The Ring vs. The Cage: A Dissertation

Only thing I dislike about the ring is the falling through the ropes, weather accidental or intentional.

that the it also makes a significant difference for certain fighters, i.e. Cro Cop and Wanderlei who were primarily kickboxers and used the 90 degree angles substantially during their heyday. It was tangental to my main point, so I left it out.

Interesting write-up. I personally prefer the cage but I’ve heard from friends that are not MMA fans that the image of fighting in a cage shocks those that aren’t used to it. Good stuff.

Because you can get two chickens fighting in a boxing ring just the same as you could a cage. Does it make it seem barbaric? Maybe, but at the end of the day you’ve got a ton of people watching two-dudes trying to maul eachother, so whether it’s a cage or ring I’d say the people watching are the barbarians.

On a more serious note though, if they could figure out a way to keep people from falling out of a ring, that’d be great. You get a better vantage as a fan, and the corners make it fun for strikers to catch people. For the grapplers? I’d say the ring is so, so terrible.

The cage is much better than the ring…..I hate MMA in rings….

any thing they can do to keep the action going is good for the sport. Any positives from a ring( I can’t think of any) are far outweighed by the negatives. For example as much as I enjoyed seeing Rampage laid out stiff as a board on the ropes it looks far more dangerous seeing a fighter get knocked out and have the possibility of falling out of the ring. Also not positive about this one but there is a good chance Yvel never woulda knocked out that Ref if they didn’t have to keep resetting the action

I’ve never been to a boxing match or MMA even that took place in a ring, but I have been to the Royal Rumble in 2002. I also went to UFC 88 in Atlanta at the same venue (Phillips). I had comparable seats, not on the floor but not high up either, probably about 25-30 yards away from the ring/cage each time. And I’ll tell you, the viewing experience for the ring is significantly better. The cage screens all of the action to a degree, the pillars are frustrating, and the 10 camera guys around it don’t help. I’d actually have preferred “worse” seats, a little higher up so I could see into the top of the cage. My dad basically shilled out a pretty penny for my birthday present of me watching a giant screen in the top of the arena.

having watched fighting in both and competed in both, The cage is far better.

The pace is constant in a cage while the ropes really get in the way in a ring. It takes a different skill set fighting off ropes to fighting off the cage.

The second major difference is the angles. In a ring it is far to easy to control a fight with the corners. Because of the right angles, cutting off a ring is very easy, and does not provide a good balance for stand up and grappling fighters.

The main negative of a cage from a fans perspective is of course the corner pads. This is an issue that needs to be addressed. They are overly large and create horrible viewing angles. The only reason, i can see for the extremely large pads is to A, give more sponsorship space, and B possibly to further cut down the angles the corners make.

Either way I believe there could be a solution with out creating such an obstruction to ones view.

I definitely prefer the ring. There are obviously positives and negatives for both.

For me, one of the sticking points is that the cage leads to way too much hugging. Randy wouldn’t be able to smother a guy against the ropes for almost an entire round. Open it up and stop leaning on a fence.

I guess I’m just old school but there’s something appealing about getting a guy backed up into the corner (you know, an actual corner) rather than a fence.

To each his/her own.

I started out wrestling in middle school and continued through the high level college competition and from day one there was a edge barrier that i ha to observe. I started my MMA career in a cage and LOVE the “no escaping” wires barrier. I have spent a lot of time recently fighting in rings (Wild Bill’s in ATL, Fight Night for Kids with Fight Lab) and feel just as comfortable in the ring as a cage. it does change some things and may lead to a new challenge for an explosive wrestler and even a disqualification (example: me elbowing Brett Chism on the judges table haha) but all fighters should be. as a fighter i am more comfortable in a cage where no one (including Brett) can escape.

As a fan i love the ring. it makes a more even fight for those lacking in the wrestling department. in a live event the 8 post covers (or more in an octagon) block the view of a lot of action. everyone has missed a KO or submission behind those big pads. a lot of promoters are going to the hexagon (fight lab is already on board). bigger panels, no UFC copyright on that shape yet and its easier to see. unless you are at home watching the PPV events or a recording it is just too covered up to see.

all summed up… ring fan and cage figher
 

Johnny Buck “Nasty”