With ground martial arts virtually unheard of in many parts of the world, Royce Gracie entered the cage at UFC 1 and showcased how important ground fighting really is.
He submitted fighter after fighter making BJJ the ground game that everyone wanted to learn and mixed-martial arts the ultimate sport it has become.
Here we talk about specific martial arts to be training to become that ultimate mixed martial artist.
BJJ Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is the style that gave birth to the modern UFC and mixed-martial arts.
Royce Gracie utilized his skill to submit men way bigger than himself, and talented in many other disciplines.
BJJ is one of the most practiced martial arts for MMA today, and has risen to become one of the best ground fighting styles of choice.
Wrestling.
Wrestling has been one of the go to fighting arts since the beginning.
Now it is being utilized by fighters with the right combination of other martial arts.
Having the ability to take your opponent down at will or defend the take-down every time is very valuable.
If you can defend the take-down throughout the fight when you're predominate strength is striking, then wrestling should be practiced immensely.
As well to take you opponent down at ease to ground and pound to victory can be extremely valuable.
Submission Wrestling.
This is a great combination of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and American Wrestling.
Finding the club that is training these equally will serve you in the long run.
Set out to become a submission wrestling practicitioner combined with a striking art like Thai Boxing, can make you an incredible fighter.
Working your ground game is really important in MMA.
Beginners coming from striking backgrounds often neglect it and fights end up not going in their favour because of it.
A specific MMA training program will teach you areas about your ground game that you may not have realized and will lead to your victory.