ATTACK OF THE MMA CLONES!

Stylistically, why do most MMA fighters look so similar these days?

Are the days of style vs style in mixed martial arts completely gone?        

I really hope not!

While there are definitely some unique fighters, its seems like most MMA competitors are just a combination of the "Big 4", with varying degrees of skill in each.

The "Big 4" is a style combination of western boxing, muay thai, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and wrestling. The mix of those four styles is the recipe that most trainers and fighters follow.

Is this a good thing or a bad thing? I would say that, ultimately, pun intended, its a bad thing. A proliferation of "cookie-cutter" style fighters will ultimately lead to a proliferation of boring fights. I understand that fighters with similar styles can have exciting fights, but after a while all the fights will start looking the same. Variety is the spice of life, and style variety is very important to MMA.

There is also the trend of grappling based fighters, who start training in boxing and muay thai, and suddenly think they are world class strikers. They seem to forget what got them to the point they're at, what they are best at and where their strength lies. Diego Sanchez, Jorge Gurgel and Joe Stevenson immediately come to mind. Often the result is watching 2 world class wrestlers or BJJ players in a not so skilled boxing/kickboxing match. I'd much rather see these guys in a technical ground fight. Isn't the point of MMA to see fighters excelling at what they are best at? I'm all for fighters improving all areas of their game, just don't forget where you came from.

You rarely see the opposite happen. Georges St-Pierre is one of the few fighters who comes from a striking background and has truly reinvented himself as a grappling based fighter. To think that Georges is now known for his dominant wrestling is pretty amazing.

Some of the more unique fighters are Fedor Emelianenko, Lyoto Machida, Demian Maia, Anderson Silva, Vitor Belfort and Rousimar Palhares. It was far from my intention to name mostly Brazilian fighters, it just turned out that way.

Fedor Emelianenko is a VERY unique fighter. His style mix of Russian Sambo, judo and his patented kamikaze striking are truly all his own. Obviously, from seeing Fedor's enormous success, its a recipe that has paid HUGE dividends for him. From the spectator standpoint, his style, along with his unemotional demeanor, make Fedor a very exciting fighter to watch. You never know what to expect from him. He knocks people out, he throws people and he submits people, all with dizzying speed and ferocity. Then he raises his hand in victory and sort of smiles out of satisfaction that he has done well, not that he has just hurt or humiliated his opponent. He doesn't fight for those reasons, he fights purely for the competition and to test himself. What's not to love about Fedor? He comes to fight every time, and walks out a winner, EVERY TIME. Not much more you can ask for; except a step up in competition? Wink, wink!

Lyoto Machida is very unique in the fact that he relies heavily on karate as his base art. What's even more "unique" about that is that karate is one of the most studied martial arts on the planet but Machida is a "unique" fighter for using it? Using one of the most studied martial arts makes him "unorthodox"? That last sentence speaks volumes about how "boxed in" the technical/stylistic side of MMA has become. Very strange!

Karate is also a big part of the newly rejuvenated Vitor Belfort's training philosophy. Vitor now employs an effective "sprawl 'n' brawl" mix of karate and muay thai which seems to have played a significant role in his return to prominence in the sport. By all accounts, he is now a VERY dedicated karateka. His recent destruction of Rich Franklin is evidence of Vitor's improvements as of late. Unfortunately, an injury incurred while preparing for his title fight with Anderson Silva prevented us from seeing that fight. That could have been one for the ages! Interestingly, Vitor has been a blackbelt in BJJ for many years now but rarely uses the art in his fights.

Anderson Silva is an absolute beast of a fighter. His fighting style primarily incorporates 2 of the "Big 4", but he does it very differently than everyone else. He most definitely uses a lot of muay thai, but he seamlessly mixes it with western boxing, and a touch of karate and Tae Kwon Do. He also has a blackbelt in BJJ under the Nogueira brothers. The results are devastating! Anderson rightfully sits at or near the top of most people's P4P best fighter lists. He is currently on an absolute tear, winning 11 straight fights. He's undefeated in the UFC with 10 wins and hasn't lost a fight since losing to Yushin Okami in early 2006. That "loss" was actually a DQ due to an illegal kick. His last legitimate loss was to Ryo Chonan in Pride back on New Year's Eve 2004. That's an absolutely amazing run!

What makes Demian Maia such a unique fighter is that he's a throwback to the early days of North American MMA. In a lot of ways he's a modern day Royce Gracie. If you don't know who Royce is, you stumbled onto the wrong website. Maia is an exemplary example of how effective pure Brazilian jiu-jitsu $TILL is. Its a beautiful thing to see. To watch his mastery in action is just phenomenal. The one time Demian decided to try out his new found striking skills, he ended up KTFO from a well placed punch by Nate "the Great' Marquardt. Stick to the jits, Demian!

Rousimar Palhares is very similar to Maia in this regard. He has and relies heavily on insane BJJ technique to win his fights. Palhares also backs up his technique with ridiculous strength and savagery. If he gets a hold of any limb or the neck of an opponent, the fight is almost certainly over, and quickly. Torn ligaments or tendons could very well be the result. This guy has scary jiu-jitsu! He has compiled a very impressive 11-2 record with his only loss in his last 10 fights coming at the hands of Dan Henderson. There's absolutely no shame in losing a decision to Hendo. During that stretch, he has 7 submission wins, 5 of which were leg locks. The sport needs fighters like Palhares. While he does have a history of holding on to submissions too long, I don't feel like its done maliciously. He just seems to get caught up in the moment. That said, he needs to be more aware of opponents tapping and of referee interaction.

Although we haven't seen him in the cage yet, James Toney will bring something different to the game. His world class boxing skills and reliance on the sweet science will be very interesting to see in action. Initially I wasn't too happy about his signing to the UFC, but now I can see some value in it. If nothing else, what Toney brings to the table will keep things fresh.

UFC 112 is giving us a throwback fight of sorts in Silva vs Maia for the middleweight title. Its almost like UFC 1 all over again. Its a classic striker versus grappler match-up. Can incredible BJJ technique finally stop the best striker in the game? We'll find out on Saturday. Regardless of the outcome, its fights like this that make MMA the incredible sport that it is.

Going forward, I have no doubt that the quality of fighters will improve. As the sport continues to grow, better quality athletes will attempt careers in MMA. And we are just starting to see the first sprinklings of fighters who grew up on the sport, training in MMA as a whole, not separately in the different styles that make up mixed martial arts. All of this is positive in every way.

My only wish is that we see some individuality in the fighters of now, and more importantly, the fighters of the future. The last thing I want the sport to turn into is C-level kickboxing, in a cage, with an occasional takedown and submission. Lets hope fighters like the aforementioned continue to influence the newcomers to the sport.

Mixed Martial Arts is a sport, NOT a style. Having unique, different style fighters will only make it more interesting for the spectator and further the rapid pace at which the sport is currently growing.