If football is a game of inches, mixed martial arts is a battle of frames—fractions of moments that carry fighters from one second to the next.
Fights are won and lost in these frames, and in a niche sport that’s turned into a mainstream melting pot over the last decade, MMA’s most dominant fighters have learned that the difference between winning and losing usually boils down to who can transition faster from one style to another.
With this is in mind, MMA animator Chris Rini drew up a poignant animation titled “Gone in 16 Seconds.” Rini’s work illustrates how fighters implement a host of different techniques in their fights. Moreover, it reminds us that Ronda Rousey is a terrifying and clinical monstrosity.
After reeling off the roots of popular MMA fighting styles, Rini breaks down Rousey’s breathless first-round dismissal of Alexis Davis at UFC 175. In 16 seconds, he shows how Rousey used more than a half-dozen moves based in boxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and other disciplines to bring Davis to the mat and butcher her.
It’s an artful vignette of organized violence and a reminder of how complex the sport has become over time. It’s also simple, in that Rousey is a force of nature and should probably be banned for everyone’s safety.
Dan is on Twitter, remembering that he can’t even reheat coffee in 16 seconds.
