MMA FUNDAMENTALS

GLOSSARY

READING TIME · 1 MIN

The MMA and scoring terms you'll meet around the app, in plain language. Filter to jump to one.

Term	Meaning
Clinch	Close-range grappling while standing, fighting for control, strikes or a takedown.
Control time	How long a fighter holds a dominant grappling position; a sign of who dictated the round.
Decision	A result reached by the judges' scorecards when the fight goes the distance.
Effective grappling	Takedowns, reversals, sweeps and positional advances that threaten a finish or set up damage.
Effective striking	The cleaner, harder, more frequent strikes that land and do damage.
Ground and pound	Striking an opponent from a dominant position on the mat.
Guard	The bottom position where a fighter uses their legs to control and threaten the opponent on top.
Knockdown	Dropping an opponent with a strike; a strong marker for a 10-8 round.
KO	Knockout — a strike that ends the fight immediately.
Mount	A dominant top position straddling the opponent's torso.
No-contest	A bout ended without a winner, usually after an accidental foul or an overturned result.
Octagon control	Dictating where the fight happens; a tiebreaker on the cards, not a headline.
Point deduction	A point removed by the referee for a foul, applied after the round is scored.
Rear-naked choke	A choke applied from behind; one of the most common submissions.
Reversal	Escaping a bad position into a better one, reversing control.
Sprawl	A defensive move that stuffs a takedown and keeps the fight standing.
Submission	A choke or joint-lock that forces the opponent to tap out, ending the fight.
Takedown	Bringing the fight to the mat from standing.
TKO	Technical knockout — the referee, doctor or corner stops the fight without a clean knockout.
Unified Rules	The standard MMA ruleset, including the 10-Point Must System, used by most major promotions.
Walk-off	A finish so decisive the fighter turns and leaves before the referee steps in.