TKD in the UFC 144!!!

[Tez3]

However the UFC calls it's champions 'UFC champions'.

People still get confused I think about what MMA is, they assume that fighters do one art for standing, one for groundwork instead of realising that they take whatever works from whatever style. An MMA fighter will train standup and they will train groundwork as well as the two together, kicks will be the kicks they do best, perhaps a MT roundhouse and a karate sidekick for example. Ground moves will be from any and all of the ground styles. The days of single style fighters is long, long gone.

 

[hungryninja]

They are both ATA black belts.

They are tkd BB Joe Rogan mentioned it allot. I don't know if they are WTF, Itf or ATA.
Ben Henderson is half Korean and probably started TKD at a young age.

 

[elder999]

However the UFC calls it's champions 'UFC champions'.

And is the largest and foremost promotion there is. It's absorbed Pride, Strikeforce and WEC. It may as well be the "World Championship," frankly-the other promotions are clearly the "minor leagues."

 

[Tez3]

And is the largest and foremost promotion there is. It's absorbed Pride, Strikeforce and WEC. It may as well be the "World Championship," frankly-the other promotions are clearly the "minor leagues."

Until we have a worldwide governing body though they won't be 'world' champions and people will still not take MMA seriously as a sport, it will still be that 'thing' they think is too violent etc.

 

[andyjeffries]

UFC 144

Benson Henderson TKD BB and new Lightweight Champion of the World

Anthony Petis 3rd BB in tkd top contender. Won by KO on undercard. Never saw TKD mentioned so much on a UFC broadcast.

Irony I watched the fights with several BJJ BB's.

Watch the final fight of WEC 53 (the last before the WEC finished/amalgamated with the UFC) - Henderson vs Pettis! I'm sure you can google "matrix kick wec" to find out one of the flashy kicks used...

Anyway, worth a watch if you can get hold of it.

 

[andyjeffries]

Nah, won't waste my time. I'll just ask him when he gets back from Japan. Interestingly, his Facebook (personal, not the fan page) lists Muay Thai, boxing, wrestling, and Brazilian jujitsu, but doesn't list taekwondo.

He took it when he was pretty young though. Just based on what I know of him and his Facebook... I would question just how much TKD influences his fighting nowadays.

Ben Robstock: You are a black belt in Taekwondo. Over the years, many have criticized Taekwondo as a discipline that is not effective in MMA, yet yourself and UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida are on the top of the sport and Taekwondo is a strong part of both of your fighting styles. What are your thoughts on Taekwondo in MMA?


Benson Henderson: I think Taekwondo and a lot of the values and discipline I learned training in that art have been a huge help. I blend my Taekwondo with my wrestling and BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) and I have a boxing coach to help complete my training. At The LAB, my coaches teach us MMA, a complete fighter can master many of the arts that make up MMA and for me Taekwondo is a part of that package.
Fox Southwest Interview

I would certainly say the kick he used in Round 1 to try to get out of having his foot caught isn't a Muay Thai kick and isn't a BJJ grappling technique ;-)​

 

[RobinTKD]

Watch the final fight of WEC 53 (the last before the WEC finished/amalgamated with the UFC) - Henderson vs Pettis! I'm sure you can google "matrix kick wec" to find out one of the flashy kicks used...

Anyway, worth a watch if you can get hold of it.

 

[elder999]

Until we have a worldwide governing body though they won't be 'world' champions and people will still not take MMA seriously as a sport, it will still be that 'thing' they think is too violent etc.

Nah-it'll be just like the MLB championship, "The World Series," baseball's World Championship. Or the NFL championship, the "Superbowl," football's World Championship-the UFC will be the World Championship by default.

What "they" won't take seriously is smaller promotions, like Knucleup, FX3, Ultimate Force, Ultimate Warrior Challenge, AMMA,Cage War, BFC and BAMMA.....:lol:

 

[andyjeffries]

Looks like he's quite rusty, but here's Ben after his recent UFC Championship win at a dojang in Korea.

