MMA Legend: Wallid Ismail

One of the first Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters to really impact the sport of MMA not named Gracie, was Carlson Gracie protege Wallid Ismail.

Wallid Ismail notable history

His wikipedia entry gives a pretty good summary of his historical significance:

He is known worldwide as the Gracie killer because he was the first man who defeated four members of the famous Gracie family [in BJJ matches], Ralph Gracie,Renzo Gracie,Ryan Gracie and Royce Gracie who was three times UFC champion and undefeated at the time. He was the only one who accepted the conditions proposed for this fight which were no points and no time limit.The fight took four minutes and fifty three seconds and he defeated Royce with his famous clock choke and left Royce Gracie unconscious in the end.Wallid Ismail was the first brazilian jiu jitsu and mixed martial arts athlete to become a professional fighter in this sport because he had many sponsors and didn’t have to teach or have another job as all of the other fighters.Wallid was the one who brought mixed martial arts back to Brazil in 1991 when he challenged another famous kind of martial arts in Brazil called Luta Livre .This event is legendary in Brazil it was broadcasted on the biggest network television in Brazil called Globo. This changed the face of brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Brazil.

The video of his match from that event is in the extended entry as is the famous BJJ match with Royce.

But the can’t miss, must enjoy now multimedia highlight of Wallid’s career is his infamous interview with On the Mat. In four parts, Wallid discusses his feud with the Gracies, particularly Ryan, in hilariously obscene English as a Second Language. Enjoy. I insist.

Mp3 files:
Wallid interview part 1
Wallid interview part 2
Wallid interview part 3
Wallid interview part 4

All inadvertant hilarity aside, Wallid deserves major props for all he’s done for the sport — getting MMA on national Brazilian television in 1991, puncturing the myth of Gracie invincibility, being the only one of Carlson Gracie’s proteges to stand by the grand old man to the very end, and most recently his partnership with Japanese legend Antonio Inoki to create the Jungle Fight promotion which has run events in both Brazil and Europe since 2003.

Wallid Ismail vs Eugenio Tadeu part 1

Part 2

Wallid vs Royce Gracie BJJ match

Nate Wilcox

Nate Wilcox is the founding editor of BloodyElbow.com. As such he has hired every editor and writer to work for the site. Wilcox’s writing for BE is known for its emphasis on MMA history, the evolution of fighting techniques and strong opinions. Wilcox developed the SBN MMA consensus rankings which were featured in USA Today from 2009 to 2011. Before founding BE, Wilcox was a political operative working for such figures as Senators John Kerry and Mark Warner and an early political blogger. He is the co-author of Netroots Rising, a history of the political blogosphere from 2003 to 2007. Wilcox also hosts the Let It Roll podcast on music history for the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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