I know that there is no such thing as a MMA wrestler. Few mixed martial artists rely solely on one discipline to bring them success. However, while most fighters are trained in numerous disciplines, some have a predictable style. I mean no disrespect in this post when I refer to a mixed martial artist as a wrestler. I do so for clarity.
I’m confounded by the way people have been talking about Antonio McKee. I advise people to put on their thinking caps before they go spouting off about the way some fighters with a strong wrestling base approach MMA.
To finish an opponent via KO or submission is high drama and everyone loves drama. I get it. Crank a guys arm back and make him cry uncle. Knock an opponent out- one minute he is spouting taunts, and the next he’s laying on the canvas making a fish faced expression.
It’s cool to dig that stuff but open your mind and take a minute to think about what is happening on the ground when a guy like McKee is at work. Think about being on your back and having a wrestler control you. You try in vain to squirm free. In order to improve your position you take the chance of letting go of the wrestler’s wrist or head for a second, only to be rewarded with a fist to the face. The wrestler in your guard is alternately trying to push down your leg to pass or he’s pummeling you in the head. You realize that you are loosing the fight but you are so busy trying to avoid a TKO that you are helpless to mount much offense. It’s a slow, smothering, frustrating experience.
It could be said that this is a more interesting way to win than by knock out. Consider the phrase: lucky punch. Fighters who win by knock out are often capitalizing on a mistake. Maybe the victim has a weak chin. Maybe he eats a hail mary haymaker thrown by a striker who was ducking his head and had really no idea if or where the punch would land. Winning the way McKee does happens by systematically dominating and controlling an opponent’s body while inflicting damage. He uses leverage, power, strategy and technique. Wrestlers make constant adjustments on the ground to continue to improve their position and inflict damage in order to keep the fight where they are most comfortable. Fighters with a wresting gnp style typically give their opponents no room or opportunity to use their own tools to win.
As there are many styles and aspects to MMA, so are there various ways to win. Some wrestlers are grinders. And that is ok! Would you prefer to see fights like Sherk vs Edgar where a guy like Sherk wastes his wrestling gifts in order to put on a sad display of dull boxing? More and more collegiate wrestlers will enter MMA. Fans and commentators would do well to wrap their heads around this craft and show some respect for fighters such as Antonio McKee.
