Gracie vs Buchecha | Takeaways from the Clash of the Titans
The long awaited match went down this past weekend in Rio with Roger Gracie coming out on top by collar choke from the back to solidify himself as the best of this generation.
Some people equated this to some form of match to see whether new school or old school Jiu-Jitsu was best and I don’t see it that way. Instead what we’ve been shown is Jiu-Jitsu works and when used right it gets the job done since good technique never goes stale.
My Observations –
In the Gi Defensive judo come in handy
A lot of BJJ players have tossed the standup element in the trash racing to play guard or sweep which is fine but at the middle weight and up divisions we’ve seen a resurgence of champions working on their wrestling to claim top position. A good idea for sure as controlling the range of combat is super important at all levels but given the fact the action in these events is taking place in a kimono it looks like building the grip fighting and ties up often used in JUDO seem like the best bet for fighting at a distance.
Wrestling has a lot more than just leg attacks in the tool box but it is super hand to implement many of the techniques if in gripping distance and your opponent knows how to tie you up.
Roger did a good job of shutting down double and single legs with effective gripping.
To clarify I’m not saying any style is better than another and personally think without a Gi wrestling is more easily implemented than Judo but playing to the rules and battlefield is always smart so as a high level competitor facing a Leandro lo Felipe Pena, Eberth Santos or Xande Ribiero effective use of the Gi standing is a must.
Points vs Sub Only |Mentality make the match
This is an argument that can and will go on for days so I won’t open this can of worms except to give my opinion that the mentality of the athletes makes the match. My personal preference was the Metamoris rules but the recent growth of the art has created another divide in participants as to what’s best EBI vs IBJJF??
Nothing is perfect but a point scoring system that penalizes bad position in some way is my preference. Watching some of the sub only matches deteriorate to hapless submission attempts looking to ride things out till overtime doesn’t sit well with me .Especially given the option of taking the back or Arm-lock to start that overtime period. Its a nice game to play for some but not the jiu-jitsu i know on a fundamental level.
If two game competitors step to the mat intent o proving who was really best and not just winning however they could you get great matches under any rule set.
Sometimes there is no escape
Roger takes the crown in this unofficial GOAT matchup between the best big men in the art of all time but watching him force Buchecha to the turtle reminded me of something Saulo said over lunch once… “anything under Roger dies”.
These is a certain level of Jiu-jitsu proficiency that when reached is pretty much fatal for the opponent , making avoidance key.
When we are looking at guys like Roger & Kron Gracie, Marcelo Garcia, Rafa Mendes or prime Terere + JJ Machado” these guys and they establish Establish the back in the GI you are likely not getting out any way outside of tapping.
No loosers in this one as we were treated to a inter-generational duel that could have easily not happend unless both warriors put it on the line as they did simply put right now you’ve Gotta love Jiu-Jitsu