Royce Gracie Quotes

GSP is at the top of my list in knowing how to use strategy, how to bring an opponent out of his game, how to beat a guy without taking a beating. And he’s good in standup and good at grappling.

Fighting is about a strategy. MMA is not all about brutality.

It’s always good to have more promotions, give more fighters work.

The jiu-jitsu my father created was for the smaller guy to beat the bigger guy.

The armlock is an armlock, a choke is a choke. How you set it up – is different. Everybody have their personal style.

My brother, who created the UFC, had a vision. He knew that people wanted to see who was the best fighter. People have curiosity, what style was the best? Boxing, wrestling, Gracie jiujitsu? It was a quest to find out.

You have to work on your stand-up to know what’s coming, but jiu-jitsu is enough to win the fight.

I could live on fruits.

I love to travel and I love to teach, so I combined the two.

In any professional level competition, soccer players, you’ve got to know when to stop.

I never stopped training, I never stopped working out.

In a street fight there is no time-limit, no weight division, you don’t choose your opponent.

If you trained jiu-jitsu his whole life, why would you trade punches on fight night against a striker?

I did a seminar once in Pennsylvania when there was big snow, road construction, a big flood and just one person showed up. I said, ‘No problem, I’ll do it.’ If there’s one or 100 on the mat, the juice is still there.

My father had nine kids, seven boys and two girls, and my uncle had 21 kids, 11 boys and 10 girls. They had the opportunity to teach the art of Gracie Jiu Jitsu and that’s how we got involved from a young age. It’s in the blood.

I’m happy and satisfied with my accomplishments. I sleep well at night.

I’ve never had a fight in the street.

I believe in pure jiu-jitsu. That’s what I’ve done in the past.

There is no age as long as the body feels good.

I like my girls delicate.

Wouldn’t you love to see Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield go one more time? It’s not like just one of them has aged. They’ve both aged. They’re both icons.

I follow a very strict diet.

The art of Gracie jiu-jitsu is to learn how to defend yourself in any situation, not to score points, not for tournament style. It’s for a street-fight situation.

My father didn’t make us fighters, he made us teachers.

If I’m home, just hanging around with the kids.

I like guys who know how to implement a strategy. The ones who make a fight look easy. But there’s no easy fight, even if you win in 30 seconds, that only means you were able to execute your strategy correctly and induced your opponent to make a mistake. Those are the champions. That’s why they are the champions.

My second fight at UFC 1, I fought Ken Shamrock. In the fight I choked him. As soon as he tapped, I let go. He tried to continue, but the ref got kind of stuck like, ‘should I let it go or stop the fight.’ That’s when I looked at the ref and I said, let it go, we’re going to continue.

You know the 80s music is something that no one wants to admit liking, but once then start playing everyone is into it.

People always want to see who’s the best fighter in the world.

Bellator and Viacom want to give fans exciting fights and enable fighters to continue to grow and most importantly provide for their family, and it’s something I want to be a part of.

I have such a big family, sometimes, I was wondering, when is it going to be my turn? There’s always a brother who’s older, younger, bigger, stronger, faster, I was like, ‘hey, give me a chance guys.’

The UFC was my home and will always be my home. I helped creating and building that home.

You have to know when to stop in this sport. It’s very hard.

I’m not a fighter to score points of fight with time limit.

You’re a warrior or you’re not.

If I had doubts, I would’ve never walked into the ring.

A lot of fighters complain, ‘Man he’s five pounds heavier than me.’ Really? It doesn’t matter, man.

I enjoy traveling, teaching and fighting. It’s in my blood.

When Scott Coker first mentioned to me that Ken Shamrock wanted to fight I said, ‘Thank you.’ I played a little hard to get, but for sure I knew we had to do the third fight with Ken; there was no doubt. He still insisted on fighting me. I guess the guy cannot sleep for 22 years.

I only sign one fight at a time.

I’ve trained boxing in the past to learn the distance, trained wrestling to understand how he would take me down, but I won’t get there to fight my opponent’s game.

That’s why I like Demian Maia and Fabricio Werdum. Demian will take you down and do his game. Werdum learned the stand-up to know what’s coming, but he never stopped using his jiu-jitsu. He will clinch, take you down and submit you.

Jiu-Jitsu is the bond or styles all between all the other styles. Take Jiu-Jitsu out, a boxer is just a boxer, a kickboxer is just a kickboxer. Take Jiu-Jitsu out of the wrestling – what is he going to do, take the person down and? There’s no finishing holds, there’s no striking.

If Teila Tuli won the first UFC, everybody would have been learning sumo.

It’s always a pleasure to watch a Gracie winning. We were born fighting.

Face life’s challenges with confidence, dare to pursue your dreams and live to the fullest just as my father did.

You have tons of talents everywhere you go, so you can’t be stuck to only one promotion.

I am a product of my father’s work.

I made peace with retirement, but when you’re a fighter, you’re always a fighter.

Sometimes you watch a tournament with a point system, and it’s not the best fighter that wins. It’s the guy who scores more points and then he runs away and hides.

In a street fight situation, there’s no weight division, there’s no time limits.

I never drank, never party, Carnival, none of that.

I’m a fighter. We come from the beginning, no gloves, no rules, no time limits.

I fight because I want to not because I have to.

I take all the opportunities that come my way and I am thankful that I have them.

GSP knows how to use a lot of strategy.

McGregor is taking Muhammad Ali’s model. He can say whatever he wants but he’s got to prove it. If he doesn’t prove it, his career is going to be short.

I like guys who can use strategy, not just tough guys.

Everyone wants to fight me. It’s a long list.

Mike Tyson is a good boxer, but he is not the best fighter. I am the best fighter.

Demian Maia, I love the way he fights.

Werdum is good, is a smart fighter. He knows how to set up a beautiful strategy.

Yes, I do Jiu Jitsu for a living.

If Gerard Gordeau would have won the first UFC, everybody would be learning savate.

I get stopped at the airports by just everyday people that are not even fans of the MMA and they say how they have seen me fight. Its very humbling and also rewarding.

Do this rubber guard stuff and I’ll punch you in the nose.