Tag: Helio Gracie

Who’s the Real “Father of MMA”? — 10 Fighters More Deserving of the Title Than Bruce Lee


(Dat. Pizza. Dough.)

By Seth Falvo

Though current bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw will not be a playable character in EA Sports UFC when it hits the shelves two weeks from now, Bruce Lee will be. Perhaps equally ridiculous is that Bruce Lee isn’t being treated as a novelty addition to the roster, but rather as “the father of Mixed Martial Arts,” something Dana White has also called him. Giving credit to only one person for the creation of MMA is absurd enough, but painting Bruce Lee as that person is just preposterous.

Then again, it really isn’t hard to understand why Zuffa would want to make someone like Bruce Lee an ambassador for our sport. Lee was — and still is — an instantly recognizable celebrity. His body was ripped and athletic. He knew how to wrestle, sure, but also understood that most people would rather watch him throw flashy kicks. His affirmations were deep enough to look good on playing cards and posters, but not too profound for the bros curling in the squat rack to comprehend. In other words, he appeals to a much larger audience than Edward William Barton-Wright and Tommy Tanaka do.

Even with all that in mind, there are figures in combat sports history who not only did more to mold modern MMA than Bruce Lee, but can also be worked into the charmingly revisionist Zuffa account of history just as well. The following list will focus on the accomplishments of these individuals, as well as the arguments for why they should be repackaged as the fathers of MMA. Let’s start with the oldest candidate, and work our way towards the modern era…


(Dat. Pizza. Dough.)

By Seth Falvo

Though current bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw will not be a playable character in EA Sports UFC when it hits the shelves two weeks from now, Bruce Lee will be. Perhaps equally ridiculous is that Bruce Lee isn’t being treated as a novelty addition to the roster, but rather as “the father of Mixed Martial Arts,” something Dana White has also called him. Giving credit to only one person for the creation of MMA is absurd enough, but painting Bruce Lee as that person is just preposterous.

Then again, it really isn’t hard to understand why Zuffa would want to make someone like Bruce Lee an ambassador for our sport. Lee was — and still is — an instantly recognizable celebrity. His body was ripped and athletic. He knew how to wrestle, sure, but also understood that most people would rather watch him throw flashy kicks. His affirmations were deep enough to look good on playing cards and posters, but not too profound for the bros curling in the squat rack to comprehend. In other words, he appeals to a much larger audience than Edward William Barton-Wright and Tommy Tanaka do.

Even with all that in mind, there are figures in combat sports history who not only did more to mold modern MMA than Bruce Lee, but can also be worked into the charmingly revisionist Zuffa account of history just as well. The following list will focus on the accomplishments of these individuals, as well as the arguments for why they should be repackaged as the fathers of MMA.  Let’s start with the oldest candidate, and work our way towards the modern era…

Dioxippus


(Not Dioxippus, but I know how much you all love this thing…)

Martial Art: Pankration, an Ancient Greek combat sport that allowed punches, kicks, takedowns, joint locks and chokeholds (sound familiar?).
Notable Achievements: Dioxippus of Athens was not only the toughest fighter in Ancient Greece, but arguably the toughest fighter to ever live. In his prime, he was so famous for taking out all challengers that he won an Olympic championship by default (akoniti) because nobody was willing to fight him; he’s the only person to ever win an Olympic wreath in pankration this way. He famously defeated one of Alexander the Great’s best soldiers, Coragus, despite the fact that Coragus wore full armor and had several weapons to use against the naked Dioxippus; you read that correctly, he showed up naked to a fight against a guy in full body armor and won. After the bout, Dioxippus was framed for theft, and chose to take his own life rather than be punished for a crime he did not commit.
Why It Makes Sense: Dana White and Joe Rogan like to remind us that “fighting is in our DNA.” Dioxippus is proof of this.

Bill “The Butcher” Poole


(Again, not Bill “The Butcher” Poole, but rather a character he inspired: Bill “The Butcher” Cutting from Gangs of New York.)

