Thanks for everyone’s comments! 😄 The purpose of this video is simply to share an incredible piece of history (from someone who was actually there). 🥋 We all know grappling is essential to become a well-rounded martial artist. 👍 I actually practiced BJJ as a kid and I’ve been to Brazil 3 times. Heck, my little brother won his Bellator debut with a RNC. 💪 But that has nothing to do with the brilliant marketing strategy for BJJ in UFC 1. 👊 Don’t throw the baby out with the bath water! 😄
in my opinion, level 9 Striking with level 9 Anti-Grappling is more useful than level 6 Striking with level 10 Grappling. Also, I believe that Tony Ferguson would have Lost a couple more fights, and Stephen Thompson would have Won a couple more fights if Gloves were not Present. I believe that Gloves give the Gym Bro a better chance against the Traditional MA Striker than he would normally have.
Solid video Kid... I’ve had the pleasure to meet n train will Bill Superfoot Wallace and I have enough RESPECT for the true he tells. I’ve never asked why he didn’t continue to do ufc but thanks for having him clear that question. The classic ufc 3 is the one I’ve found suspect. Canadian Harold Howard was to Gracie and I believe he (gracie) was replace by some fresh state trooper, who never fought a single match (but the finals) and beat Howard for the title. That really didn’t sit well with me in fairness. Anyways, next time up here, do an interview with Harold Howard.. saw some of the things you did with John Kenney and it was cool. And I’m sure you will piss a lot of people off but you keep doing you..
I'm sure you are VERY honored to have bill tell this story on YOUR channel. Do you know how rare this is?? Haha dude this is awesome! Yall made history on this channel!! 👊👊👊
Don't forget, Bill Wallace was a Collegiate wrestler and a judo black belt before he ever started karate. So if you wanted a guy back then who knew both striking and grappling, there weren't too many better choices than him.
@@Scorch1028 - I never heard that story. Though would love if you can supply or find any source reference to share with us. Benny the Jet had an unbelievable kick boxing record. So many fights. And, when when you look how high his wins were to KO's is incredible as well. Watching one video of him on TH-cam he mentioned how he came from a boxing family and was what he was first introduced to as far as martial arts. Though I am not sure if he had any wrestling experance.
@UCBFoMe6fvdJ0rFJZECX3rSQ What struck me as I was listening to Bill Wallace in this video: They didn't have any judo guys fight at UFC 1 - even though judo was probably the third most practiced Eastern martial art in the U.S. at that time, after karate and taekwondo.
@@egodominustuus9167 - Yep. The judo guys came later. Once they created more rules to main stream the fights. What I dont understand is how the heck did it take the stand up guys to figure out how to take out a wrestler? It really is not so complicated when the wrestler is trying to take them down to the ground. Simple knee strike upward or to the temple , kick or if they move in further, kick with the shin, to the knee, to knee strike. Then many times the wrestler basically gives the striker a free choke with sticking their head under the strikers arm so the striker can wrap around and choke them out. It just came across as the fighters then were so one demential. Where when I was training martial arts before UFC, my teachers and I would talk about different styles, how to so them, the pro and con of each style, and different types of attacks. Simple put, was already learning mix style fighting before UFC. And, it is not difficult to find stories centuries and even millenniums before.
@@TheQuarterbackX You're forgetting that this was before the age of the internet. Pretty much the only exposure to martial arts the overwhelming majority of people had at the time was kickboxing late at night on ESPN and boxing.
@@egodominustuus9167 - Nope, I did not forget that. I was doing MMA, mix styles years before UFC was even on the planning board. Even in the 70s, many teachers were teaching mux styles. They would just label it as Amwrican Karate. And, many of those had a judo background. Remember people learning mix styles had been going on for centuries, and even millenniums before it was on TV. Though I will admit some of the teachers I had, only knew the one style they were doing. Though even with TKD, most teachers knew Hapkido.
I don't fault the Gracies for marketing their style. It was smart business. What I do fault them for is fostering and encouraging the hate on of all non BJJ martial arts that followed.
I fault the Gracies for their unsportsmanlike behavior and gaslighting that BJJ is the best--no. In any case, their time is done. I've always said that a combination of boxing and wrestling is the ultimate fighting style. The ancient Greeks knew this and called it Pankration. It was the martial arts of Greek and Macedonian warriors which spread across the Hellenistic world all the way to Afghanistan and India and may have inspired Kung Fu.
@@asimian8500 interesting take on kung fu, the Chinese and Greeks definitely interacted and even had a war over horses so it's quite possible there could have been inspiration either way or both
@@asimian8500 muay thai kicks, clinch, elbows and knees definitely required to make the ultimate conbination. the greeks would have added muay thai arsenal to pankratio if they met thailands .
@@ricksterdrummer2170 First Eddie taps the reigning Gracie in Brazil, and then develops his winning technique into a complete system. I think you're on to something.
He forgot there was another rule, not grabbing the fence. Everyone else COULD and DID grab the fence, but when you fought Royce Gracie they forced that rule. The final fight the ref forced Gracie's opponent to let go of the fence and a few seconds later Gracie finally took him down and choked him. Rewatch this and see.
Well it seems the issue was the rule wasn't being applied on most fights then, and not that it was applied when the fight was against Gracie. Right? 😅😅
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@@leandroaurelio6147Allowing habit development that would be turned against...
I think today it's pretty much common knowledge that the UFC was organized to promote Gracie Jiu Jitsu. It worked! It worked incredibly well. But that all being said, the Gracies did prove that if you know how to wrestle you can beat someone who doesn't. It's not a lesson the martial arts would should have needed to learn, but it absolutely changed martial arts forever.
@@oimctv3642 hahah eu não diria que são porcos, é uma questão de marketing! Os caras eram muito bons mesmo, mas criavam umas barreiras desnecessárias pra outros atletas que eram muito bons também poderem desafiá-los
Took 5 of the Gracie family to finally beat Sakuraba, and even then they waited till he was much older and out of his prime. Love watching the 'Gracie Hunter' go through them one by one.
The Gracie's were not unstoppable the just had the fact that other fighters didn't know anything about BJJ now that most fighters understand the moves and how to defend the submissions there ain't to many top 20 fighters in UFC that would have a hard time destroying the Gracie's even in their prime.
I met Bill Wallace at LAX airport about 40 years ago. I was a fighter as well, and fought in karate tournaments mostly in California, Mexico, and Canada. We had never met before, but I had seen him on tv. Being a big fan of his effective kicking style, it was a huge honor to accidentally run across him. I was nervous, but Mr. Wallace was very kind and told me it was nice to meet me and he shook my hand. I was quite awed meeting a champion of his stature, but he was completely gracious. Seeing Mr. Wallace in this interview brings back not only the memory of meeting him, but also memories of his outstanding kicking speed, technique, and effectiveness. Mr. Wallace is one of the greatest martial artists that ever lived, and the nicest I've ever met.
I had the honor to go to one of his seminars at my dojo in one of our advanced classes in the 1970s. He was a great teacher and in his heyday then. His kicking inspired me. Bill " Superfoot" Wallace. One of the greats.
@@francogiobbimontesanti3826 no he wasn’t. Royce was an inch taller. Their first first Sakuraba was 7lbs heavier. The second Royce was a pound heavier. You talk like sakuraba was 30lbs heavier and 6foot 5
in the last fight he didn't seem motivated to win... or dissapointed that he lost... seemed more like an act of kindness... and then helios thanked him at the end.
@@NoName-pd8pu No, by the time the 2010s rolled around, Sakuraba was completely shot. It's not a coincidence he never won another fight after he lost to Ralek.
To be correct, Dan Severn, a very competent wrestler, who went on to win the UFC , was in fact tapped by Gracie with a triangle choke. The reality is that at that time many " masters" and champions wanted no part of the UFC because it would show the incredibly large holes in their game.
@@GodCarnage Ken trained shoot wrestling in Japan for Pancrase. I'd say he was the best fighter from Japan at the time of UFC 1. The reason we bring up Dan Severn in ufc 4 is because people say a real wrestler would not have lost to Royce. Dan was a Sunkist Kid and still got subbed by Royce.
@@mr.i6527 I don't think a real wrestler would have won against Royce as much as a wrestler would have had a better chance. As J. Victor pointed out, Kazushi Sakuraba who's a wrestler beat everyone the Gracies sicc'd on him.
@@viktormuerte Saku beating Royce is literally the equivalent of Tito beating Ken Shamrock. Except Ken was way more active than Royce when he lost. When Royce fought Saku, it had been 5 years since he had last fought in the UFC. Royce did get a tune up fight against a pro wrestler turned shoot fighter, but it wasn't much of a challenge. Point is Tito and Saku were the new generation of fighters who didnt just rely on 1 background and who were much well rounded. Royce lost becuase Saku was more well rounded, I mean Saku had already beat dudes like Carlos Newton and Vitor Belfort by the time he beat Royce. Also keep in mind Rickson tore through every shoot/catch wrestler they threw at him with ease. So it's not like Bjj didn't have any success against the style. It's just Saku was more well rounded as the rest of the fighters in his generation were. Edit: To clarify, my position isn't that bjj is the best style for mma. I'm just saying that Royce's wins were legit, especially his first fight against Ken. Also that bjj has an advantage over folk style/freestyle wrestling. Lastly, the reason why Saku beat the Gracies is because he was a good fighter with well rounded skills while the gracies were not well rounded.
I trained with Erik Paulson the years preceding the first UFC. Erik was a Hickson student and was the Shooto champ in Japan(catch wrestling/ kick boxing,.). They wouldn't let Erik fight in the UFC because he was a Gracie student. They absolutely programmed the fights so Joyce would not have to face an elite grappler. And yes it was created to be advertising for Gracie Jujitsu.
@@parodykings3408 rickson was a great fighter and a legendary athlete but most of his opponents didn't knew how to fight BJJ. Although it's undeniable that he did fought guys much bigger and heavier than him, I wonder how he would fare today against some UFC stars.
The evolution of MMA (professional/competitive) is amazing. From fighters being unable to solve the BJJ puzzle to Royce being dominated by Matt Hughes. And now we have hybrid superfighters. How far the sport has gone. 👌
And Royce has the gall to say Hughes beat him using BJJ. Which Hughes used his first opportunity to correctly say that it was American wrestling that pounded Royce into a stain.
