Misfits MMA is still very new on the scene but the promotion is trying to change things in a huge way by introducing a time-limit for any grappling in their fights. It’s going to be a pretty controversial rule because it really hinders a grappler’s ability to work and anyone involved in a combat sport knows that it can take to set up a submission. It would also really reduce the efficacy of ground and pound as a fight-ending tactic too. Fighters like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Khamzat Chimaev have made their careers out of wearing down fighters with relentless takedowns and damage from top control, but that wouldn’t really be possible without time to work.
It’s a particularly confusing decision when you consider that the only Misfits MMA champion right now is Dillon Danis; a BJJ competitor who has won all of his fights by submission. Although the exact time that fighters have to work on the ground hasn’t been announced yet, it’s unlikely that it would have effected Danis winning the cruiserweight title as he finished his opponent in just 15 seconds. He probably isn’t going to be a fan of the change though, and Misfits MMA founder Mams Taylor predicted the backlash they would get when he first announced the grappling time-limit during an interview with Ariel Helwani:
“I guess a lot of people will be excited about and a lot of people will hate, is that there will be a time limit on remaining on the ground. So you’re going to have to get up after a certain set time, and the referee will ensure that you stand… If the timer runs out and you’re in a rear-naked choke, you get stood up, it doesn’t matter.”
The decision will fundamentally change the way MMA looks under their promotion and will give strikers a huge advantage, especially if Taylor was serious about standing up fighters even when a submission is locked in. Many fighters have held on until the end of the round in order to avoid being submitted and giving them the chance to do that even during a round will significantly decrease the number of submission finishes.
The full interview with Misfits MMA founder Mams Taylor where he explains their time-limit for grappling was uploaded to the official YouTube channel of The Ariel Helwani Show:
