In an interview a little while ago, Vitor Belfort addressed comments he had made about not looking up to specific stars when he was starting out his mixed martial arts career.
“When I come up. You only had the Rickson, Royce and Frank Shamrock and I… Look, all these guys, Man, these guys are not good.”
Belfort clarified that he wasn’t dismissing legends like Rickson Gracie and Royce Gracie, but rather explaining that he didn’t try to emulate any one fighter’s style.
“I wasn’t pretending not to be a fan of Rickson and Royce Gracie,” Belfort stated. “I have a ton of respect for those pioneers of the sport.”
However, Belfort went on to say that when he was developing his skills, he didn’t pattern himself after any particular fighter. “I didn’t look at one guy and say ‘I want to fight exactly like him.’ I tried to develop my own well-rounded style by learning from many different martial artists.”
Belfort admitted he was somewhat dismissive of fighters who were just grapplers or strikers in his earlier comments. “What I meant was that I wanted to be a complete mixed martial artist, not just excel in one discipline,” he clarified. “Guys like Rickson and Royce were revolutionizing the sport by showing the effectiveness of Brazilian jiu-jitsu against other martial arts. But my goal was to incorporate multiple skills.”
The MMA legend reaffirmed his respect for the Gracie family and their impact on the sports world. “Those guys are the reason this sport exists today. I’m not trying to disrespect their legacy at all – I’m just saying my approach was to create my own style,” Belfort explained.
