Bill Wallace...Jealous Much?

**Valiss** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 2:38pm

It's a bummer really, because I like Superfoot and he's always seemed like such a good promoter of MA and combat sports in general. I guess I haven't been keeping up on his MA opinions. As someone said, he did commentator duty on UFC 1, but now what? I'm not even sure he's 100% bitter on MMA, or if he is just trying to make a distinction between self-defense and combat sports.

That said, not all the old school greats are anti-MMA (or anti-UFC). Despite his marketing of WCL, Chuck Norris attends a lot of UFC events and Richard Norton commentates for other combat sports. Both hold a black belt in BJJ I as I recall.

I wonder if Bill Wallace has ever done grappling (just to train, I know he didn't compete in that) or at least is able to appreciate it even if he dislikes it. It just sounds like to me he'd rather see a striking game. I wonder what he thinks of K-1...

**selfcritical** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 3:03pm

I think Norris is a BJJ brown belt and a Judo Black

**Valiss** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 3:12pm

According to the almighty (and never wrong!) wikipedia, Norris holds a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under the Machado's.

And I guess if every other old school fighter has an opinion on MMA, I wonder what Benny "The Jet" Urquidez thinks of it.

**Holy Moment** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 3:16pm

Well, for all the crap he's said, Bill Wallace was a great commentator:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JubPpUnjIDw

**Bocephuskhan** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 3:17pm

Originally Posted by Valiss

I wonder if Bill Wallace has ever done grappling (just to train, I know he didn't compete in that) or at least is able to appreciate it even if he dislikes it. It just sounds like to me he'd rather see a striking game. I wonder what he thinks of K-1...

Wallace started in Judo and had to quit because of a knee injury.

**ADM** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 3:27pm

That's fairly piss poor coming from a Martial Artist. That's pretty much all I have to say on the matter. Either he's misinformed (a lot) or he is (as the title says) jealous.

**NoMan** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 3:30pm

Wallace's commentary was crap. After doing the commentary in 1993, he wrote an article for black belt magazine. In it he said, and I'm quoting him from memory but this was it:

A good striker never has a chance in the UFC. That's why you see all these wresters winning. They can't pivot on their feet right to get any power, and that's important when you kick and punch.

This followed by stuff we all know. blah, blah, can't wrestle in the streets, lava, glass, HIV needles, used condoms, homeless people's urine, blah blah nice mats are designed for wrestlers advantage.

And a striker will never win strikes me as funny now, GSP, Anderson Silva, BJ Penn, Chuck Liddell, and so forth all have good punches. People don't kick because a bad kick can leave you vulnerable to a takedown.

**Gezere** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 3:38pm

Originally Posted by selfcritical

I think Norris is a BJJ brown belt and a Judo Black

Chuck is a Machado BB

**milwaukee cop** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 3:52pm

I was surprised by the tone of wallace in BB magazines article, he did come across as bitter.

**Don Gwinn** · Posted On: 3/25/2008 4:27pm

Am I the only one who thinks this sounds odd from Bill Wallace? I guess I missed all the other anti-UFC stuff he wrote. This surprises me, coming from him. He's repeating the things a lot of "traditional martial artists" said about kickboxing back in his day--it was just sloppy boxing with kicks, and boxing isn't a martial art, those guys wouldn't last a minute with a real master like a Shaolin monk, blah blah blah.