A wrestler was invited to the first UFC! Ken Shamrock was a wrestler/submission grappler who had striking too! He posed a serious threat to Royce, especially with the leglocks, but Royce made quick work of him after Ken sat back for a leg Royce came up on top and ended up with choke after a scramble.
He fought with not the smartest tactics is why Royce won. Should have kept it on the feet. Fought it out in the clinch hockey punch and knee and elbows. He had the size advantage to ko him. Also no slams why not. Royce would have never been able to take Ken down. In guard he could have just stood up unhooked the top foot and backed away and kicked the legs. That's how Marcello opens the guard sometimes.
@@dennacampbell1432can’t make excuses for him or other UFC fighters back then. They were not well equipped to handle jiu jitsu. This conspiracy is all fantasy
Angler Strong No one here is denying this. I have been practicing BJJ for years. It don’t deny it’s effectiveness but what if Royce went against a world champion wrestler or judo gold medalist?
Jeremy Serrata I think the result would be the same. Remember he went against Shamrock, at the time he was the top shootfighter in the world. He also fought Remco Pardoel a Judo champion. Renzo Gracie fought that Danish Judo Champion who I believe was a gold medalist
Ufc has been created by the gracies to promote the gracies. Thats why they made the rules to be sure royce wins , and if opponents adapts to the rules, they made new rules to continue to advantage royce.
BlackDragon LMAO! I have zero claim to know any “inside information” but from a guy who has watched the UFC from the beginning...I watched Royce Gracie get the holy hell beat out of him numerous times in matches he actually ended up winning by submission. Sure anyone can say it was “set up for a BJJ fighter to win”. But the fight still has to happen. And I can guarantee that every single one of the “strikers” who fought Royce believed with utmost confidence they would beat Royce handily. If the Gracie name meant nothing today as we near UFC 242, I could understand the argument. But Brazilian Jujitsu has consistently been part of mixed martial arts, the UFC, Strike Force, Bellator along with any other MMA affiliate.
I can’t remember his name now, but one of those guys had him by 75 pounds and beat the snot out of Royce. Still got submitted. He did hurt Royce pretty badly tho. Limped out of the ring being supported by his corner
GM Wallace made public something that many true practitioners of the arts already knew. The ultimate fighting championship, as it was known back then was absolutely a commercial for the Gracie brand of Brazilian jujitsu.
I’m not taking anything away from BJJ. It is extremely intricate and takes many years to become proficient in the art. It is also a valuable skill set to have in general for self defense and the study and development of grappling. The issue is that the Gracie family setup the first tournament in such a way that Royce was going to win no matter what. It was their tournament so they had the right to do this, however we should have had the bare knuckle no-holds bar as promised, with no Gi and rules that didn’t favor Royce. It a matter of fair play and the competitive spirt. This is what GM Wallace is talking about in this interview.
@Feuer1028 , keeping gi on was almost universally seen as a disadvantage. It was a bold move by Royce. The fact he was able to make use of it only seems obvious after the event.
I was 17 years old back then, and I was curious why there wasn't a wrestler involved. I was involved in wrestling, kyokushin, and kenpo as a teen, was super hyped for UFC. Yet I was a bit disappointed due to no other grappling style represented. This helped clear that old curiosity. Thanks Jesse and Mr. Superfoot.
Bill Wallace is a great guy and a legit martial artist. I went to a seminar with him, must have been 1989 or so. He could tell a black belt exactly how and where he was going to kick him, ask if he’s ready, and still land the kick. He also had (has) mad flexibility too. He had us stretching for an hour and we all walked bow-legged to lunch. Fun times.
Yep! My brother and I got to do one of these seminars in the early 90s. One day later, felt okay. 2 days, okay. 3rd day was sorer than I had ever been. Great workout, great technique, and he was hilarious and gracious.
I’ve Been watching MMA from the beginning, it’s interesting to see the Progress of MMA through the Years. It’s Has Definitely Evolved. No more Single disciplines, you must be well rounded in all.
The sumo was down and defenseless. You can are argue how hurt he was, but he would've just sat there and got his face kicked in if it hadn't been stopped.
@@punisher7772 literally a huge difference in Gi vs No Gi martial arts, where Gi techniques are trained for that express purpose, so most people wouldnt, youre right, but somebody from the Gracie family definitely would!
Robert Sadora agreed but what about using a belt to choke. That's crazy if only one of them can have one. It's clear that the first ufc was rigged but why was it not exposed sooner.
I had a picture taken with Mr Wallace at a karate exhibition my dad took me to at our local high school when I was a little kid. He was so nice to us, just as friendly as he is in this interview.
Re "there wasn't a real wrestler there" To be fair Ken Shamrock is a more than capable wrestler, but he got understandably surprised by being choked by a belt. What BJJ and UFC has done, is re-establish that grappling is a vital part of a full fighting system/toolkit, and surpressed credibility of those who peddle mystic woo as fighting techniques. We should thank them for that, even though this contest was really an infomercial for Gracie Jujitsu.
I have a lot of respect for Brazilian jiu jitsu but I have also heard a lot of stories over the years about how shady the Gracies are. They definitely like stacking the deck in their favor.
I'm a jiu jitsu practioner in one of Gracie's school, and I love the atmosphere, competence and discipline around, but is deniable that Gracie's has very shady story. For a long time they behave more like a máfia family than a business clan. It was comon to the Gracie's invade rival dojos in mass and force their sensei to fight one of the family member, not forgetting the long history of trouble from Carlos and Hélio, including jumping out people they have feud with and beat them up. When they wanted a fight, they would threat and coerce (they are a very rich and we'll connected family) the respective fighter, including call and persuit their families and employers, and messing up their professional and personal life, and also pressuring promoters to set te fights on their exactly terms. They have their place on history of Martial arts, but also their downsize.
This is insanely interesting, such insight, NOBODY in the mixed martial arts community has ever done something like this from what i've seen so far. Golden content my friend, im not even finished yet, just wanted to let you know.
Yeah everyone has known since the 90s that the original UFC events were specifically set up to demonstrate Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. That being said, it was great hearing about it from Superfoot's point of view.
I always kinda figured it, but, this is the first I'm hearing from someone who was involved in the original UFC and explains its nuts and bolts of how it was done.
One of the coolest guys on the planet. I saw him an exhibition match in Miami in the 70s against a local tough named Glen Melman (??) and Bill was just magic.
Groin strikes were legal. It was biting and eye gouging that were the only 2 things you could not do. Shamrock was a competent wrestler and submission expert and Royce took him out in 52 seconds. Royce was also the smallest man in every event. ...when master wrestler Dan Severn came into it he went through everybody except Royce who submitted him.
@@christophernikolaou8009 ha ha ha ha! Royce was never in any danger in that fight. Cool as a cat. Everything went to plan. Feigning weakness was all part of the set up.
Interesting story how the Gracies challenged Bill and he accepted. Gracies backed out when they realised that Bill used to train grappling with Gene and Gokor and that he was a very competent grappler.
@@billsimms2511 Yeah quite possibly/most likely...but from what I understand Gracies (at least back then) were using a low risk high reward strategy and refusing challenges from people who had some grappling knowledge. Again who knows mate, I am only quoting 3rd hand accounts.
Yes ridiculous to get rid of wrestling. But i also have no problem with having skateboarding and climbing is so far from being an exhibition. Why do you call it that?
Wrestling is still on for 2020 and 2024. The Eastern Europeans and the Former Soviet republics fought the decision and won. I heard there was going to be new rules but I have no idea what they are but all I know is that Wrestling is on for Tokyo.
Jesse keep doing videos with bill wallace I love to see you both speak with each other about these problems I watched this video twice in a row . Its soooo interesting. Great job jesse great job
That’s awesome! Makes me happy to hear 😄 I love learning from the people who made it possible for my generation to “stand on the shoulders of giants” 🙏
Even Rorion Gracie said the UFC was to get the word out for Gracie JJ, he was a co owner. This isn't anything new. Except the what you can and can't wear part, this is the first I heard of that.
They were not "getting the word out" they were stacking the deck and calling it combat! Would you approve if other events, MLB, NFL, NBA, "got the word out" in the same fashion?
Met Bill Wallace once and got to do some sparing with him. He was incredibly fast even at his older age. I was in my late teens and he was about his late 40s early 50s. I consider myself lucky to have had that honor.
The Gi is not an advantage. If you have a Gi and I don't I have the advantage, most Gi chokes, transitions and cotrol techniques use the opponents Gi, not your own.
He was allowed to wear shoes just not kick with them. They literally showed a cut from ufc 1 of the boxer wearing shoes. Dont be a sheep. Everything he said was bogus. No hand wraps, but the sumo guy was triple wrapped. No knee wraps, but shamrock had knee wraps. No wrestlers, but shamrock was a college wrestler and took gracie down with a double leg.
@@kallepikku4991 he could wear shoes but not kick if he had shoes on. The boxer was never going to kick, hes a boxer so he chose to keep his shoes. Shamrock forfeited his shoes so he could kick.
@@Hitchslapz that's not necessarily true my friend. Eddie Bravo vs Royler Gracie is a good example. The friction of Eddie's gi wouldn't allow Royler to escape electric chair.
luke skywalker interviews human yoda :) all jokes aside, I admire how he respects his elder and his (Wallace's) humility as well.. refreshing thing to see in the west...
Yeah Not many people I have seen out here on the west coast respect any damn thing.I grew up In Tennessee and I would not be alive right now if i had not learned to be respectful.Cant stand all these mofos these days that think the world owes them something.Looking for them hand outs!!!!
Tbh I wanted to comment that the young interviewer seems to have a bit too much of this young patronizing old man attitude. Not in a disrespectful way of course, but it still comes off cringy when the "old man" he's interviewing seems to be sharper and make more sense than many young people. I understand having this attitude towards an old war veteran who doesn't even remember what year we have right now, but Bill, besides his obvious old looks, seems to be absolutely fine mentally, so there's no need for this "patronizing" attitude. Again, I understand that it wasn't done in a disrespectful way, quite the opposite, but sometimes you can overdo on good things as well.
One of the Coolest things about seeing your videos is: I grew up in the town of Kokomo where Eddie Bethea has his Dojo. And Eddie Bethea and Terry Gruel BOTH trained with Superfoot Wallace. My Sensei is Terry Gruel! It's just amazing to me that the lineage of what I'm learning comes from greats like this!
