Gladiatorial fighting itself was a degeneration. The origin dates back to the time of the Etruscans when this type of combat between prisoners was celebrated to honor the death of a deceased notable character. A funerary ritual that became a playful spectacle. And already put, later the fight between animals or the one of men against animals were added, anything so that the show did not decay.
Most of the fights were to the first blood or with the possibility of forgiveness by the emperor or the editor of the show, only on rare occasions was it fought to the death (sine missione ). You have to think that it was a business:the publisher who organized and financed the fights, to gain the favor of the people, keep them happy or get the votes for some position in the judiciary, rented the lanistas (owners of gladiatorial schools) the fighters who were going to fight and, logically, paid for it. If it was to the death, you had to pay much more, because a dead gladiator was one fighter less than the lanista he could rent for other shows. So, to amortize the expenses (accommodation, rigorous training, food, specialized medical care...) he wanted them to fight on many occasions so that it would be a profitable business.
Gladiator School
It is easy to think, especially due to the artistic licenses of movies or books, that these gladiators were slaves, prisoners of war or criminals forced to fight in the arena, but there were also professional gladiators:the auctorati, free men fighting for money and glory. It could be said that his profession was that of a gladiator. Moreover, according to the sources, it was more prestigious to organize ludi with auctorati , because they were more competitive and gave more spectacle - they fought for honor, glory and money - than the condemned gladiators, prisoners or slaves, who were forced to fight. Furthermore, these free men turned gladiators used to fight only three or four times a year.
What did you have to do to be auctoratus ?
These volunteers went to a gladiatorial school and signed a contract with the lanista , normally for five years, which could be renewed for periods of the same time if both parties agreed, in exchange for a fixed salary and commissions for objectives (victories). They pronounced the oath “uri, vinciri, verberari, ferroque necari” (being burned, tied, beaten and ironed to death) - that is, they would fight to the death and accept their fate whatever it was - and, from that moment, they became professional gladiators. Although they enjoyed popular admiration, taking the oath and becoming a gladiator entailed the loss of political rights (the infamy ). Roman law recognized two types of infamy :the facti infamy , for the exercise of an infamous activity (such as that of a gladiator), and the infamia iurs , by court ruling as a result of fraud or any malicious action. In this way, the auctoratus acquired a status similar to that of actors and prostitutes. The hypocritical Roman society marked these professions with the stigma of infamy to differentiate them from the "upright and honest" citizens, but then they demanded gladiator fights, they filled the theaters and frequented the brothels.
Come to think of it, if you didn't care too much about losing certain rights, it was much better to be auctoratus what a legionnaire:you charged much more, you exposed yourself much less and you could get popular admiration. Don't you think?