 

[Gorilla]

Looks like he's quite rusty, but here's Ben after his recent UFC Championship win at a dojang in Korea.

That video is great to see. The acceptance of mixed race Korean's was a problem in the past and I am happy to see the warm reception that he is getting. Did you see the smile on his mothers face just a great video.

My kids are bi-racial Asian. I am happy to see that people are starting to put away those old beliefs. With each generation the world gets better.

 

[ATC]

That video is great to see. The acceptance of mixed race Korean's was a problem in the past and I am happy to see the warm reception that he is getting. Did you see the smile on his mothers face just a great video.

My kids are bi-racial Asian. I am happy to see that people are starting to put away those old beliefs. With each generation the world gets better.

Yes Korea was a bad place for mix kids (mixed korean/insert-race). But Hines Ward of the Pittsburgh Steelers helped ease some of that (half Korean half Black) and now Ben is doing the same. My kids like Tal's are also have asian and I am blessed to have them grow up in Sunny California where they are accepted and have had no issue about race.

Just like in one of my post I think there are many fighters in MMA that don't say they have a TKD background and just get labled as Karate or Muay Thai fighters or backgrounds. There are still parents in my dojang that have there kids doing the art that call what they are doing Karate, even though the back of the dobok says Taekwondo. Heck, I even hear some kids talk to other kids and say yeah I take karate. I guess karate is easier to say than Taekwondo.

 

[Gorilla]

Art unfortunately we have had some issues in school with my kids. They have handled it quite well and addressed the issues head on. Their ability to handle these situations comes from their martial arts back ground.

 

[punisher73]

Nah, won't waste my time. I'll just ask him when he gets back from Japan. Interestingly, his Facebook (personal, not the fan page) lists Muay Thai, boxing, wrestling, and Brazilian jujitsu, but doesn't list taekwondo.

He took it when he was pretty young though. Just based on what I know of him and his Facebook... I would question just how much TKD influences his fighting nowadays.

I happened to be watching one of the UFC Unleashed programs last night and they showed the fight between Bensen Henderson and Clay Guida. At one point Henderson threw an axe kick and the announcers commented about Henderson being a TKD BB. So, I would say that it still plays some role in his training and approach.

 

[Josh Oakley]

Finally saw the fight. A number of his moves are definitely taekwondo. Man, that was a great fight!

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[Gorilla]

Finally saw the fight. A number of his moves are definitely taekwondo. Man, that was a great fight!

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That would be the reason I posted this thread. 3 hours a day watching Tkd for the last 7 years may have rubbed off. Ben is my new favorite fighter what a talent. He is going to be hard to beat. Petis will be hard fight style wise for him. Just as athletic and another tkd BB. Just a hard match up. If Jose Aldo moves up that might be very interesting.

 

[Josh Oakley]

That would be the reason I posted this thread. 3 hours a day watching Tkd for the last 7 years may have rubbed off. Ben is my new favorite fighter what a talent. He is going to be hard to beat. Petis will be hard fight style wise for him. Just as athletic and another tkd BB. Just a hard match up. If Jose Aldo moves up that might be very interesting.

I am SOOO excited for a reach with pettis. Until that one kick, Ben was doing quite the number on pettis. I predict petting will go down.

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[andyjeffries]

That would be the reason I posted this thread. 3 hours a day watching Tkd for the last 7 years may have rubbed off. Ben is my new favorite fighter what a talent. He is going to be hard to beat

Petis will be hard fight style wise for him. Just as athletic and another tkd BB. Just a hard match up.

Plus Pettis already beat him the last time they fought in WEC 53!

If Jose Aldo moves up that might be very interesting.

I doubt if Jose will move up, he's a natural in the division he's in. More chance of Edgar moving down than Aldo moving up (and Edgar's adamant at the minute that he doesn't want to do that, even though Dana White is trying to persuade him).

 

[puunui]

They are trying to arrange to have a UFC here in Hawaii for later in the year, with BJ Penn as the main attraction. BJ is opening a UFC gym soon here as well. I can't believe that the UFC is still going strong after all these years.