Rickson Gracie
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| Rickson Gracie | |
|---|---|
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| Born | November 20, 1958  Rio De Janeiro, Brazil |
| Height | 5 ft 09 in (1.75 m) |
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st) |
| Style | Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu |
| Fighting out of | Brazil |
| Rank | 8th degree red belt & black belt in BJJ |
| MMA record | |
| Total | 11 |
| Wins | 11 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 10 |
| Losses | 0 |
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Rickson Gracie (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈʁiksõ ˈɡɾejsi]; born November 20, 1958) is a Brazilian martial artist and professional mixed martial artist who holds a 8th degree red and black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.[2] He is a member of the Gracie family: the son of Hélio Gracie, brother to Rorion Gracie and Relson Gracie, and half-brother to Royce and Royler Gracie.[3] He was the winner of the Vale Tudo Japan tournament in 1994 and 1995.[4][5]
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[edit] Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Paulo Filho, former PRIDE middleweight fighter and former 185 lb World Extreme Cagefighting champion,[6] states that Rickson's skills at Jiu-Jitsu are unparalleled. In Gracie Magazine, Filho says "I have trained with the toughest guys formed by Carlson Gracie. They were all great and I for sure don’t want to diminish anybody, but I have to say that no one ever did to me what Rickson Gracie has done during training these last days.”[7]
[edit] Retirement
Rickson has confirmed that he is officially retired now and his major focus is to give seminars on jiu jitsu and to try to developed BJJ as his father saw it: not a fighting tool but a social tool, to give confidence to women, children, and physically weak individuals by giving them the ability to defend themselves. This is in tune with his father's beliefs and the direction which he has taken for his life and jiu jitsu.
[edit] Personal life
Rickson has 4 kids; Rockson Gracie(deceased), Kauan, Kaulin & Kron Gracie. One of his students is Maynard James Keenan, the singer-songwriter of the bands Tool, A Perfect Circle and Puscifer.
[edit] Fighting record
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This article's factual accuracy is disputed. Please see the relevant discussion on the talk page. (January 2009) |
In addition to Rickson Gracie's record in professional mixed martial arts of 11-0, the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy website profile claims that:
- He credits himself with a combined record of over 400 victories in Jiu-Jitsu tournaments and freestyle wrestling, Sambo, and no holds barred challenge matches.
- He is a two-time Brazilian Champion in freestyle wrestling.
- He is a Gold Medal Winner in Sambo.
- He trained his younger brother, Royce Gracie, for his first four fights in the UFC.
Rickson has at least one loss — from the 1993 U.S. Sambo Championships in Norman, Oklahoma, where he was defeated by American Ron Tripp by Total Victory via uchi-mata in 45 seconds. Rickson disputed this loss, claiming he was misinformed of the rules of the event.[8][9]
[edit] Controversy
Rickson has raised the anger of some in the MMA community by criticizing the abilities of current top fighters, claiming that he could still beat them easily today. In an interview with Tokyo Sports, Rickson argued that Fedor Emelianenko is a great athlete, but possesses "so-so" technical ability, and that he (Rickson) is "100% sure" that he would defeat him.[10] Previous comments of this sort that Rickson made about Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira prompted Wanderlei Silva to say that Rickson is "living in a fantasy world."[11]
Hélio Gracie disputed Rickson's claim to have had over 400 fights. According to Hélio, Rickson has only competed in fights that are commonly known and reported: the two against Rei Zulu and those that took place in Japan. Hélio alleged that Rickson uses practice and amateur bouts to obtain a number over 400, and that if he counted his fights like Rickson does, he would have in excess of 1,098,647.[12] It should be noted that if someone fought 40 matches per day, 365 days per year for 75 years, then that would be 1,095,000 matches. Helio Gracie was 95 when he died. Helio started teaching martial arts when he was 16.
