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MMA

What moves are banned in the MMA cage?

What moves are banned in the MMA cage?DAZN

One the face of it, it looks more or less like anything goes inside a cage during a mixed martial arts (MMA) contest.

With numerous combat disciplines falling under the MMA banner, there has to be a huge number of moves which are permitted to be used inside the cage. 

However, in order to keep the fighters safe and ensure it is a level playing field before the first bell, there are a number of moves which are illegal in MMA. 

What moves are banned in MMA? 

The list below details the most popular moves which are banned in MMA. 

  • Headbutting
  • Eye-gouging
  • Biting
  • Hair pulling
  • Fish-hooking
  • Groin attacks
  • Small joint manipulation
  • Rabbit punches
  • 12-6 elbows
  • Piledriving
  • Kicks, knees or stomps to the head of a grounded opponent
  • Holding the shorts/gloves or fence

While these are the ones most known to fans, there are also a number of lesser known illegal moves which happen less frequently. These can be found below.

  • Throat strikes of any kind
  • Clawing, pinching or twisting the flesh
  • Grabbing the clavicle
  • Kicking to the kidney with the heel 
  • Throwing an opponent out of the rings or fenced area
  • Spitting at an opponent or the referee 
  • Engaging in unsportsmanlike conduct that causes an injury to an opponent
  • Using abusive language
  • Attacking an opponent during the break
  • Attacking an opponent who is under the care of the referee
  • Attacking an opponent after the bell
  • Not obeying the instructions of the referee
  • Avoiding contact with an opponent, dropping the mouthpiece or faking an injury
  • Interference by the corner
  • Throwing in the towel during competition
  • Applying any substance that could result in an unfair advantage
  • Striking the part of the body just above the kidneys
  • Spitting out the mouthpiece on purpose

What happens if a fighter commits an illegal move? 

If a fighter or his team commits an illegal move of any kind, they can be deducted a point off their score or even disqualified. 

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