely subjective move to make the fight more exciting. Leaving the fight on the ground is always safer (and, IMO, almost always more exciting, but that's a different topic).
The system of weight-determination in MMA (typically a single weigh-in, 24-40 hours before the fight) absolutely incentivizes deep weight cuts, and that's disgusting. Changes to these rules have often made things worse instead of better (options for an early weigh-in, a ban on IV rehydration, etc). Although OneFC is doing brilliant work in this field I will say; they are an exception.
MMA is a great sport and almost certainly much safer than Football or Boxing, but it's up to fans to stand up and demand re-examination of some of the rules that have gone in the wrong direction.