At UFC 152 on Saturday, Jon “Bones” Jones maintained his reign at the top by defeating Vitor Belfort by submission. Many criticized the win as Belfort was a late replacement for an injured Dan Henderson. Jones had also declined a fight a month earlier from Chael Sonnen, drawing the ire of many UFC fans.
Despite the delays and criticisms, this fight certainly gave the fans what they paid for. Many thought this fight was to end in the first round as Belfort locked in an arm bar that pushed Jones to his mental and physical limits. Jones’ elbow was visibly hyperextended as he tried to escape the arm bar with a triangle slam. ”He got that arm bar in every way shape and form. I never had my arm pop like that before,” Jones said in his post-fight interview. “I felt it, but I’ve worked too hard to give up. I honestly was waiting for it to break.”
Jones eventually slipped out of the arm bar but his arm was visibly weakened throughout the rest of the fight. Jones eventually won the bout via submission in the 4th round but again noted the difficulty he faced in the first round. ”I was not going to tap out,” Jones said. “But man I’ll tell you what, I’ve never felt that before.”
An essential element to a strong ground game is flexibility. Flexibility is often the difference between an immediate tapout and a 3 or 4 second window to regain your composure and counter the submission. Pain Physicians NY specialize in protocols to increase flexibility and strength in MMA fighters. Pain Physicians NY utilizes specialized protocols to enhance and expand on current training and maximize physical output during training. Functional assessments are also utilized to identify muscle and joint weakness that lead to bad habits and reduced output.
If you are a MMA fighter looking to maximize the training you are receiving, contact Pain Physicians NY to discuss a specialized protocol to match your training. If you have been injured, please contact us so that we may get healthy and back on the mat much quicker than traditional therapies.