I was talking to my dad about Mixed Martial Arts one day, and he told me it was not exciting to watch. My first instinct was to invite him into the ring. Then I remembered the whole giving me food and shelter thing all those years, and I decided just to listen for once.

The truth is many traditional fight fans actually find MMA boring. Those, like my father, who grew up watching boxing, don’t understand MMA. Boxing only covers a small portion of fighting. I thirst to watch more rounded fighters.

My dad told me that the fighters try to get the fight to the ground and then just lay there. I wanted to laugh at this, but the thoughts of getting grounded at 28 years old crept in and I suppressed it for now. Actually, I opened my mind the next time I watched a fight and tried to look at it from an outsider’s perspective. Understanding was gained.

The fighting on the ground would be very boring to watch, if you didn’t know what was happening. The ground game is as important to a fighter as Mickey was to Rocky. MMA fighters learn Jiu Jitsu for their ground game. Why? Jiu Jitsu is a Brazilian art that almost has perfected what to do when a fight gets to the ground. The difference between this art and others is it has been forged and perfected in the modern real world. It is a practical art that encourages your opponent to submit to the pain or get incapacitated to where they can’t fight.

I have been involved in martial arts for twenty-plus years and have competed nationally. I used to train for numerous hours, five days a week. However, one hour of Jiu Jitsu training spent more energy than anything I ever did because when the fighters are on the ground they are contracting every single muscle in their body to attempt to outsmart the other. The smallest mistake could expose your neck for a choke. Every move is calculated.

Keep watching you’ll learn what is happening. I promise.