PRIDE FC or UFC?

[Oh Furious One]

What is your preference? Obviously the two major promotions in the world.

I’m more of a PRIDE fan. In my opinion, far better fighters, especially in the heavyweight division, there are more entertaining matches and the rules appeal to me more so.

That isn't to take away from the UFC, of course. A lot of quality fighters in their MW and LHW divisions.

[Presti_is_god]

Pride by a mile, Although UFC have the better WW's and some top guys at MW and LHW.

The UFCs rules and scoring system are bad imo.

[Deej]

personally I feel ufc is the better entertainment spectacle, they've just got their overall package a lot more refined than pride do. better commentary, more camera angles, better behind-the-scenes stuff, fighter interviews etc. i'm not a fighting purist so the whole entertainment experience is important to me.

I also prefer the octagon to the ring but not really sure why. prefer stand up like most do, which I feel the ring encourages, but also love the ground game too.

don't like ranking them to be honest, because I do enjoy watching all my mma dvds and sometimes i'll grab a beer and sit down to watch something and i'll not even consider any of my ufc stuff.

this might sound strange but watching pride makes me feel like i'm watching more a traditional purist's topline sport, whereas ufc seems more distinctive and yeah maybe gimmicky, but overall more entertaining for me.

[Presti_is_god]

Yeah i see where your coming from Deej, Pride afterall is 1st a Japanese show and 2nd an English show. Just different styles/cultures in the way they go about things. But for me it always comes down to the fighters and matchups.

[drew_j]

Yeah i see where your coming from Deej, Pride afterall is 1st a Japanese show and 2nd an English show. Just different styles/cultures in the way they go about things. But for me it always comes down to the fighters and matchups.

I like them both atm. Was a total Pride man, but recently I've seen some good UFC stuff and to be honest. If it's MMA it all good. I like the Pride rules more though. Head stomps are the bomb.

[Deej]

One thing for example and i know it's not about fighting but even just the music in UFC it's mostly metal or rock/pop, i go for that type of music sepultura, stemm, korn stuff like that. i burned a cd for the car with the stuff i heard on ufc. dont get that hardcore sort of thing in pride. Hard music hot chicks fighting in the cage with ufc it's the whole package whereas pride it's just really about the fighting. love them both.

[Oh Furious One]

One thing for example and i know it's not about fighting but even just the music in UFC it's mostly metal or rock/pop, i go for that type of music sepultura, stemm, korn stuff like that. i burned a cd for the car with the stuff i heard on ufc. dont get that hardcore sort of thing in pride. Hard music hot chicks fighting in the cage with ufc it's the whole package whereas pride it's just really about the fighting. love them both.
I guess that’s why PRIDE appeals to me more so than the UFC.

I’m more about the fighting aspect rather than entertainment value. Give me some quality matches. forget the pyro, music and girls. Give me two quality fighters who are skilled in all aspects of the game, willing to scrap & I’m happy.

PRIDE delivers this more times than not for me.

[Deej]

I guess that’s why PRIDE appeals to me more so than the UFC.

I’m more about the fighting aspect rather than entertainment value. Give me some quality matches. forget the pyro, music and girls. Give me two quality fighters who are skilled in all aspects of the game, willing to scrap & I’m happy.

PRIDE delivers this more times than not for me.
definitely agree. to my eye pride has that great samurai influence whereas ufc seems more like being at the colesseum. Ufc seems to have more that entertainment factor, whilst pride is more about respect and honour, reflects their countries no doubt.

although I don't think it'll mean that pride is always better standard fighting than ufc. ufc has it's stronghold in a much bigger market after all. I think main threat the ufc aint pride, more themselves being too greedy and lacking vision as the likes of showtime start to break into the industry.

[thehoff]

I can't sway from the UFC.

Pride for me is like a freakshow. They love throwing a machine against a "B-Grade fighter" to watch him to smashed. I.e. Bob Sapp V most of his opponents.

I also much prefer the cage to the ring.

UFC ALL THE WAY!

[Presti_is_god]

I can't sway from the UFC.

Pride for me is like a freakshow. They love throwing a machine against a "B-Grade fighter" to watch him to smashed. I.e. Bob Sapp V most of his opponents.

I also much prefer the cage to the ring.

UFC ALL THE WAY!

Really? I think the ring is way better. The cage promotes just stacking guys up against the fence. The ring doesnt allow that to happen which promotes more standup and more action on the floor.

[drew_j]

Really? I think the ring is way better. The cage promotes just stacking guys up against the fence. The ring doesnt allow that to happen which promotes more standup and more action on the floor.

