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kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...
and
mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...
(MMA), "
freak show A freak show is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to in popular culture as "Freak, freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual Human#Anatomy and physiology, humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, t ...
fight" is an
idiom An idiom is a phrase or expression that largely or exclusively carries a Literal and figurative language, figurative or non-literal meaning (linguistic), meaning, rather than making any literal sense. Categorized as formulaic speech, formulaic ...
for a bout featuring a deep disparity in skill, experience or weight between the fighters. This kind of matchup was common in the early period of mixed martial arts history, but it has become increasingly rare due to the regulation of athletic commissions and the implementation of official weight classes. However, freak show fights remain particularly associated in popular culture to Japanese promotions, where they are still occasionally hosted. Those bouts are usually a source of controversy among pundits, as they are perceived to elevate spectacle over true competition, but they retain a measure of acceptance among wide audiences due to their entertainment value.


History

Early MMA promotions usually held little to no control over ability and weight, which resulted in heavily unbalanced openweight matchups. The first events of
Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...
are acknowledged to have featured recurrent freak show fights, with the most famous being possibly the fight between 200lbs kenpo fighter Keith Hackney and 600lbs
sumo is a form of competitive full-contact wrestling where a ''rikishi'' (wrestler) attempts to force his opponent out of a circular ring (''dohyō'') or into touching the ground with any body part other than the soles of his feet (usually by th ...
wrestler Emmanuel Yarbrough. The promotion itself would not completely close itself against them until the end of the 1990s. Around the same time, in turn, Japanese company
Pride Fighting Championships PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...
embraced the concept, initiating the custom of creating matchups based on the idea of "technique vs. size" or " David vs. Goliath." Former
Pancrase is a Japanese mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Tokyo. It was founded in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the An ...
fighter
Ikuhisa Minowa is a Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler currently competing in IGF as . A professional MMA competitor since 1996, he was a longtime veteran of PRIDE and Pancrase and has also competed in other mixed martial arts promotion ...
became a usual participant against superheavyweight fighters of diverse backgrounds, as did 400lbs
professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...
Giant Silva from the opposite side. This trend was adopted by Japanese kickboxing promotion
K-1 K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993 by karateka Kazuyoshi Ishii. Originally under the ownership of the Fighting and Entertainment Group (FEG), K-1 was considered to be the largest Kickboxing organization in the worl ...
, pushing the fighting careers of highly publicized superheavyweights like
Bob Sapp Robert Malcolm Sapp (born September 22, 1973) is an American mixed martial artist, kickboxing, kickboxer, professional wrestler, actor, and former American football, football player. He is currently under contract with Rizin Fighting Federatio ...
, Akebono and Choi Hong-Man, who also competed at Pride. Freak show fighters usually drew large TV ratings in Japan, with a special match pitting Sapp against Akebono breaking historical records. In 2010, due to a series of challenges, boxer James Toney fought former UFC Heavyweight champion
Randy Couture Randall Duane Couture (; born June 22, 1963) is an American mixed martial arts commentator, actor, former United States Army sergeant, former professional mixed martial artist, and former Collegiate wrestling, collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestlin ...
in a mixed martial arts bout despite not having any mixed martial arts experience, being quickly submitted. UFC president Dana White criticized the match, calling it a freak show fight. Also, after her debut in 2015, Gabi Garcia's career for
Rizin Fighting Federation Rizin Fighting Federation (stylised in all caps and also known as Rizin FF) is a Japanese mixed martial arts organization created in 2015 by the former Pride Fighting Championships and Dream Stage Entertainment president Nobuyuki Sakakibara. ...
(a promotion successor to Pride) has been criticized by its abundance of freak show fights.


References

{{Mixed martial arts Martial arts terminology Kickboxing terminology Mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts mass media