why do wrestlers make great mma fighters

[abedm]

an how deep is the global talent pool for wrestling
Every country has some form of wrestling from third world villages to high schools in states

soccer you need a ball with wrestling you just need one more person and seems so natural you see kids wrestle all the time

Many countries try developing very competitive grapplers and wrestlers

Is it the talent pool that allows wrestlers to be great mma fighters an why there seems to be more successful wrestlers in mma then muay thai fighters?

 

[Fox2twenty]

Because wrestling dictates where the fight takes place.

Chuck used it to sprawl n brawl. Randy liked to clinch by the cage etc..

 

[Joshuagilbert91]

because USUALLY wrestlers can control the fight... whether its on the ground or stays standing. all martial arts are aspects but wrestlers can usually control the pace and where the fight takes place

 

[dickcheney]

Because they spent years of rolling around with other naked dudes

 

[joeyjoejoe]

It’s the oldest sport in the world, the talent pool is freaking huge.

 

[GiSP]

I think it takes more than a wrestler to make a great mma fighter. I think it’s more like great wrestlers can make great mma fighters. But great wrestling alone is no guarantee you’ll be a great mma fighter.

 

[Arqueto]

Because everyone loves a hug at the end of the day.

 

[abedm]

how massive is the talent pool for wrestling?

Every country has some sort of grappling/wrestling

 

[Congo66]

The talent pool is tiny. Until MMA there was no way to make any money out of it so you had Olympic programs in a few countries or colleges in the US.
Sure some countries pay the wrestlers in their Olympic squads but not as much as they'd make in almost any other sport.

It works for MMA for the reasons given above, control.

 

[fightfan70]

because wrestlers can stop the takedown

 

[tenniswhiz]

Wrestlers have to fight other wrestlers.
A lot of them fail.
The very best became elite.

Even among the best, many of them lost against Fedor, Nog, Anderson, GSP, BJ, and Aldo.
None of these guys have a wrestling base, and they all wrecked some great wrestlers.

 

[wompuscatwilly]

1) the scoring favors wrestling so therefore wrestlers have won more decisions, padding the record.
2) it takes more than being a good wrestler. Being successful in wrestling is not a given that you will be successful in MMA.
3) you have more youth participation in wrestling than other forms or martial arts. Almost every school has a wrestling team. You can then wrestle in college and Olympic. So, more fighters have a wrestling background because it was more popular and widespread in their youth.

 

[blurple]

Wrestlers have mastered some of the hardest parts of the fight game: weight cutting, conditioning and pain tolerance.

 

[abedm]

The talent pool is tiny. Until MMA there was no way to make any money out of it so you had Olympic programs in a few countries or colleges in the US.
Sure some countries pay the wrestlers in their Olympic squads but not as much as they'd make in almost any other sport.

It works for MMA for the reasons given above, control.

same with gymnastics and sprinting and figure skating and snowboarding unless the person is at the top there isn't very much money. Lot of training for most Olympic sports with very little financial rewards
also over a 100 countries in the world have Olympic wrestling programs

 

[Nightwish]

Mostly because UFC has shitty rules and enviroment.

 

[HI SCOTT NEWMAN]

Because they can control the fight and where it goes etc.. and also another big thing is top class wrestlers are already a blue belt in BJJ, I know a lot of BJJ guys don't like hearing that and don't want to hear it. But sorry its the truth. Most top-class wrestlers can have a variety of holds that can tap you out and they have great control on the ground too. But if you brought a pure kickboxer or muay thai or boxer they would be a white belt in BJJ from the start.

In the local MMA gym I used to attend sometimes many years back, and we had some top class wrestlers and they could control any black belt here for a period of time, and he was so strong and would power out of mostly everything and he knew keylocks and many neck cranks, but had zero BJJ experience at that time.

 

[JJ Frog]

As others said, the ability to dictate where the fight goes is crucial. In addition, the lifetime of hard work and discipline required to be a success in amateur wresting is good prep for an mma fighter.

 

[THEfightsAREfixed]

What an original thread, crazy no one has thought to ask this before

What ever happened to roasting people about the search function, this place has really fallen off

 

[Fox2twenty]

What an original thread, crazy no one has thought to ask this before

What ever happened to roasting people about the search function, this place has really fallen off

I like to comment, not search, so Meh

 

[StrikerKing]

The talent pool is tiny. Until MMA there was no way to make any money out of it so you had Olympic programs in a few countries or colleges in the US.
Sure some countries pay the wrestlers in their Olympic squads but not as much as they'd make in almost any other sport.

It works for MMA for the reasons given above, control.

WTF? The talent pool is HUGE! Countries take a lot of pride in winning Olympic medals and therefor sink alot of money into trying to accomplish that. Every developed and semi developed country has a developed wrestling program. We are talking millions and millions who compete in wrestling. That is alot talent to tap into and why those that rise to the top are so good.