Less of that boring move em and bruse em attitude of get in the guys guard and get them against the fence where they can't move their hips and sholders to GNP Tito Ortiz style. ZZZZZZzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZzzzzzzzz.

[Magnum]

Ok I'll chuck in my 2c.

Both are different and I have to agree with most of the comments above in terms of samurai/honour vs gladiator/metal attitude sort of feel between the two.

Spectacle:
For me, overall Pride is a better package. They have better fighters, a better ruleset and better referees in terms of stoppages. I also like the crowd participation (which are HUGE - another plus). The fans know whats going on, they seem more switched on and the cheering and applauding of the action adds to the atmosphere as opposed to the "kick the sh*t out of him!" attitude of the american crowds. I also love the 'stare down' portion of the spectacle

UFC is still fantastic, I have been a big fan since seeing old dubbed UFC videos back in about '97, but I think it has lost some of its lustre, possibly with the lack of "big" names consistently. It still does pack a punch, and I can guarantee that I'll be as phsyced as any match when Hughes and GSP come at each other this weekend, but this doesn't happen that often when compared to Pride.

Rules:
I would take the ground head kick/stomp over elbows any day of the week. Elbows promote cuts, which is a good aim, but can stop a fight too early, You see fighters aiming to open cuts to get an easier win. (It would be great IMO if they could put some padding on the elbows to avoid cuts but still get knockout power). As for Pride, ground kicking and stomping is an awesome part of Pride though and really sets it apart. If they had the padded elbows aswell like I mentioned above it would be the ultimate ruleset.

I also prefer a ring than a cage in 'overall' spectacle. Stacking against the cage is a game in itself I know, but I think GNP against the cage Ortiz-style "dumbs down" the fight if you know what I mean. Yes its a tactic, but not what I like.

Overall I like less is more in terms of rules. I know it can turn very "brutal" but thats how I like it! Less rules means more options as a fighter, a greater variety of fighter can emerge. The oldschool UFC rules were awesome! headbutts, down kicking, elbows, everything :) But I guess that would be far harder to promote and isn't a positive direction for the sport of MMA.

In the same vein as that oldschool feel, I like some of the 'freakshow' elements to Pride. I like seeing a Huge guy take on a smaller guy in the Absolute divisions, just to see what happens. The old UFC's had no weight divisions and had some great fights :) There was more of a difference between what fighters brought to the table, their strengths and weaknesses etc. Sometimes I find in the UFC that fighters are almost the same, same size, same 'rounded' skill, so it can get boring. Prides absolute division fixes that.


I reckon though if they combined Pride and UFC you'd have almost the ultimate package.

Personally, they are both great, I do slightly prefer Pride, but I'll get MMA action any way I can get it!

[Oh Furious One]

I don’t agree that elbows should be outlawed or padded. We shouldn’t take another weapon from our fighters and while a cut is an easy and cheap way to gain a victory, it still is and has been a part of the game since existence.

I do however agree that the PRIDE rule set is far superior to the UFC. Soccer kicks and head stomps are awesome to watch, regardless of how dangerous they are. There has never been a truly serious injury in PRIDE from them. Some may say it is dirty to kick a grounded opponent but that is all part of the game. If the NSAC allowed the UFC to use soccer kicks and head stomps, they would. Once PRIDE is allowed elbows, it will be the ultimate.

I also believe the UFC should introduce a card system similar to PRIDE. This will ensure less stalling and more brawling. While I appreciate the ground art, I don't appreciate fighters that are grounded and don't work at all. I also do feel the ring is better as it legitimizes the sport, so to speak.

[Deej]

Card system agree totally, if they dont take up the fight then dock their pay!

[Presti_is_god]

Pride could easily have elbows, they dont want them.

[Magnum]

.. a cut is an easy and cheap way to gain a victory, it still is and has been a part of the game since existence.

Pride disallows elbows for that exact reason. Mind you, I DO ENJOY elbows and would like them seen in pride, but as a comprimise, take the *cutting* element out of them by putting a padded elbow so you can still use them as weapons.

I also believe the UFC should introduce a card system similar to PRIDE. This will ensure less stalling and more brawling. While I appreciate the ground art, I don't appreciate fighters that are grounded and don't work at all. I also do feel the ring is better as it legitimizes the sport, so to speak.

Agreed, especially with the 'cage' aspect. The mainstream are turned off due to the fact that it conjures up images of a cockfight or something.

[Deej]

I've been watching the UFC early events, ordered 11-20 last week after getting 1-10 last year. Now i can really see where Pride got their style from, aside from the octagon i think pride fights now have a lot in common with the way old UFC used to do things. The time of the rounds for one. Also policies re blood. And wearing the gi. And fighting more than once in a night, ie their tournaments.