MMA glossary

Over fifty terms explained in plain English, so you can follow the commentary, the stats and the game.

Mixed martial arts has a language of its own. Use this glossary to follow the commentary, the fight stats and the rules of UNBEATEN. Terms that describe the game itself are included at the same level as the sport terms.

A

Arm-triangle choke

A choke in which one arm and the attacker's shoulder squeeze both sides of the neck, cutting off blood flow.

Armbar

A submission that hyperextends the elbow joint by trapping the arm between the attacker's legs and body.

B

Back control

A dominant ground position behind an opponent, usually with both legs hooked in, from which a rear-naked choke is often attempted.

Bantamweight

A weight class with a 135 lb limit.

C

Calf kick

A low kick to the back of the opponent's lower leg, used to damage their ability to move and plant their weight.

Cardio

Short for cardiovascular conditioning: how well a fighter keeps their pace and technique as a fight goes on.

Catchweight

A bout contested at an agreed weight that is outside the standard weight classes.

Chin

Slang for durability, a fighter's ability to take strikes to the head without being knocked out.

Clinch

A close-range grappling position where fighters hold each other while standing, often against the cage.

Co-main event

The second most important fight on a card, immediately before the main event.

Control time

The amount of a fight one fighter spends controlling the other, usually on the ground, tracked as an official statistic.

Corner stoppage

A fight that ends because a fighter's own corner decides they should not continue.

D

D'Arce choke

A choke applied from the front using the opponent's own arm, similar to an arm-triangle.

Decision

A result decided by the judges' scorecards after a fight goes the full distance.

Disqualification

A loss given to a fighter who commits a serious or repeated foul, such as an illegal strike.

Doctor stoppage

A fight ended on medical advice, commonly because of a cut or an injury that makes it unsafe to continue.

Draw

A result when the judges' scores leave neither fighter ahead, so the fight is recorded as a tie.

F

Featherweight

A weight class with a 145 lb limit.

Fight IQ

A fan term for a fighter's ability to read a fight, adjust and make good decisions under pressure.

Fight of the Night

A bonus awarded to the two fighters who produced the best fight on a card.

Flyweight

A weight class with a 125 lb limit.

G

GOAT

Short for greatest of all time. In UNBEATEN it is the top status, requiring a spotless record plus a triple crown, a double crown with three defenses, or six title defenses.

Ground and pound

Striking an opponent from a dominant position on the ground.

Guard

A position on the back with the legs wrapped around the opponent to control them and set up submissions.

Guillotine choke

A front choke where the arm wraps around the opponent's neck from the front, often applied as they shoot for a takedown.

H

Heavyweight

The heaviest weight class, with a 265 lb limit.

I

Interim champion

A temporary titleholder named when the real champion is injured or inactive, who later fights the champion to unify the title.

K

Kimura

A shoulder lock that twists the opponent's arm behind their back.

Knockdown

A strike that sends an opponent to the canvas without ending the fight.

L

Light heavyweight

A weight class with a 205 lb limit.

Lightweight

A weight class with a 155 lb limit.

M

Main card

The portion of an event that features the biggest fights, usually broadcast at peak time.

Middleweight

A weight class with a 185 lb limit.

Mount

A dominant ground position where one fighter sits on top of the other's torso.

Muay Thai

The Thai combat sport of striking with fists, elbows, knees and shins, widely used as a base for MMA strikers.

N

No contest

A result where a fight is declared void, usually because of an accidental foul or a failed drug test, so neither fighter gets a win or a loss.

O

Orthodox

A stance with the left foot and left hand forward.

P

Performance of the Night

A bonus awarded to fighters for standout finishes.

Pound-for-pound

A ranking that compares fighters across all weight classes as if they were the same size.

Prelims

The earlier portion of an event, before the main card.

R

Re-spin

In UNBEATEN, a chance to replace a card you landed in the draft; you can never land the same result twice.

Rear-naked choke

A choke from behind that squeezes both sides of the neck with the arms, one of the most common ways to finish a fight.

S

Sig. strikes

Short for significant strikes, the official count of the strikes that land with real force.

Southpaw

A stance with the right foot and right hand forward.

Split decision

A decision in which two judges pick one fighter and one judge picks the other.

Sprawl

A defensive technique to stop a takedown by throwing the legs back and pressing the hips down.

Strawweight

The lightest women's division in the UFC, with a 115 lb limit.

Submission

A hold, such as a choke or joint lock, that forces a fighter to tap out or risk injury or unconsciousness.

Switch stance

Changing between orthodox and southpaw during a fight.

T

Takedown

Bringing an opponent from standing to the ground.

Tap out

Signalling surrender during a submission by tapping the opponent or the mat.

Technical decision

A result decided by the scorecards when a fight is ended early by an accidental foul after enough rounds have been completed.

Title eliminator

A fight whose winner earns the next title shot.

TKO

Technical knockout, when the referee stops a fight because a fighter can no longer defend themselves intelligently.

Triple crown

In UNBEATEN, holding a belt in three different divisions during one career.

U

Unanimous decision

A decision in which all three judges score the fight for the same fighter.

V

Vacate

To give up a championship belt, for example to move to another weight class.

W

Welterweight

A weight class with a 170 lb limit.

Wrestling base

A fighter whose style is built on wrestling, using takedowns and control to dictate where the fight happens.

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