Rickson Gracie

Rickson Gracie
Born	(1958-11-20) November 20, 1958 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Other names	Adrian Rai
Nationality	Brazilian
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Division	Middleweight (185 lb)
Style	Gracie Jiu-Jitsu/Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu , Judo
Teacher(s)	Helio Gracie, Rolls Gracie Georges Mehdi
Rank	8th degree red and black belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu[1] black belt in Judo
Years active	1980, 1984, 1994 - 2000 (MMA)
Mixed martial arts record
Total	11
Wins	11
By submission	11
Losses	0
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Rickson Gracie (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈʁiksõ ˈɡɾejsi]; born November 21, 1958) is a Brazilian 8th degree black and red belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and a retired mixed martial artist.^[2][3][4] He is a member of the Gracie family: the son of Hélio Gracie, brother to Rorion and Relson Gracie, and half-brother to Rolker, Royce, Robin and Royler Gracie.^[5]

Biography

Rickson Gracie, son of Helio Gracie, was born into Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. At six years old he began competing; at 15 he started to teach it; and at 18 he received his black belt. At 20, Gracie won his first victory against the famous 230-pound (104 kg) Brazilian brawler Rei Zulu (father of Zuluzinho). With this victory, Rickson gained immediate national acclaim as the top freestyle fighter, leaving his mark on the history of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and the Gracie challenge. Five years later Zulu requested a rematch and lost to Rickson again, in Maracanazinho before an audience of 20,000 spectators. Rickson also famously fought Luta Livre exponent Hugo Duarte on the Rio de Janeiro beach. Duarte only wanted to fight in an event, but Gracie slapped him in front of his students and challenged him again, so Hugo stepped down and faced Rickson on the sand. Gracie won after making him surrender to punches to the face.^[6] Days after, maintaining that Gracie students had kicked him and thrown sand to his eyes during the fight, Duarte came to Rickson's gym and demanded a rematch. Gracie won again, causing a riot which forced neighbours to call the police. Shortly after, Rickson faced Eugenio Tadeu, another luta livre practitioner, and the two fought to a 50 minute draw.^[6]

In 1994, Rickson was contacted by Erik Paulson to compete in Satoru Sayama's event Vale Tudo Japan. Gracie traveled to Japan and participated in the tournament, firstly facing Daido-juku stylist Yoshinori Nishi. Gracie took him down and Nishi answered with a lockdown from half guard, but the Brazilian was able to pass his guard and catch him with a rear naked choke when Nishi turned his back. He later faced much larger wing chun practitioner Dave Levicki, but he was an even easier prey once taken down and Rickson won by TKO after a flurry of punches. Gracie then fought American kickboxer Bud Smith at the finals, winning by the same method in an even minor time and getting the tournament's victory. The same year, pro wrestler Yoji Anjo came to Rickson's dojo to challenge him, after failed negotiations about Gracie wrestling for Union of Wrestling Force International. Gracie was fast in fighting him and performed abundant ground and pound on Anjo, who did not surrender, so Gracie choked him unconscious.

A year later, Gracie was invited again to the next Vale Tudo Japan. At the first round he faced pro wrestler Yoshihisa Yamamoto from Fighting Network Rings, who unlike Rickson's previous opponents managed to keep him away from the mat by using the ropes and even tried a guillotine choke. However, Gracie eventually took him down and choked him. He squared against another pro wrestler in the form of Koichiro Kimura, swiftly defeating him, and then met shoot wrestler Yuki Nakai at the finals. Nakai, who was almost blind from an earlier match against Gerard Gordeau, put a strong resistance against Rickson, but the Brazilian master managed to take his back and choke him for another tournament win.

In 1997, Gracie signed up to a fight against Yoji Anjo's superior Nobuhiko Takada in the Pride 1 event. Before the Tokyo Dome's 47,860 spectators, Rickson defeated the inexperienced Takada, mounting him and locking an armbar in 4:47. After the event, Rings's Akira Maeda challenged Gracie, but he preferred to fight a rematch against Takada at Pride 4, stating that Takada was a warrior and that he deserved the opportunity. This time Takada showed improvement and was able to wrestle Rickson to neutralize his groundwork advantage, but the Brazilian master used a failed leglock attempt from the Japanese to sweep him and mount him. Nonetheless Takada kept fighting, dismounting the jiu-jitsu master and threatening him with a heel hook attempt, but Gracie performed an armbar and finally submitted Nobuhiko.

