"Interesting question... I don't really feel the pain... but I've also never had my nose broken *yet*. My last fight, each shot it felt like my ability to fight back appropriatley diminished and I would get more desparate with each shot taken. Each shot I landed I thought "shit, that didn't drop him? fine, hit em again" Then I got dropped by the one that I didn't see. I'm pretty inexperienced though, only two fights. I imagine it gets easier with experience. It's like watching your hit point/power bar go down while you're playing a fighting video game. You don't feel the sting of the punches until later, but you know you're taking damage, and you know that it's not good."

"As for giving a strike like that- you don't always realize how hard you've hit. I've knocked people down and thought they slipped, not realizing it was my punch. Taking a hit- it's either the adrenaline that keeps you from feeling it, or it stuns for a second. It's the head equivalent of getting the wind knocked out of you- nothing hurts, but your body has to pause to reassess. For me, that's when I smile to cover that it hurt and I go after my opponent :)"

"Thanks for the response Chris- very well-put. Regardless of your level of experience, it's probably a common perspective. Others may feel that getting hit actually gives them more momentum at times. I guess it depends on the power of the hit, the preparation of the fighters, and the threshhold of their endurance as well. Let's invite others to offer any other perspectives here...."

"As an MMA fighter- how would you describe how it feels at the moment of impact whether you are the striker or the one getting struck?"