We had two fighters, last night, finish the year at the annual NAAFS Night of Champions. Brett Gruber faced Isaiah Chapman for the Bantamweight (135#) Amateur title and Nick Duell defended his Pro Welterweight (170#) title against recent TUF Alumni Dan Head.
I witnessed something from both of these guys in their matches that resonated with me about who they are and what we can learn from them that applies to sports (and life) performance.
Brett had a very tough first round. Isaiah was out striking him and when it went to the mat, was out positioning him. As the end of the round was drawing to a close, Isaiah had a rear naked choke, but Brett was escaping. As the timer announced 10 seconds were left, it looked like Brett was going to survive.
But then the bell rang. Brett was unconscious.
The next 90 seconds was bizzare. Brett was revivied, the ring Doctor and the Ref discussed what to do, the fighters were milling around, and the other cornerman and I were outside trying to figure out what was happening. Finally, the Ref told us to come in and he said that Brett passed out after the bell sounded and the fight would continue.
Brett fought throught the next two rounds and had his moments where he had submission opportunities. But he never gave up. He finished, but not as champion.
On the other hand, Nick had a good first round. He out struck Dan and took him down very quickly where he dominated with some excellent strikes from the guard. He obviously won the round.
In the second round, things changed and Dan secured a takedown and from there it stayed on the mat. Both were grappling very well; constantly changing positions and applying submission attempts. At one point, Dan was able to secure Nick's arm and got into a very strong position to finish. The arm bar was deep and Nick was close to giving in.
But he didn't.
He did an acrobatic escape off the cage to reverse the position, and eventually found a way to secure Dan's arm for the win. He finished and is still Champion.
In both of these situations, it would have been easy for us (Coach and Fan) had they not been able to continue. We would have rationalized that they got submitted by their opponents. Good Job fellas. Way to go. You trained hard, be proud. Hold your head up high.
But, it was not easy for either of them to stop in those moments. They refused to take the easy path. I don't know what they were thinking, but I know what I saw: Grit.
All of us could use a little of that in training and competition because MMA and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a microcosm of life: It is not easy; it shouldn't be. How we train and compete is also how we live (if you think it is seperate, it can't be. You are the same person in the gym as you are outside of it.) And adversity will always happen. How you perceive and react to when it occurs will be what matters.
I saw the same reaction to adversity out of two guys last night that I am proud to have witnessed. I am adding Grit to the top of my list of things to have and be. Will you?