Martial Arts: Bare-knuckle Boxing, Rough & Tumble (aka “Gouging”)
Notable Achievements: Let’s be perfectly clear: Bill “The Butcher” Poole was not an honorable man. The leader of both The Bowery Boys and the Know Nothing political movement, Poole terrorized the streets of New York City while spreading anti-Irish, anti-Catholic hate-speech throughout the mid-nineteenth century. He took part in Rough & Tumble — more accurately called “gouging” due to the fact that eye-gouging was not only allowed, but encouraged — contests as well as bare-knuckle boxing matches. Poole beat up heavyweight boxing champion John Morrissey so badly that The New York Daily Times wrote “[Morrissey] presented a shocking spectacle, and scarcely could any of his friends recognize him.” Though Morrissey’s men would shoot Poole in the chest over the incident, “The Butcher” lived for fourteen days with a bullet lodged in his heart. According to legend, his final words were “Good-bye, boys, I die a true American.”
Why It Makes Sense: Was Bill “The Butcher” Poole a total scumbag? Yes — and that’s the entire point. Since Zuffa history depicts MMA as something that only the most vile, deplorable people took part in until Dana White invented rules (obviously not true, but history is written by the winners), painting Poole as the original MMA fighter actually makes sense.

Evan “Strangler” Lewis

Martial Art: Catch Wrestling
Notable Achievements: Back when professional wrestling was actually a legitimate competition, Evan “Strangler” Lewis was one of the most feared men to lace up the boots. “Strangler” ran through his competition with frightening ease, masterfully utilizing the stranglehold — a technique you more than likely recognize as the rear-naked choke — to secure victory. His win over Ernest Roeber in a best-of-five match on March 2, 1893 made him the first American to become a world champion wrestler. Lewis would defend the title for two years before losing it to Martin “Farmer” Burns, and was inducted into The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2009. That he wasn’t exactly known for his sportsmanship is another story for another time, as is the way that many wrestling fans confuse him with Ed “Strangler” Lewis.
Why It Makes Sense: He was the blueprint for every freakishly athletic wrestler to ever fight inside the Octagon, from Ken Shamrock to Cain Velasquez and all points in between.

Hit that “Next Page” button for a trio of fighters whose battles against each other made them all legends of the pre-Zuffa era.

Friday Link Dump: A Tribute to the Godfathers of Ass-Kickin’, Shogun Explains His Glover-Ducking + More

(Mike Tyson, Urijah Faber, and Snoop Dogg discuss the influence of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. Props: RootsofFight. From now until Sunday, you can get 15% off their new Helio Gracie shirt — or anything else in their store — by entering Coupon code FD2012JB when you check out.)

–  Knockout of the Half-Year: Edson Barboza Banishes Terry Etim to a Lifetime Highlight Reel (MMAFighting)

– Scoring Error Corrected for UFC on FX 3; Mike Pierce Now Unanimous Decision Victor (MMAWeekly)

– ‘Shogun’ Rua Says He Would ‘Gain Nothing’ Fighting Glover Teixeira (Fightline)

– Brett Rogers Says House Fire Sparked Rift With Bellator 71 Opponent Kevin Asplund (MMAJunkie)

– Between Choices and Chance, the UFC Has Spread Itself Too Thin (BleacherReport/MMA)

– Three Exercises to Build ‘Dad Strength’ (MensFitness)

– The Ultimate Runway Model Fails Compilation (WorldWideInterweb)

– Kevin Durant’s Top 10 Plays For The 2012 Season (TurdFergusonBlog)

– How to Spend Your Lottery Winnings (HolyTaco)

– Girl on Girls: Sex Advice From a Woman (MadeMan)


(Mike Tyson, Urijah Faber, and Snoop Dogg discuss the influence of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. Props: RootsofFight. From now until Sunday, you can get 15% off their new Helio Gracie shirt — or anything else in their store — by entering Coupon code FD2012JB when you check out.)

–  Knockout of the Half-Year: Edson Barboza Banishes Terry Etim to a Lifetime Highlight Reel (MMAFighting)

– Scoring Error Corrected for UFC on FX 3; Mike Pierce Now Unanimous Decision Victor (MMAWeekly)

– ‘Shogun’ Rua Says He Would ‘Gain Nothing’ Fighting Glover Teixeira (Fightline)

– Brett Rogers Says House Fire Sparked Rift With Bellator 71 Opponent Kevin Asplund (MMAJunkie)

– Between Choices and Chance, the UFC Has Spread Itself Too Thin (BleacherReport/MMA)

– Three Exercises to Build ‘Dad Strength’ (MensFitness)

– The Ultimate Runway Model Fails Compilation (WorldWideInterweb)

– Kevin Durant’s Top 10 Plays For The 2012 Season (TurdFergusonBlog)

– How to Spend Your Lottery Winnings (HolyTaco)

– Girl on Girls: Sex Advice From a Woman (MadeMan)

And the Winner of the Roots of Fight ‘What the Gracies Mean to Fighting’ Contest Is…

(Video courtesy of YouTube/RootsofFight)

After some careful consideration by Helio Gracie’s grandson and one of the co-creators of The Gracie Breakdown series, Rener Gracie, we have a winner from last week’s Roots of Fight ‘What the Gracies Mean to Fighting’ Contest. Amazingly, none of the entries we sent in from our troll Twitter accounts won.


