MMA Fighter Bios: ROYCE GRACIE

ROYCE GRACIE

MMA RECORD: 25-4-0

BORN: Rio De Janeiro, Brazil

6’0, 175 POUNDS

Royce Gracie redefined martial arts in North America. A thin frail looking Brazilian was expected to be crushed by the many onlookers during the first UFCs, but Gracie would showcase to the world the effectiveness of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Royce learned Jiu-Jitsu from his father and older brothers Rorion, Relson, and Rickson Gracie. And he learned it well. Royce was the pioneer champ of the UFC, but it his brother Rorion, along with and Art Davie, was created the Ultimate Fighting Championship, which in November 1993 would begin as an eight-man elimination tournament with very few rules and would award $50,000 to the winner. The idea was to find out how different styles of martial arts would fare against each other, but Rorion was confident it would end up being a glorious triumph for BJJ and a fantastic infomercial for Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. And thanks to the fighting efforts of Royce, so it became.

At UFC 1: The Beginning, the world would be mesmerized watching the Gi-laden Brazilian choke out opponent after opponent on route to winning 3 fights and the first UFC tournament. Along the journey Gracie defeated a 220-pound Ken Shamrock via rear naked choke. Gracie would rack up 8 straight wins over UFC 1 through 3, and he would be victorious in the UFC 2 tournament as well. During the first half of the 90s where Gracie competed in the UFC, he was an untouchable fighter. Hoards of martial arts fans signed up for BJJ classes inspired by the Gracie dominance.

Royce’s wins over heavyweights including Patrick Smith (250 pounds), Dan Severn (260 pounds), as well as Kimo Leopaldo really mystified UFC crowds live and those viewing on pay per view. The win over Severn came after defeating two opponents previously that evening, and catapulted Royce into a 3 time UFC tourney champion as he took home the UFC 4 tournament champion crown.

One of Gracie’s most memorable matches was a 1 hour and a half match with Japanese sensation Kazushi Sakuraba. Rules were modified for unlimited rounds and no referee stoppages. After a grueling battle back and forth, Gracie’s corner threw in the towel after he was exhausted and seemingly unfit to continue fighting. The loss would be avenged by Royce in 2007 but was tainted as he tested positive for anabolic steroid after the fight. Gracie denied and disputed the allegations.

Royce would return to the UFC in 2006 to fight dominant welterweight champion Matt Hughes. The bout would be a one-sided affair where Hughes would ironically mount the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu master and attempt submissions on Gracie, prior to taking his back, flattening him out and pounding him on route to a TKO victory. Despite the loss, Gracie was given much credit for returning to action to take on the then top welterweight in the world. In spite of the defeat, Royce still took away a little pleasure from the fact that Hughes was able to successfully utilize BJJ techniques introduced to via the Gracie family. Gracie Jiu-Jitsu practiced in Brazilian was passed on to Pat Miletich, which was passed on to fighters such as Matt Hughes. And that’s just one in a million. MMA is indebted to Royce Gracie and his family.

In November 2003, at the ten year anniversary of the UFC, Royce Gracie along with Ken Shamrock were the first inductees into the UFC Hall of Fame.

THE ORIGINAL CHAMP

• UFC 1 Open Weight Tournament Champion

• UFC 2 Open Weight Tournament Champion

• UFC 4 Open Weight Tournament Champion

• UFC Hall of Famer

SUBMISSION MASTER

-11 win in the UFC

-All 11 wins submissions

-6 chokes

-3 armlocks