Extreme/Ultimate fighting drawing huge crowds.

[buttmunch]

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — In one corner, Shawn Skelton, 19, a short and chubby nursing assistant, stands in the ring, ready for his first Toughman fight. Mom and Dad are in the front row to watch.
In the other corner towers a giant man: 6-foot-8-inch, 254-pound Josh Wessels, 27, a superbly conditioned mailman and demolition derby driver. He gazes down at his 5-foot-9-inch, 242-pound opponent.

The bell rings. The cherub-faced teenager walks toward his huge foe. The two men unleash flurries of fists. Down goes the giant. He gets back up, but the little man beats up on the big fellow for three rounds, winning the fight and advancing to the next round of a two-day Toughman competition.

Toughman, Ultimate Fighting, Kage Kombat and other forms of brawling are full of surprises. But the biggest may be that "extreme fighting," a sport once on the verge of being banned, is enjoying increasing regulatory approval and drawing big crowds.

California ended a ban on one kind of brawling in December, and the state's first legal show sold 18,265 seats at the HP Pavilion in San Jose on March 10. That set the sport's North American attendance record. An Ultimate Fighting championship will draw more than 17,000 fans in Anaheim on April 15.

Ultimate Fighting is the hottest version of extreme fighting because it has a TV contract with SpikeTV, a cable network aimed at young men. Its fighters are professionals. Toughman is the oldest and most controversial version because its fighters are often inexperienced.

'Human cockfighting'

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called extreme fighting "human cockfighting" and tried to ban the fights in 1997. At least 10 people have died because of Toughman fights since 1979.

Dana White, an executive at Ultimate Fighting, says his company welcomes regulation: "If it's not sanctioned, it's street fighting." Ultimate Fighting has added rules and medical requirements that have won it approval from 20 state athletic commissions, up from none in 2000.

Top fight shows
The two biggest names in brawling put on different shows:

Ultimate Fighting Championship (started 1993): Barehanded professionals battle in a cage with fists, feet and legs until an opponent is knocked out or gives up. Since 2001, Ultimate Fighting, has banned head butting and instituted weight divisions, a scoring system and rigorous medical testing. Top purse: $1.5 million. Matches are five five-minute rounds. Sanctioned in 20 states as "mixed martial arts."

The Original Toughman (started 1979): Amateurs box wearing gloves and headgear in a ring. Toughman follows state safety regulations and standard boxing rules: no biting, no wrestling, no head butting, no kicking. Most fighters live within 75 miles of the event and aren't paid. Fights are three one-minute rounds. About 25 states ban or severely restrict Toughman.





National Toughman promoter Steve Coppler says safety is his top priority, but efforts for tighter rules on Toughman and other forms of extreme fighting continue. Illinois and Tennessee banned Toughman in 2004. Michigan imposed an insurance requirement that has effectively stopped the fights.

Many recent regulatory efforts have failed. The Hawaii Legislature this month declined to overturn a May 2005 decision by Gov. Linda Lingle to permit the fightsif a referee and doctor are present. TheIowa Athletic Commission asked the Legislature to ban extreme fighting. No action has been taken.

Douglas Paul, a trauma surgeon in Dayton, Ohio, is trying to get Toughman banned in his state but has won little support from legislators. Paul was working in the emergency room at Good Samaritan Hospital last year when a dying fighter, Steve Burress, came under his care.

"We had to tell his wife and mother and his children, 8 and 5, that they no longer had a husband, a son, a father," Paul says. "It struck me in a deeply emotional way that this isn't right. It doesn't make sense to let untrained humans get into an unregulated setting and pound the snot out of each other."

Bernie Profato, executive director of the Ohio Athletic Commission, disagrees. "We have it under control," he says.

Ohio strengthened its rules in October. The state runs background checks to make sure the contestants aren't veteran boxers who could hurt less-experienced opponents. Profato says Burress' death from massive head trauma was "a tragedy, but the fight was properly handled."

Looking for bragging rights

The soul of Toughman boxing resides in barrooms, high school gyms and convention centers that attract many fans but little media attention. The warriors are mostly blue-collar men trying to prove they're the toughest guy around.

On fight nights, Riehle Brothers Tavern and Athletic Club here covers its beach volleyball court and sets up a boxing ring. The nightclub is full of smoke. Customers — and some fighters — sip beer.

Tuesday night, 19 fighters will brawl in front of 150 customers paying $15 or $20 per ticket. The boxers pay a $50 entry fee. The champion wins a Toughman jacket.

Before the crowd arrives, Toughman's Coppler tells the fighters: "We're here to put on a show, to entertain, to have fun. But it's a dangerous sport." He reminds them they have signed forms releasing the promoter and night club from liability.

One fighter is a trucker. Another is a steel worker. One is a computer engineer. The atmosphere among fighters is marked by camaraderie. Many have worked weeks to get in shape.