(Video courtesy of YouTube/RootsofFight)

After some careful consideration by Helio Gracie’s grandson and one of the co-creators of The Gracie Breakdown series, Rener Gracie, we have a winner from last week’s Roots of Fight ‘What the Gracies Mean to Fighting’ Contest. Amazingly, none of the entries we sent in from our troll Twitter accounts won.

The winner will get this fantastic Gracie-themed prize package from Roots of Fight:

The Gracie Brasil T-shirt


The Academia Gracie T-shirt


The Academia Gracie Crew Neck Sweat Shirt


The Gracie vs. Kimura T-Shirt


Here’s the winning entry:

Max S, whoever you are, send us your mailing address and shirt size to [email protected]. Congrats.

Looks like we’re going to have to buy our shirts now. If you want to buy one (or all) of the shirts, head over to MMAWarehouse.com.

Thanks to everyone that entered and to Roots of Fight for furnishing us with this incredible prize and for making fight shirts that don’t suck.

The Roots of Fight ‘What the Gracies Mean to Fighting’ Contest

(Video courtesy of YouTube/RootsofFight)

If you were to ask 100 MMA fans to define mixed martial arts in a word, their responses would differ greatly. If you asked the same census group to define the sport in a name, nearly all would give you the same answer: Gracie.

While some would likely say that Rorian and Royce — having respectively founded the Ultimate Fighting Championship and won three of its first four tournaments in decisive fashion — were the impetus behind their answer, most would likely point to Gracie jiu-jitsu originators Helio and Carlos Gracie as the reason for their response.

Carlos and Helio were innovators, who, although they didn’t invent the art of jujitsu, or it’s “successor,” judo,  they did arguably revolutionize the hybrid fighting art, making it more effective than both, especially when used by smaller combatants against larger opponents.

To the brothers, their variation of the centuries old  Japanese martial art form, now known universally as “Brazilian” or “Gracie” jiu-jitsu, was not just simply efficacious in competition; it was equally as useful in self-defense and street fighting scenarios — a point they have stressed since introducing it to the masses more than 80 years ago.

Decades before Rorian and Royce made history with the UFC, their father Helio represented the Gracie name and defended its honor in scores of challenge matches designed to prove that GJJ — an offshoot of Kodokan judo, which was taught to them by Japanese immigrant and judo master Mitsuyo Maeda, was more effective than any other form of martial art.


(Video courtesy of YouTube/RootsofFight)

If you were to ask 100 MMA fans to define mixed martial arts in a word, their responses would differ greatly. If you asked the same census group to define the sport in a name, nearly all would give you the same answer: Gracie.

While some would likely say that Rorian and Royce — having respectively founded the Ultimate Fighting Championship and won three of its first four tournaments in decisive fashion — were the impetus behind their answer, most would likely point to Gracie jiu-jitsu originators Helio and Carlos Gracie as the reason for their response.

Carlos and Helio were innovators, who, although they didn’t invent the art of jujitsu, or it’s “successor,” judo,  they did arguably revolutionize the hybrid fighting art, making it more effective than both, especially when used by smaller combatants against larger opponents.

To the brothers, their variation of the centuries old  Japanese martial art form, now known universally as “Brazilian” or “Gracie” jiu-jitsu, was not just simply efficacious in competition; it was equally as useful in self-defense and street fighting scenarios — a point they have stressed since introducing it to the masses more than 80 years ago.

Decades before Rorian and Royce made history with the UFC, their father Helio represented the Gracie name and defended its honor in scores of challenge matches designed to prove that GJJ — an offshoot of Kodokan judo, which was taught to them by Japanese immigrant and judo master Mitsuyo Maeda, was more effective than any other form of martial art.

One of our new favorite MMA clothing brands, Roots of Fight, who just happen to be fans of the site, have just released a new line of shirts from their Bloodlines collection celebrating the Gracies and their contributions to grappling and MMA, and it is awesome.

Don’t believe us? Check them out for yourselves.

The Gracie Brasil T-shirt

 

Inspired by the passport received by new members at the original Gracie Academy, the soft tri-blend heather green shirt is simple, yet stylish.

 

 

The Academia Gracie T-shirt

 

Featuring super soft, hand-drawn prints on premium cotton vintage t-shirts and sweatshirts also inspired by the Gracie Academy members’ passport these variations features a throwback “AG” insignia and the Gracie name to celebrate the roots of the Gracie JJ Academy.

