How old is too old for sport fighting?

[SevenStar]

It's one thing to keep on fighting until you're 40 +, but its a completely different story to start at that age.

Personally I believe that 25 is really the cut off age to START in combat sports with the intention of turning pro and excelling.

I know 25 is an arbitrary number, but I believe its fair, give or take a year or two.

It also makes a huge difference what kind of shape you're in to begin with. If you're weak, have no conditioning and are inflexible then the cut off age could drop to very early 20's.

Of course this shouldnt stop you from taking up a martial art at any age, but if becoming world champ is your goal you're probably to late.

Think of it this way, you wouldnt start playing hockey or football at thirty thinking that you could become a pro. This is no different.

IMO, if you're trying to go pro, 25 may even be too late - depends on which combat sport we are talking about. You can still compete at a high level if you start at a later age though, as was the case with the judo coach I posted about previously.

[SevenStar]

I have to disagree with you somewhat, Anthony. There is a muay thai guy with only one arm who has made appearances in Inside kung fu, I think he also won some championships. There was also a thread on mma.tv about a wrestler without arms and legs, I think he has also done well in competition.

the thai boxer is baxter humby. Never heard of the wrestler - how can you wrestle with no limbs?

[Waidan]

I saw the wrestler he's talking about on TV a couple months back. He's got nubs...long enough that he's able to utilize his torso strength (very developed). They showed a few minutes of him wrestling, and he was definitely holding his own. He's also done some modeling, lol.

[LeeCasebolt]

Do you think someone who's, lets say 30, and has never fought before could take up NHB/MMA or San Da and be competitive or gain benifit from it? Or would it be too late for someone of this age to be conditioned right for these kind of hard contact sports?

Let's define some terms - what do you mean by "be competitive" and "gain benefit"? Because starting at 30, with no serious athletic background, it's highly unlikely you'll become a world champion or top pro contender. You're not probably not going to be a career fighter.

Now, that said, there's no reason you can't compete with some success at lower level tournaments and events. Someone on this board (SevenStar?) mentioned a man at his club who took his first MMA fight at age 50. If by "be competitive" you mean "compete and win", that's certainly an achievable goal.

As far as gaining benefit, training for a combat sport should improve your overall athleticism and technical skill level. Tack on whatever psychological benefit you gain from training, progressing, and fighting, and yeah, I think there's a benefit. But that's a question you have to answer for yourself, based on your goals.

[David Jamieson]

alright, lets get definitive.

10-18 yrs old you should probably be doing some co-ordination stuff getting ready for real competition. generally, before 18 years old, in many cases you cannot legally be involved in combat sports and are thus stuck in the amateur rounds which are not as let's say dangerous as ufc type stuff where there is considerable risk involved.

18-30 It's all a go, go go! These are the years you wanna train like an athlete and climb that ladder to championship and stay there for a while.

30-55 - these are the years when you still have considerable power and can indeed win some big fights and even become a champion. These are also the years where it is harder to hang onto that championship and you will need to eventually concede that fact.

55 and up - If you haven't ever had any athletic training and haven't had any combat sports experience, then you should be looking at martial arts as merely an alternative way to stay healthy and cope with stress etc etc. Barring some incredible luck and unmatched innate qualities, you are NOT gonna be a champion fighter in any serious venue at this age. However, you can still spar with the youngins and even go home with a bruise or two that will have the wife tsk tsking you for days. You will also be the envy of your diaper wearing friends in your bridge club and the chicas at the home will swoon at your manliness.


these are not hard and fast, but rather, they are general rules of thumb.

[Ray Pina]

The fighter 'White" that Lidell KOed a while back is 30-something ... he used to play football and only trained 2 years before that bout.

[Machine]

The fighter 'White" that Lidell KOed a while back is 30-something ... he used to play football and only trained 2 years before that bout.

Vernon White has been around MMA for much longer than 2 years.