Bill Wallace was one of my martial arts heroes back in the day...and even now I know why. What a cool guy he is, thank you for this awesome interview! ❤️👍
When Gracies said all fights go to the ground, I knew it was not true. Kazushi Sakuraba prove being in the ground was severe disadvantage and he beat all the Gracies. Karate,
first of all Sakuraba proved grappling to be effective as he was able to win against the gracies by mastering grappling, not karate. Karate is just a beautiful but ineffective martial art
I'm a fan of the UFC and I like BJJ, but Bill "Superfoot" Wallace is telling the truth, and he's on point. I'm grateful for his honesty. 🥋 🥋 Great video @ Jesse Enkamp 🥋🥋
If he's telling the truth, then I guess Superfoot has started getting amnesia in his old age or still don't know Shamrock's backgorund. And, guess who the last fight was: Ken Shamrock vs Royce Gracie. He even mentioned that Royce choked out Shamrock. So, I guess he forgot or didn't know that Ken Shamrock was not only a CCC Wrestler, but the #1 Shoot Wrestler in Japan. And, their rematches were highly promoted in the next few UFC events. But, I guess we're just going to ignore actual facts cause...
JoeBob Jenkins not according to Mr Wallace ..somebody should remind him that he had a very good side kick and nothing else by his own admission..as he describes he had a bad right knee and could only fight using one leg..(which for a Jujitsu fighter would have been very easy to neutralized both the side kick and at the same time taking care of the already messed up knee)........but as a commentator he was horrendous..... ...and it was obvious ..no wonder they did not give him any talking time not even in the movies....there is a reason why all these different " producers". came to same decision .........
Actually he was a shoot fighter, admittedly a brilliant grappler, but as Bill said, Joyce used his belt to choke him. Also, they would not let Ken wear his boots, which he was used to using to get traction in the ring. I have heard Ken complain about this. The Gracies were allowed to wear a gi, which they were train in using as weapons, but Ken wasn’t allowed to wear his boots. And in his Superfight with Joyce in the third UFC, Joyce couldn’t beat him, after a half an hour of fighting.
At the time of UFC 1, he had been a high school wrestler and professional wrestler. He had done three sort-of MMA fights in Japan a month or two before UFC 1. Shamrock knew basics and had been taught some simple submission stuff as a pro-wrestler in Japan so he could defend himself if it became necessary. He was not a great wrestler. But even knowing simple high school stuff put him worlds ahead of anyone else in the first three UFC tournaments. He got better over time, but at that first UFC he was not much as a fighter or wrestler.
As a martial arts fan, I feel that to have a good self defence bace, all you need is a history in wrestling and kickboxing/boxing. Everything after that is just perfecting what you know.
That was the best video I’ve seen in a long time! I’ve been saying this for a long time, but who am I, I’ve never competed. So awesome to hear Bill say it 👏
The Gracie logo has the pyramid, that ought to tell you something. Not doing Gracie Breakdowns on their rich, pompous, customer who fights professionally in MMA and loses spectacularly, or not doing them on their own clan members who also lose in professional MMA bouts, or simply avoiding, or misrepresenting the truth concerning the outcome of a professional fight in which Gracie competed, ought to also tell you something.
Old man Gracie was beaten soundly back in the mid 20th century by a catch wrestler. A short time later him and his brothers ambushed the guy outside of a bank and crippled him so he couldn't wrestle any more. In UFC 1 after it was all done, the old man was honored with great fanfare as this great martial arts innovator and grand master. It sure doesn't pass the smell test to me.
@@leongarza the match occurred on 18 August 1931. On 22 October 1932 the Gracie brothers attacked Rufino Dos Santos when he got out of a car and had his hands in his coat pockets. Helio Gracie beat him with some kind of a metal tool but I couldn't find a description of was exactly it was. These are not honorable people. Rufino was attacked by Carlos, Helio and another brother whose name escapes me. Rufino's wrestling career was ended that day.
The Gracies had set up a fantasy surrounding their jiu jitsu, claiming they'd never been defeated. Which was a complete lie. Rufino Dos Santos was a wrestler who along with others challenged the Gracies and made fools of them. The humiliation was to much to bear so they attacked him. The Gracies where and are a wealthy family who could afford to build possitive publicity around them and squash the negative. Quite frankly every claim they've ever made is questionable. It's not even certain that Mitsuyo Maeda actually ever trained any of them directly.
I saw first hand how skewed UFC was way back in the beginning. Back in 1994 I was training at a Bujinkan ninpo taijitsu dojo. One of our students, who was a 3rd degree blackbelt at the time, got wind of the UFC looking for fighters. He "tried out" and was denied. They didn't want martial artists who trained in combat martial arts. They wanted martial artists who trained in sport application martial arts, or martial arts with rules. They knew our guy would completely end the fight within a few seconds with devastating results on the opponent by doing something like destroying their skeletal system. 30 years later the Gracies and all their bjj fanboys who drank the Kool aid still think they are the top of the food chain and call us frauds and fakes and claim we train in "bullshido". It's all propaganda. If you repeat a lie enough times, people believe it because they don't do their own research. What we train in is a martial art born in battlefield warfare, where what you learn is the difference between life and death. We train to win a fight by any means. We don't train to "play" with others or use our training in competitions. We don't train for belts and trophies. You wouldn't put a Honda Civic up against an M1 Abrams tank, would you? If you ever wondered why you never see anyone who trained in ninjutsu in a UFC match, that's why.
By being a freakishly good athlete with an incredibly great wrestling and striking base? He's in my top 5 greatest fighters but come on. You can train BJJ. You can't train sakuraba
@@richardkoen4325 sakuraba is a catch wrestler CACC. If CACC had the same amount of exposure as Gracie JJ then their would be more Sakuraba's and Josh Barnet's. CACC is only big in Japan and England but not near as big as BJJ.
Well sakuraba wasn’t freakishly good at anything. He wasn’t an exceptional athlete. He wasn’t a great wrestler. He wasn’t a great striker. What sakuraba was, was very very smart. He used strategy and tactics to beat the gracies. He forced them to fight in ways they couldn’t win.
The reason they started the UFC is to prove that Gracie Jiu-Jitsu was Superior over other styles when it came to defending yourself. It was to prove that the little guy could take on bigger guys. And they proved there point. And look at were we are today because of it.
He is not lieing. I am a bjj purple belt. It is a business, and they did a great job of selling it. The vibe of this first show, reminds me a lot of the first Triller events. The unknown, the oddity effect, the celebrity announcers. Maybe the real market is making people who pretend that they can fight, have to actually fight. People love seeing fake people getting exposed. Find a rich business family to back it, and push fake people getting exposed thru violence. Forget the boxing vs mma.
It is nonsense that you are allowed to choke someone with your GI but Ken wasn't allowed to wear Wrestling shoes. Wrestling shoes, unlike boots, would not have sufficiently added to kicking power to effect the outcome of the fight. Wrestling shoes are flexible and provide gripping potential not stiffness of material. This is why standardization is important with regards to uniform. Ken might have lost still(I sort of doubt it because of his Catch Wrestling acumen and his general physical strength) but it does represent a favoritism and bias that the UFC had.
yes imagine if there was a Khabib Nurmagomedov or a Daniel Cormier type fighter in the first ufc with that level of wrestling, Mr Gracie would have found it very interesting when trying the double leg shoot, super-foot should have been offered a guest commentary spot last year when they celebrated the 25th anniversary
@@hunterpowers317 Not true. Catch wrestlers had been competitive with BJJ since... well before BJJ even existed, hahaha. Not to mention the Gracies specifically said that no high level wrestlers were allowed to compete in UFC 1. The Olympic Training Center is right in Colorado, where UFC 1 took place, and no high level wrestlers were invited or allowed!
Sakuraba and the other japanese judo guy were enought to beat the Gracie's. People get wrong when believes that something is umbeatable...( im a bjj pratictioner)
Why do people hate the Gracies? They changed the sport of MMA for the good, they showed an amazing art and then forced everyone to have to be good at everything to be the best fighter.
If you think Bill knows anything about mma you are a fool. BTW, Joe was working for the UFC in 1996. Only a few years after it was created. To think he doesn’t know anything but a 1 time traditional martial artist who was brought in to be a commentator, Knows anything about the sport is a joke. The UFC hired anyone in martial arts with a name. To bring eyes to the fights and get their eyes opened to reality! Wallace doesn’t know anything more than Jim Brown or Kathy Long who announced with him. Long was a martial artist who was a B list martial movie star. Wallace like others have tried to put down the UFC to save his own dying art and all Traditional martial art instructors have been doing it ever since the beginning. Their scam is over and they don’t want to get real jobs!
@@GoofyCombat just because he did those styles doesn't mean he was good at it. there is a big difference in training just to learn and training for a fight.
The Gracies chose their opponents wisely. A few times they made mistakes with the Japanese guy Sakuraba, but most times they knew who NOT to fight. They refused to fight Chris Dolman.
they always pick the rules and opponents. they lost to some guys in braziil and cheated, eugenio tadeu, rufino dos santos they ganged up on him in thr streets. the big boys like wanderlei silva, belfort, mark kerr, igor vovchanchyn would do waaaay more damage than skinny sakuraba of course they didnt pick those guys
My God. Bill Wallace!! The legend. How do you get to talk to these guys. I was just showing a BJJ guy my karate kicks that I did when I was 23. I am 50 now and I can still kick with a snap. The BJJ guy was so excited that he wants me to teach karate.
There was a Championship in the 1980's in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, that was Jiu Jitsu X Wrestling. The Gracie family choosed the fighters that were better for them. That was always like that. Even doing that they won a fight, lost a fight and the other one was a draw.
@@WestcountryDudeI've spent time with Rorion Gracie. He's a great dude. But there is no doubt, and he'll tell you himself that the UFC was created to promote GJJ. What Bill Wallace is saying here isn't a secret. A lot has been said about this for years. He is giving his perspective as someone who was there and behind the scenes. He is giving his point of view. Is it 100% accurate, no, but nothing is. You are assuming it has to do with "personal insecurity" and making ad hominem attacks on the man, why? Personal insecurity? There is no doubt that GJJ/BJJ has changed the martial arts world for the better, but how it happened wasn't all moon beams and rainbows.
"Most fights end up on the ground." - Not true. Those stats actually came from law enforcement, because police officers take the fight to the ground more often than not. Most other fights do NOT end up on the ground. That's another marketing ploy by the Gracies.