The Academia Gracie Crew Neck Sweat Shirt

…and our personal favorite, which was released today:  

The Gracie vs. Kimura T-Shirt

 

An off-white, premium vintage tri-blend shirt commemorating the historic 1951 bout between Helio and judo master Masahiko Kimura, the T-shirt captures the spirit of what a fight T from the epic bout would have looked like back then.

ROF has graciously furnished us with one of each of the shirts above to award to one lucky winner. We’ll get to the details in a minute.

If you aren’t able to watch the video above at work, make sure you bookmark it for later. Trust us, you won’t be disappointed. Rener Gracie does a bang-up job as always breaking down the fight between his grandfather and Kimura.

Now, we know you’re not all MMA historians like the guys from Roots of Fight and CagePotato.com are, so we’ve put together a brief Gracie primer below for those of you who are unfamiliar with the story of how Helio’s game-changing bout with Kimura came about, and what it meant for the family. For the rest of you, skip to the bottom to find out how to win the fantastic shirts from our friends at Roots of Fight.

In 1932, at the age of just 18, Helio faced a Japanese professional wrestler and judoka by the name of Takashi Namiki and fought through to a draw after three 10-minute rounds. The match proved a decent litmus test of the young Brazilian’s skill after training in the discipline with his brother since he was 14. After going undefeated for 19 years, including draws and submissions of several traditional judo players from Japan, the Japanese masters began to take the Gracie’s claims that theirs was the most effective offshoot of jujitsu seriously.

In 1950, Masahiko Kimura, Japan’s best judoka of the era traveled to Brazil to lay down the gauntlet. He told the Gracies that he wouldn’t waste his time fighting Helio as his country’s second and third best would wipe the mats with the gangly 37-year-old and that they would prove as much in a few months.

Finally, on September 6, 1951, Helio Gracie and Yukio Kato, who was considered the number two judoka in Japan at the time, squared off at Maracana stadium in front of a raucous crowd. After three back and forth rounds of furious action the match was declared a draw. Kato was more aggressive in the first round and repeatedly tried to finish the fight in the frame with spectacular throws. Helio weathered the storm and took control of the second round by taking his opponent to the canvas, where he worked for submission after submission. Dominating the third round as well, under today’s rules Gracie, who had a 14-pound weight disadvantage in the bout, would have been declared the winner, however because neither man submitted or knocked the other out, the match was called a stalemate.

Confident he would take the rematch, Kato challenged Helio to another bout one month later, under the stipulation that this time the match would take place in a ring with ropes to avoid escapes.

On Saturday, October 29, 1951 Kato and Gracie fought for the second time, at Pacaembu Gymnasium in São Paulo. after a couple of spectacular throws in the opening minutes, Kato attempted to finish the fight on the ground with a choke while passing the guard. Gracie, aware of the dangerous position he was in, managed to roll out of the hold and used his flexibility to recover his guard, where he was able to apply a front choke from his back. The choke was tighter than Kato assumed and the Japanese judoka was rendered unconscious just eight minutes into the first round of the bout. Helio had won the bout and proven that Gracie Jiu-Jitsu was legit.

In an effort to regain judo’s glory, Kimura relented and challenged Helio to a bout, which went down in front of more than 200,000 of Gracie’s compatriots on October 31, 1951 at the Maracana Stadium — a massive soccer arena.

Outweighing the Brazilian by over 75 pounds, Kimura boldly boasted to the local media that if Helio could last more than three minutes, he would be declared the winner of the bout. The huge size and strength advantage proved to be too much for Helio. Although he was able to survive through the first 10-minute round using his defensive style and skill off his back, three minutes into the second round Carlos would step in to stop the match when he felt his brother would be risking major injury by refusing to tap out to a shoulder lock. He had escaped the submission several times in the bout and felt that he would once again be able to get out of it, but never got the opportunity. The lock from that point on became known in jiu-jitsu circles as the “Kimura.”

Although he had technically lost the bout due to forfeiture, Helio had proven that he could hang with arguably the best grappler in the world at the time and had “won” according to the stipulations set out by Kimura.

After the fight, Kimura, who endorsed Helio as a fourth-degree black belt in judo, publicly praised Gracie’s unique ground fighting technique and invited him to teach in his dojo in Japan — a gesture which was nearly unheard of at the time since martial arts in the country were traditionally taught strictly by Japanese grandmasters. The bout and the subsequent seal of approval from the judo legend was the watershed moment for Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and although the techniques haven’t changed a lot over the years, GJJ has continued to dominate the fight game ever since.

