On a recent episode of the Matt Serra podcast, Ryan Hall explained exactly where jiu-jitsu fits within his martial arts philosophy and why, if forced to choose, he would always prioritize MMA.
Serra asked Hall why he decided to pursue MMA at a time when elite grapplers can now build successful careers without ever getting punched. Hall’s answer was immediate.
“I wanted to be a real martial artist,” Hall said.
While making it clear that he still loves jiu-jitsu, Hall explained that he does not see grappling alone as the complete form of combat.
“I like jiu-jitsu very much, but unless it’s a means to an end, it’s not a fig ht,” he said. “I like it. I love it. It’s fig hting without punches. It’s neat. But it’s meant to get you ready for the game. It’s not the game itself in my opinion.”
Hall then laid out his personal hierarchy between grappling, MMA, and real-world self-defense.
“If I could choose between being good in jiu-jitsu or good in MMA, I’d pick MMA,” Hall said. “If I could pick between MMA and real life, I’d pick real life. You want to ideally aim for all three.”
He pointed to Matt Serra and Kenny Florian as examples of athletes who embodied that balance.
“That’s one of the things I’ve always looked up to you so much,” Hall told Serra. “Kenny Florian so much. Same kind of thing. Can handle your business on the mat, can handle your business in the ring, and handle your business in real life if you need to. I always thought that was really cool.”
Hall also discussed what separates MMA from grappling competition, emphasizing how reality changes the importance of physical attributes.
“Athleticism, grit, toughness, durability, power, all of that matters so much when you make it more real,” he said. “It definitely matters a little bit on the mat, but the realer it gets, the more that type of stuff matters.”
He also spoke about the clarity of MMA compared to the often subjective nature of jiu-jitsu scoring.
“I like figh ting because you usually go like, ‘Hey, who would I rather be?’” Hall said. “Like not the guy that’s getting punched a whole bunch… A lot of times you watch matches and I feel like the scores don’t reflect the action sometimes. Usually you watch a wrestling match, you could get who’s winning and why. Jiu-jitsu, sometimes yes, sometimes no.”
Later in the conversation, Serra asked whether Hall would ever return to pure jiu-jitsu competition after retiring from MMA. Hall admitted that he probably would not.
“Probably not,” Hall said. “Maybe I like figh ting better. Honestly, I like figh ting. It’s real.”