Yee..up, Dez. ya can say that again. I's 'bout da comment the same. Bill Wallace, Ken Shamrock, Oleg Taktarov & predecessors Joe Lewis, Chuck Norris & Don Wilson (just to name a few), they're all Legends.
the gracies were business savvy, they knew the UFC could launch their brand into the stratosphere, so they made sure it was tailor made for them,,, wow!
@@in_vas_por8810 Shamrock was a pro-wrestler who had wrestled in high school. He had done three real fights under pro wrestling rules shortly before UFC 1. He had basic wrestling skills which put him way ahead of everyone else in UFC 1, but he wasn't a great wrestler.
@@Jim-Tuner He also qualified for the state championships before an injury forced him to pass on it, so I would say his wrestling knowledge and skills may have been a bit more than basic.. I mean, can you name me off the top of your head who back then was a "great" wrestler? Shamrock was known for wrestling, and submitting people, so there WAS a formidable wrestler there, thats all I'm saying..
In 1996 my Martial arts journey began when i first attended a gracie school. I didn't like it and moved on. After many schools, I found my home in a Hapkido school. I always wonder where I would be today if I joined the school, it would have been at the front of the whole MMA life. My goal was to be an instructor. By the way, I met Bill Wallace at the MA Supershow in maybe 2006. He was awesome and the most humble master ever. Nice video.
You guys forget about Ken Shamrock, who KNEW grappling, and he is basically the role model for a modern MMA fighter. Also the boxer was allowed to use boxing gloves, and another guy had his hands wrapped, so this “no gear is allowed only for Gracie” is BS. And if this conspiracy would be true, they wouldn’t invite the sumo guy in first place…
Also the BJJ’s performance was replicated in many other competitions. I personally saw an event, where a purple belt BJJ guy with 3 years of practice, who didn’t know how to punch, beaten a wrestling Olympic champion… With blue belt, I beaten a guy who was 2x the size of me. So sumo wrestlers can be handled. So yeah, BJJ is THAT good, no conspiracy is needed to explain. Today it is less obvious, only because all MMA fighters know BJJ today, and mastered at least a few essential BJJ skills.
Thanks for bringing that up. It's possible that they didn't want hand wraps since it was a "bare knuckles" tournament, but from the little bit of research I just did it looks like the rules were different from what he remembers. The rules I just read said that neither uniforms nor gloves were mandatory. I also remember there was one of the early matches where Ken Shamrock wanted to wear wrestling shoes, and was prohibited from kicking while wearing the shoes. Interesting considering the runner up fought in a martial art built around using the shoe as a weapon.
At the time, it was known amongst people who knew anything about UFC, but that wasn't most people. If you knew about UFC, you knew about the Gracie "dojo challenge" videos. UFC was the same (marketing ploy) taken to its next logical step. It was known at the time, but maybe not as obvious to people who only found out about the early UFC's after UFC had become more like what it is now
Yes but most people don’t know that it was damn near fixed. They changed the rules for each fighter and extended the fight when Royce couldn’t beat Shamrock!
Thanks for everyone’s comments! 😄 The purpose of this video is simply to share an incredible piece of history (from someone who was actually there). 🥋 We all know grappling is essential to become a well-rounded martial artist. 👍 I actually practiced BJJ as a kid and I’ve been to Brazil 3 times. Heck, my little brother won his Bellator debut with a RNC. 💪 But that has nothing to do with the brilliant marketing strategy for BJJ in UFC 1. 👊 Don’t throw the baby out with the bath water! 😄
in my opinion, level 9 Striking with level 9 Anti-Grappling is more useful than level 6 Striking with level 10 Grappling. Also, I believe that Tony Ferguson would have Lost a couple more fights, and Stephen Thompson would have Won a couple more fights if Gloves were not Present. I believe that Gloves give the Gym Bro a better chance against the Traditional MA Striker than he would normally have.
Solid video Kid... I’ve had the pleasure to meet n train will Bill Superfoot Wallace and I have enough RESPECT for the true he tells. I’ve never asked why he didn’t continue to do ufc but thanks for having him clear that question. The classic ufc 3 is the one I’ve found suspect. Canadian Harold Howard was to Gracie and I believe he (gracie) was replace by some fresh state trooper, who never fought a single match (but the finals) and beat Howard for the title. That really didn’t sit well with me in fairness. Anyways, next time up here, do an interview with Harold Howard.. saw some of the things you did with John Kenney and it was cool. And I’m sure you will piss a lot of people off but you keep doing you..
Haha another video exposing the GJJ /UFC Hustle. Great video
I'm sure you are VERY honored to have bill tell this story on YOUR channel. Do you know how rare this is?? Haha dude this is awesome! Yall made history on this channel!! 👊👊👊
I think that ken was a wrestler
Does anyone else think bill wallace looks like helio gracie in this video?
Double take me did
That's why I clicked on the video. I was very disappointed.
YES!!! lol
jonthemagician666 yes I was thinking that
That’s who I thought it was at first
Don't forget, Bill Wallace was a Collegiate wrestler and a judo black belt before he ever started karate. So if you wanted a guy back then who knew both striking and grappling, there weren't too many better choices than him.
@@Scorch1028 - I never heard that story. Though would love if you can supply or find any source reference to share with us.
Benny the Jet had an unbelievable kick boxing record. So many fights. And, when when you look how high his wins were to KO's is incredible as well.
Watching one video of him on TH-cam he mentioned how he came from a boxing family and was what he was first introduced to as far as martial arts.
Though I am not sure if he had any wrestling experance.
@UCBFoMe6fvdJ0rFJZECX3rSQ What struck me as I was listening to Bill Wallace in this video: They didn't have any judo guys fight at UFC 1 - even though judo was probably the third most practiced Eastern martial art in the U.S. at that time, after karate and taekwondo.
@@egodominustuus9167 - Yep. The judo guys came later. Once they created more rules to main stream the fights.
What I dont understand is how the heck did it take the stand up guys to figure out how to take out a wrestler? It really is not so complicated when the wrestler is trying to take them down to the ground.
Simple knee strike upward or to the temple , kick or if they move in further, kick with the shin, to the knee, to knee strike. Then many times the wrestler basically gives the striker a free choke with sticking their head under the strikers arm so the striker can wrap around and choke them out.
It just came across as the fighters then were so one demential. Where when I was training martial arts before UFC, my teachers and I would talk about different styles, how to so them, the pro and con of each style, and different types of attacks. Simple put, was already learning mix style fighting before UFC. And, it is not difficult to find stories centuries and even millenniums before.
@@TheQuarterbackX You're forgetting that this was before the age of the internet. Pretty much the only exposure to martial arts the overwhelming majority of people had at the time was kickboxing late at night on ESPN and boxing.
@@egodominustuus9167 - Nope, I did not forget that. I was doing MMA, mix styles years before UFC was even on the planning board. Even in the 70s, many teachers were teaching mux styles. They would just label it as Amwrican Karate. And, many of those had a judo background.
Remember people learning mix styles had been going on for centuries, and even millenniums before it was on TV.
Though I will admit some of the teachers I had, only knew the one style they were doing. Though even with TKD, most teachers knew Hapkido.
When strikers learned take-down defenses and flying knees, Gracie never won another fight at the UFC. During his last fight, Matt Hughes pounded him.
Matt was a D1 All American who completely neutralized Royce...it was lopsided.
Royse was past his prime shuda let Hughes fight a younger gracie
@@juliovalencia4948 , tell uncle Royce to stay out of the ring and let the younger generation take over.
Only a 20 year difference in age, props for Royce for taking that fight though, rickson never stepped like that.
Well there was a big age difference and Royce took the fight, something rickson never did.
I don't fault the Gracies for marketing their style. It was smart business. What I do fault them for is fostering and encouraging the hate on of all non BJJ martial arts that followed.
I fault the Gracies for their unsportsmanlike behavior and gaslighting that BJJ is the best--no. In any case, their time is done. I've always said that a combination of boxing and wrestling is the ultimate fighting style. The ancient Greeks knew this and called it Pankration. It was the martial arts of Greek and Macedonian warriors which spread across the Hellenistic world all the way to Afghanistan and India and may have inspired Kung Fu.
@@asimian8500 interesting take on kung fu, the Chinese and Greeks definitely interacted and even had a war over horses so it's quite possible there could have been inspiration either way or both
Hate?
@@kennethcurtis1856 So you were sleeping through all that?
@@asimian8500 muay thai kicks, clinch, elbows and knees definitely required to make the ultimate conbination. the greeks would have added muay thai arsenal to pankratio if they met thailands .
This is probably the ONE conspiracy Eddie Bravo doesn’t believe.
Never underestimate Edgy Brah
@@ricksterdrummer2170 First Eddie taps the reigning Gracie in Brazil, and then develops his winning technique into a complete system. I think you're on to something.
Or Joe Rogan
@@ricksterdrummer2170 When he finally completes the rubber fist, I'm sure he will.
Earth is flat
Look into it
🤣🤣🤣🙈🙈🙈
He forgot there was another rule, not grabbing the fence. Everyone else COULD and DID grab the fence, but when you fought Royce Gracie they forced that rule. The final fight the ref forced Gracie's opponent to let go of the fence and a few seconds later Gracie finally took him down and choked him. Rewatch this and see.
Well it seems the issue was the rule wasn't being applied on most fights then, and not that it was applied when the fight was against Gracie. Right? 😅😅
@@leandroaurelio6147Allowing habit development that would be turned against...
I think today it's pretty much common knowledge that the UFC was organized to promote Gracie Jiu Jitsu. It worked! It worked incredibly well. But that all being said, the Gracies did prove that if you know how to wrestle you can beat someone who doesn't. It's not a lesson the martial arts would should have needed to learn, but it absolutely changed martial arts forever.
I grew up in the 80’s and we used to always say back then to never get in a fight with a wrestler unless you’re way bigger than him.
As a Brazilian, this is not conspiracy, it's a known fact. Thanks for the content, dude.
a conspiracy is something people are scheming to achieve in secret. a conspiracy _theory_ is what you're thinking of
he fooled gullible americans 😂
@@tigrisrgn4062 while a giant Jesus loomed over Rio de Janeiro. Ironic.
