Royce Gracie

[granmasterchen]

When ever i hear that age issue come up i think of dan severn, the beast, this guy is like 53 yrs old or in that general vicinity and he is STILL fighting and Winning.....if he can do it then there should be no excuses for anyone else, it is all up to that individual and how bad they want it. Yes, as we get older we break down especially in a contact sport like mma and full contact events, but we can still attain our goals with the mindset of hard work pays off. If we can no longer fight at a competent level then we need to make the decision of going into retirement regardless of pride issues because when you aren't able to conciously defend yourself there is a reason to why the referee jumps in. Keep yourselves alive by training and continuing intelligently and have the wisdom to admit it's your time and that you were defeated fairly.

[KarateEd]

I recently saw highlights of Royce Gracie during his UFC days. He was like a snake in his ability to lock onto someone before taking his opponent down. His skill at using punches, elbows, head-buts etc. to maneuver his opponent into the position that he wanted them in was impressive. And some of these dudes were 50+ pounds heavier!

Ed

[bushido_man96]

That was part of the advantage he had with grappling so well. He knew that he wasn't going to go toe to toe with those guys, and by taking them to the ground, he took away their weight advantage.

[baronbvp]

Another evil trick he had was punching guys repeatedly in the side of the ribs while he was waiting for them to do something. They couldn't defend against it the way he had them locked. Man, have you ever had that done to you? It hurts - a LOT.

[ninjer]

Another evil trick he had was punching guys repeatedly in the side of the ribs while he was waiting for them to do something. They couldn't defend against it the way he had them locked. Man, have you ever had that done to you? It hurts - a LOT.

Well, most of the time he did this was when his opponents were holding him closely and doing nothing (aside from stalling). Rib shots were his way of making his opponent react so he could take advantage of it.

[baronbvp]

I know, what a great idea. Evil genius even.

[baronbvp]

Perhaps he should have tried the dreaded noogie.

[bushido_man96]

Perhaps he should have tried the dreaded noogie.

The noogie, that's great!

I think even when he started striking from the mount, it was to get an arm into an armbar moreso than to try to knock the guy out.

[Sohan]

When ever i hear that age issue come up i think of dan severn, the beast, this guy is like 53 yrs old or in that general vicinity and he is STILL fighting and Winning.....if he can do it then there should be no excuses for anyone else, it is all up to that individual and how bad they want it. Yes, as we get older we break down especially in a contact sport like mma and full contact events, but we can still attain our goals with the mindset of hard work pays off. If we can no longer fight at a competent level then we need to make the decision of going into retirement regardless of pride issues because when you aren't able to conciously defend yourself there is a reason to why the referee jumps in. Keep yourselves alive by training and continuing intelligently and have the wisdom to admit it's your time and that you were defeated fairly.

GMC, I completely agree with the spirit of your post. Of course, keep in mind that Dan Severn is not fighting anywhere near the caliber of opponents he did as a younger man. If he were to enter the Octagon today, he would likely be taken apart rather easily. Unfortunately, there is indeed an age-related decline we must all face, and it is not as simple as just training smartly and having the right mindset. I do, however, admire him greatly for his drive and dedication to what he loves.

But that being said, there is certainly no excuse for someone in their 40's or 50's to feel that they can no longer train and compete with the younger set. They simply have to pick their battles a bit more carefully.

With respect,

Sohan

[AndrewGreen]

Another evil trick he had was punching guys repeatedly in the side of the ribs while he was waiting for them to do something. They couldn't defend against it the way he had them locked. Man, have you ever had that done to you? It hurts - a LOT.

Not a evil trick, that's groundfighting 101

Use strikes to create openings and advance position or set up submissions.