The wrestling skills you bring into a MMA fight will determine some very important things. Whether you are taken down or are able to stuff the opponent’s shot. Whether you can takedown your opponent or not be able to catch him before he sprawls. Wrestling SuplexIt will also play a huge factor in your ability to hold the opponent down when the fight hits the ground and you are on top. In a nutshell, it will determine where the match is fought and the position of the fighters fighting it. You can now see why this is one of the most important arts incorporated into mixed martial arts training. The main skills trained when learning MMA wrestling are… How to dominate the clinch – Through learning the best positions to be in, by practicing specific drills such as pummeling and through competitive sparring, you can become proficient in controlling your opponent in the clinch.
Practicing against a skilled and resisting opponent is vital to learning this.
Greco-Roman wrestling is ideal for learning how to takedown an opponent from the clinch with an upper body throw, seeing as that is their specialty. Freestyle and Collegiate wrestling are perfect for learning all types of takedowns, from upper body throws to single leg and double leg takedowns.
You can be guaranteed that all the takedowns and throws that you attempt while learning how to wrestle, will also be attempted on you. This will give you plenty of opportunity to learn and perfect your sprawl / takedown defence.
In wrestling, one of the primary goals is to pin the opponent’s shoulders to the mat. Through practice of this skill you can improve you ability to stay on top of your opponent in a dominant position. Mixed martial arts competition has seen a large influx of wrestling styles since its inception.
The most widely seen of those styles are...
A win is achieved by pinning the opponent’s shoulders to the mat or by scoring the most points in the allotted time. The point system is based on takedowns, reversals, penalties and the exposure of a competitor’s back to the mat. The MMA fighters who are accomplished in this art have shown a remarkable ability to both takedown their opponents and stuff their opponents takedown attempts with ease.
Similar to freestyle in rules and point system, with one major difference, grabbing the body for throws and takedowns is restricted to above the waist. With their specialty in upper body control and takedowns from that position, the fighters with a Greco-Roman base have become known as the best of the best when it comes to controling an opponent in the clinch.
The point system and rules in Collegiate differ in many ways from Freestyle and Greco-Roman. The most noticeable of which is a de-emphasis on throwing. This is to reduce injuries. As you may have guessed from the name, this is the style taught and practiced in colleges and universities. With that as the case, it is very widespread.
Note: The styles listed on this page are those that are not submission based. You can learn about submission wrestling styles here.
By learning this art you are giving yourself the skills that you need to be able to decide where the fight goes. If you are great on the ground, you will be able to put the fight there. If you are a better striker than your opponent, you will be able to keep the fight standing with your takedown defence. You now have greatly increased your chances of the fight playing out in the position that you are most proficient in.