People enjoy combat sports because we all have a warrior spirit, and blood and battle are in our instincts. UFC represents the thrill of survival. How often have you dreamt of kicking someone’s backside? Almost every man, and a fair percentage of women, fantasize about physically dominating an opponent in front of viewers in a rough and tumble fight.
Fighting requires bravery and expertise, and it is both dangerous and thrilling. The passion in the arena is something that can be cut with a knife. You wish to be present. People are curious not only about who will win a battle but also about how much harm fighters can endure. What happens when a fighter receives multiple punches to the head during a fight? Let’s see if we can find out what happens then…
UFC fighters do suffer concussions, although then they are subjected to a three-month medical ban and are not permitted to return until they have been evaluated by a doctor. The UFC Performance Institute provides gold-standard health care to fighters, including the Concussion Protocol for recovery.
UFC Fight Stoppage
Everything is OK in this world until a punch to the jaw dislocates your brain, stretching internal blood arteries, cutting off blood supply, and causing a blackout. You lay there, physically oblivious, as your brain functions as the cornerman, yelling for a referee to call a timeout. This request will not only be compelled but also taken very seriously in the UFC.
In the United States, around 300,000 sports-related concussions occur each year, with the risk of serious effects increasing with each subsequent head injury. Athletes who have had past concussions are more likely to have them again, and previous concussions may be linked to poorer neurological function recovery.
The UFC has never lost a competitor inside the octagon and intends to maintain it that way; fighter safety is a top priority for the organization. The UFC medical staff tends to come down on the side of caution and avoids poorly called fights in which a fighter’s life is in jeopardy.
In addition, unlike boxing, where competitors are given 10 seconds to recover, UFC contests are decided by a “technical knockout” when a fighter is unable to defend himself. Numerous studies of professional boxers have demonstrated that repetitive brain injury can lead to chronic encephalopathy or dementia pugilistica. This is a solid cause to suspend a fight or have a fighter sit it out.
Because the referee has some impartiality in making the call, stoppage may be both an art and a science, but there is enough leeway to maneuver within the UFC parameters to be safe. The UFC’s official stoppage criteria include referee stoppage, medical stoppage by a ringside doctor, and corner stoppage by teammates who, hopefully, share your passion for your brain.
UFC – most regulated sport
While other sports leagues are dealing with concussions, the UFC is proud of its medical record. The truth is that mixed martial arts are the most regulated sport on the planet.
Referees leap into the octagon in the event of a knockout or significant injury, physicians and ambulances are on-site during fight night, and athletes are subjected to comprehensive pre-and post-fight tests. MMA fighters must pass annual examinations to keep their license to fight. Athletic commissions also impose post-fight medical suspensions, which vary depending on the severity of the injuries sustained. If they sustain any head injuries, they are placed on a three-month medical suspension and are not allowed to return until they have been examined by a doctor.
UFC’S Concussion Protocol
The UFC released its first formal policy for recovering from concussions and severe brain injuries and returning to competition. The study’s title is “A Cross-Sectional Performance Analysis and Projection of the UFC Athlete,” and it’s 484 pages long.
The study and methods were developed using data from concussions acquired between 2017 and 2019, and it is currently used as a resource for fighters and coaches. The return-from-concussion protocol is a five-step procedure that closely resembles the one used by the NFL. Fighters who sustain head injuries will be required to recover for up to two days before progressing to non-contact training and completing the SCAT5 symptom assessment.
As their symptoms resolve, fighters can progress to moderate-contact workouts, followed by a return to live sparring that gradually increases in intensity and time, with sparring once a week for no more than three rounds of five minutes, then gradually increase the number of rounds over the course of four weeks until they have completed two full sparring sessions of five rounds each. A physician’s approval is required before returning to full contact.
Because fighters are considered independent contractors who are in charge of their training regimens, they are not required to follow the concussion protocol. However, the UFC intends to make the protocol standard procedure for all fighters. The UFC Performance Institute provides existing contractees with a number of complimentary services, including physical therapy, gym space, and performance testing. Its crew has already held courses on effective sparring and recovery procedures for MMA trainers. When they utilized the PI to prepare for fights, several UFC veterans described it as a godsend. Some fighters have relocated across the country in order to gain access.
What Protocol Says About Concussions
According to the study, fighters should check their daily symptom score from the concussion evaluation and monitor for additional symptoms at all phases of the process, and the protocol should be overseen by a professional health care provider.
Even if fighters are symptom-free after a concussion, they should follow all steps of a return-to-sport protocol to ensure a complete brain recovery. Resuming exercise too soon, especially in contact sports like MMA, increases the chance of musculoskeletal injuries and lengthier recovery times, as well as additional concussions (e.g., second-impact syndrome), which can lead to chronic neurological disorders, permanent disability, and death.
The study also divides concussions into categories based on how they affect the body and brain. It makes no mention of subconcussive impacts, which are common in the sport and are thought to play a role in long-term brain problems suffered by some fighters. The study found that male UFC fighters’ “symptom severity score” was six times higher than normal males, while female UFC fighters’ scores were more than seven times worse than ordinary females, according to results from a standardized assessment of concussion (SAC) instrument.
