Who started the sport of mixed martial arts?

Who started MMA? Have you ever wondered where the term “mixed martial arts” came from and how it evolved? We’ve got you covered.

The term, mixed martial arts, or as it is now commonly referred to as MMA, dates all the way back to ancient civilization. One of the earliest forms of the sport comes from the Han Dynasty. It was a Chinese military that used hand-to-hand combat to defeat their opponent. Various techniques were invented via the art, “Shau Diao.” The discipline featured fighting styles that are used today -which include – wrestling and Kung Fu.

Eventually, MMA would expand throughout the world, and by the time the 18th and 19th centuries came upon us, the sport changed forever.

Popular Hollywood actor, Bruce Lee, was part of the evolution of modern-day martial arts in the late-19th century. He used a style called “Jeet Kune Do.” According to its Urban Dictionary definition, “Jeet Kune Do” was a martial arts discipline that combined “the disciplines of freedom.” In other words, that meant that a fighter was not following a particular style, and therefore, he or she was mixing them together.

As the 1900s progressed, boxing, in most people’s eyes, remained the dominant combat sport. It was until around the mid-70s when the world of fighting began to take another unique shift. Carlos Gracie and Helio Gracie, the two founding fathers of Gracie jiu-jitsu, came to the U.S. with one mission: showcase their fighting style to the rest of the world.

The Gracie family would eventually adapt jiu-jitsu as their own, making modifications to ground-fighting techniques along the way. They would then create what became known as “The Gracie Challenge.” Anyone who wanted to compete against the Gracie family, to showcase their toughness, had to travel to Torrence, CA, to prove them wrong. Fun fact: they were all wrong.

The UFC was created to showcase the world’s best fighter. Today, it is considered the No. 1 promotion in the world, where highly-skilled fighters utilize his or her MMA techniques effectively, with the goal of becoming champion.

In terms of who started MMA, the answer is not clear-cut. However, its evolution demonstrates how far the sport has come, along with its continuing growth on a global scale.