Looking at whether Sumo can be used in MMA

Over the years, differing martial arts styles have been tested in the world of MMA and UFC. However, there still remain question marks on whether Sumo works in MMA and there are pros and cons for this argument. Ultimately, Sumo is a form of grappling and is distant relatives with wrestling and other disciplines. However, its rules are pretty unique and may not always be applicable for other forms of fighting.

In this article, we shall be focusing on whether Sumo can be used effectively in MMA. We shall try to give a balanced and educated picture on whether it can be done and will look at both its strengths and weaknesses.

Reasons why Sumo is effective in MMA

UFC Champion Lyoto Machida trained Sumo

Former UFC Champion Lyoto Machida was famous for his impressive Karate kicks, but did you know that he also trained Sumo and spoke highly of it. In short, he said it ‘helped’ his fights and was used during grappling. At the same time, most of his grappling exchanges looked closer to conventional wrestling, rather than Sumo wrestling.

Still, you would imagine that Sumo rubbed off on him in some way, and improved his skills in terms of distance management, timing, and weight distribution. So far, Machida is the only UFC Champion to have utilized Sumo training, but then again his style was often different from others. Aside from Machida, MMA veteran Roy Nelson has also complimented the Japanese art form.

Sumo respects the importance of dominating space

One of the more boring ways that the UFC scores fights is by looking at who dominates the inside space. In other words, if you’re in the center of the cage and you’re constantly stalking your opponent who is forced onto the cage, then this will be looked at favorably by the judges. This kind of makes sense too, considering the center space allows you to often dictate the tempo and shape of the fight.

If you apply this to Sumo, then there are actually a lot of similarities. Like MMA, ideally, you want to be in the middle of the circle. Of course in Sumo, if you’re thrown out of the circle then you lose – which acts as a lesson for standing your ground. The point is, if you train Sumo then you will know too well about getting in the center and staying there. This is certainly a benefit when thinking about fighting in MMA.

Sumo uses strikes

In Sumo, it’s perfectly legal to slap the opponent in the face – as long as the fist is open. Due to the weight and power of certain Sumo’s, this can sometimes knock their opponent out which shows just how dangerous they can be. So, although many people assume that Sumo is purely grappling, this isn’t necessarily true and it also implements striking. Compared to most other grappling arts (other than Combat Sambo), this is fairly unique to Sumo.

So, this will teach fighters to respect strikes from standing, which is arguably one of the biggest flaws seen in wrestlers (see Ben Askren’s failed takedown attempt against Jorge Masvidal where he got knocked out). This isn’t to say that Sumo is big on striking, but at least it’s used to an extent.

Reasons why Sumo isn’t effective in MMA

Most Sumo wrestlers have failed in MMA

Although Lyoto Machida has trained Sumo wrestling, sadly it’s a different story for Sumo purists that have tried their hand at MMA. There is first the story of Chad Rowan, who fought in K-1 from 2004-2006. His record was 0-4 after retiring, with three of his matches being lost due to submissions.

Next up, there is Teila Tuli who fought in UFC 1 and famously lost to Gerard Gordeau by head kick. Tuli retired from MMA after this, and even though his record was 0-1, it doesn’t make for good reading. Lastly, there is Emmanuel Yarborough who fought in Japan in the late 90s. His record at retirement was 1-2. Interestingly though, his one victory was from a smother, where the excess Sumo weight certainly played its part. Unfortunately, there haven’t been too many Sumo’s to compete in MMA – but based on the limited information available, it doesn’t make for good reading.

Most Sumo wrestlers are severely overweight which isn’t good for fighting

Firstly, not all Sumo are massively overweight, and there are lower weight classes. Secondly, even the visibly obese Sumo are often more strong, athletic, and fit than they first appear. However, the issue is that whilst extra weight may help with wrestling, it doesn’t help with MMA. Often, these fighters will be against people of similar weight, who have much healthier bodies.

This means their opponent may be much stronger or have greater pound for pound cardio. When fighting, this is a big deal and can be the difference between winning and losing. Sadly, whilst the typical Sumo look may be iconic, it probably does more harm than good when being used in MMA.

Sumo cardio is vastly different from MMA cardio

In some MMA fights, a bout can last for 25 minutes. Whilst there are breaks in between rounds, the idea of MMA fighting is that it’s more of a marathon rather than a sprint. In Sumo, the idea is to grapple quickly, with a round usually lasting seconds. Then you can have a break, then another short burst of intensity. As you can imagine, this isn’t very applicable for MMA.

Basically, the issue is that Sumo cardio is very specific for its own ruleset, but struggles outside of this. In fairness, there are other martial arts like this, and this problem isn’t exclusive to Sumo either.

The Verdict

Overall, to be completely honest – it looks as though Sumo wrestling doesn’t translate very well to MMA. Although it’s a skilled martial art in its own right, it seems too specific and lacks the broadness to really work in MMA. Put simply, most of the Sumo moves and more can be used in generic wrestling which shuts down most of its strengths.

Having said this, the MMA community often seems to be too closed-minded about different martial arts at times. For example, if there were to be a dominant Sumo wrestler in MMA, then it wouldn’t be too surprising for it to be widely accepted into the MMA community. Perhaps what we do know right now is that it does have some practical implications, as seen with Machida. Like all things in MMA, it’s best to be well-rounded, so expecting a raw Sumo to perform well with strikes and submissions is naive. However, mixed in with these skills, then Sumo could potentially work to some extent.

In conclusion, it’s probably not worth learning Sumo if you want to be a professional MMA fighter. Whilst certain aspects may work, your time is probably better spent on other martial arts. At the same time, Sumo should still remain respected, and would certainly work against lesser-trained fighters and the untrained.

If you’d like to learn more about the history of Sumo then check out this book.