lpinoy
08-27-2010, 11:59 PM
C/P
This weekend the next chapter of the increasingly popular debate between boxing and MMA will be written. Living boxing legend and trash-talking specialist James Toney will test his luck in the cage with none other than the formidable Randy Couture. Couture will be fighting his kind of fight in his kind of sport, an advantage Toney won’t be able to share. Not to mention the fact that “The Natural” is a former UFC heavyweight champion and a Greco-Roman wrestling expert.
The MMA versus boxing debate has rich historic roots. Three decades before the first official UFC event (UFC 1), Milo Savage and Gene LeBell faced off in the ring in Salt Lake City to put an end to the ‘who’s a better fighter’ debate. It was the first time a mixed martial arts fight was televised, and the first time a boxer took on a judo expert in the ring with formal rules and officiating.
Lebell, now 78, recalled it this week in a succinct definition: “fighting for your life.”
The story goes like this. In a 1963 issue of Rogue Magazine, a sixties alternative to Playboy Magazine, writer Jim Beck wrote an article called “The Judo Bums” and threw down a challenge: $1000.00 to any judo expert who could take out a professional boxer.
Gene LeBell was informed of the challenge by a colleague in a Judoka dojo. Karate legend Ed Parker allegedly said to him: “You're the most sadistic bastard I know and we want you to represent the martial arts.” So LeBell agreed to.
Before the bout, LeBell made sure to see his opponent Milo Savage fight. He remembers Savage not needing more than three minutes to demolish his opposition. Savage was known primarily for his hard hitting power.
Because sanctioning the fight would be next to impossible to do in California (the state would need another 40 years to regulate MMA), it was put on in Salt Lake City, which happened to be Savage’s home court. Savage, who was an aged 39 by the time of the bout, had once been a top-five ranked light heavyweight. As the rules for the bout were drawn up, Savage’s side said they didn’t want to allow LeBell any funny karate kicks or chops. In response, LeBell asked what he could do, such as choke his opponent. Savage’s handlers merely laughed, but LeBell was entirely serious.
When the bout finally got underway, LeBell quickly felt Savage’s immense power. But by the fourth round he managed to get behind Savage and lock in a headlock. Just like that, the bout was over, with the official doctor not knowing what to do with an out cold Savage. LeBell recalls that in exiting the ring, riots were breaking out everyone, with someone even trying to stab him.
So what does LeBell think about Toney and Couture? When the original victor was questioned about the comparison of the two sports, he said diligently: "Well, if you ask me, cause I done 'em both, it's the combination. If you're a boxer, you better know how to sprawl if someone comes in to tackle you. If you're a wrestler, you better know how to bob or weave or block or move around so he doesn't hit you."
That’s all well and good. Perhaps one legitimate question in comparing the two sports though, is why boxers are always forced to abide by the rules and contexts of MMA in fights. Is there any question who would win in a boxing match between Randy Couture and James Toney? If, say, they had to fight by official boxing rules and wear gloves? No. It seems then that whenever MMA is positioned as the better sport, it is always under the aspect of being the hosting sport.
This weekend the next chapter of the increasingly popular debate between boxing and MMA will be written. Living boxing legend and trash-talking specialist James Toney will test his luck in the cage with none other than the formidable Randy Couture. Couture will be fighting his kind of fight in his kind of sport, an advantage Toney won’t be able to share. Not to mention the fact that “The Natural” is a former UFC heavyweight champion and a Greco-Roman wrestling expert.
The MMA versus boxing debate has rich historic roots. Three decades before the first official UFC event (UFC 1), Milo Savage and Gene LeBell faced off in the ring in Salt Lake City to put an end to the ‘who’s a better fighter’ debate. It was the first time a mixed martial arts fight was televised, and the first time a boxer took on a judo expert in the ring with formal rules and officiating.
Lebell, now 78, recalled it this week in a succinct definition: “fighting for your life.”
The story goes like this. In a 1963 issue of Rogue Magazine, a sixties alternative to Playboy Magazine, writer Jim Beck wrote an article called “The Judo Bums” and threw down a challenge: $1000.00 to any judo expert who could take out a professional boxer.
Gene LeBell was informed of the challenge by a colleague in a Judoka dojo. Karate legend Ed Parker allegedly said to him: “You're the most sadistic bastard I know and we want you to represent the martial arts.” So LeBell agreed to.
Before the bout, LeBell made sure to see his opponent Milo Savage fight. He remembers Savage not needing more than three minutes to demolish his opposition. Savage was known primarily for his hard hitting power.
Because sanctioning the fight would be next to impossible to do in California (the state would need another 40 years to regulate MMA), it was put on in Salt Lake City, which happened to be Savage’s home court. Savage, who was an aged 39 by the time of the bout, had once been a top-five ranked light heavyweight. As the rules for the bout were drawn up, Savage’s side said they didn’t want to allow LeBell any funny karate kicks or chops. In response, LeBell asked what he could do, such as choke his opponent. Savage’s handlers merely laughed, but LeBell was entirely serious.
When the bout finally got underway, LeBell quickly felt Savage’s immense power. But by the fourth round he managed to get behind Savage and lock in a headlock. Just like that, the bout was over, with the official doctor not knowing what to do with an out cold Savage. LeBell recalls that in exiting the ring, riots were breaking out everyone, with someone even trying to stab him.
So what does LeBell think about Toney and Couture? When the original victor was questioned about the comparison of the two sports, he said diligently: "Well, if you ask me, cause I done 'em both, it's the combination. If you're a boxer, you better know how to sprawl if someone comes in to tackle you. If you're a wrestler, you better know how to bob or weave or block or move around so he doesn't hit you."
That’s all well and good. Perhaps one legitimate question in comparing the two sports though, is why boxers are always forced to abide by the rules and contexts of MMA in fights. Is there any question who would win in a boxing match between Randy Couture and James Toney? If, say, they had to fight by official boxing rules and wear gloves? No. It seems then that whenever MMA is positioned as the better sport, it is always under the aspect of being the hosting sport.