Mind Over Mayhem  “A PHYSICAL GAME OF CHESS” This is the cliché
of the ages, which every two-bit commentator that stands in
front of a camera and pretends to know about fi ghting just
spews. Now, while this cliché gets the point across that we
aren’t just mindless barbarians clubbing each other into
unconsciousness, it says nothing about the control that the
professional mixed martial artist must have over his emotions
and mental capabilities in order to do his job properly. I’m not
sure if I could fight someone completely expressionless and
relaxed as if I were sitting in an armchair; nor could I imagine
Gary Kasparov checkmating, then throwing his mouthpiece into the
MENSA audience and exclaiming, “THAT’S RIGHT BITCH! I TOLD Y’ALL
I’M THE BEST EVA!!” So let’s abandon clichés and delve head-
first into the mental aspect of the fight game.   In order to
excel at the sport of mixed martial arts, or even just get
yourself to the level of a weekend warrior so you can really
enjoy yourself while wrestling with you