Ultimate Full Contact: Fight Outcome Characterization Concerning Their Methods, Occurrence Times and Technical–Tactical Developments

Abstract

Fight analysis produces relevant technical–tactical information. However, this knowledge is limited in hybrid full-contact combat sports. Therefore, this study aimed to characterize the results of the fights’ outcomes through the winners at the World Ultimate Full Contact (WUFC) Championships between 2008 and 2017. Methods: 170 combats between senior male fighters (master class) from 38 countries were observed; all fight outcome methods, their occurrence times, inherent skills and their development forms were analyzed through frequencies, percentages, crosstabs and chi-square test, considering a Fisher’s exact value of p < 0.05. The fight outcome methods were, in decreasing order, as follows: submission; decision and technical knockout (TKO); knockout (KO); and doctor stoppage. Only 19.4% fights completed the regular time 10 min (600 s), and 68.8% fight outcomes occurred in the first 5 min (300 s). Chokes were more used than joint locks, primarily developed in single actions. Head punches and kicks were the skills most responsible for KO, developed more in combinations and counter-attacks, while TKO was always through combination attacks and mostly by ground and pound. Ground fighting is most effective. In stand-up fighting, combination attacks and counter-attack are most effective. It is important to increase the technical–tactical capacities and adjustable decision-making to perform the regular fight time.

Theoretical Basis of Technical-tactical Behavior and its Application in Ultimate Full Contact Training

“…The striking combat sports mentioned are developed over three or more rounds of two or three minutes each, spaced by one-minute breaks [3 -7] and the submission grappling combat sport are developed in one round of six, eight, ten or twenty minutes [8]. While the Ultimate Full Contact is developed over one round of ten minutes (1 × 10 min), where techniques adapted from all mentioned combat styles are presented [9]. This results in a higher variability of technical-tactical dynamics, implying a greater variety of efforts [10 -14].…”

“…Therefore, the necessity to regulate the load of technical-tactical training with the physiological load to obtain adjustable adaptations, combining and articulating single techniques with combinations techniques becomes clear. This is a set of varied and differentiated skills that must remain interrelated as one of the basic conditions in combat [46], with the aim to dominate the opponent through offensive, counteroffensive and defensive actions, searching for the fight outcome by knockout KO, technical knockout TKO, submission or decision [1,3,9]. The analysis of technical-tactical actions can help us to understand their different effect on the outcomes, and this way regulate their application through the fights [9, 47 -49].…”