UFC is one of the most dominated sports in the modern age. MMA fights have long been gathering attention to their fighting style and matches. But in recent history, it has blown up to an epic proportion.
More people are finding themselves watching MMA fights. All the fighters make great marketing appeal. Many brands have pushed UFC fighters on their product, this has led to the gathering of more fans to the game.
In the beginning, the entire sports field for MMA was somewhat anonymous, but UFC brought the game of MMA to the center stage of the world.
From trash talking to record-keeping fighters have left a great impression in the minds of millions of people who have subscribed to every UFC PPVs.
Each fighter gets to participate in three different types of matches, which draws massive crowds to the arena that get broadcasted all over the world.
Thousands of people show up to these events to see two fighters in their prime throwing jabs, straights, brutal leg kicks, deadly submission to take each other out.
A fight in UFC may last for 3 rounds or 5 rounds and each round will have 5 minutes on the clock. Fighters will get a chance to have 1 minute to rest before starting another round. A 3 round fight will be 17 minutes long and a 5 round fight will have 29 minutes on the clock. In a 3-round match, both fighters will be allowed to rest for 3 minutes, if they made it to the third round. In a 5-round match-up, fighters will have a 4-minute rest period. That is the basic concept behind the round system in UFC, each fighter will have to obey these rules if they don’t want any pointcuts from the record.
History of UFC match timer
A lot of things have changed in the MMA world for the better, especially in the UFC.
Back when UFC came into the action in 1993, the rules were completely different than what they are now.
The Game was brutal, as both contenders will have to enter the ring without any safety, just bare knuckles, no holds barred, and limited rules for fighters. There Were no round switches in the fight, UFC had no timers on them this well.
They will put every fighter in the ring, and see which one comes out as a victory out of the match. The match would last for a long time until one guy is breathing in the middle of the ring.
This thing can be incredibly exciting if everything goes according to the plan, but most of the time it will end up in failure. As people would have no idea on what’s happening on the stage and who’s winning.
The Fifth were at that time ruthless, the lack of understanding of the MMA fight and how to make one that carries the exciting aspect of the match without boring people.
UFC round-based System
Gradually UFC changes its ruling towards the round. In 1999, UFC hosted its round-based combat system. This is where the preliminary bouts will have two five-minute rounds with a one-minute break in between.
In the same year, UFC developed a scoring-based system to keep track of the action in the ring.
This system was in almost every combat sport at the time and long before it.
In 2011, UFC made the changes to their round and scoring system and made it better.
From 2011 to 2011, UFC has been following the same rules regulation that they have created for the fight. In 2012, women joined the sport and followed the same rulings and rounds on their matches as well.
The UFC has made a lot of changes to keep the MMA fighting style alive. The changes were necessary, and they did make the changes so the fights will be fairer for both fighters.
In the old days, whoever comes out victorious would have the chance to fight the champion belt, (but Do UFC fighters keep the belt?)
Back Then that made a lot of sense to organizers, now not so much. The scoring system and the record book of each fighter have made the more fact-derived mechanism behind every fight UFC holds in its PPV.
Now UFC fights have a proper system embedded in them. If fighters want to hold the championship belt, they have to prove it by winning against the main contender in their respective division.
Once they win the fight, they will get their shot at the championship match. This system is fair to both fighters and matches, the ruling a bit simpler to understand for average or new viewers of the show.
How long does a UFC fight last?
Different matches can also impact the timer. In UFC, there are three different types of match styles that take place in every fight.
UFC has :
- Standard UFC fight,
- Championship Fight,
- Non-title main event.
Each of these matches has its own timing and round. Fighters who participated in the matches must know what kind of matches they will be participating in.
If it is a standard match, then they have to prepare for a 3-round match. If the match is a championship fight, they will have to get trained for a 5-round match. In a non-title main event, both fighters must be prepared for 5 around the match.
As you can see, each match has its own style that both fighters have to prepare before joining in. The training for a five-round fight will differ a lot compared to a match that takes a 3-round fight into account.
- A standard UFC fight goes on for 15 minutes. Which will have three rounds made of five minutes. After every round, both fighters will get 1 minute to rest and heal any open wounds.
- A championship UFC fight will last for 25 minutes. This type of light will have five rounds made of 5 minutes each. Here too the fighters will get one minute after each round to rest properly.
- A Non-title main event fight, similar to the Championship matches, where both players will have to get trained for a 5-round fight, each round will be made 5 minutes long and one minute after around to catch some breath.
This was a breakdown of the matches that happen inside the octagon. From where we will dig deeper into the system that is currently in place within the match pattern. Each of the matches has its system placed in them. Some matching patterns share the same number of rounds and timing for each round and another match style has its timer and rounds to them.
Standard Fights
Standard fights in the UFC arena are basic fights that happen in all the fight shows. Normally they will have these cards up before the main title cards. In a normal PPV, you will see a three-round match at the beginning of the PPV. This is how the PPV builds up the pace. So, people would be more excited to see the big-name fighters in the game. This kind of build-up makes people excited for the main title fight. It is the best way UFC keeps the anticipation to the main match-high amongst the fans. So, when the card comes, at last, people get railed up behind the fights.
Championship Fights
Most three-round standard fights will feature a newcomer to the main stage, so it will be their first time in the UFC ring to show off the skill to attract the crowd. The championship bouts will have five rounds to them, these fights usually happen in the middle or end of the PPV. If PPV has too many championship fights, then you can expect the PPC to be lengthy. These matches would go on for 25 minutes, championship title cards are one of the sought-after events in the UFC. Each round will have five minutes to them. The match will end after the fifth round. That leaves both fighters with1 a minute of break time after each round.
Non-title Main events
This card will feature fighters getting on the stage only for the fight without anything on the line. If Two big-name fighters want to challenge each other to a fight, A non-title main event will be set for the both fighters to release their anger on stage. When it comes to timing and rounds, a non-title main event will share the same playing field on timing and round as a championship round. Here the fights will be 5 rounds long with one-minute intervals after each round. This fight includes title shot eliminators, popular fighters, re-matches, and challenges.
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Conclusion
To answer the question, a fighter’s timer depends on what kind of fight it is. A championship bout will have a different timer and round to them compared to a championship round. Both systems that were currently in place are unique and fair. UFC fighters now have more chances to get a shot at a championship belt than in UFC history. The current rulings while some might argue not perfect, but it is good.