There has long been a war between boxing and MMA, with both sports at one point or another claiming they are the best. Although there are similarities, the two are also completely different. Professionals for both sports have clashed over time, fighters have half-heartedly challenged pros from different fighting categories. Comparing the sports from the outside might seem easy, but there’s a lot more to it than meets the eye.
Which Sport Is Tougher?
There is no denying that both sports and incredibly competitive and intense. To make it to the top requires a huge amount of skill, dedication and desire. Deciphering which sport is tougher is a difficult challenge, which will also be variable depending on people’s opinions.
What are the essentials for both sports? Fitness and strength is the where the groundwork lies for each sport. Without them it would be impossible to be either an MMA fighter or boxer. Theoretically, you would have to be fitter to be a boxer as there are more rounds, yet you need to be extremely fit in MMA to be able to combat different grappling moves. Breathing techniques are a really important way of getting oxygen to your muscles whilst fighting for breath.
Strength is a completely different ball game. Fighters for both sport need to have enough power to be able to deal damage, yet not too over bearing that it impacts speed. Usually MMA fighters tend to have more lean muscle, in order to be able grapple effectively and be quick in the ring. Boxers are slightly different, dependent on weight class Boxers tend to go for more muscle mass in order to deal more power. However, with this extra strength comes the sacrifice of speed, which is why it is so rare to see quick heavy weight boxers.
What Do People Think?
Heavyweight Boxing champion Tyson Fury caused a storm on twitter, after he reacted badly to comments that he would have ‘no chance’ against MMA fighter Cain Velasquez. Fury claimed that he would ‘easily’ be able to beat the American champion.
MMA fans would say that their sport wins’ hands down. They generally consider that the options available to an MMA fighter would throw a boxer out of his rhythm and sync. Not to mention all the extra fire power they have in terms of grappling and ground strikes. However, boxers have shown that they are more than capable of holding their own. Older boxers Ray Mercer and James Toney who made the switch to the MMA ring and were good enough to hold their own. It would certainly be good to see some of boxing’s great swap the gloves.
How fascinating would it be to see Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Jr or Wladimir ‘Mountain’ Klitschsko take on Chuck Lidell, Anderson Silva or Fedor Emelianenko.
If boxers were given a similar amount of training there is no doubt that they would be able to transition into MMA and succeed.