Tony Mercho, an emergency room physician from Indianapolis, checks the fighters before and after the fight. "It's very safe," he says. "Most guys don't know how to throw a punch like a real boxer."

The bouts leave two fighters noticeably hurt. One has a busted rib. He dresses gingerly and leaves.

Another fighter, Kris Sexton, 21, of Westfield, Ind., is so exhausted he lies for an hour on the plywood dressing-room floor, eyes closed, vomiting, getting oxygen from medical technicians. His worried father watches over him.

The man who beat him up stands nearby and expresses no regrets. "Hey, that's what happens," says Scott Norman, 18, of Plymouth, Ind. Eventually, the 223-pound Norman lies on the plywood floor, face-to-face with Sexton. Soon, the victor and the wounded fighter are laughing. Sexton stands up, grabs a Gatorade and finishes the night joking with friends.

Vaughn Miller, 51, a machine operator from Colfax, Ind., is the oldest fighter. His opponent is John Bennett, 40, a transmission shop owner from Kalamazoo, Mich. Bennett knocks Miller down in the first round and again in the second. The referee stops the fight. The two fighters hug.

Miller staggers offstage, beaten and a little disoriented. An hour later, he is sipping a Pepsi with friends and laughing. "The second time I went down, I knew it was smart not to get up," he says. "Still, I'm glad I did it. You gotta live life."

usatoday.com

I may be in the minority here but really. What the fuck is going on in the world that this sort of thing is considered 'entertainment'. I'm with John McCain. This is human cock-fighting and I can't believe anyone is stupid enough to do it.

[Barbara]

Bread and games... does that ring a bell?

[buttmunch]

Huh?

[Barbara]

It's an old latin saying, "panem et circenses". In Ancient Rome, the imperators knew that to keep the people quiet, they had to guarantee enough bread, and enough games (think Gladiator). That's what it reminded me of. A civilization on the downfall in which the important matters can be kept quiet, as long as the people are kept amused, it doesn't matter by what.

[buttmunch]

Wow...you just blew me away with that one. Very astute; it makes sense.

[Barbara]

[A*O]

You know, when I read stuff like this I do sometimes wonder if we are entering the End Of Days with this mindless decadence and reckless disregard for human dignity. I think 'legitimate' boxing is barbaric - this is beyond belief. And what kind of parent would enjoy watching their child being beaten to a pulp?? The lunatics are taking over the asylum.

[buttmunch]

Yeah, I was wondering about the parents as well. It made me think of Kfed for some reason.

[deckchick]

Has any of you watched Ultimate Fighter? While I agree the unregulated fighting should be banned, the whole Ultimate Fighter deal is totally different. It is not bare knuckle brawling, it is definitely a "skilled" fight. More often then not a submission hold wins the fight. These guys are highly trained and strictly regulated. The refs are pros and it is in my opinion a legitimate sport. The fact is the wrestling/boxing/fighting has been around since the beginning of time. People have died in sports since they were invented. Another racer died this weekend, and it seems that every year one or two die, but I don't see anyone wanting to ban that. Driving around in a circle for hours is stupid in my opinion, but to each their own I say...

[Glasgow53]

I truly believe that at some point in this country, it will be somehow legal to kill someone in a "sports event" that will be televised and tons of people will watch it. It is only a matter of time.

[buttmunch]

I wouldn't be surprised myself, Glasgow. It seems like enjoying the pain of another is considered sport these days.

[sweetrebel]

I don't think it should be compared to human cock fights. Like Frank said, cocks don't walk up and choose to fight....just like dog fights, they are disgusting and cruel....
But, these men choose to fight. Most of them (think UFC) are trained very well. They are in great shape and are atheletes. If they make the decision to do this, they know there are risks and consequences.

[Grimmlok]

UFC is regulated, referee'd and pits various martial artists against each other. That's why people have these skills, for unarmed combat and sport. Those skills have evolved over thousands of years for the purpose of hand to hand combat, it's not just for show to be flashy and win some plastic trophy. These skills were used to kill people on battlefields. It's been going on since the dawn of time, except now it's televised. At least it IS real, and regulated and pitting one's martial skill against another in a controlled environment that has rules.

Sure beats the hell out of fake wrestling, or other overly padded, helmeted sports filled with overpayed and pampered athletes. Sure these guys will get hurt, but they choose this competition.

However, tossing 2 bums in a cage in a back alley and letting them kill each other IS human cockfighting.

[SVZ]

Some of the UFC guys are really really really hot That's all I have to say

[sweetrebel]

My husband bought Bum Fights... I watched two minutes of it and it made me sick to my stomach.

Is this a real thing, Frank? I haven't heard of this one...obviously if it isn't their choice (honestly had no idea) then it is disgusting and cruel. Just like I said about animal fighting....