Royce Gracie
Son of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) founder Helio Gracie Royce Gracie has stepped out of his father’s shadow and built a reputation as a tough competitor in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), and has made his family’s sport popular worldwide. Though he first exploded on the seen in the 1990’s when he won a string of victories in the first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) he has been competing since he was eight years old and earned his black belt in BJJ by the age of eighteen. Royce has proven time and time again what many Judo and BJJ practitioners already know; size doesn’t matter if you have skill.
Today Royce can be found teaching at the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Torrance, California with his brother Rorion, but like all of the nine children his training started in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. His father never pressured any of the children to training, but when Royce wanted to train there was a place for him at his father’s academy. After earning his purple belt he traveled to the United States and lived and trained with his brother Rorion who was then teaching out of his garage. It was in the United States where he would earn his black belt and his fame.
The Royce first came to the attention of the martial arts world when he competed in the first UFC which was created by Rorion and Art Davie. Competitors would compete in a no holds barred eight-man single-elimination tournament for $50,000 dollars. Though pitting fighters with different styles against each other was common in Brazil it was the first match of its kind in the United States. Royce who was only 170lbs at the time, but he amazed the audience when he defeated three larger and strong opponents in a row using BJJ techniques. The tournament showed the importance of grappling, and Royce would go on to win many other victories.
Though Royce has had an impressive martial arts career it has not been without troubles. In recent years he and others members of his family have lost matches, and he has stopped using his trade mark gi in competition. He has also been implicated in steroid use which remains an ongoing issue. Still Royce Gracie has done has done many good things for sport martial arts, and he as come a long way from the kid training in his brother’s garage.
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