Game Theory in UFC?

A good example for game theory that applies to "real life" is found in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Last night, UFC 96 took place right here in Columbus and although I didn't get to attend in person, I watched it on TV with my friends. The main event was a heavy- weight fight between Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Keith "The Dean of Mean" Jardine. Jardine's strength and reason for success in the UFC is mainly due to his powerful kicking ability while Rampage's strength is his punching ability.

They have never fought each other before and UFC fights are not a chess match; their fight is a one-shot game (2 players) with simultaneous action. To break it down simply, let's say each player has 2 choices (strategies): punch or kick. Rampage's dominant strategy is to use his strength - punching. Jardine's dominant strategy is to use his strength - kicking. Here's the breakdown:

Jardine
punch kick
punch 5,5 10,5
Rampage kick 5,10 5,5



There is a third choice (strategy) for this fight that can be removed as a dominated strategy and that is wrestling. Neither fighter has a very strong ground game so the column + row for wrestling can be removed to more clearly locate each fighter's dominant strategy & the nash equilibrium. This fight has mixed strategies & the nash equilibrium is found at the point when Jardine kicks and Rampage punches.

In last night's fight, Rampage won via unanimous decision since neither fighter was knocked out or tapped out. It would be interesting to see the results if they were to fight 5 more times. This setup would introduce more strategy since the fighters could learn and study each other's moves to possibly create a new strategy. Or if through training, 1 fighter's skills were improved so much that he could change dominant strategies before the next fight.