NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and MMA legend Renzo Gracie, and Mario Mercado, who among many other tasks coaches wrestling at the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York.

Our main topic was the grappling match between Renzo Gracie and Kazushi Sakuraba held Saturday, November 22, at Metamoris 5 in Long Beach, California. This match, in which you could only win by submission and there were no points of judges, went to a 20-minute draw, although most observers felt that Renzo dominated the positions in it.

We spoke with Mario Mercado at the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York right after a viewing party there of Metamoris 5. We discussed what happened in the match, Renzo's game plan, the influence of wrestling on Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, plans for a Team Renzo Gracie vs. Team Joe Warren wrestling meet at the 2014 Grapple at the Garden event at Madison Square Garden December 21, and much more.

We spoke with Renzo by phone Sunday, before he returned from California to the East Coast. We discussed this match, in which he said his "knee popped out" early on, hindering him somewhat.

While showing great respect for catch wrestling and wrestlers in general, Renzo did not agree with those who said that this match with Sakuraba was a showdown between Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and catch wrestling.

"The knowledge is out there," he said. "To claim that Sakuraba is a catch-canner -- Sakuraba is a jiu-jitsu man. That's what made him brilliant."

Noting that Sakuraba lasted 20 minutes with him without ever being in serious danger of being submitted, he said, "He was able to survive there, which amazed me. And that shows what kind of jiu-jitsu he has."

We also discussed why he likes the Metamoris format, more on this BJJ vs. catch wrestling rivalry, the growing wrestling program at his academy, his ADCC 2015 superfight with Matt Hughes, his plans to return to fighting next year in UFC, how he feels "better than I was 27," his plans to accompany Roger Gracie at the December 5 ONE FC event in Manila, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Payleg.com, which gives you the tools to develop a full-time income by building a home-based business. Teaching success in the home-based business industry since 1988, Payleg.com is available in 190 countries. For more information, go to Payleg.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: BJJ, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Eddie Goldman, grappling, Kazushi Sakuraba, Mario Mercado, Metamoris, No Holds Barred, Renzo Gracie, wrestling

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Josh Barnett.

Although he has competed for many years, and still competes, in MMA and various styles of grappling, Josh Barnett primarily considers himself a catch wrestler.

That was particularly evident at the Metamoris 4 grappling event on August 9 in Los Angeles, where he submitted two-time ADCC world champion Dean Lister with a head-and-arm choke with just seconds remaining in their 20-minute, submission-only, no-gi match.

To discuss the significance of this match, and the overall growth of catch wrestling, we spoke with Josh Barnett by phone Friday.

Discussing the finish of the match, he said, "We just call it a head-and-arm. Erik Paulson [his coach] likes to call it the Mark Coleman or fat man choke." He also explained why this hold is not mainly about power and weight but is about "finesse," and is most effective after riding an opponent for some time.

This match was arguably the most discussed online of all the matches at the Metamoris 4 event. His successful use of catch wrestling techniques to dominate and then submit such an accomplished grappler as Dean Lister, even under no-gi grappling and submission-only rules, tremendously raised the prestige of catch wrestling among the entire grappling and combat sports communities.

"This match has done more for catch than even any of my fights in the last five years have really done," he said.

"The grappling community is a fairly strong, tight-knit group, and on that night there was a lot of high-level grappling technique and matches being put on" involving many of the greatest grapplers in the world, he added.

He then noted about his match with Dean Lister, "Even though we're both very high-level guys and great athletes at what we do, our match didn't resemble anybody else's match."

As for himself, while he plans to compete in many different events, he said, "I'd love to compete in a straight catch wrestling event." He said that catch wrestling today does "have a good amount of momentum," but a lot more needs to be done to advance this revived sport. He recommended more seminars, involving more wrestlers in them and the existing tournaments, and more consistency with the holding of these catch wrestling events.

A key area in growing catch wrestling is increasing the involvement of wrestlers who already have backgrounds and accomplishments in other, related styles, such as American folkstyle, freestyle, and Greco-Roman wrestling. He said he is already involved in helping train these types of wrestlers in catch wrestling, while they still compete in these other styles.

