This was '97 in SLC, UT. That's me in the front row. An amazing night, Rickson rolled with one guy using no hands, and triangled him in 20 sec, then he subbed me and almost everyone else in the room. Priceless experience.
If you haven't trained with Rickson, you can't possibly understand how good he is. The best guys in the world go to him to learn. He can still tap anyone. Pedro helps to train alot of the best too (Eduardo Telles and Andre Galvao have both visited him recently). But Rickson makes him look like a beginner in this video. The dude is on another world entirely. But like most things in BJJ, it has to be experienced.
@zxkjr Saulo Ribeiro in his recent book Jiu Jitsu University said that Rickson made him tap, as well as everyone else that was in the gym, the last time they trained together. Saulo shows the armbar setup that Rickson used in the book. Roger is awesome and def. the best competing today but Rickson is still on another level.
from what ive heard, rolls was the best out of all the gracies and when rickson was around 20ish rolls was the only one at the gym who could tap him out. The rest of the gracie family said that he was on a completely different level than them.
yeah i notice when sparring my coach who is a very good fighter and competitor, the amount of weight they put down and the pressure of the simple techniques is extraordinary. They may only use the simple armbar from mount. but once they decide to do it, they're doing it. guys like my coach can say "im going to armbar your right arm from mount" and no matter how much you defend it.... its going to happen
I had a similar experience at a much lower level with his brother Rorion, many years ago. It was one of the rare classes at the academy that he decided to teach himself, the other instructors being out of town for some reason. We were all working from side control and he didn't like how easily we were getting mounted on each other so, he went over the hip lift and elbow-knee escape as mount prevention. We all (purple belts) thought we knew those techniques. We were all wrong.
@rich85seal this is Pedro Sauer. I trained under one of his students, Eddie Camden, and have met Pedro Several times. One of the world's finest Gracie JiuJitsu practitioners and a good man! Awesome to see 2 GJJ legends on the mat
Roger may be the most successful Gracie in BJJ right now but you really can't compare him to Rickson. Rickson is a legend in fighting and around 53 or 54 years old. On top of that I would still put my money on Rickson in a match with Roger.
How do you feel now. I think Roger vs Rickson would end in a stalemate after 20 minutes. Unlimited time, who knows, maybe exhaustion before any submission.
P1) Thank you for your reply - I know from seeing Rickson's videos that Gracie Jujitsu has very good fundamentals in striking & defensive blocks there is no inefficient blocks in your system & from my own use of ground fighting I know that is the place where leverage is most applicable to joints (unless you are wearing armour standing or you are a very good grappler locks standing can leave you open to strikes either in self-defense situations or MMA - hence very little Aikido in MMA)
Of the guys you just mentioned, all but Bas Rutten are 10 to 15+ years younger than Rickson. Even Bas is 7 years younger. Not to mention that three of Bas' four losses are to Funaki and Ken Shamrock, who were both defeated by Gracies. Everybody has to retire sometime. It was just Rickson's time.
@Mortido roger is the top dog, but I bet we cant get the old man... I was training with one of rickson's black belt in rio and he told me that he cant get the old man, rickson is a really slick guy even at his age
I can't speak for all BJJ. I study Helio Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as taught to me by Pedro Sauer. We do have kicking and punching skills as well. They are mostly used in defensive manners though, as this is the purpose of jiu-jitsu. However, when you're talking like a sport such as MMA, that's a different beast. Being fully skilled in all three ranges (free movement, clinch, and ground) of combat is very important. Just being open to anything that works in each phase is what is important.
You are correct, people confuse what Gracie JJ was. It was a self defense system, a very good one. It did well in MMA, but the rules changed, people developed very good skills and GJJ stayed the same and is no longer dominant but It is still a very good self defense system, Rickson himself says modern BJJ is pants. I agree. Live the lifestyle, hit the mats and roll your cares away.
BJJ is open to new ideas (it has incorporated boxing for stand up; which is a great improvement for MMA over Karate or other styles that have been influenced in their techniques by traditions of Sumuria wearing armor in an age when few people train in armor) The Gracies also have fought in gi or no gi - but since the on going revolution in ground fighting seems not to be ending is there also a need for BJJ to also focus on new stand up techniques for grappling & striking or is boxing good enough
P5) - we just have to find a way to revolutionize all three aspects just as we (jujitsu) have done for the ground. Sorry for so many replies - but I am trying to develop some ideas on this & I thought deferring to expert opinion & weighing it against my own training experience would be a good start. All the best David
@judgerofwars Regardless of who it is (and it looks like Pedro Sauer) it's a gi choke that finishes the match while Rickson is setting up 3 other techniques on the back burner.
P4) However that core principle could also be used to develop a new system of stand up techniques to complement the ground techniques as well sooner or later someone is going to find ways to counter boxing & mauythia in stand up it might as well be Jujitsu because the current view is that Jujitsu is just ground fighting - if as you said you know anything about the Gracies or Maeda it is much more of a complete system
P3) - for instance you don't need thousands of techniques only a enough to be apt to cover angles of attack - just as you would starting out learning on the ground (yes these develop nuances which means jujitsu is limitless in terms of techniques & methodology) What I like about jujitsu is it has a core principle of unbalancing & leverage but also borrows & incorporates what works.
rickson is the best truly 460 wins 0 lose that record is incredible better then any fighter i have seen and that aint all bjj he also did aikido and jut jitsu and he was great at aikido he is the best and he was the one who thought his brother and the legend goes on
Interesting. My first impression is that any revolutions in stand up have already been made. The problem is that too many people try to force themselves into a mold of a system. Rather, like jiu-jitsu, the key is to learn as much as you can and throw out what doesn't work, doesn't fit your body, and doesn't make sense. Therefore, each individual would have a system of fighting that is based on their body style and movement. Just like jiu-jitsu.
