Royce Gracie

Since man began participating in combat sports people have argued who would win in a fight between karate and tae kwon do, wrestling and boxing, and “street fighting” and kickboxing… For decades Hollywood movies have clouded our perception of what “real fighting” is with fancy, jumping spin kicks and moves better suited for video games. These choreographed scenes created unrealistic expectations of what self-defense is. Students eager to learn began gravitating toward certain martial arts that capitalized off of what was being shown in the cinema. Much of the general public did not understand just how effective grappling based martial arts (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, wrestling, judo, etc…) are.

On November 12, 1993 the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) held it’s first Mixed Martial Arts event in Denver, Colorado. There were no weight classes, no gloves, no time limits, and very few rules (no eye poking, etc…) When the dust settled Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt Royce Gracie finally gave the world the answer to the much debated question about what works in a real fight. Royce defeated all three of his opponents by choke from the back to win the first Ultimate Fighting Championship title.

Enjoy this highlight video of the man that helped bring grappling to the masses, Royce Gracie.