MMA - Values and Beliefs

I was talking with a friend about MMA and the all the facets of the current scene.   His take on the topic is that your need to have core values that you believe in, that directs your choices, and helps solidify you as a respected fighter, school, or promoter. Values based on attitude, honor, respect, courage, integrity, strength, mutual benefit etc. establishes a person or place as a foundation in which people can rely.  So here are my random thoughts on the topic...

MUTUAL BENEFIT
I come from a background of Judo, in which one of the guiding principles is Mutual Benefit and Welfare. These strong core values lead to a system where each person is benefiting from others but is also providing benefit to others in their own way. I believe that this give and take system is very important for any athlete and program. It provides a means for a program to grow as well as a providing a fabric and support system for all who train.

RESPECT AND HONOR
In my classes, swearing is not tolerated. It seems like a simple thing, but swearing not only shows a lack of respect to all of the fellow training partners it shows a lack of respect to the school where the person is training. This goes all the way to the cage and the event, and how the opponent is treated. I do not tolerate any athlete making a mockery or showboating over a defeated opponent. We will always enter and leave the cage showing respect to our opponent. The same goes to the promoters that we work with. the promoters are providing a venue for the sport that we compete in. We will show respect to them as the provider of venue and we ask that they show respect for our fighters.

HARD WORK BEATS TALENT
So when you think about yourself and your drive / motivation, where does it come from? How do you make your decisions? As a trainer there are several things that I look for in an athlete beyond their natural ability or physical aptitude. Everybody wants an amazing athlete training under them, but can you rely on them? do they have what it takes to strive beyond their natural abilities? "Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard." This is a phrase that was said to me many years ago when I trained in Judo and it has proven true many times. So what does this have to do with values? for an athlete, who does not have the value of hard work, regardless of their talent, they are destined to not achieve the level of success that they could. Not only that, but an athlete that does not have the minimum core value of working hard, will not improve the program because they are not going to be committed to improving and supporting the team. I ask myself, is this athlete going to be willing to give back to the program in some way? Or are they going to simply use the program to get what they want and disappear? Where are your values, are you willing to help bring that next athlete up to the next level?

WHAT DO YOU EXPECT IN A PROMOTION
With a seemingly endless number of promoters popping up all over the place, what do you look for in a promotion as a fighter or manager/trainer? Bottom line is that promoters are trying to make some money(and who could blame them reall?). But that does not mean that the promoter's sole purpose in life is the corralling of fighters into a cage to make a buck. Many of them do it because they have a unique opportunity to provide a venue and a love of the game (in this case MMA). As a trainer or fighter ask yourself, what are the promoter's values? Ask them? I have actually heard a promoter tell somebody "if you think that my main purpose is not to make money, then you are crazy." And then the same promoter corralled all 60 fighters into a dressing room, telling the trainers that they had to stay out and started making matches (this was on the evening of the fights). This was one of my first events. The promoter still runs shows. So how does the promoter treat you and your school? Do they stay in touch with you or only contact you when they need fighters? Do they support your school in some way? Is their match making fair and timely? We work with a promoter who sends us a paragraph describing each of the prospective opponents for our fighters, and they start this a month in advance. Does it feel to you like you are being controlled by them, or does it feel like you are working as a team with them? Remember, you are putting your fighters or yourself at risk to the benefit of their show, so what are they providing in return? It is important to know, to what benefit are you risking your health. Are you traveling 1 or more hours to the event? Does the promoter at least pay gas money for your team to show? and does the promoter require that you have blood tests for HIV, HEP B, and HEP C? If not, stop right there, because if they don't require it from you, then they wont be requiring it from your opponent. Integrity....Recently we attended a show, we had 2 fighters on the card. I asked the promoter for 2 tickets for family members, the short story is that the promoter never fulfilled the request. Not only that, but the name of our school, Southside Dojo was announced as Southside Gym several times throughout the show when our fighters were announced. While this may seem like a small oversight, I can guarantee that it was not. Honor and Respect. There is much more of a story to that event but later....

FIGHTER PROMOTER RELATIONS
I recently have heard of a few promoters tossing around the idea of making the fighters pay a fee to fight in their promotion. They are talking about doing this in an effort to guarantee that the fighters do not pull out of the card. In my opinion this will do nothing but backfire. I have seen greater success and more loyal followers and better competitions to the promoters that provide a clear and early set of matches, establish relationships with many schools, and provide travel, per diem, and gym donations for fighters that perform at their shows. To me this is a win win situation without being illegal for amateur fighters and shows that above all the promoter values the fighters. Making the fighters pay to put their butts on the line is mildly ridiculous in my opinion.

We have fought for many promotions. Most are good. Some really go above and beyond:

Gladiator Elite: Brian Poe provides an outstanding venue, he matches fighters at least a month in advance, provides backgrounds on all the fighters on his card, is continually trying to improve his event, has high quality officials, puts on a top notch show with known good fighters from reputable schools, provide high quality DVDs to the fighters, and provide fighters and schools with support to travel to and from the event. Quality, Integrity, Respect.

DonoFrio Promotions: Mr. Joseph Donofrio has been in the boxing arena for more years than we can count. He hold MMA events at Meadow Brook Festival site as well as The Palace of Auburn Hills which are both top notch arenas. Donofrio MMA provides an excellent venue which includes flames and a board walk that really highlights the fighter, top notch competition with almost all fighters being veteraned, supports the fighters as they travel, and provides a venue for pro fighters in Michigan. Mr. Donofrio personally makes sure that the fighters and schools are taken care of and dedicates efforts to improve his events through communication with schools - watch the video. Honor and Respect.

Ground and Pound Promotions: Paul Simpson has been spearheading the efforts with GPP for the last few years. Ground and Pound provides several venues for the fighters who are up and coming to establish their MMA careers. GPP has established The Ellison Foundation whose goal is to provide financial assistance to fighters who cannot afford to train or buy gear to train, GPP has done some of the small things like personalize belts for fighters who have shown support to GPP and won belts as well. Support and Honor.

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