Issue 090

July 2012

An MMA referee for 12 years, UFC regular Mario Yamasaki has black belts in judo and BJJ and has refereed the jiu-jitsu Pan-Am Games. Here, he explains how movement and positioning are vital to becoming a good referee.

This month we are back in class and we are going to go over some of the tools of the trade in terms of the skills of becoming a good official. In our toolbox this month we are going to discuss ‘cage mechanics.’ The term originated in boxing; hence it was originally called ‘ring mechanics,’ however, today we have modified it to keep more in tune with the sport of MMA.  

Cage mechanics involve the elements associated with working inside the cage such as movement and positioning. In past articles I’ve touched briefly on the role that proper cage mechanics plays in developing a good referee. I want to expand what I’ve written about before and hopefully give the readers and future referees a bit more insight into this important skill.

Let’s break down some of the elements that make up cage mechanics:

Movement

A referee is also known as the third man in the cage (hence the name of this column). In that regard he is not going to be a static, stationary observer and should be moving alongside the fighters. However, not all movements are created equal and how a referee moves is also important.

Fight movement can be erratic and uncontrolled or it can flow and be graceful. I think we have all seen events where we have witnessed a referee who is jumping around and side shuffling and making all types or erratic movements. From an outside observer these referees look like they are participating in an aerobics class.  

These officials are expending more energy than the both of the fighters. As such they will fatigue quickly because there is no conservation of energy. A referee’s reaction at times during the course of a bout needs to be explosive and a referee needs to have energy reserves in place to be able to accomplish this.

Besides the obvious waste of energy that erratic movement contributes to, it is also a distraction to everyone watching the event. You never want to have the fans start focusing on the referee because they are distracted.

Part of improving movement involves being confident. Confidence comes from having a detailed understanding of the sport. A detailed knowledge of the sport allows you as a referee to interpret to some degree how things are evolving during the course of a fight.  

Ice hockey legend Wayne Gretzky is quoted as saying, ‘I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.’ This quote is applicable to being a good referee, especially in terms of movement. You are moving in conjunction with the current action but at the same time a good referee has an awareness of potentially where the action is going to be. In this way there should be no surprises as the events unfold.

So how do we improve our movement skills? One good way to improve your movement is to watch videos of yourself and see how you actually move. Are you choppy? Do you hesitate? Do you have an understanding of where the action is headed? You need to be honest with yourself because this is how you are going to improve.

I also believe that refereeing athletes in sparring sessions will improve your movement. Sparring sessions will get you to become more relaxed and more fluid in how you move. In fact, you don’t even have to referee some of these sessions but merely get used to moving around the fighters so that you are more comfortable being surrounded with combatants. It’s also important to work with different types of fighters of different weights and skill levels. Inexperienced fighters present different problems than veterans. Fighters with different body types also present different challenges in terms of speed.

Being in tune with your body through dance, or sport affects how you move. Cross training in some of these activities can actually help improve performance as well. I’ve been fortunate in that I’ve grown up all my life in both judo and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and as such have a familiarity working with fighters on the mats. It’s not uncommon to have several groups of students out on the mats at once and this presents a great opportunity to learn how to interact, move and develop spatial awareness. 

Position

Coupled with movement, position is the other key factor of good cage mechanics. Where you stand is equally as important as to how you move. Position is important as it determines the best angle for observation, and observation is how a referee is going to interpret the actions of the fighters inside the cage. It also determines the optimal range (distance) from the fighters that is critical in terms of enhancing reaction time when a referee has to respond to any incident.

Again, repeating myself, a detailed knowledge of the sport is vital in establishing proper position. You never want to position yourself in the line of an attack or in the direct line of any escape. For example, if a fighter is in a clinch and transitions his hips, then you need to recognize that a fighter may be initializing a throw or take down. 

You also have to recognize the potential directions of throws and take downs. If a fighter is attempting to do a throw such as tai otoshi or any forward throw then you don’t want to position yourself directly within the arc of the throw. 

When fighters go to the ground you need to understand the limitations of ground fighting and recognize you can stand closer to fighters as compared to stand-up. And you also need to position yourself where you can see the technique. You don’t want to be on the other side of a submission. You need to engage and look at how a fighter is responding to a submission.

This is done through observing body language, observing the eyes, or any variable that relates to whether that fighter is active and aware. If a fighter is using a sweep or reversal on the ground, you don’t want to position yourself where you block the sweep and affect the fight.

As with movement, training to develop better positioning involves developing your skills in sparring sessions. I also feel you need proficiency in grappling arts and submission arts. Again, if you know the technical components of many of the core disciplines found within MMA then you can more easily recognize what’s happening during a fight.

STAND-UP TRIANGLE

When fighters are standing the general rule is to use triangulation principles. A referee will stand as one point of a triangle in relation to both fighters. Since the fighters are moving, ideally a referee should not position himself where he can get trapped between the fighters and the cage.