Brawl: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Mixed Martial Arts Competition
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(out of 18 reviews)
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Review by C. J. Hardman for Brawl: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Mixed Martial Arts Competition
Rating:
I had a tough time putting this FACTUAL account of MMA history down, and didn’t get enough sleep over the two day period it took me to read it. An enthralling volume which for the first time offers specific details about the early years of the new Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) competitions–including the “behind the scenes” maneuvering between politicians, promoters, crooks, and media profiteers. Erich Krauss and Bret Aita offer a bout-by-bout description of the first Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) in 1993 to 1995. We can also read about the first several International Fighting Championships (IFC) from Kiev and the dangers promotors faced by the Ukranian criminal syndicate! Perhaps most interesting though, between descriptions of MMA events taking place at the time, are Krauss and Aida’s blow-by-blow analysis of what was going on in the political arena as Senator John McCain, an ardent supporter of boxing (go figure) led the push to ban the “barbaric” sport of MMA.The battle moves from the ring, where skilled athletes contest one another, to the halls of state athletic comissions and congress as MMA fighters and promoters battle to save their sport. Here for the first time we can read a clear account of the events which led to a decline in the availability of MMA events on cable for a time. I’ll paraphrase the opening paragraphs of Chapter 12 (pg 147): Leo Hindley, Jr., friend of Sen. John McCain, dropped all MMA events from the roster of cable giant TCI–to shield children from violent t.v. content (they still aired boxing, pro wrestling, and violent movies!!). TCI, Time Warner, Request, Cablevision Systems, and Viewer’s Choice/On Demand followed TCI’s lead. Through it all, fighters kept training, promotors found other countries in which to host MMA competition, and we are treated to match-by-match reviews of later MMA contests, the gruelling training regimins the MMA fighter endured, and MMA survived. Want to know the dope on Frank and Ken Shamrock, what makes the Gracies so great, how did a kickboxer (Maurice Smith) take MMA by storm, and who the future of MMA rests with (arts, athletes & promotion companies)? This book will answer your questions. There is waaay too much info for me to even begin with all the names and events this volume covers. Very worth the $, a long-awaited gem for the literary martial arts world.
Review by Steve Milhorn for Brawl: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Mixed Martial Arts Competition
Rating:
Awesome book! I’m really hard to please, especially when it comes to MMA competition, but this book was by far the most pleasing read I’ve had in a long, long time. Although the beginning of the book covered some information I aleady knew–how the first UFC came to be–it went far, far beyond that in later chapters. The most pleasing part of this book for me was the author’s coverage of the Pride Fighiting Championsips. How he got an interview with Igor Vovchanchan, I have no idea, seeing that he speaks Russian. But you will not be dissapointed. Nothing is left out in this read. You get thrown from the courtroom with promoters trying to keep their events from being shut down by police, into fighting cages around the world, and finally into the minds of the fighters themselves. The author talks not only the glory of the sport, but all the chaos that goes on behind the scene. I read the whole thing in less than two days–I couldn’t seem to be able to put the thing down.If you are at all interested in the sport of MMA, I highly suggest reading this book. I subscribe to many of the MMA magazines, but none of them get into the sport quite like this book does.
Review by TOM for Brawl: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Mixed Martial Arts Competition
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I have been watching MMA since i was about 6 yrs old. My first expeirence was watching Royce Gracie sweep threw the competition. Everyone thought that the muscle laden Ken Shamrock would win, but Gracie went threw him like nothing.
My favorite part of the book had to be the descriptions of Igor Vovchanchyn. He is by far my favorite fighter, and the way they say he won his matches with such powerful striking.
I give this book 5 stars because im a die hard fan of MMA and even a novie or beginer to the sport would understand this book well.
Review by Scott Keith for Brawl: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Mixed Martial Arts Competition
Rating:
Just finished reading the excellent “Brawl” by Erich Krauss, and as introductions to the world of MMA go, I haven’t seen any better than this one. Going beyond just the usual controversy about the UFC in the early years, the book actually goes to great lengths to introduce the fighters and show them as personalities, rather than faceless warriors. It also takes an approach that I also use in my own upcoming book about the wWF/E — building up the personalities of two of the fighters and then showcasing the actual match between them. The book starts in 1993 and earlier, detailing the story of the Gracies and how the Ultimate Fighting Championship was started as a way to showcase the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu schools, and working up through the years to the problems with Sen. John McCain, the cable bans, the rival promotions, the sudden trip underground for the sport, and the re-emergence under Zuffa Sports Entertainment in recent years. For someone such as myself who watched the early shows intently and then lost interest once the cable ban went into effect, this is fascinating information on the “lost years” of MMA and what the various proponents were doing in between the glory days of the Gracies and Don Fryes and the new age of Tito Ortiz and Frank Shamrock. Most of all, the book is about teaching those unfamiliar with the workings of the sport about respect, and how respect between (and for) the fighters is all-important to keeping things going in a way where everyone involved can prosper. As someone who’s gotten back into the MMA world recently, now that it’s readily available on PPV again via Pride and the UFC, this book was an invaluable reference material on backgrounds and styles of the fighters involved, and the stories told therein were really interesting to read on their own. Whether longtime and hardcore fans of MMA will take the same things from this book that I did, I can’t say, but “Brawl” gave me insight into the workings of MMA that I didn’t have before, and left me wanting to know more, and I think that’s all it was intending to do. And if so, it succeeded with flying colors. Highly recommended for those curious about what the big deal with MMA is, or those who already know and just want to read more about it.
Review by eugene for Brawl: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Mixed Martial Arts Competition
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This is a phenomenal read. Heres what i like about this book: the book is so eloquently written that it doesn’t need any pictures (i.e the authors do a great job of describing the fights.)
The stories are exceptionally interesting as well as inspiring for soon to be mixed martial arts fighters.
My favorite of the book was the description of Igor vovchanchin’s early years, “vovchanchin grew up in a small village. Altough his early youth was relatively eneventful, during his teens he developed an insatiable apetite for brawling.”I enjoyed street fights and got tremendously excited” he says ” sometimes i became really aggresive, which was dangerous for my fellow villagers.” AS igor grew older, his aggressive streak prompted villagers to hang a metal rail from the tree in the center of town; whenever young igor would fly into one of his rages, someone would bang on the rail. hearing the alarm, the villagers would drop what they were doing, hurry home, lock their doors, and remain inside until the hot headed teen cooled down and it was once agian safe to venture outside.
At age seventeen igor gave his fearful village a break and moved to kharkov ( the second largest city in Ukraine after Kiev)”"… Conclusively this a great read for Anyone that loves fighting. Oh and this book was written in 2000 so it doesn’t give any info on nog, mirko, fedor, or jackson.
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