Royce Gracie, one of the founding fathers of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, is embarking on a quest to educate people around the world about his family style which has become one of the leading disciplines in Mixed Martial Arts.
A renowned figure in the world of MMA, Gracie was trained by his father Helios and was participating in various competitions by the age of eight. By 18 he was already a black belt and was helping pass on his knowledge as he moved to America to teach ‘Gracie Jiu Jitsu’.
A hugely successful career within the sport of MMA followed but his true passion is teaching the Martial Art that his father perfected back in Rio de Janeiro.
Gracie Jiu Jitsu is now taught across the world and during a recent visit to the UAE, the 6th degree black belt held a seminar at the HM Fitness Centre in Dubai where he spoke with the students and gave fans the chance to participate in a training session.
With MMA’s popularity growing across the region, Gracie firmly believes the UAE, and the wider Middle East, has huge potential for producing elite-level fighters. But for this talent pool to be fully explored and utilised, Gracie insists education and access to quality training is paramount to MMA’s chances of success in the region.
“It is great to be here and see the transformation through the years,” said Gracie, who has regularly visited the Middle East over the past decade. “Fitness is growing a lot over here, the gyms are getting bigger, better and becoming a part of the culture for people. Not just in the UAE but everywhere I travel in the Middle East, fitness is becoming a very important part of daily life."
Gracie was recently named No44 in Sports Illustrated top 50 athletes of all time. Humbled by this recognition, the 47-year-old feels this honour demonstrates MMA’s growing stature among mainstream sports, despite its reputation as a dangerous discipline.
“Most people think that it is an aggressive and violent sport, it is not, it is Martial Arts, a form of art that teaches you different style of self-defense,” explained Gracie. “It is a question of educating the crowd from the beginning, they are not thugs or street fighters; they are martial artists.”
The legendary fighter rose to fame thanks to his enthralling performances in the UFC, where he was best known for beating opponents much larger in size. He also holds the record for the most submission victories (11) in UFC history.
Yet while Gracie’s professional record and achievements guarantee his place in MMA history, it is arguably his fighting style – Gracie Jiu-Jitsu – that will ensure his legacy lives on.
“My family style is more about self-defence,” Gracie said. “All the games have techniques, but Gracie [Jiu Jitsu] is more of a self-defence technique. It is not based on punching and kicking, rather it is based on leverage and technique.
“So you do not have to be big, you do not have to be strong; neither do you have to be the fastest. You just have to know what you are doing.”
While Gracie was introduced to Jiu Jitsu in the 1970’s, the discipline was first brought to the UAE in the late 1990’s when H.H. Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, regarded as the Godfather of UAE Jiu-Jitsu and a Martial Arts enthusiast since his own childhood, started training in the USA.
Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the crown prince of the UAE, has also been a longtime advocate of Martial Arts, especially Jiu-Jitsu. Along with Sheikh Tahnoon, the pair have brought success not only the Emirates, but the Middle East as well.
Even though the UAE is promoting the sport in the region – such as when the World Professional Jiu Jitsu Championships took place in Abu Dhabi last year – there is much more to do for building the base of UAE Jiu Jitsu on the international stage.
When asked about what should be done in order to build the name of Jiu-Jitsu in the country Gracie replied: “It takes time. You need promoters to be persistent, you need gyms to be able to teach the people.
“Not just Gracie [Jiu-Jitsu], but different styles of kick-boxing and karate, boxing and wrestling. Also not just a single style, you need to educate people about all the different styles.”
Education is the key for Gracie. He is determined to teach the art form his father made famous, and he truly believes that anyone, no matter their size or build, can learn his techniques.
He wants people to challenge their limitations and to push the body to the limit. And he has one piece of advice for anyone who believes they cannot learn a form of Martial Arts.
“Anything is possible if you want it, you’ve just got to have the discipline to get up and do it.”
To keep up to date about Royce Gracie and his events follow him on Twitter at @realroyce
