It is a ground fighting martial art and has a lot of applications based on the concept of leverage.
It focuses on a weaker person being able to defend themselves against a stronger opponent.
BJJ became a combat sport through the experiments, practices, and adaptation of judo through Carlos and Hélio Gracie.
Earlier, pro wrestlers were legit catch wrestlers who performed choreographed matches for money. In the last few decades or so pro wrestlers became athletic entertainers and rarely martial artists.
So this list does not constitute early Pro fighters who have legit martial arts background or any well rounded UFC fighters who are into Pro Wrestling.
So, this list does not cover Josh Barnett, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Daniel Puder, Bobby Lashley, Brock Lesner, Ronda Rousey etc….
These fighters have some legit Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in their arsenal, but the fact that they are martial artists who also had an MMA Career, disentitle them from this list.
#7 The Undertaker
The First Pro wrestler on this list is BJJ black belt Undertaker.
Yes, you heard it right, Undertaker is a Rolles Gracie BJJ Blackbelt.
BJJ black belt is a very prized possession. It is one of the most respected accolades to obtain in martial arts.
The evolution of a white belt into a black belt is a long-drawn process and can take up to 10 years.
But there are a few who have been able to do it in under three years like like B.J Penn and Travis Stephens, but they had solid martial arts backgrounds.
A post shared by Rear Naked (@rearnaked_) on Sep 12, 2017 at 7:51am PDT
Undertaker happens to be in this category and received his Black belt under two years, albeit some people in BJJ community have issues over the legitimacy of his skills.
He rose from the dead so black belt must have been a piece of cake for him!
Legitimate or not, Undertaker is a legend and props to him for pulling off Gogplata (Hell’s Gate) inside the squared circle and making BJJ popular.
#6 Dave Bautista
Bautista has an immense passion for BJJ and has been training under Ceaser Gracie since 2010.
A post shared by David Bautista (@davebautista) on Dec 9, 2016 at 2:32pm PST
It was the MMA Legend, Nick Diaz who introduced him to BJJ.
Bautista was very active in the MMA circle during the strike force era. He even has one MMA victory to his account.
Being an active pro wrestler never stopped him from learning the ‘Gentle Art’. He constantly worked on his BJJ and improved his game.
He was promoted to purple belt in 2014 by Ceaser Gracie.
He even slow-walked the customary BJJ gauntlet while getting whooped by his training partners after getting promoted to a purple belt.
A legit purple belt in BJJ has just too many weapons for his opponents.
But, inside the ring, he prefers to stick with spine buster and powerbomb rather than using his Jiu-Jits skills.
He still manages to find time for BJJ while he is busy with his acting in Hollywood.
#5 Shadia Bseiso
Shadia Bseiso is Arab world’s first female professional wrestler. She launched her career as a TV host and voice-over artist in Dubai.
She is also a CrossFit enthusiast, Muay Thai practitioner and to top it all, a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Before signing up for WWE, she took part in the Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Open Cup 2014 and won a silver medal in her weight category.
She won another silver in Emirates Super Cup 2013 and a bronze in Asian Jiu-Jitsu Open Cup 2013 held in Dubai.
Her Sister Arifa Bseiso is a top boxer in her native Jordan and Arifa is the one who introduced her to Martial Arts.
Profesional Wrestling is very different from Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but her BJJ will positively help her inside the WWE ring and will be an interesting add-on for Shadia’s character.
#4 Samoa Joe
As a child, Samoa Joe was a Junior Judo State Champion in California. Later, he became more interested in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
A post shared by Samoa Joe (@samoajoe_wwe) on Aug 2, 2016 at 1:23pm PDT
He extensively used many BJJ techniques while fighting inside the squared circle. He had a sick rear naked choke and one of the best armbars in the game.
He made good use of Judo throws to take down his opponents and later strangulate the living soul out of them with his ground game.
Samoa works on his striking aspects like kickboxing and Muay Thai also. He prefers to train at his home gym mostly.
If you watch his fights closely, it’s easy to spot the components of Jiu-jitsu in his moves.
