Royce Gracie is my alpha and omega. He is the jiu-jitsu artist whose performances in the vale tudo days of the UFC forged my most basic and fundamental notions of jiu-jitsu. It is no exaggeration to say that that is where my jiu-jitsu was born and, in many ways, where it still lives.
It is why I am both a strong supporter of the "jiu-jitsu for everyone" approach to promoting the art, as well as a knee-jerk defender of jiu-jitsu's more violent practitioners when it comes to mixed martial arts. It is why I respect the ability of consummate jiu-jitsu technicians from Os Bros Mendes to Os Bros Miyao, but remain most mesmerized by the work of jiu-jitsu artists like Roger, Marcelo, Kron ...
But I digress ... Congratulations to Royce Gracie - the competitive mixed martial artist, Royce Gracie - for earning a well-deserved spot on Sports Illustrated's list of the 50 greatest athletes of all time.