Sim mano, ja viu os depoimentos dos lutadores da época dos Gracie falando sobre as maracutaias deles? Eles são porcos mentirosos
@@oimctv3642 hahah eu não diria que são porcos, é uma questão de marketing! Os caras eram muito bons mesmo, mas criavam umas barreiras desnecessárias pra outros atletas que eram muito bons também poderem desafiá-los
Took 5 of the Gracie family to finally beat Sakuraba, and even then they waited till he was much older and out of his prime. Love watching the 'Gracie Hunter' go through them one by one.
He also had had many nagging injuries by that point too.
And they didn't even beat him, they won by "decision", but when you see the fight, Sakuraba is clearly the winner
The Gracie's were not unstoppable the just had the fact that other fighters didn't know anything about BJJ now that most fighters understand the moves and how to defend the submissions there ain't to many top 20 fighters in UFC that would have a hard time destroying the Gracie's even in their prime.
Wasn’t the first victory against the Gracie Hunter 3 years older than Sakuraba and equally out of his prime?
@@xThexPIGIxKing Yes, against Royce.
Since 93 I’ve said a thousand times all fights do not end up on the ground. Thank you Bill Wallace you are the only one!
I met Bill Wallace at LAX airport about 40 years ago. I was a fighter as well, and fought in karate tournaments mostly in California, Mexico, and Canada. We had never met before, but I had seen him on tv. Being a big fan of his effective kicking style, it was a huge honor to accidentally run across him. I was nervous, but Mr. Wallace was very kind and told me it was nice to meet me and he shook my hand. I was quite awed meeting a champion of his stature, but he was completely gracious. Seeing Mr. Wallace in this interview brings back not only the memory of meeting him, but also memories of his outstanding kicking speed, technique, and effectiveness. Mr. Wallace is one of the greatest martial artists that ever lived, and the nicest I've ever met.
I had the honor to go to one of his seminars at my dojo in one of our advanced classes in the 1970s. He was a great teacher and in his heyday then. His kicking inspired me. Bill " Superfoot" Wallace. One of the greats.
@@goldenlionness7317 He sure is a nice person and a uniquely gifted martial artist.
The Gracies set up the event to prove BJJ as unstoppable. What they ended up proving was that you need to be proficient at all the ranges.
excellent point!
Truth
Until they all faced sakuraba and got owned, and royce had to juice to win later on.
@@painting Sakuraba was significantly heavier than all of them tho. It was awesome to see them beaten but I don’t think it’s a fair comparison.
@@francogiobbimontesanti3826 no he wasn’t. Royce was an inch taller. Their first first Sakuraba was 7lbs heavier. The second Royce was a pound heavier. You talk like sakuraba was 30lbs heavier and 6foot 5
sakuraba is secretly smiling somewhere...
in the last fight he didn't seem motivated to win... or dissapointed that he lost... seemed more like an act of kindness... and then helios thanked him at the end.
@@veloran He got tired of the Gracies sending people after him, so he gave them 1 win to end the vicious cycle.
@@NoName-pd8pu No, by the time the 2010s rolled around, Sakuraba was completely shot. It's not a coincidence he never won another fight after he lost to Ralek.
Definitely
Sukaraba beat ...the Gracie family.
Even Renzo said Sukaraba was his hero...and humbled him to keep learning.
To be correct, Dan Severn, a very competent wrestler, who went on to win the UFC , was in fact tapped by Gracie with a triangle choke. The reality is that at that time many " masters" and champions wanted no part of the UFC because it would show the incredibly large holes in their game.
Dan came in at UFC 4 not UFC were again…..no wrestlers … no Japanese either
@@GodCarnage Ken trained shoot wrestling in Japan for Pancrase. I'd say he was the best fighter from Japan at the time of UFC 1.
The reason we bring up Dan Severn in ufc 4 is because people say a real wrestler would not have lost to Royce. Dan was a Sunkist Kid and still got subbed by Royce.
@@mr.i6527 Kazushi Sakuraba was a professional wrestler!
@@mr.i6527 I don't think a real wrestler would have won against Royce as much as a wrestler would have had a better chance. As J. Victor pointed out, Kazushi Sakuraba who's a wrestler beat everyone the Gracies sicc'd on him.
@@viktormuerte Saku beating Royce is literally the equivalent of Tito beating Ken Shamrock. Except Ken was way more active than Royce when he lost. When Royce fought Saku, it had been 5 years since he had last fought in the UFC. Royce did get a tune up fight against a pro wrestler turned shoot fighter, but it wasn't much of a challenge.
Point is Tito and Saku were the new generation of fighters who didnt just rely on 1 background and who were much well rounded. Royce lost becuase Saku was more well rounded, I mean Saku had already beat dudes like Carlos Newton and Vitor Belfort by the time he beat Royce.
Also keep in mind Rickson tore through every shoot/catch wrestler they threw at him with ease. So it's not like Bjj didn't have any success against the style. It's just Saku was more well rounded as the rest of the fighters in his generation were.
Edit: To clarify, my position isn't that bjj is the best style for mma. I'm just saying that Royce's wins were legit, especially his first fight against Ken. Also that bjj has an advantage over folk style/freestyle wrestling. Lastly, the reason why Saku beat the Gracies is because he was a good fighter with well rounded skills while the gracies were not well rounded.
I trained with Erik Paulson the years preceding the first UFC. Erik was a Hickson student and was the Shooto champ in Japan(catch wrestling/ kick boxing,.). They wouldn't let Erik fight in the UFC because he was a Gracie student. They absolutely programmed the fights so Joyce would not have to face an elite grappler. And yes it was created to be advertising for Gracie Jujitsu.
I trained with his brother, Robert. Sadly, he passed away during Project Mayhem. Say his name.
I'm from Brazil. Here we all know that is true.
Hoje em dia a máscara caiu, e os Gracie não são coisa forte no mma.
What about Rickson surly he was legit?
@@parodykings3408 rickson was a great fighter and a legendary athlete but most of his opponents didn't knew how to fight BJJ. Although it's undeniable that he did fought guys much bigger and heavier than him, I wonder how he would fare today against some UFC stars.
@@racudo1898
I agree.
Rickson is known as a great BJJ practitioner. However, he never fought in the modern era of MMA against modern fighters.
Well of course you do. You don’t have any obvious biases.
This guy needs to be on JRE.
Joe Rogan was also a decorated kickboxer who actually competed...
@@tylerida273 so?
gus bisbal i was thrown off because they look alike but once he started talking I knew
Gracies is Joe's hero's it won't never happen
So Joe can talk over him for 3 hours?
The evolution of MMA (professional/competitive) is amazing. From fighters being unable to solve the BJJ puzzle to Royce being dominated by Matt Hughes. And now we have hybrid superfighters.
How far the sport has gone. 👌
we dont have super sayans kamehamehas blast energy and pp flying around and fighting at light speed. we still have a long way ahead
Now Sambo is the new unstoppable meta
And Royce has the gall to say Hughes beat him using BJJ. Which Hughes used his first opportunity to correctly say that it was American wrestling that pounded Royce into a stain.
@@beerthug He did. He literally went for submissions and used BJJ positioning lol
Yeah and it was could judo before the gracies Patented it.
A wrestler was invited to the first UFC! Ken Shamrock was a wrestler/submission grappler who had striking too! He posed a serious threat to Royce, especially with the leglocks, but Royce made quick work of him after Ken sat back for a leg Royce came up on top and ended up with choke after a scramble.
He fought with not the smartest tactics is why Royce won. Should have kept it on the feet. Fought it out in the clinch hockey punch and knee and elbows. He had the size advantage to ko him. Also no slams why not. Royce would have never been able to take Ken down. In guard he could have just stood up unhooked the top foot and backed away and kicked the legs. That's how Marcello opens the guard sometimes.
@@dennacampbell1432can’t make excuses for him or other UFC fighters back then. They were not well equipped to handle jiu jitsu. This conspiracy is all fantasy
The UFC was the Gracies event. Everybody knows that
Johnnythepillpopper
This is known. It’s been known for years that this was marketing for the Gracie’s.
I didn't know that
Angler Strong
No one here is denying this. I have been practicing BJJ for years. It don’t deny it’s effectiveness but what if Royce went against a world champion wrestler or judo gold medalist?
Jeremy Serrata I think the result would be the same. Remember he went against Shamrock, at the time he was the top shootfighter in the world. He also fought Remco Pardoel a Judo champion. Renzo Gracie fought that Danish Judo Champion who I believe was a gold medalist
Ufc has been created by the gracies to promote the gracies. Thats why they made the rules to be sure royce wins , and if opponents adapts to the rules, they made new rules to continue to advantage royce.
The Gracies have always said that the UFC was a way to showcase BJJ
@@TangoNevada They conspired to promote their brand. Conspiracies makes the world go round.
BlackDragon LMAO! I have zero claim to know any “inside information” but from a guy who has watched the UFC from the beginning...I watched Royce Gracie get the holy hell beat out of him numerous times in matches he actually ended up winning by submission. Sure anyone can say it was “set up for a BJJ fighter to win”. But the fight still has to happen. And I can guarantee that every single one of the “strikers” who fought Royce believed with utmost confidence they would beat Royce handily. If the Gracie name meant nothing today as we near UFC 242, I could understand the argument. But Brazilian Jujitsu has consistently been part of mixed martial arts, the UFC, Strike Force, Bellator along with any other MMA affiliate.
Boilerbloodine, yeah but so has kick boxing and wrestling as they too have always been a very important aspect of mma.
SteelCity1981 Well sure...but those aren’t being minimized here like Brazilian Jujitsu is.
I can’t remember his name now, but one of those guys had him by 75 pounds and beat the snot out of Royce. Still got submitted. He did hurt Royce pretty badly tho. Limped out of the ring being supported by his corner
GM Wallace made public something that many true practitioners of the arts already knew.
The ultimate fighting championship, as it was known back then was absolutely a commercial for the Gracie brand of Brazilian jujitsu.
Yeah, I don´t like BJJ for that, and for people who play this martial art and says BJJ is best that other styles.
It was going to be a commercial for whoever won it
I’m not taking anything away from BJJ. It is extremely intricate and takes many years to become proficient in the art. It is also a valuable skill set to have in general for self defense and the study and development of grappling.
The issue is that the Gracie family setup the first tournament in such a way that Royce was going to win no matter what.
