The Ultimate Fighting Tournament
The famed Jiu-jitsu technique employed by the Gracie family was not as well known before 1993 as it is today. What changed was the creation of a new m...
The famed Jiu-jitsu technique employed by the Gracie family was not as well known before 1993 as it is today. What changed was the creation of a new mixed martial arts tournament called the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Essentially, the competition was designed to pit different disciplines against each other in order to determine the most effective martial art. Royce Gracie entered the tournament and won with the use of his style of martial art techniques. After he won two more tournaments the world realized that this was the fighting discipline to master in order to win.
After Gracie proved that a command over the jiu-jitsu technique was essential for success in mixed martial arts competitions, all fighters began receiving some form of personal training in jiu-jitsu, and the UFC became a series of matches on the ground. A standup fighter was almost always doomed, for once the combatant who knew jiu-jitsu got him on the ground, a tap out from the striker was inevitable. Submissions in the form of chokes, arm bars, leg locks and so on became the norm for those early UFC matches.
After time, however, the jiu-jitsu technique in the UFC became boring. There were fights that had one fighter draped over the other on the ground for the majority of the match, wearing him down but also wearing down the patience of an audience that wanted more action. Fights had fighters spending more time circling each other warily to avoid being pulled to the floor and submitted, than actually fighting. The result was pressure on the combatants to make the fights last on their feet and to be more entertaining.
Some people believe the jiu-jitsu technique has disappeared in the recent tournaments of the UFC, but that’s not quite accurate. All fighters engaged in mixed martial arts tournaments have to study jiu-jitsu in order to be able to compete effectively. This means that these top fighters can more easily block and counter the different submissions and groundwork that fighters use when grappling. MMA and jiu jitsu still have a strong relationship.
The jiu-jitsu technique is still being used in the UFC, it’s just not the show stopper it once was. While Royce Gracie was able to use his training to end fights by taking the fight to the ground and causing his opponents to tap out, these techniques are now just part of the fight, and not necessarily the end of one. Just as boxing is still alive and well in the UFC through the repeated use of jabs and crosses and footwork, jiu-jitsu has become permanently infused with the UFC as a natural way of fighting.
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