THE BIZARRE PRE-FIGHT RITUALS OF MMA STARS

The Bizarre Pre-Fight Rituals of MMA Stars

What makes a champion? Well, there’s the training, the technique, the fitness and, probably most importantly of all: the mentality.

But in order to get focussed, many fighters take on some rather strange rituals to get their head in the game. Others also have bizarre pre-fight practices in order to get a physical edge. Below we’ll run through some of the most bizarre pre-fight rituals of all.

Ronda Rousey – Lots of Sex

When interviewed by Jim Rome on Showtime, Ronda Rousey says contrary to Muhammed Ali’s advice of not having sex in the six weeks before a fight, she instead has as much sex as possible in the build-up, explaining that, “for girls, it raises your testosterone, so I try to have as much sex as possible before a fight.”

Indeed, studies have shown that a small increase in testosterone concentrations and a huge increase in prolactin (which boosts your immune system) can be caused by the female orgasm.

Lyoto Machida – Drinking Urine

UFC’s former light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida has one of the strangest pre-match rituals going, admitting that he drinks his own urine every morning, claiming that it helps to cleanse the body of toxins – a practice he picked up from his karate master father.

Brandon Vera – Double Packing

American fighter Brandon Vera has quite an OCD superstition prior to his MMA bouts, packing his bag twice in the hotel before going to the fight. First, he packs it, then unpacks everything, then repacks it again. He doesn’t offer any explanation as to why he does this, although says he does it before every fight. Maybe he’s just worried he’ll forget his gloves…

Jon Jones – Get Rip-Roaring Drunk

Bizarrely, one week before every fight, Jon Jones goes out and gets rip-roaring drunk. Why? Well, basically to provide himself with an excuse to himself in case he loses, saying, “If this guy were to beat me somehow, I could look in the mirror and say I lost because I got hammered the week before the fight. It’s a safety net - I’ve done it throughout my whole career, one week before every fight.”

It seems to work for Jones though, as his only defeat came after he was disqualified when he used illegal elbows against Matt Hamill in 2009.

Source: Jon "Bones" Jones via Facebook

Josh Thomsen – No Shower

Californian fighter, Josh Thomsen, doesn’t shower in the days leading up to the fight, simply saying, “What’s the point?”

It’s a similar tactic that was used by the now retired Matt Lindland, who wouldn’t shower building up to the fight in order to ensure he stunk as much as possible to make grappling even more unpleasant for his opponents. Pretty grim.

Clay Guida – Brotherly Slaps

Just before stepping into the Octagon for a brutal MMA contest, Clay Guida gets slapped multiple times by his brother – himself an MMA fighter – across the cheeks. The ritual is supposed to get Guida in fighting mode and further energise the fighter ahead of the fight.

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