These fighters are leading the shift back to early MMA
Mixed martial arts is an interesting sport that goes through particular phases. Early in its inception, athletes such as Royce Gracie and Dan Severn were able to dominate through grappling and control. Then high level wrestlers took charge as men such as Tito Ortiz emerged as leaders at the highest level. Today, fans watch as Conor McGregor, Joanna Jedrzejczyk, and Stephen Thompson blow opponents away with crisp striking. However, quietly the tide may be changing once again. This time, grapplers like Demian Maia, Mackenzie Dern and Kron Gracie are steadily pushing the pack forward.
None of these individuals need an introduction. Maia, ranked number three in the UFC welterweight division, is a multiple time world champion across major grappling events such as ADCC and the Pan American Championships. As he rides a six-fight win streak, Maia is continually gaining attention for his dominating grappling abilities that leave his opponents nearly helpless in the cage. According to FightMetric, Maia has absorbed only 13 significant strikes in his last 4 fights. Spending approximately 40 minutes in the cage with professional mixed martial artists at the highest level of the game and taking only 13 significant strikes is amazing in all respects of the sport.
“Sometimes you get too many hits and it’s not good for your health,” Maid said as reported by MMAJunkie. “My goal is not just to be a champion, but to be healthy when I finish my career.”
Then take what Mackenzie Dern did this past weekend. On Friday she hit what is known as an Imanari Choke to win her second professional fight. Dern is also a multiple-time world champion whose transition to MMA has been slow and well managed; leading many industry experts to be impressed with her development. She’s also competing in Legacy Fighting Championships, a regional promotion that has built competitors at key points in their careers.
The same could be said about Kron Gracie. At 3-0 he’s building on the name that was central to the growth of MMA to the point of today. He’s a 3-0 professional with three submissions in a little under two years of fighting. Even while fighting under the pressure that comes with that last name, the 2013 ADCC champion continues to build on his already solid foundation.
These three names aren’t the only fighters using a grappling-based attack to find success in today’s MMA landscape. What’s impressive to watch is that everyone is well aware of their game plan heading into the fight; get their opponent to the ground, obtain position and finish with a submission. Yet, no one has been able to stop them. While it may be too soon to talk about another shift of style dominance in MMA, it’s certainly interesting to see how fighters continue to push the sport to the next level. Maia, Dern and Gracie potentially represent a shift back to a point where the ground game is feared more than booed.