In May 2000, after Takada's understudy Kazushi Sakuraba defeated Royler Gracie in the Pride 8 event, he took the mic and challenged Rickson, who was in the Gracie corner, but nothing came of it.^[7] Gracie preferred to face Pancrase's retired ace Masakatsu Funaki at Colosseum event. The event almost got canceled, as Rickson demanded special rules which forbade elbows, headbutts, knee strikes and thrusts to the head, but the Pancrase management eventually conceded.^[8] At the event, held at the Tokyo Dome and broadcast to 30 million TV Tokyo viewers, Gracie and Funaki started the fight clinching to the corner. Masakatsu appeared to have secured a guillotine choke, but the hold was loose and Rickson managed to go to the mat. They traded kicks to no effect, until some well timed upkicks from Gracie blew out Funaki's gravely injured knee. They clinched again, but the Japanese's injury rendered him unable to wrestle Rickson correctly, and he was taken down by the Brazilian grappler, who promptly mounted him. Masakatsu looked stunned while Rickson bloodied his face with ground and pound, and finally Gracie forced his way into a rear naked choke.^[8] During the post-match interview, Gracie claimed that one of Funaki's punches made him lose his eyesight for a moments.^[9]

After the Colosseum event, Gracie expressed interest on fighting judo medalist Naoya Ogawa, which was signed up for the next Colosseum event. He was also proposed by Pride management a fight against Kazushi Sakuraba, who had already defeated Royce Gracie as well, but Gracie refused on the saying Sakuraba "didn't have the spirit of a warrior".^[8] Rickson further said he didn't wanted to fight a wrestler that was so much smaller than him.^[8] Meanwhile, New Japan Pro Wrestling offered him to face Shinya Hashimoto or Riki Choshu, to no avail. The fight against Ogawa was set to the next year, with Naoya vacating his NWA World Heavyweight Championship to focus on training for the bout, but tragedy struck when Rickson's son Rockson was found dead in January 2001. Affected by the loss, Gracie contemplated retirement and after some negotiations, the event fell off.^[8]

In 2003, Antonio Inoki offered Rickson USD$5 million for a fight against Kazuyuki Fujita,^[10] but it had not answer. Gracie has confirmed that he is officially retired now and his major focus is to give seminars on Jiu-Jitsu and to try to develop BJJ as his father saw it: not a fighting tool but a social tool, to give confidence to women, children, and physically weak individuals by giving them the ability to defend themselves.

Films

Gracie was the subject of the 1999 documentary, Choke, by filmmaker Robert Goodman. The documentary followed Gracie and two other fighters as they prepare and fight in Tokyo's Vale Tudo 1995. Released by Manga Entertainment, the film has been distributed to 23 countries.^[11] Rickson has a small role in The Incredible Hulk as Bruce Banner's martial arts instructor. His character is credited as an Aikido instructor, despite his Jiu-Jitsu background. He has appeared on National Geographic's television programme Fight Science.^[12][13]

Controversy

Gracie has raised the ire of some in the MMA community by criticizing the abilities of current top fighters. Though he had not fought in a sanctioned MMA contest in eight years, Gracie claimed in 2008 that he could still beat them easily. In an interview with Tokyo Sports, Gracie argued that Fedor Emelianenko was a great athlete, but possessed "so-so" technical ability, and that he (Gracie) was "100% sure" that he would defeat him.^[14]

In 2010, Gracie stated that he disagreed with those who view Emelianenko as "somehow special" and that he believed Emelianenko deserved to lose the decision in his fight with Ricardo Arona; described Brock Lesnar as having "zero defense from the bottom" in the fight against Carwin; and criticized Shane Carwin for what he perceived were deficiencies in Carwin's jiu-jitsu game, characterizing him as "strong as a bull but flimsy like a paper tiger."^[15] Previous critical comments that Gracie made about Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira (claiming that Nogueira has no "guard") prompted Wanderlei Silva to say that Gracie is "living in a fantasy world."^[16]

His father Helio Gracie disputed Rickson's claim to have had over 400 fights. According to Hélio, Rickson has only competed in fights that are commonly known and reported: the two against Rei Zulu and those that took place in Japan. Helio Gracie alleged that Rickson uses practice and amateur bouts to obtain a number over 400, and that if he counted his fights like Rickson does, he would have in excess of one million. ^[17]

The Ron Tripp fight

At the 1993 U.S. Sambo Championships in Norman, Oklahoma, Rickson faced undefeated Ron Tripp. Tripp threw Gracie to the canvas by uchi mata in 47 seconds, thus giving Tripp absolute victory under FIAS International Sambo rules. Rickson disputed this loss, claiming he was misinformed of the rules of the event despite claiming to be a 2 time Pan American Sambo Champion.^[18][19]

Personal life

Gracie has four children; Rockson Gracie (deceased^[20]), Kauan, Kaulin and Kron Gracie. Aside from jiu-Jjitsu, Gracie was ranked in judo and sambo.

Mixed martial arts record

See also

• List of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners

References

External links

• Official website
• Rickson Gracie Seminar
• Columbia BJJ (Official Rickson Gracie Representative)
• Axis Jiu-Jitsu Academy (Rickson Gracie Japan Representative) Official website
• Rickson Gracie FAQ
• Professional MMA record for Rickson Gracie from Sherdog
• Rickson Gracie at the Internet Movie Database
• Video footages of Rickson's seminars
• Rare Rickson Gracie Videos