ARMOURED MMA is a bizarre promotion in which rivals dress up as knights, wield swords and battle it out inside a cage.
When UFC first launched in 1996, it was described as “human cockfighting” because of how brutal it was and how few rules there were.
But in the two decades since, the sport has reinvented itself to become one of the most profitable in the world.
But that hasn't stopped some people from putting their own strange and unorthodox spin on a now-mainstream sport.
In Russia, there were handicap matches, inter-gender matches, and even groups competing in teams.
But now, a new concept is fusing the extraordinary mixed martial arts of the new school with the older school of medieval times.
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The shocking footage showed competitors dressed in knight armour, holding swords and shields, stepping into the cage.
Additionally, you can use your weapons as attack points while still utilizing traditional MMA moves like punches, kicks, and knees.
Matches can be won by stoppage or scorecards, and points can also be earned by removing your opponent's armor.
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This was a first for the United States, but what's surprising is that medieval mixed martial arts had made their way to Europe much earlier.
However, the bouts will take place in a ring instead of a cage, but the competitors will still be clad in full knight armor.
Russia's M-1 Global, once a big player on the European MMA circuit, once had its own medieval division.
They used the match as entertainment between the main acts.
However, it became so popular among supporters that knight battles required their own event.
The blunt-edged sword weighs up to 2kg, the shield about 1kg, the helmet up to 3kg, and the total weight of the armour up to 20kg.
The idea was born from “historical medieval combat,” a sport invented in Russia in the late 1990s in which competitors re-enact scenes from past wars.
But the full-contact concept was brought to the ring with M-1 Global and now to the cage with Armored MMA.
Armoured MMA's next show is scheduled for Nashville on Aug. 24. Tickets range from $44 to $125.
