7 Illegal Moves MMA Fighters Always Get Away With

In the early days of mixed martial arts, the sport was pretty much a wild west. When the UFC was founded in 1993 it heavily promoted the concept that the fights featured had absolutely no rules, which while effective in garnering an audience curious to see whether such an event was even legal, it wasn't actually quite true.

Even UFC 1, that saw Royce Gracie become the first tournament champion by choking his opponents until he saw fit rather than when they tapped, did in-fact have a ruleset.

Now it wasn't exactly restrictive, but it still prohibited fighters from attacking the eyes, groin, or biting. Which was probably necessary to distinguish the UFC from a total bloodsport.

In the years since the sport has gone through a litany of rule changes to better protect the fighters and also to veer more towards sport than spectacle. The 2001 Unified Rules of MMA were heavily influenced by veteran referee 'Big' John McCarthy and set the template for what most people would consider a modern MMA fight.

However, despite the rule changes, with referees often criticised for their failure to properly implement certain rules, fighters have still found a variety of ways to, shall we say, circumvent the ruleset to their advantage.

The most common of all MMA rule infractions, you're almost guaranteed to see at least one example of a fighter grabbing the cage during every UFC card, and rarely are they punished.

In the early days of the MMA, cage grabbing was entirely legal and many fighters used it to their advantage. Even in the first UFC event, Kevin Rosier held on to the cage for leverage while raining down brutal stomps on Zane Fraizer.

Despite just how often the foul is committed in MMA, referees usually just slap the offender's hand to remove it from the fence, (a quite literal slap on the wrist) and usually refrain from taking a point away.

The issue is, despite it often happening seemingly instinctually, grabbing the cage can provide a fighter with a significant advantage, and can even aid in a fight-ending sequence.

During the first fight between Jose Aldo and Chad Mendes at UFC 142, Mendes almost secured a body lock takedown before Aldo held on to the cage to remain on his feet. Seconds later Aldo would free himself from the NCAA wrestler's grasp and deliver a brutal knee to end the fight with just a second left in the first round.