It was painful watching Hughes maul him and him not tap...def a Beast for being the runt of the family.. He gave lil dudes help with superior technique and indomitable spirit...
What I appreciate most is that when I watched the early UFCs I didn’t appreciate him, but after I started training I was in awe of him. I try to ignore his post-pioneer era fights to. It tarnish his early and essential legacy.
No Matt I never did because he never fought in San Jose or Sacramento.The closest he came was LA & I have only been to LA twice to watch the first UFC in California at The Pond in Anaheim & Affliction at The Pond also.
I mostly went to those two shows because there was tailgate parties being put on by MrZipplokk from the UG.
Royce is up there with Bruce Lee for influential people that helped catapult MMA to where it is today.
1993 McNicols Sports Arena in Denver when the skinny Brazilian guy shocked the world taking out the Goliaths!
When fight fans saw what he was doing it sent a shockwave through the minds of martial artists! Everyone who for years was conditioned to want to strive and be a Karate guy or Kung Fu guy or Tae Kwon Do Guy now immedialty understood the shit to learn was BJJ!
That credit goes to Royce who by all accounts was not the top Gracie they could have placed in that tournament.
Royce early UFC run will forever cement his place in MMA History.