Now that you have the back-story, if you were one of the few who didn’t already know it, here’s what you need to do to win some amazing clothing from one of the sport’s newest and most promising clothing brands so you can rep GJJ with equal parts honor and style:

Tell us in 80 characters or less what the Gracie name means to fighting — be it jiu-jitsu, MMA or otherwise. Write about whatever strikes you, from your introduction to GJJ or the first time you saw Royce dominate at UFC 1, to the grace and honor the name evokes. It doesn’t have to be Hemingway-esque as long as the message is sincere and from the heart.

Tweet your entry to @RootsofFight @GracieBrothers and @CagePotatoMMA with the hash tag #THEGRACIENAME and follow all three accounts on Twitter. One entry per person.

That’s it.

Contest deadline is Friday, March 9, 2012 at 5:00 pm ET. Good luck.

If you don’t think you have the writing ferocity to win the contest, or if you simply aren’t the lucky winner, all of the shirts will be available this week for order on Roots of Fight’s website or at MMAWarehouse.com.

On This Day in MMA History: The Godfather of North American MMA, ‘Judo’ Gene Lebell Was Born in 1932

(Video courtesy of YouTube/TheFightNerd)

If the first MMA fight you ever watched was Stephan Bonnar versus Forrest Griffin, chances are you have no clue who “Judo” Gene LeBell is, but pull up a chair because you’re about to learn about the man in the pink gi.


(Video courtesy of YouTube/TheFightNerd)

If the first MMA fight you ever watched was Stephan Bonnar versus Forrest Griffin, chances are you have no clue who “Judo” Gene LeBell is, but pull up a chair because you’re about to learn about the man in the pink gi.

Many people give credit to the Gracies for bringing MMA to North America since they were responsible for founding the UFC and it’s Brazilian predecessor, The Gracie Challenge, but credit should actually go to Lebell, who helped introduce the sport to the masses nearly 30 years before the Octagon was invented.

Although it was seen as a spectacle or a publicity stunt at the time, decorated judo black belt Judo Gene Lebell called the bluff of a writer from a low budget magazine by the name of “The Judo Bums” that had boldly stated that any boxer regardless of ranking could beat a judo practician because judo players were all frauds.

After Lebell publicly denounced the troll story, the magazine offered to set up a bout between Gene and the writer boxer. He quickly accepted.

The modified ruled, no-holds-barred bout went down in Salt Lake City, Utah in December, 1963, but the pundit subbed in a professional boxer in his stead at the last minute by the name of Milo Savage. Both men wore gi tops and the only agreed upon rule was that they weren’t allowed to kick. Before the fight, Savage was caught trying to conceal brass knuckles under his hand wraps. In spite of the fact that Savage covered himself from head to toe with grease, Lebell still managed to hold onto the slippery boxer long enough to choke him out in the fourth round to become the first winner of a televised MMA bout in North America.

He would go on to train the likes of Bruce Lee, Gokor Chivichyan, Karo Parisyan and Manny Gamburyan while doing double-duty as a coach and movie stuntman over the course of his career.

Perhaps his crowning achievement besides the historic fight with Savage was the time he (allegedly) made Steven Seagal lose control of his bodily functions in his trailer on the set of “Out for Justice.”

As the story goes, Seagal purportedly told Lebell, who was a stunt coordinator on the film, that his Aikido trumped judo in effectiveness and that he could escape any hold Gene could apply. After the 58-year-old choked out “The Glimmer Man,” he proceeded to make him piss his pants by manipulating an acupuncture point on his neck he said was attached to the bladder.

After waking up in a puddle of his own urine, Segal kicked all of the onlookers out of his trailer and called his lawyers, who proceeded to slap a gag order on the cast and crew, warning them that if anyone breathed a word about the event, he would sue their asses. Thankfully the story saw the light of day, or else people may actually think Seagal is a dangerous former CIA operative who could kill you with his pinky finger like he claims.

The Gracie clan tried to set up a bout between Gene and Rickson 20 years ago, but it never materialized since there was a 27-year age difference between the two. Instead, Judo Gene suggested that he fight Helio instead, which the Gracies accepted, only if he could lose 55 lbs for the bout as Helio weighed 145 at the time. What’s curious is the fact that Gracie supporters have maintained that by turning down both bouts, Lebell ducked the family, even though Helio fought men much bigger than he was for most of his career.

Happy birthday to Mr. Lebell, who was born 79 years ago today and thank you for helping make North American MMA what it is today.