It was their tournament so they had the right to do this, however we should have had the bare knuckle no-holds bar as promised, with no Gi and rules that didn’t favor Royce. It a matter of fair play and the competitive spirt. This is what GM Wallace is talking about in this interview.
@Feuer1028 , keeping gi on was almost universally seen as a disadvantage. It was a bold move by Royce. The fact he was able to make use of it only seems obvious after the event.
I was 17 years old back then, and I was curious why there wasn't a wrestler involved. I was involved in wrestling, kyokushin, and kenpo as a teen, was super hyped for UFC. Yet I was a bit disappointed due to no other grappling style represented. This helped clear that old curiosity. Thanks Jesse and Mr. Superfoot.
don't let this video fool you: Ken Shamrock was a shoot / catch wrester.
Dan Severn wasn’t a wrestler ? This video is sour grapes . Bjj proved effective against individual martial arts period
Not seen Bill Wallace in ages. Glad he's still around
Bill Wallace is a great guy and a legit martial artist. I went to a seminar with him, must have been 1989 or so. He could tell a black belt exactly how and where he was going to kick him, ask if he’s ready, and still land the kick. He also had (has) mad flexibility too. He had us stretching for an hour and we all walked bow-legged to lunch. Fun times.
"My names Bill Wallace and I like to kick people in the head"
Bill seems like an awesome dude your lucky to have done a seminar with him. I'd have so many questions for him.
Why would you walk bow-legged?
shut up
Yep! My brother and I got to do one of these seminars in the early 90s. One day later, felt okay. 2 days, okay. 3rd day was sorer than I had ever been. Great workout, great technique, and he was hilarious and gracious.
I’ve Been watching MMA from the beginning, it’s interesting to see the Progress of MMA through the Years. It’s Has Definitely Evolved. No more Single disciplines, you must be well rounded in all.
The sumo was down and defenseless. You can are argue how hurt he was, but he would've just sat there and got his face kicked in if it hadn't been stopped.
They didn't let Ken shamrock wear his Pancrase boots because they were a weapon but they let royce use his uniform as a weapon.
🤫🤫🤫
@@punisher7772 we are talking about wrestling boots, not biker boots, dude
Ken addressed that issue in a later interview and the comment section of that video on youtube is full of bjj flatearthers!😑
@@punisher7772 literally a huge difference in Gi vs No Gi martial arts, where Gi techniques are trained for that express purpose, so most people wouldnt, youre right, but somebody from the Gracie family definitely would!
Robert Sadora agreed but what about using a belt to choke. That's crazy if only one of them can have one. It's clear that the first ufc was rigged but why was it not exposed sooner.
Sakuraba humbled the Gracies, in more ways than one!!
Sakuraba:Gracie Hunter
Wanderlei Silva:Sakuraba Hunter
It’s like a Robo is one person. The Gracies are an entire family. Soccer Robert is amazing and the exception to the rule. The Gracies are the rule.
I was going to say the same thing! Maybe because he new how to wrestle and grapple.
@@ryanlucasferreirasantos1619 how many gracias volunteered to fight the axe murderer? Props for sakuraba for taking on all comers, unlike rickson.
@@hubster4477 How many fights do you have? Rickson has over 500.
Even after more than 30 years in martial arts, Superfoot never fails to impress me.
I had a picture taken with Mr Wallace at a karate exhibition my dad took me to at our local high school when I was a little kid. He was so nice to us, just as friendly as he is in this interview.
Re "there wasn't a real wrestler there"
To be fair Ken Shamrock is a more than capable wrestler, but he got understandably surprised by being choked by a belt. What BJJ and UFC has done, is re-establish that grappling is a vital part of a full fighting system/toolkit, and surpressed credibility of those who peddle mystic woo as fighting techniques. We should thank them for that, even though this contest was really an infomercial for Gracie Jujitsu.
booooooo
u didnt understand
u r right
[u r right]
@@thewarlordscalling6537
yeah, by shuma-gorath, i saw everything
@popasmuerf
exactly. and Shamrock was actually a very seasoned wrestler
I have a lot of respect for Brazilian jiu jitsu but I have also heard a lot of stories over the years about how shady the Gracies are. They definitely like stacking the deck in their favor.
There was a legend the nickname was gracie hunter...
Just going to mention Dos Santos.
Khabib said that Combat Sambo +Wrestling is the best grappling martial art
@@wdefender.x.9182there was a day when wanderlei put this "legend" in a grave
*BKJ is effective 1 on 1 other than that.*
I'm a jiu jitsu practioner in one of Gracie's school, and I love the atmosphere, competence and discipline around, but is deniable that Gracie's has very shady story.
For a long time they behave more like a máfia family than a business clan. It was comon to the Gracie's invade rival dojos in mass and force their sensei to fight one of the family member, not forgetting the long history of trouble from Carlos and Hélio, including jumping out people they have feud with and beat them up.
When they wanted a fight, they would threat and coerce (they are a very rich and we'll connected family) the respective fighter, including call and persuit their families and employers, and messing up their professional and personal life, and also pressuring promoters to set te fights on their exactly terms.
They have their place on history of Martial arts, but also their downsize.
This is insanely interesting, such insight, NOBODY in the mixed martial arts community has ever done something like this from what i've seen so far. Golden content my friend, im not even finished yet, just wanted to let you know.
Yeah everyone has known since the 90s that the original UFC events were specifically set up to demonstrate Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. That being said, it was great hearing about it from Superfoot's point of view.
Learning Kazakhsha?
I always kinda figured it, but, this is the first I'm hearing from someone who was involved in the original UFC and explains its nuts and bolts of how it was done.
"Everyone" who's everyone??
@@darkdrake13 Everyone
it was known as reverse jj.
Man I clicked so fast when I saw superfoot it was interesting to watch for sure
Me too, as fast as I can
@@Maurisawer Almost as fast as Bill could kick
One of the coolest guys on the planet. I saw him an exhibition match in Miami in the 70s against a local tough named Glen Melman (??) and Bill was just magic.
Groin strikes were legal. It was biting and eye gouging that were the only 2 things you could not do. Shamrock was a competent wrestler and submission expert and Royce took him out in 52 seconds. Royce was also the smallest man in every event. ...when master wrestler Dan Severn came into it he went through everybody except Royce who submitted him.
Dan let him win!
@@christophernikolaou8009 ....I've heard this put about before. ...why the hell would Dan let him win?
@@douggherkin Dan saw Royce wouldn't tap and he didn't have the heart to kil him.
@@christophernikolaou8009 ha ha ha ha! Royce was never in any danger in that fight. Cool as a cat. Everything went to plan. Feigning weakness was all part of the set up.
I wonder if Royce could've still beaten Kimo if it wasn't for the rattail. Royce was hanging on to that rattail for dear life 😂
This was a very interesting conversation, really informative. Great interview! plus Bill Wallace has such a good sense of humor!
Interesting story how the Gracies challenged Bill and he accepted. Gracies backed out when they realised that Bill used to train grappling with Gene and Gokor and that he was a very competent grappler.
Bill who? Super foot? Funny, I see him pushing conspiracy theories, but not on the fight card.
The Gracies would have beaten Wallace though. Wallace was a skilled kickboxer with wrestling experience but he didn’t know bjj
@@billsimms2511 Yeah quite possibly/most likely...but from what I understand Gracies (at least back then) were using a low risk high reward strategy and refusing challenges from people who had some grappling knowledge. Again who knows mate, I am only quoting 3rd hand accounts.
The gracies? Do you know who would've been fighting him?
@@mps9649 The thing is royce fought ken twice and ken was a damn good grappler during that time
That no wrestling in the Olympics is infuriating, but they have skateboarding and will have wall climbing as an exhibition sport...go figure
Michael Rauch To get rid of one of the oldest sports is ridiculous.
Yes ridiculous to get rid of wrestling. But i also have no problem with having skateboarding and climbing is so far from being an exhibition. Why do you call it that?
Lets be honest wouldn't you love to see MMA in the Olympics? Two warriors representing their country? The ratings slip every year.
Wrestling is still on for 2020 and 2024. The Eastern Europeans and the Former Soviet republics fought the decision and won. I heard there was going to be new rules but I have no idea what they are but all I know is that Wrestling is on for Tokyo.
I agree they should have all kinds of combat sports in Olympics, but why bash skateboarding and climbing?
Wow, makes me feel old. This guy was about my age now when he did UFC 1. I saw that as a teenager.
The gracies have a history of having special rules added with some lies
Jesse keep doing videos with bill wallace I love to see you both speak with each other about these problems I watched this video twice in a row . Its soooo interesting. Great job jesse great job
That’s awesome! Makes me happy to hear 😄 I love learning from the people who made it possible for my generation to “stand on the shoulders of giants” 🙏
Even Rorion Gracie said the UFC was to get the word out for Gracie JJ, he was a co owner. This isn't anything new. Except the what you can and can't wear part, this is the first I heard of that.
They were not "getting the word out" they were stacking the deck and calling it combat! Would you approve if other events, MLB, NFL, NBA, "got the word out" in the same fashion?
Bruce Lee said,
U gotta know it all,
Stay away from sport fighting,
2 fighters with no rules is FIGHTING...
😎
Met Bill Wallace once and got to do some sparing with him. He was incredibly fast even at his older age. I was in my late teens and he was about his late 40s early 50s. I consider myself lucky to have had that honor.
Ken Shamrock was told he couldn't wear shoes like he always did, because they were a "weapon" yet Gracie could use his suite.
The Gi is not an advantage. If you have a Gi and I don't I have the advantage, most Gi chokes, transitions and cotrol techniques use the opponents Gi, not your own.
He was allowed to wear shoes just not kick with them. They literally showed a cut from ufc 1 of the boxer wearing shoes. Dont be a sheep. Everything he said was bogus. No hand wraps, but the sumo guy was triple wrapped. No knee wraps, but shamrock had knee wraps. No wrestlers, but shamrock was a college wrestler and took gracie down with a double leg.
@@kallepikku4991 he could wear shoes but not kick if he had shoes on. The boxer was never going to kick, hes a boxer so he chose to keep his shoes. Shamrock forfeited his shoes so he could kick.
@@Hitchslapz that's not necessarily true my friend. Eddie Bravo vs Royler Gracie is a good example. The friction of Eddie's gi wouldn't allow Royler to escape electric chair.
@@GIGGITYPLUM Well I did say most. 9/10 times its a disadvantage. Not an advantage.
luke skywalker interviews human yoda :)
all jokes aside, I admire how he respects his elder and his (Wallace's) humility as well..
refreshing thing to see in the west...
