Beautiful Judo

I ran across a link to this fight in the Bellator organization. Rick Hawn is a former Olympian in Judo who is enjoying a very successful start to his MMA career. In this fight, he executes a wonderful throw to set his opponent up for a quick finish. Judo as a base art has enjoying varying levels of success so far in MMA. It does, however, contain the inherent work ethic and ability to fight well in the clinch that gives wrestling so much success in MMA. Perhaps the difference lies in the use of the gi in many Judo throws, as well as the lack of ground work in Judo tournaments. Satoshi Ishii is another interesting prospect. He was the 2008 Olympic Gold medalist in heavyweight Judo. He has started off his career in Japan, and has looked promising to this point. I have long admired the power and grace in Judo throws, and look forward to the day when more and more high level Judo players develop no-gi games and bring another alternative to wrestling. Enjoy the video!