The Young and the Old: An MMA Thanksgiving

Every Thanksgiving we press pause on our hectic lives and gather together with family and friends to give thanks for the blessings, no matter how small, that make our worlds a better place. It's a solemn time, a chance to think about the world we occupy and how we can best make a difference.

And then, after those five minutes are up, we proceed to ignore each other in order to watch football and surf Twitter on our phones.

Most of you likely don't spare a thought for the martial arts, mixed or otherwise, during these intimate moments with your loved ones. Luckily the Bleacher Report MMA team is not nearly so well adjusted.

I asked Jeremy Botter, Patrick Wyman and Nathan McCarter to think for a moment about MMA on this special day. Give it a read before the turkey puts you to sleep. Offer your own thanks in the comments below.

Patrick Wyman: New Talent

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What I'm thankful for in 2015 is the rise of new and exciting talent throughout the sport—and particularly in the UFC.

2014 was a lackluster year for MMA. The UFC's biggest stars were gone, either through retirement or injury, while Bellator fired its founder, Bjorn Rebney, and brought on Scott Coker for a total rebuilding project. Pay-per-view numbers and television ratings were low across the board.

The most jarring thing about that down year for the sport, however, was the sense that the sport had failed to produce new and exciting talent. Bellator's biggest event of 2014 was headlined by Stephan Bonnar and Tito Ortiz, while much of the conversation around the UFC's poor showing revolved around the lack of Anderson Silva and Georges St-Pierre.

2015 has seen a reversal. At the highest levels, Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor have blossomed into stardom as big-time draws, and Joanna Jedrzejczyk seems like a keeper as the strawweight champion. 

The UFC and Bellator have seen their investments in homegrown talent begin to pay off. Paige VanZant has gotten a carefully built progression of opponents and a media push, while teen-aged sensation Sage Northcutt is a magnet for cameras and publicity. Both could blossom into big-time stars. 

More proven fighters have also come into their own this year. Thomas Almeida and Aljamain Sterling have emerged as exciting talents in the thin bantamweight division. Mirsad Bektic could be the next big thing at featherweight. Albert Tumenov is crushing the opposition at 170 pounds. Elias Theodorou combines a great look with serious talent.

In Bellator, Will Brooks has grown into his status as a dominant lightweight champion, while Michael Page is waiting for a chance to break through.

The future looks bright after a strong 2015, and the rise of new talent has a great deal to do with that.

Nathan McCarter: UFC Embracing New Product Presentation

Everyone agrees 2014 was a down year for the UFC thanks in part to a rash of injuries that decimated fight cards. But it was more than that: The product itself was stagnant. It was old, tired and growing unappealing to many. The UFC was in a rut just pumping out the same old fight promos on the same old format.

It changed things up in 2015.

Over the course of this year, we have seen the UFC promote fights a bit differently. The two most notable fight promos we have watched this year have been trailers for Jose Aldo vs. Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm. In both instances, we saw something fresh that caught our attention. The high-end production made those fights and events feel important and big.

The UFC also embraced the spectacle at UFC 189 with Aaron Lewis and Sinead O'Connor singing the walkout themes for the two main event fighters. The UFC also added in some in-Octagon graphics that added to the ambiance. When the UFC puts its full weight behind an event, you can feel the energy from the fans emanate.

Sadly, it thought we wanted a techno version of “Face the Pain." So there's still that to deal with as we move forward in this beautiful and violent sport. It really is time to end that ear-bleeding suffering.

It has also instituted crisp new graphics for its pay-per-views and Fight Pass events. These changes may seem small, but they help to reinvigorate the production of the product. Even small changes can make a significant difference with such a visual product.

The new changes to the presentation have been a success, and I hope the UFC continues to embrace change as we head to 2016.

Jonathan Snowden: The Fighters

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Every year we're asked to give thanks for the blessings in our lives. In the real world, that's not always easy. Financial problems, health problems, the world's descent into chaos and violence—it's a constant cacophony of negativity, the silver lining not immediately apparent. 

But in the world of combat sports, finding things to be thankful for is never an issue. At every event, whether under the bright lights of pay-per-view or at your local National Guard armory, dozens of fighters risk everything to step into the cage. 

Think, if just for a minute, about the courage it takes to strip down to your underwear and test your will, your toughness and your training against another human being. Naked before the world, fighters are exposed in the most incredibly intimate way. 

How will they respond to adversity? Will they rise to the occasion? Or will they give in to despair? For most of us, the small victories and big defeats are private moments, shared only with family and friends. These athletes live their lives in front of strangers, many of them waiting gleefully for the first sign of weakness.

This is powerful stuff, people. And maybe that's why it can still move me after all these years. At UFC 193 we saw one athlete shaken to her core and another living her dream. Both of them gave everything. But only Holly Holm walked out of the cage champion.

I rode that vicarious emotion for a solid week. It was the perfect example of what sports can mean, of the power and beauty of competition.

And while it was exceptional, it was not extraordinary. On some level it happens every week in rings and cages around the world. To all the fighters who risk all to give us these moments, who brave what we never would to test the limits of the human spirit I say this—thanks.

Jeremy Botter: Crazy Old Bellator

Gregory Payan/Associated Press

In a year where the UFC became more professional—with the Reebok uniforms and the USADA drug testing—I'm thankful for Bellator, mostly because it went the opposite direction. 

It is all well and good for the future of mixed martial arts that the UFC is doing what it is doing. You know the old saying about how you can put lipstick on a pig? That's what the UFC is doing. Because, look: Mixed martial arts is never going to be anything but a sideshow. We do not have fighting in our DNA, no matter what UFC President Dana White says at the height of his red-faced glory. 

But the UFC is trying, at least. And that's something. But that left very little room for Bellator to negotiate, and so it took off running into the night, off toward the great glow of the carnival in the distance. 

Here, in this big top, we have Ken Shamrock and Kimbo Slice! Step right up and watch these two very old men do something resembling combat! 

Over here in this tent, we're going to announce a fight for Fedor Emelianenko! Oh, and we'll talk about this massive jiu-jitsu expert facing a professional wrestler with literally zero combat experience!

The UFC is a corporate machine. Everything flows smoothly, from the PR team's effortless handling of media eager to do whatever they ask for a mere 10 minutes with the great Conor McGregor to the entire production as a whole. 

Bellator? Well, it feels a little like riding a wagon in the old west. As in, you have this feeling that the wheels may come off at any moment, but gosh, the ride sure is exciting while it happens. And I'm grateful to be on that ride.