THE ART OF WAR
In spite of its relative infancy, the sport of mixed martial arts has taken the world by storm. In a quarter of a century or so, the combat sport has enjoyed a meteoric ascent, evolving from unregulated brawls to a slickly marketed, global juggernaut. Combining elements of grappling, striking and submission fighting, all occurring within the unforgiving confines of a locked cage, MMA’s ultimate goal is as uncompromising as those that pledge themselves to it: to become the most popular form of combat in the world. Those spearheading the sport also harbour Olympic ambitions.
These are grand plans indeed, especially for a sport that at one point, during its formative decade, found itself lambasted by politicians and dropped from the airwaves by US cable companies for being too ‘barbaric’. However, should it happen one day, MMA’s ascension into the elite pantheon of competitions featured in the Olympic Games would be entirely fitting. After all, the
