Former UFC fighter Royce Gracie has been through MMA since the inception of the UFC back in 1993. Now 50, and still fighting in Bellator, the fighter sits down in an interview and discusses his past 20 plus years in the sport of MMA. He talks about the evolution of Jiujitsu, Bellator, and who his current favorite fighter is amongst other topics.
Check out some of the highlights from the interview:
Which MMA do you like more, this MMA, or the MMA in the nineties?
Back then it was no, ah, hmm — it was no bullshit. In a street fight there is no time-limit, no weight division, you don’t choose your opponent. So today I see fighters complain ‘Oh my god, my opponent’s a pound over the weight!’ — Really?
‘He didn’t make weight, he’s a pound over, I don’t wanna fight him.’ C’mon man. That’s why I say all the time, somebody walk down the street, pinch your girlfriend, your wife on the buns, what’re you gonna do? you’re gonna come up to him and ask him ‘excuse me, how much do you weigh? What belt are you? Sorry, he’s not in my division, I’m not going to beat him up’. C’mon man.
What about Jiu-Jitsu, do you think it evolved at all in the past 20 years?
I think it got horrible.
Jiu-Jitsu got horrible?
Horrible. Got really-really bad in the past 20 years. It added so many rules. Like you cannot slam the guy – I just saw a fight, on the internet, somebody was fighting, one guy got the other one, I think in a guillotine. The opponent picked him up, walked, across the cage, and dropped him, knocked him out. In BJJ you can’t do that! Imagine if that fight was on the street, that’ll teach the guy. The guy picks you up, man, let it go. Don’t hang on to him. The guy went for the guillotine, he picked him up, walked across the cage, very calm, stood there, and just dove down to the ground with him. Knocked him out, won the fight. Hey, imagine if that was on a curb.