Most accomplished wrestler to cross over in mma

Also, Randy never accomplished anything of note in freestyle. You're over-stating his "mastery of both" a lot. He did All-American collegiately, but Kos, Askren and Hendricks won multiple championships and div 1, and competed in deeper divisions both in MMA and wrestling.
 
selfcritical said:
Also, Randy never accomplished anything of note in freestyle. You're over-stating his "mastery of both" a lot. He did All-American collegiately, but Kos, Askren and Hendricks won multiple championships and div 1, and competed in deeper divisions both in MMA and wrestling.
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Yes but they never showed it .

Randy did.


Van arsedale, tito, chuck, randleman fights, he showed Greco and freestyle

Fighters you mentioned are one style

Randleman owned randy freestyle and got tired, randy took over. Randy did show great freestyle when unexpected
 
selfcritical said:
Also, Randy never accomplished anything of note in freestyle. You're over-stating his "mastery of both" a lot. He did All-American collegiately, but Kos, Askren and Hendricks won multiple championships and div 1, and competed in deeper divisions both in MMA and wrestling.
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Randy wasn't freestlye but he sure showed it in MMA many times.

Plus Greco
 
Idonotbelieveit said:
Randy wasn't freestlye but he sure showed it in MMA many times.

Plus Greco
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You Clearly love moving the goalposts and your definition of "Freestyle" vs "greco" in mma changes how you need. How much have you actually wrestled?

If you love Randy Couture that's fine. Just try to be more objective and try to understand what you're watching a little better. Because I can't tell if you want the most "accomplished" wrestler in mma or the one who's style you liked best
 
Idonotbelieveit said:
Name a wrestler that showed Greco and freestyle like randy ?

Randy said he only played round with free style but he still double legged chuck with ease and tito. And controlled them with ease

Dan Severn probably next choice
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You know Randy didn't grow up doing Greco, right? Oklahoma State doesn't give out Greco scholarships.
 
How come nobody mentioned Henry Cejudo? I'm not a fan of his at all but he is the only Olympic Gold Medalist in wrestling that actually had success in MMA and didn't look terrible like Rulon. Not to mention, he actually developed a strong well rounded skill set that gave trouble to his opponents with something other than wrestling
 
BJJ Coffee Drinker said:
How come nobody mentioned Henry Cejudo? I'm not a fan of his at all but he is the only Olympic Gold Medalist in wrestling that actually had success in MMA and didn't look terrible like Rulon. Not to mention, he actually developed a strong well rounded skill set that gave trouble to his opponents with something other than wrestling
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Because Cejudo is an unmotivated fighter at a shallow weight who spends more time talking about his gold medal from 8 years ago than his current goals. Barely has used his wrestling in mma and is considered one of the biggest disappointments in the wrestling community for his little "oh maybe Ill compete again.. nah.. but maybe" routine and he only did mma because public speaking wasn't making money anymore
 
PointyShinyBurn said:
Gardner looked pretty good out striking a long-time veteran in his debut, especially considering he just did it for a payday.
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the fight he did against Hidehiko Yoshida? Another Olympic grappling athlete who was way past his prime that had nearly worst striking than Rulon and was much older? Yea, sloppy striking match against another over the prime Olympic grappler is hardly "looking good," they both looked terrible
 
jack36767 said:
Because Cejudo is an unmotivated fighter at a shallow weight who spends more time talking about his gold medal from 8 years ago than his current goals. Barely has used his wrestling in mma and is considered one of the biggest disappointments in the wrestling community for his little "oh maybe Ill compete again.. nah.. but maybe" routine and he only did mma because public speaking wasn't making money anymore
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Still, credential wise he is the only Olympic Gold medalist who is doing well in MMA. Its even more impressive that he hardly uses his wrestling in MMA, that shows how much his other skills like his striking and GnP have developed. Nearly every other wrestler that transitioned to MMA had to rely on their wrestling to serve them in MMA with the exception of the heavy handed hitters that can end guys with one punch. Amazing how he is able to use newfound skills instead of his strength to beat other MMA fighters

Again, I am not a fan of Henry but it's undeniable how talented he is. I am so glad he was KTFO by Demetrius Johnson
 
Couture most likely grew up doing all three styles - folkstyle, freestyle, and greco. Folkstyle, or collegiate, is what is taught in schools, with freestyle and greco being outside of school. Double leg takedowns are part of both folkstyle and freestyle.

Also, Hughes was not primarily a freestyle wrestler. I concur with the moving of goalposts. Are you asking us who was the best wrestler to cross over into mma or are you telling us that you think it was Couture? It wasn't.
 
StopDucking said:
Bilyal Makhov and it's not even close.

- 3x freestyle wrestling world champion
- Olympic bronze medalist
- First wrestler in 43 years to medal at worlds in both freestyle and greco
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Makhov hasnt even had an amateur fight yet. Until he steps in and starts fighting, he isnt even in the equation.
 
Dirty Holt said:
Makhov hasnt even had an amateur fight yet. Until he steps in and starts fighting, he isnt even in the equation.
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Makhov has already signed with the UFC and will make his debut after the Olympics. We're talking about the most accomplished wrestler to come to MMA, not the wrestler who accomplished the most in MMA. Big difference.
 
jack36767 said:
Because Cejudo is an unmotivated fighter at a shallow weight who spends more time talking about his gold medal from 8 years ago than his current goals. Barely has used his wrestling in mma and is considered one of the biggest disappointments in the wrestling community for his little "oh maybe Ill compete again.. nah.. but maybe" routine and he only did mma because public speaking wasn't making money anymore
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He did compete again, and made it to the Olympic trials semi finals. He then fought for a UFC title 3 years later against the p4p best fighter on earth and longest reigning title holder in the UFC. If that is a disappointment, whats your definition of success?

Maybe out east you guys have a different view, but on the west coast, we generally look at someone who won Olympic gold, came back and took 3rd at the next trials, and fights for a world title as very successful. The guy has the the highest accolades of any athlete in combat sports. Olympic gold, UFC silver.
 
StopDucking said:
Makhov has already signed with the UFC and will make his debut after the Olympics. We're talking about the most accomplished wrestler to come to MMA, not the wrestler who accomplished the most in MMA. Big difference.
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There is also a big difference between a guy who has fought, and a guy who hasnt. Makhov hasnt fought, the other guys in the conversation have.
 
Dirty Holt said:
There is also a big difference between a guy who has fought, and a guy who hasnt. Makhov hasnt fought, the other guys in the conversation have.
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If you sign a contract with a NBA team, you're a NBA player, even if the season hasn't started yet.

If you sign a contract with the UFC, you're a MMA fighter, even if you haven't had any fight yet

If you win the presidential election, you're the President, even if you haven't taken any decision yet.
 
Are you asking who is the best wrestler to fight in mma? Or who is the best mma fighter who came from a wrestling background? Or who displayed the best wrestling in their mma fights?
 
StopDucking said:
If you sign a contract with the UFC, you're a MMA fighter, even if you haven't had any fight yet
.
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Dana White and Mike Goldberg both have contracts with the UFC. Are they fighters? Aaron Pico has a contract with Zinkin Management. Is he a fighter? Until you actually compete, you cannot claim to be fighter, or have anyone compare you with guys like Yoel Romero or Cejudo. Makhov has the same credentials in MMA as CM Punk, which are non existant.
 
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