Thread: Arrogance
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Old 12-11-2000, 04:37 PM   #3
Erik
Location: Bay Area
Join Date: Jun 2000
Posts: 1,200
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Bingo!

I've been thinking recently that the Gracies have done the world a great disservice and a great service. The service is to point out that many martial arts are flawed in that a grappler can beat them. Hell, wrestlers can beat many martial artists. So I think it's great that they opened everyone's eyes to this possibility.

The disservice is exactly what you pointed out. First off, where did they come up with that study? Did someone go out and study every single fight to see if the went to the ground? Where did sucker punches come in on this scale? Of course they are going to say this because it benefits their cause. It's like the Tae Kwon Do guy I was working with who told me his instructor said "never to catch kicks". Talk about self-fulfilling prophesies.

Plus, I do not want to go to the ground in a bar for instance but then again either the bouncers or the cops might save you there.

Another disservice, in my eyes, is the idea of NHB and no time limits. What the hell kind of fight goes on for longer than a few minutes? What the hell kind of fight goes on for a few minutes? The Gracies freely admit that they do this because they think they have an advantage the longer a fight goes. Like you said, they train for it.

So while I respect the Gracies, and understand that most of them would thump me pretty royally, I couldn't agree with you more.
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