Chael Sonnen : Sambo sucks, Khabib is a wrestler, not a Sambo player...

[Arm Barbarian]

LOL

Chael obviously has not seen the footage of Khabib off his back (which admittedly is rare).

I agree that Khabib uses a wrestling-heavy style, but he doesn't just pull his sub game from 'wrestling', or his arse. Sambo is a LEGIT martial art, and not to be trifled with. Their leg / foot attacks are gnarly.

Khabib is wrestling-heavy with his style, but even there, he uses a lot of trips, throws, and subs that are a combination of traditional wrestling AND Sambo.

What say you here....Is Shael correct that Khabib is using primarily pure wrestling with little Sambo, or is his style a blend of the two grappling styles?

 

[VanMMA]

Chael says things to gain attention. Sambo is legit,

 

[TITS]

Chael = GOAT

 

[grimballer]

Most of the time chael has no idea what he’s talking about

He just likes to hear himself talk

 

[ortizgnp]

Sambo sucks and six-packs are for teenagers and drug addicts.

 

[PEDS Help me Post]

Sambo makes GOATs

 

[gono btw]

Chael>"BJJ sucks..."

 

[Rdude92]

Your refuting Chael?! The GOAT of GOATs !

 

[FierceRedBelt]

Sambo has no where near an Olympic level competitive base of athletes or the sophistication that's the result of being a high level sport for 100+ years. So yes he's right Sambo people are worse at Sambo than freestyle wrestlers are at wrestling.

Judo does have the base and a decent history and it still doesn't translate as well to MMA so Sonnen's basis for his argument is wrong.

 

[MysticGOD]

Whats next?
Boxing is a fake sport?

 

[Pain4Pain]

As a part-sambo practitioner myself, I have said that it is more applicable to the game of MMA, strictly speaking about the grappling aspect.

Besides leg locks, which are catching on in the bjj community, the most value in sambo consists of an active and control based grappling system. This is why you'll never see sambo players pull guard in mma or just accept they are in a bad position and just go to their back where they feel more comfortable.

Sambo-based grappling is the future. Also, as I've mentioned before, Khabib's style is not purely sambo but a blend of free-style, judo and ethnic wrestling styles. Fedor was not a purely sambo based fighter either.

 

[TheGZA]

 

[ShreddinMMA]

 

[IamStryker]

Khabib's style is not purely sambo but a blend of free-style, judo and ethnic wrestling styles. Fedor was not a purely sambo based fighter either.

So is Chael right then that there are no pure Sambo players in MMA?

 

[FierceRedBelt]

So is Chael right then that there are no pure Sambo players in MMA?

Of course.

But there's not a single pure wrestler, boxer, kickboxer, judo player, or jiu-jitsu player either.

 

[TITS]

Most of the time chael has no idea what he’s talking about

He just likes to hear himself talk

Chael would absolutely STEAMROLL Khabib.

 

[A-ZIK]

Chael don't understand what sambo is I think. Especially combat sambo.

 

[IamStryker]

Of course.

But there's not a single pure wrestler, boxer, kickboxer, judo player, or jiu-jitsu player either.

What Chael said is that there has never been a contender or a stand out that was good at Sambo. Is that accurate as well?

 

[FierceRedBelt]

What Chael said is that there has never been a contender or a stand out that was good at Sambo. Is that accurate as well?

I don't keep up with it.

I'm not sure, Khabib and Fedor both said they were but both were accomplished in wrestling or Judo. Soviet state's attitude towards these sports aren't the same though and it's all practiced on the same mats.

It's not like in my city were Judo players would never see a wrestling practice and vice versa.

 

[moreorless87]

So is Chael right then that there are no pure Sambo players in MMA?

Combat Sambo really has always been more like MMA before MMA, a lot of the guys involved come from different backgrounds or focus on different areas so the skill sets and styles can be very different.