Royce Gracie
Brazilian fighter, son of Hélio Gracie, winner of the UFC 1, UFC 2 and UFC 4 tournaments and, in 2003, the first UFC hall of fame member alongside Ken Shamrock.
Quick Facts
BrazilBiography
Royce Gracie is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu and MMA fighter. He was born on 12 December 1966 in Rio de Janeiro as the son of Hélio Gracie, one of nine children in the Gracie family.
His father was also his teacher. He had his first match at 8, began teaching at 14, and at 17 his father awarded him a black belt. At 18 he moved with his brothers Royler and Rickson to Torrance, California, to join his older brother Rorion.
On 12 November 1993 he won the UFC 1 tournament, defeating Art Jimmerson, Ken Shamrock and Gerard Gordeau, and earned 50,000 dollars. On 11 March 1994 he won UFC 2 against four opponents, Minoki Ichihara, Jason DeLucia, Remco Pardoel and Patrick Smith. At UFC 3 (9 September 1994) he beat Kimo Leopoldo but withdrew due to exhaustion. He won UFC 4 (16 December 1994) by submitting Dan Severn with a triangle choke in the final. At UFC 5 (7 April 1995) he drew with Ken Shamrock after 36 minutes, then the longest match in UFC history.
On 1 May 2000 he lost at PRIDE Grand Prix 2000 to Kazushi Sakuraba when his corner stopped the fight after 90 minutes. At PRIDE Shockwave 2003 he drew with Hidehiko Yoshida, on 27 May 2006 at UFC 60 he lost by TKO to Matt Hughes, and on 19 February 2016 at Bellator 149 he beat Ken Shamrock by technical knockout. His professional record: 20 fights, 15 wins (11 submissions, 2 KOs, 2 by decision), 2 losses, 3 draws. In 2003 he became, together with Ken Shamrock, the first inductee into the UFC hall of fame.
Teachers, students and family
Associated Martial Arts
A Brazilian ground-fighting art built on joint locks and chokes; it lets technique control a stronger opponent.
MMAChampion→A full-contact sport combining strikes and wrestling standing, in the clinch and on the ground. It has no belts and is contested under several rule sets (Unified Rules, ONE, IMMAF).
Achievements and honours
- UFC 1Professional title · 1993
- UFC Hall of FameHall of Fame · 2003