Mma Role Model

Words: 1809
Pages: 8

Often times behavior is mimicked with the delusion that similar actions may lead to a similar outcome in life someday. Children also look to their heroes’ appearance and are usually left in awe (aacap.org). When the news of a child’s role is out, the wrong message is taken and it becomes quite clear that there is a path to be like and look like an elite athlete such as professional fighters through performance-enhancing drugs.Due to the magnitude of exposure MMA fighters attain with today’s unlimited amount of media outlets and the weight they carry on their shoulders as public figures, performance-enhancing drugs tarnish their careers as well as the hopes and dreams of today’s youth. The “role model” aspect aside, true fighters do not seek …show more content…
In the eyes of the fight promoters, anything that rakes in fans and financial wealth with an influx of new eyes watching their events is a plus for them and for their company. What they neglect to consider when turning a blind eye to performance-enhancing drug abuse is the results and depth to their roster in the long run. Allowing professional fighters to take several kinds of hormones and inject themselves with foreign substances in order to look like a superhero with real potential to harm others as well as themselves is simply not sustainable. Granted, the shock value of two giants clashing in the center of the ring is bound to attract eyes to the television screen but after a while, injuries become a factor. In 2002, Pride Fighting Championship, the Japanese fighting league known for not drug testing their athletes hosted a main event featuring a top heavyweight in Antonio Minotauro Nogueira and six foot seven inch Bob Sapp weighing in at a hair over three hundred and fifty pounds. The highlight of the fight came from the eventual loser, Bob Sapp, when he decided to lift Nogueira above his head about seven feet in the air and drive his opponent to the canvas with all his force. Antonio Nogueira unfortunately landed on his neck and although he toughed it out and eventually came out victorious, he claimed he never …show more content…
In a search for legitimacy and consideration as a major sport like basketball and football, performance enhancing drugs are a constant developing complexity promoters and athletes continue to be forced to deal with. The drive for success these fighter possess has the potential to lead them to do almost anything to come out on top even if that means exposing their bodies to substances that can be harmful. Owners and executives will constantly need to update and manage their technology for drug testing. The great evil of performance enhancer lies in health risks to both the person using the drug and the fighter across the ring from that person. Seekers of unfair advantages need to come to grips with their role in society as public figures and those who are aware that they have a major influence on society and future generations are doing wrong in finding the easy way out with PEDs. Those with the most financial freedom and resources will find a way to play the system and find loopholes in drug tests. Through an ever adapting system of cheating, the never ending list of ways to getting a head start becomes greater. Organizations hired to sniff out PED users must stay sharp and stringent if they want to clean up the sport of mixed martial arts. Careers and lives are broken down and shattered as a result of cheating and hinder special athletes that could