Had he polished his skills and invested more time in it, Samoa could have made an equally good career in MMA.
But he chose to belong in the squared circle.
#3 Becky Lynch
Just like any other Irish person, Becky Lynch is a major fight enthusiast and a hardcore Conor McGregor fan.
A post shared by Rebecca Quin (@beckylynchwwe) on Sep 3, 2015 at 4:20pm PDT
While in Dublin, she trained under Conor’s BJJ coach John Kavanagh at Straight Blast Gym.
She is an MMA fan and pays close attention to the sport.
She had called out UFC’s Cris Cyborg for a ‘Catch wrestling vs Jiu Jitsu’ match at Summerslam.
Even though there was a lot of hype behind this fight, it never took place.
Becky Lynch has a brown belt in submission wrestling and is constantly improving her jiu-jitsu as well.
Her popular finishing move ‘Dis-Arm-Her’ a.k.a. Seated Fujiwara armbar is one of the variants of armbars which is extensively used in jiu-jitsu.
Even with her hectic schedule, she makes sure she gets into the Dojo to polish her skills whenever she gets the time.
#2 Shane McMahon
Shane McMahon is a fourth generation wrestling promoter and a member of the McMahon family.
A post shared by Rebecca Quin (@beckylynchwwe) on Aug 26, 2017 at 1:55pm PDT
He started working for WWE at a young age 15.
McMahon has done pretty much every Job related to the spectacle inside the squared circle.
McMahon has attained notoriety by pulling off huge bumps during his WWE fights. Some of the biggest bumps in pro wrestling history are in his name.
A post shared by Shane McMahon (@shanemcmahonwwe) on Mar 16, 2016 at 2:40pm PDT
One of the most hyped fights in his career was against the Undertaker at Wrestlemania 32 in a Hell in a Cell match.
In order to get some competitive edge over the Undertaker (a BJJ black belt), McMahon trained under BJJ legend Renzo Gracie.
Renzo and Shane O’Mac are longtime friends and Shane has always been a big devotee of BJJ.
Renzo believes that Shane is a fast learner and has a great fight-IQ. He clearly sees a lot of potential in him.
So don’t be shocked to see him rolling and submitting his opponents in any submission grappling tournaments in the future.
# Honorable Mention - C.M Punk
After leaving WWE in 2014, CM Punk has completely transformed himself into a martial artist.
He made his MMA debut in UFC against Mickey Gall.
That fight was a big upset for his fans, but he is all set to face his second opponent Mike Jackson inside the Octagon on June 9th at UFC 225.
But this time, he has some legit ground game added to his arsenal.
C.M Punk has left behind his pro wrestling past and started transforming into a complete martial artist. This is a ground to disentitle him from this list, as he is not a pro wrestler anymore.
A post shared by Daniel Wanderley (@danielswbjj) on Dec 5, 2017 at 1:13pm PST
But the fact that, he left his super successful career in WWE to chase his passion, and became a blue belt in BJJ is a huge accomplishment.
He is a huge motivation for a lot of kids who dream to master BJJ,
And thus, it’s an honor to have him mentioned in this list.
#1 Eve Torres
The last name in this list is a Diva who had so much for the ‘Gentle Art’ that she chose to spend her time left on this planet learning it.
Eve Torres began her WWE journey after she won the Diva Search talent competition.
Later, she became the Divas Champion for three consecutive years.
But her encounter with the Gracie family and Brazilian jiu-jitsu started to pull her away from WWE.
After her marriage with Rener Gracie, she became a full-time Jiu-jitsu aficionado and trained in the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy with her husband.
A post shared by Eve Torres Gracie (@evetorresgracie) on Jan 11, 2018 at 6:05pm PST
She is also the head instructor for the Gracie Women Empowered self-defense program, which is the official Gracie self-defense program for women.
In this programme, students are taught how to neutralize the 15 most common attacks ranging from having your hair grabbed to being pinned to the ground etc.
Presently, she holds a purple belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.
0 votes
