I Tried the World's TOUGHEST Martial Art

[@XarkoCZ]

The 60yo master has that kind of constant smile on his face you get when you know you can beat everyone in the room.

[@andresvalentin6924]

The kind of smile that Renzo Gracie seems to always have.

[@Kenpachi_White707]

The kind of smile that says "yeah I killed a guy" lol

[@hisoka524]

@@Kenpachi_White707 smh Bro

[@backwardscapguy1476]

I work out with a 60 year old guy in Muay Thai who has that look. He lets you get hits in when sparring and gives you tips and tricks or holds pads if you need them. But I saw one guy try to test him and the old man lit the guy up. It was kind of terrifying to watch how easy it was for him.

[@Bowdrie007]

Well when one has done a thing consistently for 50yrs at an extremely high level one tends to know a thing or two about it lol

[@MrWayne1701]

I could see you were struggling, breathless, pale sweaty, but you refused to give up and powered through...You're an impressive man, Sensei Seth.

[@ReligionAndMaterialismDebunked]

:3 Aikido and TAI CHI are the very best for self-defense! Anyone telling otherwise is just throwing a cop-out! XD Just Kittens. Hehehehe.

[@ReligionAndMaterialismDebunked]

:3 Mother Russia! Hehe. I'm part Russian. 😻🔥🤝✊ I've never been there, and I only know the word babushka. Hehe

[@mikenuzzo3323]

​@@ReligionAndMaterialismDebunkedwhat kittens? Oh sarcastic funny

[@rohitchaoji]

Something I've noticed about Sambo is that a lot of throws and takedowns are a part of a striking combination. The strikes close the distance and the takedown is very quick, compared to setting up a takedown entry with strikes like a lot of fighters do. I also realized this watching Fyodor's matches. The takedowns would very often be chained with the strikes in a way that there's no grappling "exchange" going on. Te throw/takedown just happens because the opponent gets caught in a compromised and imbalanced position, giving very little time for takedown defense.

[@dr.floridamanphd]

That’s part of what makes Sambo so brutal. I’m closing the gap with strikes. Now I’ve got my hands on you but I’m not in position to take you down. So I’m going to keep striking, however possible, until I get an opening to take advantage of, slam your on the ground, and move directly in to a submission. It’s pretty overwhelming.

[@emanuelabaula]

It is what makes Sambo very good it's the capacity to incorporate and combine striking takedowns and submissions. Most guys from MMA train JJB, Wrestling, or Judo and BOxing, or another striking sport, and sometimes have some issues with combining them. In combat Sambo, it is all worked together from the start. In Sambo competition after a takedown, you have very limited time to start a submission so the combination of takedown and submission is quite well worked. Of course, it doesn't go to the same depth as JJB does for the groundwork, but it does seams to adapt pretty well for MMA.

[@dr.floridamanphd]

@@emanuelabaula we all got to see just how effective BJJ’s ground game is when Ken Shamrock smothered Royce Gracie for 35 minutes. 😂

[@emanuelabaula]

@@dr.floridamanphd I have practiced both of them, my base is Sambo I did 3rd in the combat World championship in 2003, I have a good wrestling background and I practiced BJJ (purple belt under Gracie Barra), I can compare them. Bjj goes much more in-depth and that is the rules that want that, there is no time limit so working your positions is very important, and little by little you get to that submission, Sambo you have very limited time to continue your attack on the ground after a takedown so either you attack immediately or the fight goes back up. that is why the combination is very interesting in sambo where you are preparing the submission during the takedown, it also makes it an effective sport in MMA. BJJ just has a different approach probably a little less good in MMA but better on their groundwork. Then that's my personal opinion of course.

[@kiabtoomlauj6249]

@@dr.floridamanphd And that's exactly what Islam did to Charles. Charle's pure BJJ likely is a bit better and he's a very good free style wrestler, too. But his Judo is almost non-existence. That's because while BJJ is derived from Judo, Brazilians stripped away the most important aspect of Judo in BJJ: the grip. The grip, as Travis Stevens (Silver Medalist at the Brazilian Olympics in Judo) said, determines what position you're going to be in, when a take-down is realized, regardless who initiates the take-down: if you have a superior grip to your opponent, while standing, on the way to the mat, you will likely end up being in the dominant position. SAMBO not only retained the Judo grip, it also added striking and free style wrestling to it. So, the comical saying of "If you punch a BJJ black belt really hard in the face, he becomes a brown belt; and if you punch him again really hard in the face, he's a white belt..." became a reality, in the Islam-Charles fight: Islam punched the next level BJJ Charles really hard in the fact and the latter instantly was just a brown belt in BJJ. A brown belt BJJ guy has no chance against a master combat Sambo guy on the mat.

[@foshizzlfizzl]

So many people don't understand Sambo and are laughing at it. But Sambo is one of the best foundations for MMA. And it's soooo underestimated, especially in the west.

[@f1r3hunt3rz5]

Probably no longer the case since Khabib Nurmagomedov.

[@Shush959]

@@f1r3hunt3rz5 I think Fedor Emelianenko also pionered sambo back in the Pride FC Days

[@arumatai]

if you ever face symptoms in training after an infection like seth did in this video: stop training and give it another 2 weeks as not to risk myocarditis, which might permanently damage your heart and ability to train.

