Chennai’s interest in MMA catapulted with the popularity of UFC
| Photo Credit: special arrangement
Between many giggles, a couple of tiny wrestlers are warming up for the day at the 11-year-old Chennai MMA Academy in Nungambakkam. They sprint, do bear crawls, frog jumps and leech walks, and quickly move on to strengthening exercises without so much as breaking a sweat. I watch them in trepidation and awe.
Until this momentous day, I am blissfully unaware of the sheer number of variations a warm-up ‘walk’ could have. I walk like a crab, crawl like a turtle, jump like a duck, and slither like an inchworm on the hardened wooden floors, in an attempt to strengthen my muscles. I manage to barely finish one lap each before asking for a water break. I realise — Let alone MMA, even the warm-up is not for the faint-hearted.
MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) is a contact sport that combines techniques of boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu jitsu and muay thai to tackle an opponent. The warm up exercises take up much of a beginner’s class as the initial goal is to strengthen the muscles to avoid injuries while tackling.
Siva quickly reassures, “The warm-up and strengthening exercises are the most important part of training. Inorder to tackle someone in the ring, you need strength, not just technique!”
Fine, coach. I lug on, as we finish another bout of running laps and body-weight routines.
Finally, it’s time to get down to business. Siva instructs: “Start by standing with your feet together. And, move your right foot diagonally behind in a two-feet distance. That is your stance.” Next up, I close both my fists and hold it up so as to block my chin, lest an unexpected blow knocks my jaw off. Chin, always close to the chest so it’s guarded. Then I learn to jab with my left fist, and cross with my right. I scuttle in different directions holding my stance, and repeating my jab-and-cross routine. I try the muay thai elbow whip too, making me feel like a character straight from a video game.
Fighters at MMA
| Photo Credit:
special arrangement
The Chennai MMA Academy sees two types of clientele, those who wish to take it up as a sport and go on to participate in competitions, and others who consider it a fitness option. There is also a customer base who enroll for self-defense, mostly women. Santhosh T Arasu, who has been boxing since the age of 12, started the academy in 2013 which has now mushroomed to five branches across the city, the latest being in OMR.
He says, “When we started, nobody knew of MMA in Chennai and there was no indoor academy for martial arts. There were takers for karate, taekwondo and so on. Since I was trained in MMA from Canada, I was able to start professionally in 2013 with the branch in Nungambakkam.” While North Chennai has for long been the centre of a homegrown boxing culture, Chennai’s interest in MMA catapulted with the popularity of UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship), says Santhosh.
“While 95% come for fitness, the rest come for professional training. But having said that, there are many who have come for fitness and go on to skill-build and take it up professionally,” adds Santhosh who acknowledges that MMA is first and foremost a sport, rather than simply a form of exercise.
“The first three months of training is essential to analyse which martial art the person will naturally excel in. With MMA, the advantage is that you can specialise in any particular sport like boxing, wrestling or grappling…,” adds Santhosh who also trains actors for fitness, and sometimes in preparation for roles. He trained actor Arya (who is also a brand ambassador for tha academy) for the blockbuster Tamil film, Sarpattai Parambarai, which revolved around the boxing culture of North Chennai.
Back in the ring, I am now trying kicks — “Avoid the foot,” the coach screams as I kick at a boxing bag with my shin, losing balance from time to time. I also try an elbow kick and to my utter delight, succeeds in making contact with the bag. What follows are a series of core exercises. Think: butterfly kicks, and leg raises with variations.
Before I bow out, I take deep breaths and stretch every muscle that I have put to use. “This is only the beginning,” reminds the coach as I leave the academy bone-tired, but definitely pumped from the adrenaline, vowing to tackle anyone who so much as tries to cross me. A bit too cheeky for the first class, perhaps?
Contact Chennai MMA Academy at 9600168241 for more details.
Published – February 26, 2025 04:24 pm IST
