Wrestling may seem like it is one of the most boring “arts” when it comes to fan excitement. Most fans become restless and start booing when a grappling exchange ensues, or goes on for too long in the cage, but as you hear from the majority of fighters, it’s one of the most important and useful skills. And fighter with good wrestling can use the fear of his takedown to cause his opponent to be more timid in their approach.
The reason why wrestling is revered as so important is because it is the “oil between the gears“. Meaning, unlike in boxing, whereas in MMA, fighters need to have a skill that can mediate between standing, and being on their back on the canvas. Wrestling is just the skill that’s practiced most to help keep fighters butts off the canvas.
Grappling, which is mainly Jiu jitsu, is just as important! But fights in the cage don’t start on their backs. All fights start standing then make their way to the ground, and a fighter with good wrestling, or wrestling defense can nullify attempts to bring it to the canvas.
Here is top 5 fighters who have not displayed wrestling, or displayed sub-par wresling skills
Kevin “Trailblazer” Holland
Kevin Holland, or “Big Mouth“, as Dana White calls him for his incessant talking inside the octagon towards his opponents is a fighter that currently alternates between middleweight and welterweight division.
Holland, who himself is a black belt in jiu-jitsu, usually strikes with his opponents. With a 23-8-1 record, he has 13 KOs, 6 submissions and 4 decision wins you can see why most fighters try to take him to the ground.
Losing twice by submission in the UFC, the rest being decisions where he was out wrestled to a decision, this being Holland’s weakness, one he is well aware of and working on.
After being out-wrestled by Derek Brunson, then Marvin Vettori, he knew had to make some changes.
Reflecting on his losses, he did take time and go train with Daniel Cormier at Daniel Cormier Wrestling Academy. As well sometime training at American Kickboxing Academy. After this we did see Holland back in the cage.
WIth his new motivation to be a better wrestler we saw him in the octagon after with Kyle Daukas where he showed great takedown defense, where even Daniel Cormier was saying it had improved as he commentated. Later he suffered a KO due to a headbutt where the bout was rules a NC.
Twice after this Holland stepped into the cage where he got a TKO against Alex Oliveira. The next one against Khamzat Chimaev who was a professional (real) wrestler in Sweden. Chimaev made it look easy to the ground and submitted him in just 2:13.
Since then Kevin Holland has announced his retirement but nobody is sure if this is official.
Cyril Gane
“Le Bon Gamin” is another fighter who is a majority striker, a french kickboxer. A matter of fact, there is not one fight you will find of Cyril up until this point where he has shot a takedown or commenced in a grappling exchange.
Heavyweights are normally known for their power and it is the division where most fights end up in knockouts because of the sheer size of the men fighting. Predominantly a kickboxer, he does have 3 submission wins and Cyrils only loss on his record (11-1) comes from the heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou. That loss did not come by knockout like most expected, but by way of decision where Cyril got out-wrestled for 3 rounds after he won the first 2.
Francis Ngannou
“The predator“, the current heavyweight champion of the world, the hardest hitting fighter in the UFC, hits harder than a Ford Escort, Francis Ngannou! Currently 17-3, with 12 of them coming by knockout and stats like that, you’d think he would never have to shoot a double-leg?
Despite the long list of great positives we can say about Francis, we can also mention his wrestling skill. He is a little higher on the list because despite him being out-wrestled by Stipe Miocic in their first bout, then, in the rematch stuffing his takedowns then knocking him out in the. Everybody still wanted to write off Ngannou’s wrestling skills.
It wasn’t until the Gane fight where he out-wrestled him for the last 3 rounds, inching it out to a decision, that we truly got to see Ngannou’s wrestling skill. Effective it did prove to be, but many claimed that was tried against someone who isn’t known for their wrestling at all, and is a kickboxer.
Sean O’Malley
“Suga” Sean is one of the most decorated strikers in the UFC and the most touted prospect in the Bantamweight division.
O’Malley has a very beautiful striking style, constantly throwing feints and switching stances to throw his opponent off guard. He is also a brown belt in jiu-jitsu and competes in grappling competitions outside of the UFC.
O’Malley, 15-1, still asserts that he is undefeated after his TKO loss to Marlon Vera has 1 submission, and 3 decision wins. This means 73% of his finishes (11) come by way of knockout.
Surprisingly, him being a very good striker most fighters do not try to take O’Malley down. Nor does he try to shoot takedowns on his opponents. Other than his jiu-jitsu skills in a tournament outside the UFC or in a fight he won in 2015 by submission against Omar Avelar, we have never really seen Seans grappling or wrestling skills inside the octagon.
Alex Pereira
“Poatan“, as we know is a 2x Glory kickboxing champion at middleweight and light-heavyweight. We are aware that kickboxing has no grappling so we are going to focus on his mixed martial arts career.
Pereira competes at middleweight in the UFC and is 6-1. His only loss is by submission in his first ever MMA bout. Something that we can’t fault a kickboxer for in his first MMA fight. Since then, there is only one fight he went to a decision with Bruno Silva. The rest come by knockout , mostly from his rock-like left hook.
Despite him training jiu-jitsu and wrestling with former light-heavyweight champ Glover Teixeira, in his debut against Andreas Michailidis at UFC 268 we witnessed Pereira easily taken down and held, then dominated against the fence until the bell. Pereira did come back smoothly by knocking Michailidis out in the 2nd round with a flying knee.
Being that it was his debut the only time we have seen Pereira have to wrestle and get dominated, we still need to put a question mark next to his wrestling skill.
