Grappling or Striking to complement Wrestling?

E

el1493

White Belt
@White
Joined
Apr 13, 2016
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
I have been wrestling for 4 years now it's something I didn't think I would ever enjoy until I made a Russian friend who introduced me to Freestyle wrestling and for the past 4 years it has been a big part of my life training 5 times a week and it's amazing. In the past 2 years I started watching more MMA and getting really interested in it I eventually want to train and compete in it myself. 2 years from now when I'll finish my school here I'll move to continue my study in the Capital of my country and I'll have legit MMA clubs to join as for the moment I unfortunately didn't find anything that mixes up everything

I'm looking to add another martial art either muay thai, Judo or (GI) BJJ. I went to each of these gyms (trained twice in each for free) and they're quality. I tried a boxing gym and a Karate club but they didn't seem like something I would like to join (not talking about the art but about the teaching style and intensity) Now my question to you guys is would it be more beneficial for me to become a better grappler and go with Judo or BJJ or would it be smarter to start striking from now so I won't have a big hole in my game when I transition to MMA.

All input is welcome
 
Obvious answer is Striking.. specifically MT from your list. There are plenty of fighters that do really well with that combination and keep their opponents on their feet with wrestling. You can also take someone down if you're losing the standup and TKO (while watching for subs).

Another obvious answer is that you should do as many applicable martial arts as you can get your hands on and pick the ones that you like most.

Bottom line is that in MMA, the fight starts standing, so you need some sort of skill in the striking department (at least defensively). Then you have to pick a style, something you're good at and something that will win you fights; there are alot of options. So do you want to be the guy that KOs people and counter wrestles? (ie Chuck liddell), do you want to be the guy who takes people down and submits them? (ie Demian Maiya) or do you want to be a jack of all trades? (ie werdum). All are valid and have seen success, pick your style and learn that art.
 
I think at this point the answer is a striking art and from what you have available it would be MT. Your wrestling is a good grappling base already.

However, you probably want to get to a MMA gym sooner than later if you want to compete. There are certain skill sets that you will need for MMA that won't come from other sources. One of the big ones being how to fight up against the cage.
 
I think Judo would be a waste of energy. Don't get me wrong, Judo's got a lot of advantages, but you'll get more of a ground game from BJJ, and more use out of the standing game in a striking sport. Adding Judo to Wrestling would just give you more options for the takedown, for the most part, rather than round you out.

If your goal is (competitive) MMA, then I would start on the striking now. Muay Thai + Wrestling will give you one hell of a base to start MMA with, and while BJJ is my primary love, your wrestling base will put you well ahead of the curve once you start focusing on grappling.
 
Striking and it's not close.
 
Thank you for all the responses, I see you guys think it's smarter to go with Muay thai the only problem is Muay thai style would make me more vulnerable to be taken down. And I'm NOT comfortable from my back I guess I'll have to work on that later.
 
Striking all day every day.........plus, don't stop wrestling!

What town are you in for the next 2 years that doesn't have a decent MMA gym?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Forum statistics

Threads
1,254,474
Messages
56,649,220
Members
175,333
Latest member
dubhlinn

Share this page

Back
Top