Many gladiators were slaves who volunteered to fight in hopes that they that they would be freed as a reward for victory, or poor Romans who fought for monetary reward. The classic gladiator battle pitted a myrmillo armed with a sword, a helmet and a round shield against a retiarius armed only with a net and dagger, or a samnite equipped with a visor and a leather sheath protecting his right arm. Dutch historian Fik Meijer has estimated that most gladiators fought two or three times a year and died between the age of 20 and 30 with 5 to 34 fights to their names. Experimental matches staged by scholars seemed to confirm this: long matches were simply too exhausting. Based on analysis of the number of gladiators who fought in single events, it has been estimated that each gladiator contest lasted 10 to 15 minutes.

They were not for the faint hearted and from the best we can figure out they were as bloody and violent as they have been made out to be.

Gladiator contests were the most popular sporting events in ancient Rome.

Describe the city of rome in gladiator