@agentmma It isn't Pedro Sauer, the video is too grainy to be 100% sure. However Pedro has his own Ju-Jitsu team and his own schools. It would be rare for a seminar to have both Pedro and Rickson there.
P2) My question is if innovations in stand up possible; from the perspective of Jujitsu either from 10th Planet or GJJ or BJJ or JJJ - such as locking flows & striking combination flows in stand up to gain positional dominance. There is so much material out there that what is needed is sound application of principles in stand up just as Maeda & the Gracies did for the ground
The Western Rationalist Gracie Jiu Jitsu has a curriculum of standing techniques including every efficient strike that exists. Punches, elbows, kicks, etc - it’s all there already.
@rich85seal My bro that is the professor himself on that video Pedro Saur with Rickson Gracie. Those guys are sick and there transitions are no joke and if you ever get the chance to visit make sure you stop by both schools.
@judgerofwars That's definitely Pedro Sauer and you're missing the point. It was a beautiful relaxed roll from both of them. Watch at :38 as Master Sauer takes the time to scratch an itch on his left shin with his right foot. These are two guys so in their element and at such a level that the average jiu-jitsu practitioner can't even comprehend what he's watching.
@zxkjr As far as championships... Rickson won the most prestigious competitions of his era in BJJ. When he was competing the Mundials did not exist. There weren't any No-Gi World Championships or ADCC.
No, but there are plenty of testimonials from "top guys" who HAVE rolled with him. Most saying it's a completely different feel and totally a level up.
@UnworthyBaldHead Some people would say that it's silly that a 54 year old Rickson would tap Saulo Ribeiro or Andre Galvao who just won ADCC but they both have said that when they trained with Rickson recently he tapped them and everyone else in the gym out. I'm just going by what current world champions say, it's not my opinion.
this' way silly, why talking about family against family, doing the same thing and it ain't gonna be much fun and remember Jiujitsu isn't base on speed or strength, it's base on timing and leverage
lol Brilliant comment - I would like to see Garcia or De la Maia spar with Rickson that would be an amazing demonstration of skill - Eddie Bravo said he thinks Maurico Garcia is currently the best at JJ - well Garcia is good much better than I or most people will ever be at Jujitsu and he was unfortunate to have no contest in his MMA fight due to a cut but a grappling match is as different from MMA as a boxing match is due to emphasis on one part of fighting. Respect fighters Great video.
you lucky bastard! Royler, Royce and Rickson?! man itd be a tiny amount of black belts from down here would get that oppurtunity let alone purplebelts, are you still purple or was that what you were when you met rickson? i cant imagine how much you learned...
Wow. This is the only time I've ever seen Pedro get tapped out. This is when Pedro had has black belt, I think (can't really tell from the video). This is such a high level of jui-jitsu that it doesn't make sense to even try to measure it.
@UnworthyBaldHead it is actually not silly - dont let age fool you - Pedro Sauer is the same way - there whole lives have been Jiu Jitsu - at a recent seminar ( Rickson Gracie ) Rickson had all the Blackbelts place him in an armbar from guard and not one could even budge him let alone tap him - Not one - the man is a force - the age he is at now doesnt make the least bit of difference -
@agentmma You can't compare him to Rickson because hes fought the best in his own sport and he's fought guys who know what they're doing in mma. Rickson avoided competitive fights like the plague.
Why compare Roger to Rickson? One is 20 to 25 years older. Are you going to continue to compare him to the current generation when he's 90? He has passed the torch. He was hands down the best grappler of his time but the body eventually deteriorates.
eddie bravo and shawn williams came to the point that all the rumors about rickson is true.he just shuts everyone down.saulo ribiero and enzo gracie is on rickson's list..even john machado said the rumors were true..watch budo videos interview on eddie bravo.thay talk about rickson for a couple of minutes.
I just want to see Rickson spar Marcelo Garcia. I don't believe it will ever happen because Rickson is one of Marcelo's idols, but man would it be amazing to see. I believe Marcelo would finish Rickson.
@agentmma...but BJJ didn't have nearly as deep a talent pool as it does today. Roger's competition > Rickson's competition. Respect to Rickson but its just silly to think that a 54 year old Rickson would get the better of Roger.
@agentmma I think we CAN compare him to rickson.....I mean Roger's BJJ is unreal....in terms of technical ability it's gonna be hard to find out unless they spar or there's an extensive comparison. In a match against each other, both men are almost unsubmittable, especially in gi, and Roger is much larger than Rickson. I don't know if Rickson will have any advantage in skill....probably, but not a whole lot more then a monster like Roger.
A better question is which of his opponents weren't bums. Then it's only Funaki and Yuki Nakai who was half blind and whom Rickson outweighed by 40lbs. Truth is that when competent fighters started calling Rickson out he ran. Bas Rutten, Sakuraba, Wanderlei Silva - Rickson wanted nothing to do with them.
