Lessons from a Championship Title Fight

Lessons from a Championship Title Fight

This past weekend, the world championship title bout between Jose Aldo and Urijah Faber, the 2 greatest 145 lb MMA fighters in the world, turned out to be a one-sided affair.  The champion, Jose Aldo, is a Muay Thai and BJJ fighter with a strong preference for striking (as opposed to grappling).  The challenger, Urijah Faber, is a wrestler with an excellent ground and pound game.  While Faber only has a basic level striking game, he does have KO power.  Many experts believed that it would be an evenly contested match with lots of excitement, especially given the level of athleticism, experience, and depth of skill involved on both sides.  However, Jose Aldo dominated the fight for 5 rounds from beginning to end with textbook Muay Thai.  He delivered over 20 low roundhouse leg kicks to Faber's leg during the fight.  In fact, by the end of the 2nd round, Faber was already hobbling and could not move.  Faber could barely stand and his left leg was completely paralyzed.  He showed tremendous heart for completing the fight.  95% of fighters would have quit in the 3rd or 4th round from the pain and devastation from the leg kicks.  Above all, Faber showed amazing sportsmanship and class after the fight by giving 100% credit to his opponent and refusing to give excuses.  Faber showed the true warrior spirit of martial arts through his courage, humility, respect, and honor.  

Here is an interview with Faber a few days after he got beaten by World Champion Jose Aldo. 
 

Find more videos like this on Urijah Faber

The key lesson from this fight is that it is essential for a fighter to dictate his/her game in a fight.  Aldo is unique in that his Muay Thai and BJJ games are equal in terms of experience and skill.  Even though he prefers striking more, Aldo is very comfortable on the ground because he is a world-class BJJ Black Belt with many titles in Brazil under his belt.  On the other hand, Faber is a far better wrestler than he is a striker.  He does his best work when the fight is on the ground.  In this particular fight, both men were standing on their feet for approximately 95% of the time.  The fight hit the ground only because Aldo kicked Faber in the leg so hard that Faber collapsed in pain.  Faber never executed a successful takedown in the entire fight because his left leg was completely disabled.  Aldo was able to dictate his game onto Faber.  As the superior striker, Aldo's game plan was simple.  If he could keep the fight on its feet, then he would have a large advantage because it was Faber's weakest part of his game.  If Faber had gone aggressively after takedowns in the first round, the outcome might have been very different.

The goal for any martial artist should be to become as well-rounded in every area as possible.  It was very clear in this fight why it is beneficial to do so.  At Evolve Mixed Martial Arts®, we are big believers in this principle.  Whether it is for a professional fight or a self-defense situation, it is critical to have skills in both the standup and ground departments.  As such, Evolve MMA offers the most comprehensive course offering across all the most successful striking and grappling arts.  Equally important, most of our courses are headed up by authentic World Champions.  In fact, Evolve MMA is the only academy in the world with World Champions in Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Boxing, and No Gi Grappling.  As a student at Evolve MMA, you should take advantage of everything that Evolve has to offer, especially since all courses are included in your membership anyways.  So pick your favorite course and try to experience all the other courses too!  If you do so, then you will see amazing results in terms of your skills, your fitness levels, and your real-life ability to defend yourself. 

Here is to Achieving Greatness Within!

Evolve Mixed Martial Arts® is Asia's premier brand of MMA academies.  Evolve MMA ranks among the best academies in the world for Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Mixed Martial Arts.