5 strikers in the UFC who went onto become excellent grapplers

#4. Leon Edwards

Leon Edwards is arguably the greatest British grappler in UFC history

UFC fighters coming out of the UK are rarely known for their grappling, largely thanks to the lack of an amateur wrestling scene in the country. Even British fighters who ended up training primarily in the US – names like Michael Bisping and Paul Daley – remained largely renowned for their striking.

However, one name has bucked that trend in the UFC. His name? Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards.

Edwards is now renowned as one of the strongest wrestlers in the UFC’s welterweight division – a division that’s chock-full of high-end grapplers. But ‘Rocky’ is now amongst the best, as he’s dominated top grapplers like Rafael dos Anjos and Gunnar Nelson on the mat.

It definitely wasn’t always like that. When Edwards entered the UFC in 2014, he lost his debut fight to Claudio Silva thanks to his lack of skills on the ground. In his earliest fights, he was essentially a pure kickboxer, albeit an excellent one.

But his loss to Kamaru Usman in 2015 clearly opened his eyes. Since then, Edwards has worked so hard on his wrestling that he now fights like a former NCAA Division I All-American.

Leon Edwards has mastered the art of taking a grappling position such that if he needs to bail, he can do so without much issue. That's a no B.S. skill.

— Luke Thomas (@lthomasnews) June 13, 2021

‘Rocky’ has shown such tremendous improvement that you could probably argue he’s the best British grappler in UFC history.

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#3. Robert Whittaker - former UFC middleweight champion

Robert Whittaker has developed an excellent defensive grappling game

Former UFC middleweight kingpin Robert Whittaker has been known for his heavy hands and explosive striking style ever since his UFC debut back in 2012. However, he’s also become renowned for his excellent defensive grappling skills.

‘The Reaper’ showed off some solid takedown defense in his second visit to the octagon, a win over fellow TUF winner Colton Smith. However, his wrestling clearly wasn’t perfect, as he was taken down by both Court McGee and Brad Scott, hardly vaunted wrestlers.

But over the years, the Australian has worked remarkably hard on that part of his game. Despite facing monstrous wrestlers like Derek Brunson and Yoel Romero, his takedown defense still stands at a phenomenal 83%.

One of the fights of the year 🙌Robert Whittaker and Yoel Romero go to war in a five-round epic at #UFC225 Both men warriors. Robert Whittaker the winner 💪 pic.twitter.com/FD6o0xnmHm

— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) June 10, 2018

And when an opponent does get ‘The Reaper’ down, it’s nearly impossible to keep him there. He’s usually able to deploy a highly underrated jiu-jitsu game to escape back to his feet quickly.

But it’s in the wrestling realm that Whittaker has really improved. It’s unlikely we’ll see him spamming takedowns inside the octagon any time soon. However, the fact that he reportedly considered competing in the 2018 Commonwealth Games as a freestyle wrestler tells you enough about his skills in that area.