Kron Gracie makes his MMA debut on December 23rd at Reality Fighting Championships in Japan. Kron is the son of Rickson Gracie, and a member of the first family of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Kron is among the next generation of Gracie’s to try and establish their martial art in the mix that makes MMA, where many of today’s champions have wrestling backgrounds.
Kron is “one of the best Jiu-Jitsu fighters on the planet” according to MMA fighting, and is well known in the world of competitive Jiu Jitsu. This transition for him means only a change of rules. The interview oddly enough was with Rickson not Kron but, fans of them know that the two are almost always together when it comes to competition and their art. Rickson mentioned that Kron would be training for the transition to MMA by working with Cesar Gracie Jiu Jitsu and the Diaz brothers. “He’s focused; he wants to bring jiu-jitsu back to MMA. He’s not doing cross training to work on his weaknesses. He won’t start boxing, kickboxing, wrestling. He will use his jiu-jitsu to neutralize the wrestler, the striker, and work on his expertise,” said Rickson in regards to his son’s preparation for MMA.
Kron Gracie is no stranger to facing MMA competitors as he did submit Shinya Aoki at a Metamoris event where many MMA fighters like to test themselves in the submission only competition Kron has come a long way since watching his father ringside in the documentary Choke (1999) which followed Rickson in his matches at the Vale Tudo Japan event in 1995. He has his own academy and following in the Jiu Jitsu community. This crossover into MMA is perfect timing to see how he does in the sport.
Bellator MMA also announced the signing of Neiman Gracie to fight at 170 pounds. Kron will make his debut at 155 pounds. Could this be a new comeback for the name and family synonymous with the sport? They never truly left as the sport evolved, but haven’t been heavliy promoted since the days of Pride Fighting Championships and Strikeforce. Will fans get to see some masterful submission wins from Kron?
He is definitely following the blueprint his father designed in his time coming from Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and transitioning to MMA. There was a popular quote from Rickson fans in regards to his wins when he competed, “Rickson by arm bar”. Kron’s arm bars are good but in today’s game of MMA he may have to find a different submission to promote his name. Ronda Rousey may have claim to that expression for now but his surname is surely enough to get him in one of the top promotions against some other 155 pounders. Who would you like to see him face?
Please follow the link for Rickson’s full comments on his son’s transition to MMA:
‘Rickson Gracie on Kron Gracie’s MMA Debut: ‘We don’t want to throw him into the fire.’ via Guilherme Cruz at MMAFighting
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