Ralph Gracie - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Ralph Gracie is a Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

ian martial artist. Like other members of the Gracie family

Gracie family

The Gracie family is a prominent sporting family from Brazil known for their founding of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu . They have been successful in combat sport competitions including mixed martial arts, vale tudo and submission wrestling events...

, he competed in mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts

Mixed Martial Arts is a full contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both standing and on the ground, including boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, muay Thai, kickboxing, karate, judo and other styles. The roots of modern mixed martial arts can be...

. He is the son of Robson Gracie

Robson Gracie

Carlos Robson Gracie is the 2nd son of Carlos Gracie, the founder of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and a member of the Gracie Family. Grandmaster Robson is a 9th degree red belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He is the father of several children including notable black belts Charles Gracie, Renzo Gracie, Flavia...

and brother to Charles Gracie

Charles Gracie

Charles Gracie is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and occasionally mixed martial artist.- Biography :Gracie started training in jiu-jitsu when he was 5. He was instructed by his uncles Rolls Gracie, Carlos Gracie Jr. and Reylson Gracie and received his black belt at the age of 20. In 1986,...

, Renzo Gracie

Renzo Gracie

Renzo Gracie is a Gracie Barra Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Carlos Gracie Jr. and a former mixed martial arts competitor in the Ultimate Fighting Championship . He is member of the Gracie family of Brazil. He is the son of Robson Gracie, grandson of Carlos Gracie, nephew of Carlos...

and the late Ryan Gracie

Ryan Gracie

Ryan Gracie , was a Brazilian mixed martial artist with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He was a member of the Gracie family, and the grandson of Carlos Gracie, one of the founders of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu...

, both of whom have competed in various fighting events. In sharp contrast to the typical "passive" Gracie approach, Ralph's aggressive and often brutal approach earned him the nickname of "Pitbull

Pit bull

A Pit bull is any of several breeds of dog in the molosser breed group.Many jurisdictions that restrict pit bulls, including Ontario, Canada,, Miami, Florida, U.S...

". He has also taught former UFC welterweight and lightweight champion, BJ Penn, when he first came to California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

from Hawaii

Hawaii

Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

MMA career

Ralph's 1995 American debut was featured in the short-lived Battlecade Extreme Fighting

Battlecade Extreme Fighting

Battlecade: Extreme Fighting, sometimes referred to simply as Extreme Fighting, is a now defunct mixed martial arts promotion which hosted four events in the USA and Canada between 1995 and 1997. Although few events were held, a number of well known fighters competed for the promotion...

events. Gracie easily won fights versus Makoto Murauko, Steve Nelson

Steve Nelson

Steve Nelson may refer to:* Steve Nelson , New England Patriots football player* Steve Nelson , American musician* Steve Nelson , Communist Party member, Spanish Civil War veteran and U.S...

, and Ali Mihoubi, the longest of which lasted a mere minute and thirty-four seconds. Despite Gracie's obvious success, critics are now quick to point out that MMA competitions in this period were still in its infancy. It would take the competition several years to catch up to the Gracie approach to ground fighting.

In 2003, Ralph ended his absence from fighting to pit his skills against modern MMA fighters, earning a decision win over Dokonjonosuke Mishima

Dokonjonosuke Mishima

known as , also written Dokonjyonosuke Mishima, is a Japanese mixed martial artist. He has competed professionally since 1998 in organizations such as Shooto, DEEP, PRIDE, and the UFC....

. The following year, he suffered a six-second loss to Takanori Gomi

Takanori Gomi

, is a Japanese mixed martial artist currently fighting in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Gomi is a former Shooto Welterweight Champion and was the last and only Pride Lightweight Champion. He is also a four-time All Japan Combat Wrestling champion. During his time in Pride he was considered...

, who stopped Ralph's opening takedown attempt with a flurry of knee strikes to the head. To date, Gracie has not since returned to the ring.

Upon retirement, Gracie held a record of six wins and one loss in sanctioned fights. He holds a third degree black belt

Black belt (martial arts)

In martial arts, the black belt is a way to describe a graduate of a field where a practitioner's level is often marked by the color of the belt. The black belt is commonly the highest belt color used and denotes a degree of competence. It is often associated with a teaching grade though...

in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art, combat sport, and a self defense system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting...

, and has won several BJJ tournaments (for example, Joe Moreira's Atlantico Sul Cup). Ralph also owns and operates a series of martial arts academies in California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

(specializing in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art, combat sport, and a self defense system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting...

) and has been doing so for over a decade. He also has produced many Black Belts. Ralph Gracie is considered to be one of the greatest Gracie fighters ever.

Academies

Ralph Gracie currently has four academies in the San Francisco Bay Area (San Francisco, Mountain View, Berkeley, and Dublin) and two in Orange County (Anaheim and Chino Hills).
Notable BJJ black-belts from Ralph Gracie include: Dave Camarillo, Carlos "Sapao", Cameron Earle, Dave Clahan, Luke Stewart

Luke Stewart

Luke Stewart is an American mixed martial arts fighter. He currently competes in Strikeforce, a California based mixed martial arts promotion.-Martial Arts background:...

, Kurt Osiander, Crispim Alexander, Mikyo Riggs (Marin MMA), Alan "Gumby" Marques (Heroes Martial Arts), Will Dias, Don Geddis, Justin "Machine" Holder.

MMA record

|-
|Loss
|6–1
|

Takanori Gomi

|TKO (Knees)
|PRIDE Bushido 3

PRIDE Bushido 3

Pride Bushido 3 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan on May 23, 2004. The fight card was highlighted by three fights between Team Gracie and Team Japan....

|23 May 2004
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|0:06
|Yokohama

Yokohama

is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

|
|-
|Win
|6–0
|

Dokonjonosuke Mishima

known as , also written Dokonjyonosuke Mishima, is a Japanese mixed martial artist. He has competed professionally since 1998 in organizations such as Shooto, DEEP, PRIDE, and the UFC....

|Decision (Unanimous)
|PRIDE Bushido 1

PRIDE Bushido 1

PRIDE Bushido 1 was a mixed martial arts event held by the PRIDE Fighting Championships. The card was billed as Team Japan Vs. Team Gracie, with five events represented by both a "coach" Hidehiko Yoshida fighter and a "coach" Royce Gracie fighter . It took place at the Saitama Super Arena in...

Saitama, Saitama

' is the capital and the most populous city of Saitama Prefecture in Japan, situated in the south-east of the prefecture. Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa, Ōmiya, Yono and Iwatsuki. It is a city designated by government ordinance...

, Japan

Japan

|
|-
|Win
|5–0
|

Steve Nelson

Steve Nelson may refer to:* Steve Nelson , New England Patriots football player* Steve Nelson , American musician* Steve Nelson , Communist Party member, Spanish Civil War veteran and U.S...

Amarillo, Texas

Amarillo is the 14th-largest city, by population, in the state of Texas, the largest in the Texas Panhandle, and the seat of Potter County. A portion of the city extends into Randall County. The population was 190,695 at the 2010 census...

|
|-
|Win
|4–0
|

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...

|
|-
|Win
|3–0
|

Steve Nelson

Steve Nelson may refer to:* Steve Nelson , New England Patriots football player* Steve Nelson , American musician* Steve Nelson , Communist Party member, Spanish Civil War veteran and U.S...

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

|
|-
|Win
|2–0
|

Wilmington, North Carolina

Wilmington is a port city in and is the county seat of New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. The population is 106,476 according to the 2010 Census, making it the eighth most populous city in the state of North Carolina...

|
|-
|Win
|1–0
|

Brazil

|
|-
|}

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.