Unlike many youth sports, girls and boys ages eight to 11 compete against each other in the U.S. So far, the league hasn’t recorded any concussions in 222 paired fights between October 2014 and May 2016. Fighters wear headgear, and promoters must also have an ambulance stationed outside during fights. For further safety, all contestants must be checked by a physician before and after fighting. Kids aren’t allowed to strike their opponent’s head or knock anyone out. Fight League isn’t the same as what you’d see at an adult UFC match. “They think I’m a bad parent.”īut youth MMA as practiced by the U.S. “A lot of people think I’m crazy,” he says. In a 2008 article, MMA commentator Sam Caplan wrote that “It should be illegal for anyone under the 18 to compete in a mixed martial arts fight.” And Mendoza, who organizes youth MMA matches with the United States Fight League in San Bernardino, California, is certainly aware of this sentiment. (It is now legal in all 50 states.)Īlthough youth MMA is less well known and less brutal than its grown-up inspiration, it too has faced its share of criticism. Kids’ mixed martial arts (MMA) is modeled after the adult version popularized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship-a sport so controversial New York didn’t legalize it until last year. Kids Sammy’s age or younger are paired against both boys and girls but since Korey is over 12, he only spars with boys. His youngest son began when he was six.ĭuring competitions, Korey and Sammy (now 14 and 11, respectively) use moves from multiple disciplines-including wrestling, kickboxing, and jujitsu-against their opponents. Sam Mendoza’s oldest son started doing competitive mixed martial arts when he was about 10.

Illegal mixed martial arts fighting