Dan Gable on MMA, wrestling, and pro wrestling

Although Dan Gable has little to do with mixed martial arts, and has historically been at best lukewarm about it, he is a legend and he matters in MMA.

Mixed martial arts was born from Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but folkstyle wrestling is now the best base for mixed martial arts, as one can tell at a glance:

Heavyweight Cain Velasquez (NCAA Div I All-American in 2005, 2006)

Light Heavyweight Jon Jones (NJCAA Junior Collegiate Champion in 2006)

Middleweight Chris “The All American” Weidman (Two-time JUCO All-American wrestling honor, two-time Div I All-American)

Welterweight Johny Hendricks (Four-time Div I All American, two-time Div I national champion)

Lightweight  Anthony Pettis (Taekwondo, Muay Thai, wrestling, boxing)

Featherweight Jose Aldo (Muay Thai, BJJ)

Bantamweight  T.J. Dillashaw (Full ride at Cal State Fullerton, ranked 10th his senior year)

Flyweight Demetrious Johnson (All state junior and senior years in HS wrestling; did not attend college)

Women’s Bantamweight Ronda Rousey (Olympic Judoka)

Dan Gable is at the very least the greatest wrestler and the greatest wrestling coach in US history. He even coined the derisive term “butt scoot,” during John Peretti’s The Contenders wrestling vs. martial arts submission grappling event in 1997. Gable has expressed ambiguous and contrary feelings about mixed martial arts in the past. However, in an interview with Michael Schiavello, he seems to have come around some.

“Is mixed martial arts good for wrestling?” asked “The Voice.”

Gable waited a moment to compose his thoughts.

“It’s good for wrestling for the people that want to stay in it and earn a living,” said Gable. “It gives a wrestler more opportunity. I would like to see wrestling become more like we had out own leagues… and you could still have that too. But it’s the best opportunity right now for a wrestler that wants to stay in that type of competition, to go on.

“Now, from a school and education point of view, we have to make sure that people understand it is only a select few that go on and are capable of doing this. Kind of like the NFL in football. It’s not that this is our main goal, but it’s another opportunity.”

Then Schiavello asked a hypothetical about a wrestler who had done it all going into MMA or going into pro wrestling.

“You know, I would say the same thing about pro wrestling,” said Gable. “Only from the point of view that it is another opportunity. But I will say that if this (hypothetical) guy loves competition, he’s not going to get it in pro wrestling.

“It’s more of an entertainment factor, which we all want entertainment. In fact that’s one of the things that we have to do more in our sport right now – get more entertainment.

“But pro wrestling is for those that would want to be more into Hollywood, and the movie industry, as compared to the real competitive edge, and that’s the MMA.”