Recently, Deep has made some announcements about their upcoming collaboration with Black Combat this February. Now we know that the event will follow the general format of Black Combat’s Team vs Team format, with 5 fights across 5 different divisions. While Black Combat is having auditions to determine who will face the Deep fighters, Deep has already announced that current champions Juri Ohara and Saori Oshima will be joined by Daisuke Nakamura, Seigo Yamamoto, and Yukinori Akazawa in representing the promotion. So far, Won Jon Choi has been selected to face Akazawa and Yoon Da Won has been selected to face Juri Ohara. Ahead of this, Black Combat has never had a woman’s fight before, so it will be interesting to see how those auditions go.
What is Black Combat?
Godfather Black, an anonymous Youtuber, started Black Combat last year in South Korea. A long-time fan of MMA, stemming from his days living in the U.S., Godfather Black got the idea to start Black Combat when he started going back-and-forth with another Youtuber, who suggested they settle their differences in a boxing match. Godfather wanted to compete in an MMA bout and when his would-be opponent didn’t agree, he decided to look for another opponent. This led to a bunch of boxers and Muay Thai fighters applying and their first event at Incheon Paradise City, a 5 star resort.
Utilizing Youtube
As a Youtuber, Godfather Black is well versed with the platform and Black Combat puts all of their content there. While the events aren’t aired live, they upload a lot of content, including auditions that are reminiscent of UFC’s embedded videos. This allows for story-telling and leads to fans to getting behind certain fighters. Their channel has picked up steam, generating 392,000 subscribers and 244 million views. In comparison, Deep has 54,000 subscribers with 34 million views. Having watched some of their videos already, it will be interesting to see how these fights come out.
The Rules
In creating Black Combat, Godfather Black wanted to blend the production value and entertainment of Pride with a ranking system like in the UFC. In other words, there is a transparent ranking system and soccer kicks and stomps are allowed. While the fights fall into the typical 3×5 format, in the event of a draw, both sides can agree to an extension round.
Ranking Point System
- Finish win = 2 points
- Decision win = 1 point
- Loss = -1 point
- DQ = -2 points
Types of Events
- Champions League: 6 teams fight in a season, with each team having to face each team at least once. A week before each event, the teams have to submit their rosters of 5 fighters across 5 different divisions. The results of these matches impact both the team and individual rankings.
- Playoffs: A tournament in which each of the top 4 ranked teams enters one fighter for a one-day tournament. There are no weight classes or divisions, the tournament is open weight.
- Numbered Events: The biggest type of event, where the matches are on the same level as title fights.
Scoring System
While generally similar to most scoring systems, where damage and effectiveness are scored, Black Combat does have some interesting points. The third and final round, for example, is worth more points than the other rounds. Another example is that if a someone gets up within 3 seconds of getting taken down, the takedown doesn’t count.
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