The UFC has cooperated with the Mayo Clinic on brain trauma research in addition to funding the Performance Institute. A five-year funding commitment from the promotion was recently renewed for longitudinal research into head trauma and long-term brain health of fighters and other contact sports participants. Since the study began in 2011, the organization has recruited 100 current and past UFC fighters as subjects.
Brain Damage in UFC
MMA is a brutal sport in which participants must prepare to get punched in the face regularly. Even in the UFC, the top MMA promotion on the planet, it’s not for the faint-hearted. If you’re knocked out, you’re most certainly going to suffer some kind of brain injury.
According to research, brain injuries affect 25-33 percent of MMA competitors (including UFC), with the percentage increasing as weight classes raise. It also increases in direct proportion to the fighter’s active combat years. That means that the longer you play, the more probable you are to sustain a brain injury or trauma. However, there are numerous things to consider. A concussion does not have to result in brain damage, although it is always categorized as a brain injury. As a result, if you want the whole story, you’ll need to go deeper into the numbers.
According to the study, over a third of all UFC fights result in competitors suffering from brain injuries (most often, concussions). Brain trauma can occur as a result of repeated head impacts, but we can be certain that it occurs in fights that end in a knockout or technical knockout. A single punch knockdown can result in a serious concussion and lifelong brain damage. CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy, is a more common problem that occurs among fighters. CTE, also known as boxer’s dementia, is brain damage caused by repetitive strikes and head trauma throughout a fighter’s career, rather than a single punch to the head. That means that the longer a fighter’s career lasts, the more likely they are to develop CTE or other forms of brain damage after retiring.
Dangers of MMA In The Development Of CTE
Every person diagnosed with CTE shares one trait: a history of repeated head trauma. CTE is most commonly found in athletes who participate in contact sports and veterans who have served in the military. Importantly, not everyone who has been knocked in the head repeatedly will develop CTE. The age of first exposure to head impacts, the number of years of exposure, and heredity are all risk factors that make some persons more likely to develop CTE than others.
CTE has never been linked to a single concussion in the absence of further brain damage. The best data available now suggests that, while CTE might theoretically start with single brain damage, it is uncommon. CTE does not appear to be uncommon among populations subjected to years of frequent, repetitive brain damage, but we don’t know how common it is because it can’t be reliably diagnosed during life. Many people are subjected to repeated brain trauma but do not acquire CTE.
Mood and behavior problems can occur in people who have been diagnosed with it. The following are some of the most common changes; problems regarding impulse control, aggression, mood swings, depression, paranoia, anxiety.
Most people with CTE develop progressive thinking and memory impairments, such as short-term memory loss, confusion, impaired judgment, and dementia. Cognitive symptoms usually arise later in life, and they can include one or both symptom groups. In some circumstances, symptoms deteriorate with time (even if the patient does not have any further head hits), whereas in others, symptoms may be stable for years before deteriorating.
Fighters Who Suffer From CTE
Spencer Fisher, a three-time UFC “Fight of the Night” winner, withdrew from the sport following a three-fight losing streak and has been battling significant neurological conditions for years. He has been unable to accomplish routine daily duties as a result of many concussions received throughout his boxing career. Fisher was discovered to be unable to tandem walk or hop on one foot during medical evaluations of his condition. Fisher is susceptible to memory loss, dizziness, sadness, and severe headaches on a daily basis. In recent years, he has attempted to supplement his income by leading MMA courses at a local gym. Unfortunately, the debilitating nature of his ailments frequently prevents him from conducting them.
Tim Hague, a Canadian heavyweight, died in a tragic event in 2017. Hague had been knocked out cold by CFL defensive end-turned boxer Adam Braidwood two days before his sad death. Hague died of a deadly brain hemorrhage at the age of 34 as a result of the injuries done by Braidwood’s fierce shots. During his autopsy, the CTE disease was diagnosed. Hague could have been quietly suffering for years before his death, having suffered many horrific KO losses near the conclusion of his MMA career.
Renato ‘Babalu’ Sobral, a former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, was knocked out seven times in his 16-year career. He developed CTE as a result of the damage to his brain caused by the repeated trauma of being hit. For years, he has struggled with a range of cognitive difficulties. He is also blind in his left eye as a result of the injuries he has received over his career. After losing back-to-back TKO losses in Bellator, he retired from the sport in 2013.
In Conclusion
Despite the fact that UFC fighters sustain numerous injuries during fights, the UFC Performance Institute has given them the best possible care. Regarding the concussion, the UFC issued a Concussion Protocol that competitors must follow before returning to the fight. Although MMA is a brutal sport, the UFC, as the world’s largest MMA promotion, has provided its fighters with the best possible health care, particularly in its Performance Institute, where it provides a variety of complimentary services such as physical therapy, gym space, and performance testing to its contractees. At the very least, we won’t feel bad about seeing a gory and violent fight knowing they’ve had first-class medical care.
