i have seen plenty of fights ended with elbows on the ground, and not cut stoppages, actually finishes
there were several this year, just off the top of my head
Marvin Eastman over Aron Lofton
John Hathaway over Tom Egan
Nate Quarry over Jason Macdonald
Joe Stevenson over Spencer Fisher
they are useful for way more than cuts, Strikeforce should allow them
KimuraCrunch - I'm a fan of elbows myself, and docs don't seem as quick to stop fights over cuts like they were a few years back. I'm all for it.
"Nate Quarry over Jason Macdonald
Joe Stevenson over Spencer Fisher"
Those were both great finishes. Also Trigg/Charuto.
MMA is a sanctioned sport, not bar fight. You should draw a line somewhere to distinguish them.
If you're gonna elbow my head, I have to poke your eyes and rip your sctrom open. I'll use headbutts too when we clinch up.
i got no problem banning elbows if you ban soccer kicks
if wrestlers can crawl along the ground trying to grab your ankles without being at risk they shouldnt be allowed to grind elbows once they get their pathetic takedown
I'd prefer knees to the head. It changes north/south from only a control/submission position to a position where dangerous strikes are wide open. There are very, very few positions where there are not many valid strikes open, and knees to the head removes out. You can throw shots to the body from north/south, but you give up your control and open up scrambles, making it a high risk/low reward option to throw body shots. With knees to the head you retain your control and can throw devastating strikes to their head.
Elbows: good riddance. They suck.
Knees to the head on the ground: yes, if something, then bring THIS back.
asscobra - good point. i've never seen anyone KOd by an elbow
Pride rules + elbows = Win.
FingerorMoon - It encourages better grappling and G&P rather than pinning so I'm all for getting rid of elbows.
Its a sport, not a real fight, and its been a sport for many many years now. I don't understand the 'but its not as real' argument.
Because this is supposed to be a sport for true fight fans....Because the more it goes the way of sport....the more watered down it will get.... and pretty soon we'll be watching something that is completely uninteresting to fight fans. The further it gets away from true NHB the worse it will get. It has gone far enough as it is. Taking elbows away is as stupid as taking kicks/ knees away. It's ALL part of fighting and belongs in there.
Ask Tony Bonello if elbows hurt...
I feel like not allowing elbows is more to encourage action than avoid cuts. I'd think standing elbows would cause more/just as many cuts simply because of the angle most are coming from ( clinched against the fence, closer than on the ground, etc.) and graze/cut easier. I like having them and think anything that can be allowed should be.
Yes they should.
ttt
I never miss elbows when they're not allowed, probably because they are generally an attrition technique and often lead to more static, less fun fights, as Josh Thompson points out.
Knees on the ground OTOH are fight changers, and create more exciting, dynamic fights.
Remember when Pride first allowed knees in the four-points position? I think every fight that night ended by 1st round stoppage.