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Dec 2, 2008 - 1:36:04 PM By: Maynard Sweeney, MMATorch Contributor This article is the second in a series of daily releases counting down the top thirty fights of 2008. We will release a new article each day starting from #30 all the way up until the end of the month.
Top 30 Fights of 2008: #29
Marcus "The Irish Hand Grenade" Davis vs. Paul "Telly's" Kelly
UFC 89: Bisping vs. Leben - 10/18/2008
A few decades ago, a famous martial artist with a Beatles haircut was beating up every bad dude from a young Chuck Norris to the guy that played Chong Li in Bloodsport. He kicked ass from inside the Colosseum to underground prison complexes on private islands. He could swing a mean nunchaku and take down any freakishly large basketball player the NBA threw at him.
This famous martial artist, or Bruce Lee, as you may have known him, has an equally famous quote which is still often cited inside the gym, and by fanatics of old school Kung Fu flicks alike.
"Be like water. Empty your mind to be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle. You put water into a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow, or it can crash. Be like water my friend."
Whether you're a professional mixed martial artist, amateur boxer, underground street fighter, or any form of practicing sport combatant this quote has rung true throughout the ages. It's something any fighter can and should apply, regardless of style or stature.
At UFC 89: Bisping vs. Leben, we saw one particular fighter make good ol' Bruce proud. With the sharpest hands in the division, Marcus Davis went toe-to-toe with Paul Kelly for two fast paced, ultra technical rounds. This wasn't your every day, run of the mill welterweight slug fest though. Davis bobbed, weaved, ducked, evaded, parried and side stepped his way to victory in one of the most beautiful displays of striking we've seen in some time.
Davis's formless approach to his footwork and head and body movement in his fight with Paul Kelly was an inspiring display of old school martial arts being stripped down and refurnished for modern combat. With Lyoto Machida bringing the evolution of Karate to the forefront, and Fedor Emelianenko proving the worth of Sambo, someone had to show the world that the sweet science was relevant beyond the rule-constricted, limited sport of professional boxing.
At UFC 89, Marcus Davis did just that.
Many mixed martial arts fans don't consider boxing to be a traditional martial art simply because it's been so popular in the United States for so long. We've all heard the baseless claims of Sherdog's keyboard warriors concerning the so-called worthlessness of anything other than Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, and boxing. But in reality, boxing is no different than Karate, Judo, Tae Kwon Do, Kali, or any of the other older styles of martial arts.
Boxing, like Karate for example, is performed under a limited set of unrealistic rules. Boxers do not have to worry about kicks or leg strikes of any kind; they don't need to maintain balance in the clinch to avoid being dropped on their heads; there are no strikes below the belt; and only your fists are used. So why is it that so called martial arts enthusiasts rank traditional martial arts as worthless, yet exclude boxing even though it is more or less, albeit different rules, a traditional martial art in every sense of the term?
So like Karate and other older martial arts, boxing required a tune up to work inside the cage. Since UFC 1 we have seen the evolution, or failure thereof, of a plethora of martial arts. Boxing took time to figure out how to deal with those nasty take downs, and those painful leg kicks. But finally, after fifteen years of fists flying and limbs breaking, Marcus Davis displayed the culmination of all that hard work.
After two and half rounds of easily avoiding whatever Paul Kelly threw at him, as well as continually mind-screwing Kelly's sense of evasion with slick angles and fluid footwork, Davis was taken down, sunk in the guillotine, pulled guard, and it was off to stereotype his (and my own) race with a celebratory eight or nine Guinesses.
The progress boxing has made over the years was shown that chilly October night; and if you ask me, Davis proved to the world that any martial art can work as long as you put your mind into driving forward it's evolution.
Just like water, the sweet science was poured out of the boxing ring, and took the form of the cage it filled.
Stay tuned for #28 of the MMATorch Top 30 Fights of 2008, which will be revealed with a full article tomorrow. Now check out yesterday's #30 fight of the year...
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