The term has been retired from common usage because it became a registered trademark of Bart Vale, who uses it to describe his hybrid fighting system derived from shoot wrestling.

Ken Shamrock is possibly the most recognisable shoot fighter, as it was the discipline he used during the early days of the UFC.

Shootfighting's use as a synonym for mixed martial arts had its genesis in the 1970s, when Karl Gotch taught a group of Japanese professional wrestlers catch wrestling techniques, called "hooking" or "shooting".

In 1976, one of these pro-wrestlers, Antonio Inoki, hosted a series of matches against practitioners of other martial arts; most of these were "worked" (predetermined), but one particular high-profile one was against Muhammad Ali, which was in fact a shoot.

This led to an increased interest in real and effective technique, and eventually led to the creation of shoot wrestling, with some shoot-style professional wrestling organizations hosting legitimate mixed martial arts bouts, called "shoots".

Held inside a standard wrestling ring, competitors are allowed to kick, knee or elbow any part of the body except the groin, as well as headbutt.