Royce Gracie

Royce Gracie (Portuguese: [ˈʁɔjsi ˈɡɾejsi]; born 12 December 1966) is a Brazilian retired professional mixed martial artist. Gracie gained fame for his success in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a member of the Gracie jiu-jitsu family, a UFC Hall of Famer, and is considered to be one of the most influential figures in the history of mixed martial arts (MMA). He also competed in PRIDE Fighting Championships, K-1's MMA events, and Bellator.

In 1993 and 1994, Gracie was the tournament winner of UFC 1, UFC 2 and UFC 4, which were openweight single-elimination tournaments with minimal rules. He used his skills in submission grappling to defeat larger and heavier opponents. He was also known for his rivalry with Ken Shamrock, whom he beat in UFC 1 and then fought to a draw in the rematch for the Superfight Championship at UFC 5. Royce later competed in PRIDE Fighting Championships, where he is most remembered for his 90-minute bout against catch wrestler Kazushi Sakuraba in 2000, and a controversial "judo vs jiu-jitsu" mixed rules match against Hidehiko Yoshida, an Olympic gold medalist in judo, at PRIDE Shockwave in 2002.

Royce Gracie's success in the UFC popularized Gracie jiu-jitsu (commonly known as Brazilian jiu-jitsu) and revolutionized mixed martial arts, contributing to the movement towards grappling and ground fighting. For his pioneering in mixed martial arts, Gracie was the first inductee to the UFC Hall of Fame in 2003 alongside his once-rival Ken Shamrock. In 2016, he was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame.