Fighters train incessantly for brief appearance in cage

Source: Daily Herald

3/2/2009

In the dimly lit basement of Club Elevate, a bar and night club in Salt Lake City, Jason Allgire leans with his hands pressed against a cold cinder block wall, his black hood shielding his eyes from the light and commotion in the room. Dozens of other men are in the basement pacing, stretching, warming up and trying to relax. Their hands have been wrapped in tape and fit with lightly padded, fingerless gloves. Their faces have been smeared with Vaseline to prevent the skin from tearing. They are all ready and waiting for their turn to fight. Allgire remains affixed to the wall in the corner, motionless. He is imagining combat scenarios, reliving moments in his training and hoping that he is stronger, faster and better trained than his opponent. His opponent is across the room, probably hoping the same thing.

Allgire, a mixed martial arts (MMA) cage fighter from Pleasant Grove, has spent weeks training for this specific fight and years studying various forms of martial arts for dozens of previous fights. He has spent countless hours at the gym sparring with friends. His evenings and often pre-dawn hours are spent running up and down the hills in his neighborhood until he can't go any further. All in preparation for this one moment.

"When you get in that cage, as soon as that cage shuts and they say 'fight' your mind goes to a whole different level," Allgire said. "You are ready to fight, you know you are ready to get hit. You are ready to punch. That first punch that you land just feels great because you know that you have hurt them. You've devastated them, and you are about to get that win."

Combat sports have been a part of human society for thousands of years, from the wrestling of Rome and Ancient Greece that has inspired the modern wrestling of today's Olympics to any of the dozens of martial arts that have been practiced throughout the world for centuries. Though inherently violent, the modern combat sports that many enjoy as spectators and participants have a level of civility. Fighters shake hands or tap gloves before a match and the violence stays in the confines of the ring, mat or cage.

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