Hahahaha
Top comment 👍
Yeah Not many people I have seen out here on the west coast respect any damn thing.I grew up In Tennessee and I would not be alive right now if i had not learned to be respectful.Cant stand all these mofos these days that think the world owes them something.Looking for them hand outs!!!!
@@davebunch5493 nothing to do with east or west coast. Wake up.
Tbh I wanted to comment that the young interviewer seems to have a bit too much of this young patronizing old man attitude. Not in a disrespectful way of course, but it still comes off cringy when the "old man" he's interviewing seems to be sharper and make more sense than many young people.
I understand having this attitude towards an old war veteran who doesn't even remember what year we have right now, but Bill, besides his obvious old looks, seems to be absolutely fine mentally, so there's no need for this "patronizing" attitude.
Again, I understand that it wasn't done in a disrespectful way, quite the opposite, but sometimes you can overdo on good things as well.
One of the Coolest things about seeing your videos is: I grew up in the town of Kokomo where Eddie Bethea has his Dojo. And Eddie Bethea and Terry Gruel BOTH trained with Superfoot Wallace. My Sensei is Terry Gruel! It's just amazing to me that the lineage of what I'm learning comes from greats like this!
Another amazing example of how the public is fooled until an insider before dying reveals unknowns to the public.
Bill Wallace was one of my martial arts heroes back in the day...and even now I know why. What a cool guy he is, thank you for this awesome interview! ❤️👍
Me too, I only had one poster my wall as a kid and it was of Bill "superfoot" Wallace doing one of his kicks. He's a legend!
Bill Wallace could have challenged Rickson Gracie. However, he never did.
When Gracies said all fights go to the ground, I knew it was not true. Kazushi Sakuraba prove being in the ground was severe disadvantage and he beat all the Gracies. Karate,
Sakuraba fought karate?
@@tiocroc4814 Freestyle wrestling and karate.
first of all Sakuraba proved grappling to be effective as he was able to win against the gracies by mastering grappling, not karate. Karate is just a beautiful but ineffective martial art
Thiago Stricht Okinawa true karate is useful. When they attacked with punches and weapons and not KaRaTe ChOp
@@realamericannegro977 Not real?
the "Jesse you shouldn't talk like that" line killed me. this dude rules
As a BJJ practitioner, I thoroughly enjoyed this video , getting to hear an outside perspective. Thank you!
Um...you heard not a perspective, you heard the truth about the "booty-scooters"!
I'm a fan of the UFC and I like BJJ, but Bill "Superfoot" Wallace is telling the truth, and he's on point. I'm grateful for his honesty. 🥋 🥋 Great video @
Jesse Enkamp 🥋🥋
i agree 💯%
And continue to roll with jiu-jitsu
If he's telling the truth, then I guess Superfoot has started getting amnesia in his old age or still don't know Shamrock's backgorund. And, guess who the last fight was: Ken Shamrock vs Royce Gracie. He even mentioned that Royce choked out Shamrock. So, I guess he forgot or didn't know that Ken Shamrock was not only a CCC Wrestler, but the #1 Shoot Wrestler in Japan.
And, their rematches were highly promoted in the next few UFC events. But, I guess we're just going to ignore actual facts cause...
Shamrock was a wrestler. Plus knew submissions, hence why the immediate pancake when Royce shot in.
JoeBob Jenkins yeah why the f are they glossing over that?!
Dont forget Dan Savern
JoeBob Jenkins not according to Mr Wallace ..somebody should remind him that he had a very good side kick and nothing else by his own admission..as he describes he had a bad right knee and could only fight using one leg..(which for a Jujitsu fighter would have been very easy to neutralized both the side kick and at the same time taking care of the already messed up knee)........but as a commentator he was horrendous..... ...and it was obvious ..no wonder they did not give him any talking time not even in the movies....there is a reason why all these different " producers". came to same decision .........
Actually he was a shoot fighter, admittedly a brilliant grappler, but as Bill said, Joyce used his belt to choke him. Also, they would not let Ken wear his boots, which he was used to using to get traction in the ring. I have heard Ken complain about this. The Gracies were allowed to wear a gi, which they were train in using as weapons, but Ken wasn’t allowed to wear his boots. And in his Superfight with Joyce in the third UFC, Joyce couldn’t beat him, after a half an hour of fighting.
At the time of UFC 1, he had been a high school wrestler and professional wrestler. He had done three sort-of MMA fights in Japan a month or two before UFC 1. Shamrock knew basics and had been taught some simple submission stuff as a pro-wrestler in Japan so he could defend himself if it became necessary. He was not a great wrestler. But even knowing simple high school stuff put him worlds ahead of anyone else in the first three UFC tournaments.
He got better over time, but at that first UFC he was not much as a fighter or wrestler.
As a martial arts fan, I feel that to have a good self defence bace, all you need is a history in wrestling and kickboxing/boxing. Everything after that is just perfecting what you know.
That was the best video I’ve seen in a long time!
I’ve been saying this for a long time, but who am I, I’ve never competed.
So awesome to hear Bill say it 👏
Bill was too smart, asked too many questions, and has too much integrity. They had to turf him.
Yoda....exactly
Aint know truth in business
The Gracie logo has the pyramid, that ought to tell you something. Not doing Gracie Breakdowns on their rich, pompous, customer who fights professionally in MMA and loses spectacularly, or not doing them on their own clan members who also lose in professional MMA bouts, or simply avoiding, or misrepresenting the truth concerning the outcome of a professional fight in which Gracie competed, ought to also tell you something.
He opened the PPV by burping and getting the name wrong.
He was a very boring and nobody missed him
Old man Gracie was beaten soundly back in the mid 20th century by a catch wrestler. A short time later him and his brothers ambushed the guy outside of a bank and crippled him so he couldn't wrestle any more. In UFC 1 after it was all done, the old man was honored with great fanfare as this great martial arts innovator and grand master. It sure doesn't pass the smell test to me.
Gary Bryant was he an old man or a young man the wrestler?
@@michaelgonzales4899 they were all relatively young not yet middle aged.
Who was the wrestler?
@@leongarza the match occurred on 18 August 1931. On 22 October 1932 the Gracie brothers attacked Rufino Dos Santos when he got out of a car and had his hands in his coat pockets. Helio Gracie beat him with some kind of a metal tool but I couldn't find a description of was exactly it was. These are not honorable people. Rufino was attacked by Carlos, Helio and another brother whose name escapes me. Rufino's wrestling career was ended that day.
The Gracies had set up a fantasy surrounding their jiu jitsu, claiming they'd never been defeated. Which was a complete lie. Rufino Dos Santos was a wrestler who along with others challenged the Gracies and made fools of them. The humiliation was to much to bear so they attacked him.
The Gracies where and are a wealthy family who could afford to build possitive publicity around them and squash the negative. Quite frankly every claim they've ever made is questionable. It's not even certain that Mitsuyo Maeda actually ever trained any of them directly.
I saw first hand how skewed UFC was way back in the beginning. Back in 1994 I was training at a Bujinkan ninpo taijitsu dojo. One of our students, who was a 3rd degree blackbelt at the time, got wind of the UFC looking for fighters. He "tried out" and was denied. They didn't want martial artists who trained in combat martial arts. They wanted martial artists who trained in sport application martial arts, or martial arts with rules. They knew our guy would completely end the fight within a few seconds with devastating results on the opponent by doing something like destroying their skeletal system. 30 years later the Gracies and all their bjj fanboys who drank the Kool aid still think they are the top of the food chain and call us frauds and fakes and claim we train in "bullshido". It's all propaganda. If you repeat a lie enough times, people believe it because they don't do their own research. What we train in is a martial art born in battlefield warfare, where what you learn is the difference between life and death. We train to win a fight by any means. We don't train to "play" with others or use our training in competitions. We don't train for belts and trophies. You wouldn't put a Honda Civic up against an M1 Abrams tank, would you? If you ever wondered why you never see anyone who trained in ninjutsu in a UFC match, that's why.
So the Gracie family wouldnt allow people with wrestling background to participate in the early UFC.
Kazushi sakuraba exposed bjj real fast, he found the most effective way to neutralize their stlye every time
By being a freakishly good athlete with an incredibly great wrestling and striking base? He's in my top 5 greatest fighters but come on. You can train BJJ. You can't train sakuraba
Look up Rufino Dos Santos the guy who beat the "original carlo gracie" and got murdered by the the gracies
@@OttoRoesch28 exactly.
@@richardkoen4325 sakuraba is a catch wrestler CACC. If CACC had the same amount of exposure as Gracie JJ then their would be more Sakuraba's and Josh Barnet's. CACC is only big in Japan and England but not near as big as BJJ.
Well sakuraba wasn’t freakishly good at anything.
He wasn’t an exceptional athlete.
He wasn’t a great wrestler.
He wasn’t a great striker.
What sakuraba was, was very very smart.
He used strategy and tactics to beat the gracies. He forced them to fight in ways they couldn’t win.
Best line: "I like to kick people." Amen.
The reason they started the UFC is to prove that Gracie Jiu-Jitsu was Superior over other styles when it came to defending yourself. It was to prove that the little guy could take on bigger guys. And they proved there point. And look at were we are today because of it.
He is not lieing. I am a bjj purple belt. It is a business, and they did a great job of selling it. The vibe of this first show, reminds me a lot of the first Triller events. The unknown, the oddity effect, the celebrity announcers. Maybe the real market is making people who pretend that they can fight, have to actually fight. People love seeing fake people getting exposed. Find a rich business family to back it, and push fake people getting exposed thru violence. Forget the boxing vs mma.
It is nonsense that you are allowed to choke someone with your GI but Ken wasn't allowed to wear Wrestling shoes. Wrestling shoes, unlike boots, would not have sufficiently added to kicking power to effect the outcome of the fight. Wrestling shoes are flexible and provide gripping potential not stiffness of material.
This is why standardization is important with regards to uniform. Ken might have lost still(I sort of doubt it because of his Catch Wrestling acumen and his general physical strength) but it does represent a favoritism and bias that the UFC had.
yes imagine if there was a Khabib Nurmagomedov or a Daniel Cormier type fighter in the first ufc with that level of wrestling, Mr Gracie would have found it very interesting when trying the double leg shoot, super-foot should have been offered a guest commentary spot last year when they celebrated the 25th anniversary
Those fighters didnt exist until after the UFC. People didnt cross train before UFC nearly as much as they do now.
