I come from a background in traditional martial arts and still practice to this day. I sometimes hear and read a lot of “noise” from traditionalists ranting and raving about how MMA is only for the ring or octagon and would not “work” in a real confrontation on the street or in a bar. I disagree, with one exception. That is, I disagree that MMA techniques and tactics would not work on the street or in a bar because clearly they are effective at ending a confrontation/competition and many times by knockout. I do have to agree however with the traditionalists on the part of ground fighting. I would not want to be on the ground on the street or especially in a bar trying to choke someone out or submit them. There is too high a probability that others (most likely your attacker’s friends) would begin to effectively stomp your face to mush, give you a concussion and/or break your ribs with kicks and stomps while you were on the ground. I personally would be very concerned about that, so I think I’ll just stick to striking/kicking. But enough of that. On to my favorite fighters in MMA (in no particular order).

Fedor Emelianenko

I honestly don’t care that people who are UFC fans seem to have a problem with Fedor. The man went for a decade without a loss. That says a lot. What speaks even louder is his personality. He is soft spoken, humble and obviously feels no need to disrespect his opponents. I admire that. I will not watch a fighter who talks trash all the time, is a braggart, and/or disrespects his/her opponents in or out of the ring. Fedor shows good character both in and out of the ring. Here is a clip of him in the ring.

Rosi Sexton

I have already done a post on Rosi Sexton in the past but I want to write about her here also because she is one of my favorite fighters as well, and for many of the same reasons as Fedor. She shows good character both in and out of the ring. She is extremely intelligent both as a fighter and in her life outside fighting as well. This, to me, says that this is a person who is very well rounded, very disciplined and very dedicated. She is a D.O. (Doctor of Osteopathy), has degrees in math and computers as well. She also has a son so put all this together and it should be obvious to anyone that she is not only a very focused individual, but also incredibly adept at time management! All that said, her fight record is very impressive as well. 10 wins with only 2 losses. That should make it clear that she is a formidable opponent in the ring and knows what she is doing. Here is a highlight clip of her training and in the ring.

Mirko Filipovic (Cro Cop)

I like Mirko for the same reasons I like Rosi and Fedor. He has a good personality, shows control in and out of the ring and is not a braggart. He, like Rosi and Fedor, is also a parent. He is obviously committed to doing his best, even when things are not going his way. That shows character. Another reason I like Mirko is because he is a kicker as am I (though I am not a MMA fighter and do not pretend to be on the same level as these three). Mirko’s kicks are fast, accurate and obviously effective. Impressive to say the least. Here is a clip of him in the ring.

So I guess it is obvious why I like these three fighters above the rest. Their personalities, character, discipline and talent. If there was a fighter out there who won every single fight he or she was involved with yet disrespected their opponents, acted like a fool in and out of the ring, talked trash almost non-stop and just generally showed poor character, I would not watch his or her fights nor acknowledge their wins in the ring because there is more to fighting and competition than just the fight. It is the character and heart of the fighter as well.