Another important observation he made was about the wrestling community. Although catch is a style of wrestling and laid the basis for the development of American folkstyle and freestyle wrestling, today it is the jiu-jitsu community which shows "more interest" in catch than the wrestling community. Thus, increasing the involvement of the wrestling community in catch is essential for its growth.

We also discussed the need for more consistent posting of videos of catch wrestling matches, how the black trunks he wore in this Metamoris match were a tribute to his coaches, what catch needs to do in order to regain its place as a popular spectator sport, what some of his immediate plans are, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

The Liberty Bell Classic / King of Catch Wrestling Tournament, presented by the North American Catch Wrestling Association and Scientific Wrestling. In this tournament, you can only win by pin or submission, with no points. It all takes place Saturday, August 30, at Primal Gym, 231 Bakers Basin Road, Lawrenceville, New Jersey 08648. For more information, go to KingOfCatchWrestling.com.

Scientific Wrestling, igniting a revolution in grappling based on the pursuit of traditional Catch-As-Catch-Can wrestling. Our people are legitimate Scientific Wrestling practitioners united around training, competition, innovation, grueling physical conditioning, camaraderie, and the sharing of reliable resources. For more information, go to ScientificWrestling.com.

Snake Pit U.S.A., whose primary mission is to breathe new life into real catch-as-catch-can wrestling and help lead the catch wrestling revolution for martial artists and those pursuing recreational training and fitness alike. For more information, go to SnakePitUSA.com.

The Catch Wrestling Alliance, a catch wrestling promotion that works with the highest level catch wrestlers from around the world with the goal of reviving the great sport of catch-as-catch-can wrestling. The Catch Wrestling Alliance organizes catch wrestling sporting events, and its primary organizer is Dr. Raul Ramirez. For more information, go to CatchWrestlingAlliance.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: catch wrestling, Eddie Goldman, grappling, jiu-jitsu, Josh Barnett, Metamoris, No Holds Barred

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again speaks with Rose Gracie.

Originally mainly known as the granddaughter of the legendary Helio Gracie and the daughter of UFC co-founder Rorion Gracie, Rose Gracie has come into her own with her series of jiu-jitsu tournaments which have matches that can only be won by submissions, with no points or judges. This rule set she describes as "the real jiu-jitsu" which her grandfather did.

Her next tournament is the 2013 Gracie Worlds.

This event is scheduled for June 29-30 at the Santa Clara Convention Center, 5001 Great America Pkwy, Santa Clara, California 95054, and is being held in conjunction with The FitExpo - Santa Clara. The gi tournament will take place Saturday, June 29, followed by the no-gi tournament Sunday, June 30, with kids' and adults' divisions both days.

On Sunday, Rose's husband and retired MMA fighter Javier "Showtime" Vazquez will face Eddie Bravo black belt Victor Davila in a submission-only, no-time-limit superfight.

We spoke with Rose Gracie by phone in a late night interview in the wee hours of Friday morning.

We discussed the Gracie Worlds and the importance of submission-only events for jiu-jitsu, grappling, and the combat sports. We also focused on the protests in Brazil against corruption, out-of-control spending on the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Rio Olympics, lack of jobs, and the neglect of the well-being of the masses of people.

She explained why she follows this advice given to her by her family: "Accept nothing. Question everything."

We also talked about her experiences attending several events, including Nick Diaz's new WAR MMA promotion and the Metamoris Pro jiu-jitsu event, organized by her brother Ralek Gracie, and more.

So while the hour was late when we talked, the talk was sharp and insightful, just as it always is with Rose Gracie.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

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American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: BJJ, Brazil protests, Brazilian, Eddie Goldman, grappling, Javier Vazquez, jiu-jitsu, Metamoris, MMA, Nick Diaz, No Holds Barred, question everything, Ralek, Rose Gracie, submission, WAR, Worlds