What if.........

[PaulLin]

Both my father and I have been watching several contest/tournaments lately and we both have many disappointments about the enviornment conditions and the rules, such as when referee should interrupt and the size of the stage, etc.

My question is that if you were the one to disign a tournament that is perfect in your view, what would it be like? In the enviornment set ups and the rules.

[old jong]

No time limits or rounds.
No weight divisions.
No biting ,eyes gauging,fish hooking.
No predetermined opponent.
No other rules.

[Stacey]

weight division.

grappling gloves


5 minute rounds

all powers, elbows, knees, hips, small joint, everything.

elbow/knee pads, mouth guard

[Chang Style Novice]

venue: a twenty foot tall domed cage with elastic trapezes hung from the ceiling, and various hand-to-hand weapons (giant hammer, gas-powered chain saw, etc.) strung on the circumference about halfway up.

rules: two men enter, one man leaves.

:D :D :D

No, seriously.

I think that an ideal format is one that tests skill, technique, strength, speed, endurance, toughness, strategy, and other fighting attributes irrespective of style. Assuming we're interested only in hand to hand techniques, all foreign material is banned fromt the ring. Contestants will be tested for performance enhancing substances upon weigh-in the night before and immediately after the bout. No one who tests positive from the first test will be permitted to compete, and will be declared loser of the match with the loss to appear on their record. Anyone who wins a match but tests positive on the second test will suffer the same penalty.

Venue is a circular platform, two feet high and twenty feet across, surrounded by padded mats. The surface of the platform is a concrete slab covered with household flooring tile, with the exception of the ten foot diameter center area, which has wrestling mats inset. The circumference of the platform has alternating segments of 8 foot high chainlink fencing and empty spaces. The outside of the fence segments is considered 'in play,' so a fighter who is thrown out, but maintains a hold on a fence post without touching the 'loss mats' is still in the game. I don't expect this to be much of a factor, though. It is legal to throw an opponent against a fence post in an attack, but they are heavily padded to avoid serious injury.

Rules are as follows. 1 round of indefinite length, until the towel is thrown in, referee declares a tko, submission occurs, or a fighter is forced out of the ring for a loss. No 'dirty fighting' - ie: targeting eyes, ears, groin, or striking the throat; no fishhooking. Attacking a downed opponent from a standing position is permitted. Fighters wear protective cups, mouthgaurds, and nhb gloves as well as close-fitting pants or shorts with an elastic waistband. If both fighters agree to wear a gi/jacket/kimono, then that is permitted as well. After ten minutes of inactivity, either on the ground or standup, a loss is declared for both fighters. No draws, no standups. No points or decisions are awarded, with the exception of fight-stopping tkos

My idea here, in designing the rules and ring is to encourage aggression, action, and strategic thinking. The semi-open nature of the ring and 'ring out' victory are intended to reflect the idea that someone who runs away has lost a fight (contrary to good thinking on self defense, but accurate in terms of combat) while permitting a defense against being thrown out of the ring under some circumstances. Also, the wrestling mat center of the ring permits groundfighters who can properly control the movements of their opponents to avoid high amplitude throws that may end a fight, while the larger of tiled floor permits fighters who use powerful takedowns to also use their weapons. In early events, I expect to see a lot of fights ending with one hard throw or a force from the ring. After the event becomes better understood, I expect groundfighters to gain the ability to mauever opponents into the padded area and dominate standup fighters in it. Eventually, I think the format will develop fighters who prefer one side or the other of the pad/floor demarcation, and for some fights to occur mostly right at the edge of the two zones. Basically, I want something for everybody, and I think this format comes pretty close to providing it.

edit:

Weight classes: they would exist, as would gender divisions. Anyone who wants to fight outside their weight class or gender division is welcome to do so, as long as their opponent agrees to the fight. All fight contracts would be subject to approval by a panel of qualified referees, however, and fights would be scheduled no less than one month after finalizing the contract permitting fighteres to prepare for their opponent. An alternate format would permit a even numbered pool of fighters to form an event without classes or divisions who are then paired up immediately before entering the ring in a random draw. I expect that the first format, with prepared and well matched fighters would quickly become more popular with spectators.

[NorthernMantis]

Take everyone in kfo and put em in a giant battle field and let them just duke it out. The fighter left standing can be called the deadliest amn alive. Afterwards we'll have large banquet and brag about the beating we got.

[Budokan]

Thunderdome: Two men enter, one man leaves.

[Chang Style Novice]

copycat:p

[Serpent]

Haha! The KFO members in a field suggestion just made me imagine a very small percentage of martial artists and a very large percentage of scared, spotty teenagers, holding a keyboard defensively in front of their face while they trembled and peed their pants! :D

[respectmankind]

serp... i have mountain dew by my side when i am online or at my computer in general. why can't we (collective group of online badasses) just throw soda at you?

[wushu chik]

Well Guys...since you all know that only one would come out victorious...why don't we just save everyone the trouble, and give ME whatever prize we get! Because we all know, I would win!!! :D

~Wen~

[rogue]

Serpent and me behind lecturns at 20 paces.;)

[Serpent]

I'll take that challenge!

:D

[PaulLin]

Chang Style Novice seems to have the best so far, no one else has such detailed idea and not being challenged yet.

[HuangKaiVun]

One must give in order to receive.

So tell us what YOU think a tournament should do, PaulLin.


Given that I don't take tournaments seriously, I see nothing wrong with their current format.

As long as people are kept safe from real physical damage (specifically liability issues), I see no reason whatsoever to change the rules as they are.

Competitors adjust to rules, not the other way around.

[Mattie P]

I like NM's idea, but I fear that my skills from one year of WC wouldn't be enough.

I'm sure the beatings would be fun though. :D

[Chang Style Novice]

Thanks, Paul, I try. It probably helped that I recently watched a UFC 9 tape. My idea is pretty much like early UFCs, only with a weirder ring.

[PaulLin]

Originally posted by HuangKaiVun
One must give in order to receive.

So tell us what YOU think a tournament should do, PaulLin.


Given that I don't take tournaments seriously, I see nothing wrong with their current format.

As long as people are kept safe from real physical damage (specifically liability issues), I see no reason whatsoever to change the rules as they are.

Competitors adjust to rules, not the other way around.

After this week, I should have little more time the given my opinion out:) Sorry for too busy now. In fact, I should read more in detail on this thread too later.