GlovesAndSuch

It is my contention that UFC rules favour strikers over grapplers.

I'm not going to complain that having the fighters start far apart is unfair. It has to start someplace, and being at distance is more representative of real fighting. I pretty much assume that should always be the determiner.

So they start, and what are they wearing? They have on a pair of shorts, a pair of gloves, and a mouthguard.

The mouthguard is to protect everybody against striking damage. In that it favours grapplers more than strikers.

The bare chest and shorts greatly favours strikers. The fighters are sweaty and very slippery. Imagine the advantage to grapplers if both participants had to wear the traditional gi uniform. Plenty of handles to grab. Instead, there are none.

If fighters were even permitted to wear shirts, it would significantly shift the balance to grapplers. A wise grappler wouldn't go bare chested, or even in a slippery rashguard. The added friction that would result between the fighters that even a simple cotton garment would give the grappler much greater control and make it harder for people to slip away.

The biggest garment advantage to strikers is given by the gloves. Unlike boxing gloves, the fingers are free for grabbing. This is the concession to grappling. In every other respect they function to the benefit of strikers.

They are not made to absorb impact to protect the target. They are thinly padded, and covered with a very firm material. If I had a choice of being hit by a bare fist, or by a UFC glove, I'd rather be hit by the bare hand. The entire structure is solely to protect the striking fist. This lessens the chance of damage to the strikers, and actually allows them to throw with greater power, confident that the gloves will protect their hands even if the clunk into solid bone.

So let's say a grappler gets passed the swinging fists and their hand-protecting gloves, manages to grab his sweaty, slippery, and almost naked opponent, and gets him down on the ground. He now starts to work on achieving a submission. Again, the gloves are against him.

Rolling around in Jiu-Jitsu class, one of the most successful submissions is called the Americana. To do it, you pin the opponent's wrist to the floor, slip your other hand underneath it, and twist; threatening a shoulder dislocation. With gloves on, it is just about impossible to slip the second hand underneath the opponent's arm to secure the position. As a result, the Americana is almost eliminated altogether. Out of 67 submission victories scored in the UFC in 2013, 9 were to armbars of all kinds. That includes all armbars of every type. I would be surprised to discover that more than one or two were Americanas. It might have been none at all.

This is equally true of other submissions. There was only one successful Kimura in all of that year. It is another move that the gloves render almost impossible. Chokes are also effected.

If a grappler were offered the choice between fighting with gloves under current rules, or being allowed to fight with no gloves they would always pick bare hands.

Suppose each competitor could pick for themselves; either no gloves and being unable to hit with their hands, or with gloves and punching allowed. Every striker would pick gloves, and every grappler would want bare hands. This doesn't mean the grappler couldn't hit. There are still kicks, knee strikes, and elbows.

Anyhow, this is just my two cents for today. If it were up to me, I'd do away with the gloves altogether, and allow fighters to wear shirts if they want.