The current UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida won his title after knocking out Rashad “Sugar” Evans at UFC 98 back in May of 2009. Machida continues to stay undefeated with 15 wins to his favor and absolutly no losses or ties. Many have questioned his Karate combat style and how it benefits the fighter in this sport of mixed martial arts (MMA).
Here’s how Machida explains the importance of Karate in MMA (props to mensfitness.com):
“Other fighters don’t train Karate for MMA. The discipline and philosophy I learned are the most important. I also use many of the techniques—the timing and knowledge of distance in a fight…I describe it as precise. It’s as if you had only a few bullets to shoot down a tiger—you have to be precise and can’t fire a wrong shot. Precision and not taking any shots is very important to me…I train to gain strength and power. I do my strength work with a lot of weight, then I reduce the weight by 30% and do explosive reps. The explosive training simulates the point in a fight where you have to deliver continuous powerful strikes to end the fight…I want to be champion and face the toughest guys in my weight class. I want to be remembered as someone who showed the world great martial arts philosophy, and as someone who defended Brazil and Karate. I want to be remembered as a respectful and well-educated man.”
