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Started thinking about this after watching TJ Dillashaw and thinking about all the good freestyle wrestlers that turned out to be great, explosive strikers.
It's been said that certain styles of wrestling work better for wrestling in MMA. Some high level wrestlers never successfully make the transition to MMA, because their style doesn't work in MMA.
Interestingly, GSP has credited his karate for his great wrestling, particularly his double legs takedowns. This never made much sense to me, before I started to really work hard on double legs myself, coming from a striking background. The timing for diving in for a power double is sometimes similar to the timing when you want to leap in with punches.
So I'm wondering if we're starting to see the opposite of what GSP was talking about: wrestlers with a certain style who are able to apply their timing and footwork to become great strikers. I'm sure greco-roman vs freestyle has something to do with it, but it may also be more complex than that. It's also possible that my hypothesis is complete and utter horseshit, since I don't really know much about wrestling, nor what kind of style of wrestling the different UFC fighters had before they started striking.
Thoughts?
TL;DR: Do UFC wrestler-boxers with great footwork come from a similar style of wrestling, or did they just become good strikers because they are great athletes and work hard?
It's been said that certain styles of wrestling work better for wrestling in MMA. Some high level wrestlers never successfully make the transition to MMA, because their style doesn't work in MMA.
Interestingly, GSP has credited his karate for his great wrestling, particularly his double legs takedowns. This never made much sense to me, before I started to really work hard on double legs myself, coming from a striking background. The timing for diving in for a power double is sometimes similar to the timing when you want to leap in with punches.
So I'm wondering if we're starting to see the opposite of what GSP was talking about: wrestlers with a certain style who are able to apply their timing and footwork to become great strikers. I'm sure greco-roman vs freestyle has something to do with it, but it may also be more complex than that. It's also possible that my hypothesis is complete and utter horseshit, since I don't really know much about wrestling, nor what kind of style of wrestling the different UFC fighters had before they started striking.
Thoughts?
TL;DR: Do UFC wrestler-boxers with great footwork come from a similar style of wrestling, or did they just become good strikers because they are great athletes and work hard?