Can Open Scoring Improve MMA Judging?
Celebrating organizations promoting more transparency as a selling point feels wrong. Transparency is a good thing. We should do better in all aspects of life to keep people informed of how things impact their lives. But only some businesses or even people achieve this goal.
Politics often play a role in maintaining the status quo and preventing the open sharing of information. Oktagon MMA aims to change the game in mixed martial arts. Oktagon MMA wants to institute open scoring during fights, according to MMA news sites.
Oktagon MMA decided to institute open scoring, where the judges’ round-by-round scores are shown to everyone watching the fight to attract more attention and build its reputation outside of Europe. This topic has often come up in boxing and MMA with people on both sides of the fence.
Would knowing a scorecard’s result before entering the final round ruin the excitement for fans? Waiting for the ring announcer to read scorecards can create tension in an arena. But with some promotions now having fight cards in promotion-owned venues with fewer fans, the reaction to a surprise decision will be less important.
Oktagon Could Gain Some Market Share
It’s hard to know exactly what the people behind Oktagon MMA have in mind regarding growth opportunities. But with Bellator being acquired by the PFL and ONE Championship’s financial difficulties, there is space in the MMA market for another top company. Oktagon MMA has decided to institute open scoring for OKTAGON 51 on Dec. 29 in Prague, Czech Republic.
That will be Oktagon’s final MMA card of the year. Oktagon co-founder Pavol Neruda said the organization decided to look into open scoring after a fight between Karlos Vemola and Patrik Kincl at Oktagon 43 in May. Vemola ended up losing a controversial decision, and Neruda believes if Vemola had known that he was behind on the scorecards, he would have switched his fighting strategy to try and change the judges’ minds.
Invicta FC Decided to be Innovators in the Space
Invicta FC, an all-female fight promotion, debuted open scoring during a fight card in Kansas City, Kansas, in March 2020. The rules for open scoring required judges to have their scores turned in and displayed within 30 seconds of the horn sending at the end of the round. Fighters, judges, and corner people all enjoyed having access to the information.
How is MMA Judged Anyhow?
This is a complicated topic to explain without attending a formal class. However, the nuts and bolts of this can be boiled down to three words: damage, dominance, and duration. Like boxing, MMA fighters who win a round are typically awarded 10 points, while the loser of the round, in most cases, gets nine points.
A fighter can win a round 10-8 or 10-7 if it is a particularly dominant round. Dominance in a round can come from a knockdown in the striking exchanges or the volume of striking or grappling. Fighters can be deducted points for illegal moves such as eye pokes or grabbing the fence.
Mixed martial fights are typically three rounds. In the case of a main event for a fight card or championship bout, fights can be scheduled for five rounds. Where many judges, fans, fighters, and other observers can disagree is what constitutes damage.
Sometimes, a fighter can be significantly less busy with the volume of strikes thrown but can make up for it by landing powerful combinations.
Pushing Back Against the Idea
While open scoring appeals to many, many notable former MMA fighters are against the idea. One criticism of open scoring comes from knowing the score may encourage the fighter ahead on the scorecards to coast in the final round. MMA breaking news shows that several former fighters have said it would also take some excitement out of when the decision is read.
Combat sports are unique among professional sports in that they are the only competition where the viewers in the arena and at home aren’t 100 percent sure who is winning. While it may be evident to everyone in the arena who won the fight, it only takes two judges seeing things differently to change the course of history.
When a split decision is advanced, many bettors and fans are gripping their seats, hoping their fighters have won.
MMA Has Changed A lot in 30 years
While the UFC isn’t the only MMA promotion in the world, it is the one that has been the longest-lasting and most successful promotion in the world. If anyone who had never watched a fight before decided to watch fights from the early days of UFC, it would be like watching a competition on a different planet. Due to the barbaric reputation of early MMA fights, no one was sure how to score the fights.
Eventually, a standardized rule set was implemented to help settle the chaos and sanction the sport in the United States. In the early days, wrestling was one of the most consistent ways to win a fight. The top grapplers could score a takedown early in a fight and rely on holding their opponent down to win.
However, the criteria have shifted over the years. In many cases, more must be done just to land a takedown. When the fight hits the mat, judges want to see the fighters who forced the action down there try to work and earn a stoppage.
Oktagon Has Opportunity to Set Standard for Sport
Innovators typically have their best ideas become industry standard. While open scoring will continue to be debated at length among the MMA community, it is unlikely the top organizations would adopt this method immediately. The UFC has long resisted the idea despite several controversial scorecards having a hostile reception long after the event they occurred in.
Oktagon’s card will be closely monitored to see what kind of impact it has. The MMA community may find it appropriate to get behind them if it helps make the event more exciting.
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