Stemming back from its inception in Ancient Greece the development of Mixed Martial Arts and its transition from 'Human cockfighting' to showcasing some of the world's most incredible athletes leaves the BBC with little defence in its latest journalistic portrayal of the world's fastest growing sport.
Former United States Senator John McCain once described Mixed Martial Arts as 'human cockfighting' - an easy leap to make considering the lack of rules and understanding required inside the octagon; but that was 24-years ago.
With limited content available and no easy YouTube searches or plethora of interviews, the politician could be forgiven for his description, as he came to accept the sport when questioned in 2007 and 2014.
Now however the BBC have their own version as they have downplayed mixed martial arts to a more simplistic term of cage fighting, despite fights taking place in a cage it takes away the key aspect that has saw many of the world's top athletes transition to the sport - art.
Currently the unified rules established in 2000 have allowed events to take place globally and showcase the standard of performance; the level of control and regulation has never been greater in a sport often mistaken for its now outdated summary.
There is however no unanimous regulatory body throughout all of the sport, as the regulatory standings of the UFC for example may differ to smaller independent UK Based promotions with regards to athlete testing but much of their rules will crossover in an effort to protect the athlete.
In the BBC's recent decision to broadcast Bellator's upcoming event in Paris, headlined by Englishman Michael 'Venom' Page versus Scotlands Ross Houston, Newsnight's Emily Maitlis asked a series of leading questions to Leah McCourt who is signed to the Scott Coker owned promotion but not competing in the event.
Maitlis asked "When you think of martial arts you think of self defence, but when you watch that it is about rendering your opponent unable to respond. It is a pretty violent spectator sport isn't it?"
While the BBC have a moral right to question an active representative of the sport about its legitimacy what they have failed to grasp, and repeatedly in follow up questions, is the term 'mixed' and the intricate differences between one set of martial arts skills and another.
Martial arts in its own definition is derived from fighting in war often with self defence at its forefront in an effort to incapacitate an opponent or enemy during a conflict - with the professionals now competing in a highly controlled environment the savagery that once existed has since been replaced with a fierce level of athleticism, intelligence and passion to perform.
In response to Maitlis' question, McCourt replied and described the various different "Olympic" sports which often combine to form a fighter's skill set including "Judo, boxing, wrestling, taekwondo" indicating just how wide the level of ability is when competing in one of the fastest evolving sports.
Maitlis continued as she fixated on the 'blood' often left on the floor following a bout and questioned if the Northern Irish athlete was surprised the BBC were showing the sport on a 'mainstream' level.
With BT Sport, SKY, Channel 5, FOX, ESPN all showing MMA events even as far back as the late 1990's - the question somewhat highlights how slow the BBC have been to showcase a sport that is rivaling boxing in appeal.
McCourt nonetheless responded brilliantly when questioned why the appetite for the sport was developing, highlighting how important "education" is to the audience when watching, with technique a huge contributing factor in morphing the sport from one of luck to a technical art form.
Maitlis in a confusing manner queried why the rules 'used' to say that "the two things you can't do is eye-gouging and biting" she continued "does that literally mean that everything else is on the table in terms of how you fight your opponent?"
While the rules up until 2000 were rather relaxed, there have been unified rules within the sport since 2000, regulations that Bellator have followed since its inception in 2008.
Events in the United Kingdom can operate differently with no official governing body yet established but many have adopted the unified rules which are available to view here.
While MMA will welcome the attention and chance to broadcast to potentially millions via the BBC their history and perception will no doubt breed controversy in thanks to its current evolution and lack of education which to the untrained eye could appear as a savage spectacle compared to a respectable expression of art in combat.
The sport still has much to grow despite its deep-rooting in human history, stemming back to fights in the coliseum in Rome but the sport has evolved from a fight to the death to one pinning two athletes in fair competition.
Viewing figures highlight a distinct discrepancy to that of football with viewing figures for highlights of Liverpool v Atletico Madrid from February sitting at 7.7m while Kamaru Usman v Colby Covington has raked in just 1.7m on BT Sports Official YouTube Channel; highlighting a stark difference in growth, but with football widely available across the BBC since 1937 it is little wonder why one has yet to see a boom in support.
However with a sport that is just over a generation old, it is still in its infancy, so while Maitlis was keen to gain an insight, her concern may well be justified but with Bellator now presented with a unique opportunity to put the spotlight on its top performers it is a small price to pay.
Writers takeaway: Mixed Martial Arts is as complex as chess with the added danger of your health on the line, while it is still a developing sport it has already showcased some of the worlds top athletes and created global megastars - dismissing the sport as savagery or barbaric highlights a lack of education.
It is easy to misinterpret the 'ground and pound' between two competitors as an obvious sign of barbaric and brutal behaviour it is often a combination of highly precise combat striking and complex footwork which resulted in this current position.
While the appearance of a competitor struggling to absorb strikes to their body may appear distressing often it may be a small price to play to allow their wrestling or jiu jitsu skills to be of use - it may be clear due the sight of blood or swelling that pain may be taking place but why is this demonised in MMA yet celebrated in Rugby when an athlete wants to continue?
As the sport progresses the health and protection of athletes will increase similar to the concussion protocol introduced in football and the long term evaluations introduced into American Football but with boxing solely focused on striking the upper torso and head of an opponent the added danger of leg strikes to all areas aside from the groin as well as wrestling and submission skills - the added complexity of these art combinations make for a much more intriguing viewing experience.
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