By: Emily Ren

In a ring with a smooth concrete floor, a young boy by the name of Isaiah Triana was getting ready to participate in one of the most important fights he’d ever fought in at the US Fight League national championships.

That morning, he had woken up at four-thirty, more than an hour before sunrise that day in his room at a Holiday Inn off Interstate 15; he stayed in the room, both cold and hungry. The 10-year-old needed to cut weight, four pounds less than his norm, to be able to compete in his youth Mixed Martial Arts division.

Youth MMA is viewed as problematic for a child’s development by some. According to MMA News, it is legal with careful regulation in some states like California but outlawed in many others. Unlike other contact sports, such as football or karate, it has been much slower to gain public acceptance; the violent portrayal that is associated with more professional leagues, such as the UFC, has played a part in the distrust in the sport. Because of this, Isaiah has had to come all the way from Florida to compete in a state that had legalized the sport.

Standing in a musty yoga room full of children warming up, Isaiah examined himself. He had a scab on his left knee from a recent staph infection, but despite this, his four-foot-three frame painted the portrait of a fighter.

Finally, an official announced, “Isaiah Triana, it’s about that time!”

Isaiah performed his trademark “billionaire strut” around the ring, waving his arms at the mass of parents and other attendants watching and recording the fight.

As soon as the fight started, Isiah exchanged kicks with the opponent and drove him into the cage. In just over a minute, the fight was over. Isaiah had just acquired his first win.

Earlier, his trainer, Douglas Vileforte, who had been wrapping Isaiah’s hands, had described him in a conversation with a New York Times interviewer. “He’s like a unicorn,” explained Vileforte. “We just have to make sure we don’t break him.”

Now, Isaiah asked an organizer when he would be able to fight again. It would have to be later that afternoon. “I have to wait for another win,” Isaiah sighed.

Article: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1655669435675x324946776128587300/Banned in many states%2C youth MMA is growing in popularity – Washington Post.pdf