USA Wrestling’s ‘Aura’ is Gone: MMA Guru Blasts USA Wrestling, Claps Back at Daniel Cormier
The ongoing debate surrounding the effectiveness of U.S. wrestling in MMA has intensified, with The MMA Guru responding to recent criticisms from UFC legends Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen. The controversy began after The MMA Guru questioned the dominance of American wrestlers in modern MMA, particularly following Tatiana Suarez’s loss to Zhang Weili at UFC 312.
MMA Guru and US Wrestling in MMA
MMA Guru’s initial take, which sparked the debate, was a critical reaction to Tatiana Suarez’s loss to Zhang Weili at UFC 312. He expressed a lack of trust in “USA Wrestling credentials anymore,” and implied that Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen had misled him about the capabilities of wrestlers in MMA.
This comes after Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen addressed The MMA Guru’s comments on their show. Sonnen partially agreed with the critique, arguing that wrestling alone is no longer sufficient in today’s more well-rounded MMA landscape. He noted that many top U.S. wrestlers now avoid transitioning to MMA.
However, Daniel Cormier disagreed, pointing out that many current UFC champions and contenders have strong wrestling foundations, such as Jon Jones and Islam Makhachev. Cormier, an Olympic wrestler, argued that proper wrestling remains highly effective when integrated with other skills.
In his response, The MMA Guru acknowledged Chael Sonnen’s perspective but doubled down on his critique of the current state of U.S. wrestling in MMA. He stated:
“I know exactly where Chael was coming from here. There used to be a fear. If you heard, “This guy wrestled. He wrestled for a long time through school. He’s a national champ. He went to Nationals. He won State—he won this, he won that,” in wrestling, it used to mean something.
“It used to be this thing where you’d think, “Well, I’ll see that guy in the top five in about two years. He’s about to ragdoll this [ __ ] karate instructor, you know what I mean?” That’s what it used to be in MMA. “Oh, Jesus Christ, this poor [ _ ] Kung Fu guy is going to get [ _ ] chucked around by this [ __ ] high school wrestler over here.”
“But nowadays, I don’t know if I can trust them to get through the Contender Series. Chael speaks on it—there used to be a different vibe around the idea of a wrestler with some kind of wrestling credential being part of the competition. There used to be a fear.”
NCAA wrestlers did indeed have a significant impact on early MMA. These include legends such as Randy Couture, Dan Sever, Mark Coleman, Matt Hughes, and Kevin Randleman, among many others. Now, it seems the top-level collegiate and Olympic wrestlers are not looking at MMA anymore as frequently.
As for why fewer NCAA wrestlers are transitioning to MMA today, there are a few factors that some consider. Wrestlers now have more options to make money within their sport, reducing the financial pressure to switch to MMA. However, it’s worth noting that some top NCAA wrestlers are still considering MMA as a viable career path.
The future of U.S. wrestling in MMA remains uncertain, but it’s clear that success in the octagon now demands a more diverse skill set than ever before. This controversy has drawn in MMA legends like Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen, who offer differing perspectives on the matter.
