Son of legendary Carlson Gracie, Carlson Gracie Jr. takes the time to sit down with Jits Magazine. In this part he talks about how Carlson Gracie’s Jiu-Jitsu style is geared for MMA and how the other major academies don’t produce successful MMA fighters in the same numbers as Carslon Gracie lineage fighters:

This old (early 2000’s) Interview of Carlson Gracie Senior from O TATAME Magazine: Interview with C a r l s o n G r a c i e “L i v i n g L e g e n d” Translated by: T a t i a n a S a n t o s (Asst. to Mr. C a r l s o n G r a c i e).

Carlson senior goes into detail about what sets the Carlson Gracie style apart from other members of the Gracie family:

T: What’s the reason for your disagreement with Helio Gracie?
CG: I have nothing against him, the only problem is that he’s going around telling lies, you know what I mean? He goes around saying that his sons are the biggest & best fighters in the world and that they discovered the invincibility. His students lose everything here in Brazil. OK, Royce did well in the U.S. He beat everyone there, but no one knew anything then. Here in Brazil, I’ve never seen Royce win ONE championship. He lost to everyone. He lost to De La Riva, who was so much smaller than him. He tapped out to Paschoal. He’s a good fighter, but never won anything here. He’s not this “phenomenon” that they talk about.

T: And Rorion? How is your relationship with him nowadays?
CG: The problem with him is that he trademarked the name “Gracie Jiu-Jitsu” in the U.S. but he’s not going to keep me from using “Carlson Gracie”. Like I said, I want nothing to do with “Gracie Jiu-Jitsu”. I am “Carlson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu” . Nowadays, the “Gracie Jiu-Jitsu” is old. They say that strength doesn’t count, but it does. Maybe it wouldn’t make a difference if the opponent didn’t know anything. If the opponent knows something, then the strength starts to count. Carlson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu is a combination. It’s endurance, technique, etc. I’m not going to have a student of mine who’s 90Kg (198Lbs) fight someone who weighs 130Kg (286Lbs) and is very good also. They’re lost, they’ve stopped in time and space. Along with my students, I’ve evolved the Jiu-Jitsu even further. They call themselves the best, but they don’t prove it. In the U.S., they don’t enter their students into any outside competitions.

Let me tell you a little story about Rorion. Every day Rorion used to come to me and ask me if I knew how to speak English, and I would say no, I didn’t know how at all, and he would keep asking me and Rillion every day. Then he invited us to do a television interview with him. He was sitting in the middle, and Rillion & I were on either side. I couldn’t understand a thing. All I understood him saying was “Rillion Gracie and Carlson Gracie” once in a while, and pointing at us. OK, one month goes by, and I was here in Brazil when a friend of mine called me to say: “Carlson, I saw the interview with you, Rorion and Rillion in the U.S., he only told lies.” “You don’t know any English, do you?” “He only said bullshit, and you were practically agreeing with him.” “He would talk and turn to the sides saying that you and Rillion were there to confirm it.” Then I went to my friend’s house, for him to translate exactly what was said. Then I found out that Rorion said that he was a national champion for 20 years and had never lost and that he had invented the Gracie diet. He even said that my dad was just a fucking assistant of his and that it was Helio Gracie who brought Jiu-Jitsu to Brazil. Lies over lies! When I found out, I was so mad!