Hughes versus Gracie

Matt Hughes often described as the best pound for pound MMA fighter ever, will be facing UFC legend Royce Gracie in a UFC challenge match. Gracie has made some concessions to fight ie there are rounds and time limits.

The new breed of MMA fighters say they are in a different class to the old school ie Gracie Ken Shamrock, Kimo, Tank Abott etc. As they say “things have moved on, evolution in martial arts etc”
This month we will know the truth.
www.ufc.tv

What is your prediction to the result of this fight ? Has Gracie made a mistake ? Is hughes too good ? Or are the new breed to cocky ie Cabbage getting seriously ko’ed by a 40 year old Tank Abbot after claiming the same thing ?

Lets have your comments and MAKE SURE YOU MAKE A PREDICTION. Lets get it on!

oh yeah almost forgot my prediction

I PREDICT HUGHES WILL WIN BY DECISION! (but i hope Gracie wins)

Nice thread

The vast majority think that Hughes is going to roll over this guy, but I’m not going to write off Royce so easily.

I find it hard to believe that Royce can win- theres no way he can take Hughes down- I very much doubt he can trade with him- but he is as slippery as hell on his back so I doubt very much that Hughes will simply pound him out. Royce has made a career of not getting hit and this is what I believe keeps him in the running.

My prediction is the same as yours.- and I predict that there will in fact be a lot of stand up!

Where can we watch this???

I don’t think it’s a mistake on Royce’s part. He is a seasoned veteran and one who is well aware of Hughes’s game and how to close it down. Don’t forget, Royce went 90 minutes with Sakuraba at the age of 34, losing only after fracturing his collarbone; Sakuraba has finished off some of the toughest fighters the game has seen and is one of the most respected fighters in the sport.

Hughes, however, is formidable: 38 wins and only 4 losses against some outstanding fighters. His most recent loss was to BJ Penn, a BJJ specialist; another grappler, Carlos Newton, also gave him a hard time, actually choking him out while being held over Hughes’s head; as Hughes blacked out and fell, Newton’s head hit the canvas and knocked him unconscious, just as Hughes woke up, giving Hughes the win.

So, Hughes is vulnerable to submissions, and Royce can go the distance with the best of them. But with a time limits and rounds, Royce’s game will be different to the one which brought him so many successes in the past. He is also much older than Hughes.

I would say it will be a great match-up, whatever the outcome, and I don’t think you’ll see an easy win for either guy. Sadly, as there are rounds, I predict a split decision that may go to Hughes as Royce plays a very defensive game unless fighting less superior grapplers with limited stand-up skills.

So, Hughes. by split decision or decision, but do not be surprised if Royce pulls this one off! :wink:

Hughes by decision. He’s tough and Gracie’s overrated. Royce comes from a great family, he’s talented and has beaten some great fighters (Shamrock for instance), but he’s not as tough as a good wrestler like Hughes. Royce is also quite a bit older, isn’t he. I didn’t know he was still fighting. Hughes is stronger, tougher, better conditioned, a better striker and will have more wind at the end of the fight. . . unless Royce is lucky enough to catch him in a submission.

I agree for the most part, but Royce won’t wind easily - he knows how to conserve his energy. He went 90 mins with Sakuraba, albeit 6 years ago. BJJ is all about saving energy while your opponent expends his.

Also, IMO, Ken Shamrock isn’t one of the greatest fighters. :wink:

HA! Mayo wente. First round TKO!

ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=news.de … 2658&pid=4

Here’s a couple of photos (I don’t know why they can’t be posted here):

Hughes torquing Gracie’s arm.
media.ufc.tv/i.cfc?method=get&s= … 5.jpg&cs=1

And this is apparently the stoppage due to strikes to Gracie’s head.
media.ufc.tv/i.cfc?method=get&s= … B.jpg&cs=1

BJJ may be the second-best MMA discipline but wrestling’s number One. :nyah:

Royce was out powered and out done at his own game. Hughes traines with PAt Miletich who is a blackbelt in BJJ. Hughes knows BJJ well. Although I suspect mainly no gi training. This doesnt prove wrestling is better than BJJ. It does prove that you can not be one dimensional in todays MMA events.

Did Hughes dislocate Gracie’s elbow in that fight? It sure looked like it.