@@hunterpowers317
Not true. Catch wrestlers had been competitive with BJJ since... well before BJJ even existed, hahaha.
Not to mention the Gracies specifically said that no high level wrestlers were allowed to compete in UFC 1. The Olympic Training Center is right in Colorado, where UFC 1 took place, and no high level wrestlers were invited or allowed!
yay, 2 of my most favourite UFC fighter, khabib and DC
Sakuraba and the other japanese judo guy were enought to beat the Gracie's. People get wrong when believes that something is umbeatable...( im a bjj pratictioner)
@@zedek_ Interesting info……source?
i read the title as "the gracie ufo conspiracy" and thought i somehow got onto the weirdest side of youtube ive seen in a long time.
Why do people hate the Gracies? They changed the sport of MMA for the good, they showed an amazing art and then forced everyone to have to be good at everything to be the best fighter.
I really like to see Bill in Joe Rogan’s podcast, to open Joe’s eyes to the reality behind the beginning of mma. Thanks Bill
i always knew something was wrong with the competition and placement of fights
Aloof Alien It wouldn’t change his views on bjj tard it would change how he looked at the first few ufc’s
If you think Bill knows anything about mma you are a fool. BTW, Joe was working for the UFC in 1996. Only a few years after it was created. To think he doesn’t know anything but a 1 time traditional martial artist who was brought in to be a commentator,
Knows anything about the sport is a joke. The UFC hired anyone in martial arts with a name. To bring eyes to the fights and get their eyes opened to reality! Wallace doesn’t know anything more than Jim Brown or Kathy Long who announced with him. Long was a martial artist who was a B list martial movie star. Wallace like others have tried to put down the UFC to save his own dying art and all Traditional martial art instructors have been doing it ever since the beginning. Their scam is over and they don’t want to get real jobs!
@@dperry203 He also did wrestling, kickboxing and Judo numbnuts.
@@GoofyCombat just because he did those styles doesn't mean he was good at it. there is a big difference in training just to learn and training for a fight.
The Gracies chose their opponents wisely. A few times they made mistakes with the Japanese guy Sakuraba, but most times they knew who NOT to fight. They refused to fight Chris Dolman.
they always pick the rules and opponents. they lost to some guys in braziil and cheated, eugenio tadeu, rufino dos santos they ganged up on him in thr streets. the big boys like wanderlei silva, belfort, mark kerr, igor vovchanchyn would do waaaay more damage than skinny sakuraba of course they didnt pick those guys
@@flowrepins6663 I heard helio, carslon and another gracie broke the poor man's arm that he can't wrestle anymore with a pipe.
Another one of those mistakes was them picking Hidehiko Yoshida.
@@flowrepins6663 man prime cro cop would kicked the head off the shoulders of the gracie dweebs
*facepalm* Royce fought Ken Shamrock in his second fight. Shut up.
Guess they forgot about how Royce tapped Dan Severn, an Olympic gold medal wrestler in UFC 4...
My God. Bill Wallace!! The legend. How do you get to talk to these guys. I was just showing a BJJ guy my karate kicks that I did when I was 23. I am 50 now and I can still kick with a snap. The BJJ guy was so excited that he wants me to teach karate.
There was a Championship in the 1980's in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, that was Jiu Jitsu X Wrestling. The Gracie family choosed the fighters that were better for them. That was always like that. Even doing that they won a fight, lost a fight and the other one was a draw.
This is a very important video. Thanks guys! Don't get me wrong, I love GJJ/BJJ, and I'm glad it became popular, but... truth is important.
@@WestcountryDudeI've spent time with Rorion Gracie. He's a great dude. But there is no doubt, and he'll tell you himself that the UFC was created to promote GJJ.
What Bill Wallace is saying here isn't a secret. A lot has been said about this for years. He is giving his perspective as someone who was there and behind the scenes.
He is giving his point of view. Is it 100% accurate, no, but nothing is.
You are assuming it has to do with "personal insecurity" and making ad hominem attacks on the man, why? Personal insecurity?
There is no doubt that GJJ/BJJ has changed the martial arts world for the better, but how it happened wasn't all moon beams and rainbows.
It is still better than any other ground martial art
@@MrDayday4641 Yes, Shamrock was a grappler, and they screwed him with the rules to ensure he couldn't win.
Important, yes, but nothing in this video that wasn't already out there. People have been saying all of this for many years.
@Stefano Grigori Scamarone Cano don't be ridiculous kid!
I trained with Bill Wallace Training tapes and I won 3 US Opens in Taekwondo and the nationals Great trainer Great training videos
"Most fights end up on the ground." - Not true. Those stats actually came from law enforcement, because police officers take the fight to the ground more often than not. Most other fights do NOT end up on the ground. That's another marketing ploy by the Gracies.
Bill "Superfoot" Wallace is a living legend. Respect!
Yee..up, Dez. ya can say that again. I's 'bout da comment the same.
Bill Wallace, Ken Shamrock, Oleg Taktarov & predecessors Joe Lewis, Chuck Norris & Don Wilson (just to name a few), they're all Legends.
This makes Sakuraba's legacy even sweeter. Crazie family.
😂😂 “I like to kick ppl” classic Super Foot line perfect way to end the video!!
An awesome video. Thanks to both the interviewer and the interviewee.
It's always cool to see people who were there, but not part of the inner circle and spilling the secrets. Very cool video.
I swear there's like personality templates for people. Ive met this one before, the old guy. One of my favorites tbh.
I had the same experience, I studied with him for about 9 years
I never thought of this but it makes total sense as to why he won so easily.
the gracies were business savvy, they knew the UFC could launch their brand into the stratosphere, so they made sure it was tailor made for them,,, wow!
"imagine what would have happened if they had a wrestler"
my imagination goes right to Sakuraba
Was Ken Shamrock not a wrestler? Thats my only confusion about that statement.
@@in_vas_por8810 Shamrock was a pro-wrestler who had wrestled in high school. He had done three real fights under pro wrestling rules shortly before UFC 1. He had basic wrestling skills which put him way ahead of everyone else in UFC 1, but he wasn't a great wrestler.
@@Jim-Tuner He also qualified for the state championships before an injury forced him to pass on it, so I would say his wrestling knowledge and skills may have been a bit more than basic.. I mean, can you name me off the top of your head who back then was a "great" wrestler? Shamrock was known for wrestling, and submitting people, so there WAS a formidable wrestler there, thats all I'm saying..
Mine goes straight to Shamrock.
@@alphadelta9495 And now mine goes right to Sakuraba's only KO on the feet.
This has been known since the beginning. But glad you are really making it known- to the casual viewers.
Nobody was lied to. Royce Gracie won fair and square 💯 it was anything goes and every man had thier own martial art stepping in the cage
In 1996 my Martial arts journey began when i first attended a gracie school. I didn't like it and moved on. After many schools, I found my home in a Hapkido school. I always wonder where I would be today if I joined the school, it would have been at the front of the whole MMA life. My goal was to be an instructor.
By the way, I met Bill Wallace at the MA Supershow in maybe 2006. He was awesome and the most humble master ever.
Nice video.
Bring on Kazushi Sakuraba ... The Gracie Hunter!!! 🤣
Bill Wallace was A BEAST!!!
Bring on rickson Gracie 😂 sakuraba never fought rickson
bill wallace wouldnt last 30 seconds in todays mma at his prime vs a avg fighter
@@30.06onaGrassyKnoll
No leg kicks, no knees, no shin-pads, no gloves no grappling or throws, no clinch.
He'd get annihilated.
30.06 on a Grassy Knoll Hahaha ... You're funny!!! 🤣
@@Bitch_senpai He dominated enough Gracies already. Sakuraba is a legend.
You guys forget about Ken Shamrock, who KNEW grappling, and he is basically the role model for a modern MMA fighter.
Also the boxer was allowed to use boxing gloves, and another guy had his hands wrapped, so this “no gear is allowed only for Gracie” is BS.
And if this conspiracy would be true, they wouldn’t invite the sumo guy in first place…
Also the BJJ’s performance was replicated in many other competitions.
I personally saw an event, where a purple belt BJJ guy with 3 years of practice, who didn’t know how to punch, beaten a wrestling Olympic champion…
With blue belt, I beaten a guy who was 2x the size of me. So sumo wrestlers can be handled.
So yeah, BJJ is THAT good, no conspiracy is needed to explain.
Today it is less obvious, only because all MMA fighters know BJJ today, and mastered at least a few essential BJJ skills.
Thanks for bringing that up. It's possible that they didn't want hand wraps since it was a "bare knuckles" tournament, but from the little bit of research I just did it looks like the rules were different from what he remembers. The rules I just read said that neither uniforms nor gloves were mandatory. I also remember there was one of the early matches where Ken Shamrock wanted to wear wrestling shoes, and was prohibited from kicking while wearing the shoes. Interesting considering the runner up fought in a martial art built around using the shoe as a weapon.
Just watched the first few recently. Boy Kimo threw a wrench in some plans didn't he ?? That dude was a monster.
It's pretty well known that UFC 1 was basically a Gracie BJJ advert. Nobody denies that.
first I'm hearing it
So it was nice to learn about
At the time, it was known amongst people who knew anything about UFC, but that wasn't most people. If you knew about UFC, you knew about the Gracie "dojo challenge" videos. UFC was the same (marketing ploy) taken to its next logical step. It was known at the time, but maybe not as obvious to people who only found out about the early UFC's after UFC had become more like what it is now
@@MarcillaSmith EXACTLY
Yes but most people don’t know that it was damn near fixed. They changed the rules for each fighter and extended the fight when Royce couldn’t beat Shamrock!
@@ryand4533 royce gracie fought kimo leopold who is weight more then 50 kg more amd still wins
Thank you again for the video. Super Respect to Master Super Foot Wallace it's a honor to see him and his wisdom of knowledge.
Imagine if the first UFC had a catch wrestling champion, a Greco Roman wrestling champ and a master judoka. I always thought it seemed suspicious
Always had my suspicions about the Gracie's now it all makes sense.
This was mostly nonsense
It has some fair points, but yeah a lot of nonsense mixed in.
Imposible its just made it up
Gracie are cheesy.
Ken Shamrock openly talks about it.