[edit] Quotes
“Rickson Gracie and me had a match in the BYU wrestling room in 1992. He made me tap out twice and told me I was the toughest guy he’d gone against. Rickson was the best fighter I’d ever seen. He still may be.” - Mark Schultz (amateur wrestler) (1984 Olympic Gold Medalist -1985,87 World Champion -1981,82,83 NCAA Champion -1984,85,86,87 National Open Freestyle Champion -1987 Pan American Games Champion -1982 World Cup Champion -MMA Record: 1-1)[13]
[edit] Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 11 matches | 11 wins | 0 losses |
| By submission | 11 | 0 |
| Result | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 11-0 |  Masakatsu Funaki |
Technical Submission (rear naked choke) | C2K: Colosseum | May 26, 2000 | 1 | 12:49 |
| Win | 10-0 | Nobuhiko Takada |
Submission (armbar) | PRIDE 4 | October 11, 1998 | 1 | 9:30 |
| Win | 9-0 | Nobuhiko Takada |
Submission (armbar) | PRIDE 1 | October 11, 1997 | 1 | 4:47 |
| Win | 8-0 | Yuki Nakai |
Submission (rear naked choke) | Vale Tudo Japan 1995 | April 20, 1995 | 1 | 6:22 |
| Win | 7-0 | Koichiro Kimura |
Submission (rear naked choke) | Vale Tudo Japan 1995 | April 20, 1995 | 1 | 2:07 |
| Win | 6-0 | Yoshihisa Yamamoto |
Submission (rear naked choke) | Vale Tudo Japan 1995 | April 20, 1995 | 3 | 3:49 |
| Win | 5-0 |  Bud Smith |
Submission (punches) | Vale Tudo Japan 1994 | July 29, 1994 | 1 | 0:39 |
| Win | 4-0 | Dave Levicki |
KO (punches) | Vale Tudo Japan 1994 | July 29, 1994 | 1 | 2:40 |
| Win | 3-0 | Yoshinori Nishi |
Submission (rear naked choke) | Vale Tudo Japan 1994 | July 29, 1994 | 1 | 2:52 |
| Win | 2-0 | Rei Zulu |
Submission (rear naked choke) | Independent promotion | January 01, 1984 | 2 | |
| Win | 1-0 | Rei Zulu |
Submission (rear naked choke) | Independent promotion | April 25, 1980 | 1 | 11:55 |
[edit] Media appearances
Released by Manga Entertainment in 1999, Choke, a 98 minute documentary by filmmaker Robert Goodman follows Rickson Gracie and 2 other fighters as they prepare and fight in Tokyo's Vale Tudo 1995, an early MMA event. "Choke" has been distributed in 23 countries.
Rickson Gracie also has a small role in The Incredible Hulk as Bruce Banner's martial arts instructor. He teaches Banner certain throws as well as breathing techniques designed to calm his anger. Curiously, his character is credited as an Aikido instructor, despite his Jiu-Jitsu background.
He has also appeared on National Geographic's television programme "Fight Science", on the episode of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.[14]
[edit] References
- ^ "Fight Finder: Rickson Gracie". Sherdog. 2007. http://www.sherdog.com/fightfinder/fightfinder.asp?fighterID=292. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
- ^ Rickson Gracie Jiu Jitsu
- ^ "Gracie Family Tree". International Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Federation Family Tree. http://www.550media.com/igjjf/familytree.html. Retrieved 2006-04-08..
- ^ "Fight Finder: Vale Tudo Japan 1994". Sherdog. 2007. http://www.sherdog.com/fightfinder/fightfinder.asp?search=yes&eventid=73. Retrieved 2006-04-08.
- ^ "Fight Finder: Vale Tudo Japan 1995". Sherdog. 2007. http://www.sherdog.com/fightfinder/fightfinder.asp?search=yes&eventid=71. Retrieved 2006-04-08.
- ^ "WORLD EXTREME CAGEFIGHTING: Brazilian pounds out win Middleweight Filho earns title". Review journal. 2007. http://www.lvrj.com/sports/8930432.html. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
- ^ "Rickson Awes Paulo Filho". Gracie Mag. 2006. http://www.graciemag.com/?c=145&a=4184. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
- ^ "Rickson Gracie interview: part one" (Reprint). FreeFight magazine. December 12, 2005. http://www.onthemat.com/articles/Rickson_Gracie_Freefight_interview_10_13_2005.html. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
- ^ "Rickson Gracie interview: part two" (Reprint). FreeFight magazine. December 12, 2005. http://www.onthemat.com/articles/Rickson_Gracie_interview_2_10_13_2005.html. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
- ^ Wrestling Observer Newsletter,May 12, 2008
- ^ "Vanderlei Speaks" (Reprint). Fight Sport. August 2, 2005. http://www.onzuka.com/news_2005Aug2.html. Retrieved 2008-05-12.
- ^ "Hélio Gracie talks about Rickson Gracie's record" (Video interview). http://thegarv.com/2008/11/28/helio-gracie-rickson-400-0-i-dont-think-so/. Retrieved 2008-12-02.
- ^ http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/mark-schultz-where-is-he-now-15062
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T82QDpy2DEo
