Vale Tudo

The term Vale Tudo means " anything goes." It comes from the Portuguese and describes one of the forerunners of the modern mixed martial arts (MMA). More modern names or resulting from sports are " Free Fight ", " No Holds Barred Fighting", " Mixed Fight " or " Mixed Martial Arts".

Originally the term referred to a series of martial arts events in Brazil in the early 20th century. Vale Tudo is a sporty full contact combat, in which, for example, head butts and elbow full use is allowed compared to modern mixed martial arts and the fights are decided solely by the fighters. No gloves were worn and there was no point scoring or rounds. Also, there was no system of regulation, such as the Unified Rules of MMA Sports.