Much of the fight fans had their attention turned toward Mayweather McGregor for the better part of first half of 2017. But the match had spawned some interesting think pieces. For Demian Maia it became clear that BJJ is the ultimate way to differentiate fight skill.
During press appearance for UFC Sao Paolo he said (for flocombat via AG Fight):
“I think jiu-jitsu is still the mainstay of MMA,” Maia said. “I thought about it when I saw (Floyd) Mayweather’s (boxing) fight against (Conor) McGregor. [McGregor] lasted 10 rounds, but if it was Mayweather (in jiu-jitsu) against a blue belt or even a white belt with a year of training, he would have lost in a minute. I have no doubts (about that).
“All the martial acts were created in real fights, and then [these martial arts] were lost. And then when you get someone who rescues them and brings them back in a modern way, I like to see it. I prefer to see a specialist rather than someone who is just good at everything.”
Even tho Maia credits excellent wrestling camps for his success in the octagon he’s still an adamant representative of bjj. And he’s close to breaking some vital records to boot:
“There are two records that I would like to beat,” Maia said. “One, to have the most wins in the UFC. I know I am second behind (Michael) Bisping right now along with one or two other people. And it is also my goal today to get a belt. While I’m fighting, I will be trying to get to the top, and if it doesn’t work out, I’ll leave MMA.”
