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Let's Talk About Roger Gracie

Det Kimble

Det Kimble

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I thought he was going to die in the 3rd round. That weight cut isn't working for him. I hate to be that person (probably not the first to say it), but he definitely needs to move up to 205. It's highly unlikely that he'll ever contend for the title in any division; however, Roger is not fighting to his full potential at 185, IMO.

Thoughts on him at 205? Maybe a fight with Vinny?

RogerGracie_F.png


Discuss.
 
Least impressive Gracie debut in the UFC
 
not seen it yet, but it can't be worse than Rolles v Beltran?
 
Jesse Pinkman said:
Least impressive Gracie debut in the UFC
Click to expand...

Rolles Gracie wants to have a word with you.

Zanmato said:
not seen it yet, but it can't be worse than Rolles v Beltran?
Click to expand...

Roger did well in the first round. Pretty sure most gave him that round. He was gassed going into the 2nd and was a zombie going into the 3rd.
 
He's such a one trick Pony everyone know's what he is real good at and what he will want to do. Since he debuted in SF I haven't seen much improvement in his Stand up and without that to keep people guessing he is real easy for his opponents to game plan for despite his talent in BJJ
 
*sigh of relief*

i clicked on this fearing it would be a "lets discredit his BJJ credentials or better yet, lets discredit BJJ in general" thread.

Yeah, the weight cut's not working but Tim Kennedy is just above that level where i don't think Gracie will ever reach in MMA. Gracie is a decent MMA fighter but 185 or 205 he won't rise above the lower middle of the pack. I would place him at that Vinny level and would like that fight.
 
I think he is one of those tweeners that needs to fight at Franklin weight, too small to be effective in the LHWD and too big to be effective after the cut at MW.

On another note his stand up looked really awful. I've seen him fight in SF and I didn't remember his striking looking this bad, and technically tonight he was fighting another SF fighter.
 
I couldn't believe how massive he looked next to Kennedy. There is no way he should be fighting at 185, and I think his lack of speed and cardio are proof of that.

While he clearly showed a lot of ability by taking Kennedy's back and with some of his reversals and transitions in Round 2, I have to question how well his BJJ has translated to MMA. Based on how he was responding from the bottom I don't feel confident that he's really figured out how to adapt his game to the GnP aspect of MMA. I was somewhat surprised that he wasn't able to do anything at all with the control he had over Kennedy's back as well.

I think he needs time to gain experience and probably confidence as well based on how he was reacting to being hit. If he stays at Middleweight then I'd have him fight a guy like Bubba McDaniel or Derek Brunson who shouldn't be too stylistically problematic for him while he continues to develop as a fighter. Ideally I'd like him to move to Light Heavyweight where he could fight a guy like Perosh or Latifi.

I really want him to do well, but I don't have a huge deal of faith after his performance against Kennedy. It felt a bit frustrating to see somebody so obviously talented struggling so much.
 
Det_Kimble said:
Rolles Gracie wants to have a word with you.
Click to expand...

lol true, either way, the Gracie name may be huge in BJJ, but the monster they helped create has moved on beyond the "be the best grappler or striker" phase. The game calls for well rounded athletes now.

Roger is great at the Jiu Jitsu, but he appeared to lack so much in the stand up department
 
I was shocked so many thought he would beat Kennedy. I knew Tim was way too good to get submitted and was a much better rounded fighter. That fight had stinker decision win for Tim Kennedy written all over it and I'm still not sure why Joe Silva made such a boring match up.

As for the weight cut, I thought he looked completely drained before the fight. I don't know if he's cutting too much or he's cutting the wrong way. I would probably guess the latter.
 
It's clear MMA isn't his forte but if the UFC wants to keep him around I think they should match him up with a TUF guy.
 
Gigaton Punch said:
I was shocked so many thought he would beat Kennedy. I knew Tim was way too good to get submitted and was a much better rounded fighter. That fight had stinker decision win for Tim Kennedy written all over it and I'm still not sure why Joe Silva made such a boring match up.

As for the weight cut, I thought he looked completely drained before the fight. I don't know if he's cutting too much or he's cutting the wrong way. I would probably guess the latter.
Click to expand...

This.

This fight was worse than being a bad fight. It was completely and utterly forgettable.
 
Benoitthegr8 said:
I think he is one of those tweeners that needs to fight at Franklin weight, too small to be effective in the LHWD and too big to be effective after the cut at MW.

On another note his stand up looked really awful. I've seen him fight in SF and I didn't remember his striking looking this bad, and technically tonight he was fighting another SF fighter.
Click to expand...

Other than Mo(who knocked Gracie silly) Kennedy is far better than anybody he fought in Strikeforce. Fact that he is "another SF fighter" makes no difference at all. Gracie's striking always looked like trash. When he fought Randleman he landed some knees but thats pretty much the extent of his striking success.
 
I have seen what he can do on the mat, but, honestly, was surprised how easily and willingly Kennedy grappled with him. I don't think he is good enough to be in the UFC but hell, a move to 205 might at least help his gas tank. He was at able to get it to the ground but couldn't captilize before turning into a zombie. Vinny would beat him, I think. Probably a very ugly fight though.
 
I'd like to see him back at 205. His striking defense seems to have improved but yeah as you pointed out his gas tank isn't too great at 185. And Kennedy isn't the most pressuring fighter.
 
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