[@escre]

+ Post-covid, this advice seems necessary now more than ever

[@matheuspn2722]

Only valid for vaccinated people

[@arumatai]

@@matheuspn2722 "only valid" is BS, pardon my french. there is an increased myo- and pericarditis risk through intense physical activity during all kinds of infections and also during convalescence. but thee are still people out there who think they can "sweat out" a flu by training through it. which is quite foolish and stupidly risky fro no added benefit: while convalescent or infected your body is too busy to make gains anyway.

[@matheuspn2722]

@@arumatai Why are you babbling? Go to pubmed

[@mrrabbit5555]

So true

[@ebellyfish4256]

My first judo teacher was also a Sambo expert from Russia, he was tough as nails, but also super nice! We miss you, Sergei!

[@madafaka8784]

My third is! I hope he's doing alright, haven't seen him in a while.

[@peterk2735]

Sambo is really popular here in eastern europe, cool to see it being trained in the US. Also combat sambo tournaments in particular are friggin cool to watch, you see some crazy shit going down!

[@AvioftheSand]

Unfortunately, it's not as big as it should be over here. That honor belongs to Brazilian jiu-jitsu thanks to the first handful of UFCs being essentially, a Gracie infomercial.

[@Redneck_Wizard]

I hope it becomes more popular here and more Sambo gyms start opening. The nearest Sambo training facility to me is 5 hours away so I am training Judo and MMA to get as close of a fighting style to Sambo as I can while planning to visit Sambo gyms for some classes.

[@LeonSebas]

I wish it was more popular in California. We only have one and it’s located in an orange county which is two hours away from where I live.

[@angryktulhu]

combat sambo is like the first MMA created in the modern era ))) way before UFC became a thing

[@Grenader1315]

I practiced sambo and judo in my youth, at a sports school in Russia (but we were engaged without punching), and I am glad to see a video about this sport in the USA :)

[@dennisrittenhouse9746]

Glad that you finally gave Sambo a try! I started training it at the age of 5 and still love it. I often feel like Sambo is portrayed as a form of brainless violence in the USA, so it's cool that you pointed out what it's really about. Character Development, strength, collaborative learning and always pushing yourself to the next level.

[@fireeaglefitnessmartialart935]

Idk about "brainless violence", cuz we have many martial arts styles and competitions for them. I think usa disconnects from sambo because of the russian influence. Almost anything russian, makes americans go "ew, gross. Stay away." And the political environment doesn't help.

[@LilLingLing6789]

Sure you have

[@adamcz3183]

Unfortunately, America's full of a bunch of brainwashed sheep who believe anything the fake news tells them so because it's sambo aka Russia bad... Bunch of BS.

[@ShqipeKnocksMMA]

How old are you now, 6?

[@dennisrittenhouse9746]

@@ShqipeKnocksMMA soon I´ll be 7🤩

[@yakuza01]

One thing that is not pointed out here is that the transitions from standing to ground. It's encouraged to be thought of as one single move/sequence instead of being compartmentalized (e.g. I do the takedown AND THEN look for a submission). This is something that has been adopted in the U.S. so it's not as much of a "mystery" but if you watch Fedor's fights back in the day, you could see this philosophy/tactic pretty much at play. Also, the reason why Seth's striking was partly neutralized (outside of him not feeling well), is the jackets and the instructor being able to hold on to him and prevent him from creating space to set up anything. It's one of the main things that makes Combat Sambo so practical. Nothing against boxing or kickboxing (I like both) but they don't train for scenarios like where somebody got a hold of your jacket/shirt and it's repeatedly punching you with the same hand. Basically, the shit you see in hockey fights except with more technique and as set up for other techniques.

[@captainkirk7513]

this is only slightly related question but since you speak of hockey fights... could you maybe explain in short...how they are... a thing? I see so many mass brawls and 1vs Hockey fights when I search the term - are they not penaltized for that? are they encouraged? Ive never seen a "soccer field brawl" or a "basket ball field brawl" - whats the thing with those "hockey fights"?

[@junichiroyamashita]

​@@captainkirk7513hockey is the only sport where fights between players are "tolerated",there is a thing called "The Code" that explains it,they are not ufficial rules,moreso an agreement. If you want to fight someone,you ask them,if they accept you go to the side and duke it out. I was taken aback when i found out.

[@Viking_Raven]

True, the lower body attacks are relegated to knees to the body and thighs, more to create an opening for a take down. This is exactly why more technical kicks from other martial arts don't work in fights. You need time and distance. As for boxing the biggest limitation are the rules. When you're taught boxing you're also taught to abide by its rules, naturally. So no grappling, no kicking, etc. Etc. All these limitations diminish the effectiveness of boxing.

[@chochofuckaman]

This is a great video! As a Sambo practitioner myself, I am happy that someone finally showed the world how tough the training is! Kudos

[@xXZaxoflameXx]

Every Saturday I watch the newest Sensei Seth vid to lift my spirits before going to train. Thank you for getting beat up for us every week! =D

[@ReligionAndMaterialismDebunked]

:p

[@darkpyrolord1808]

Lung issues while training martial arts is no joke. Especially high intensity/impact forms. I had a competition to prep for while recovering from bronchitis, and easy training would knock me on my butt for days. Thanks for sharing this, I've been interested in Sambo. It's really cool to see the Judo, Wrestling, and BJJ moves and how they blend together.

[@the_ag_101]

Sambo has no BJJ moves, it has original Kodokan Judo moves.

[@GrowingDownUnder]

thanks for letting me know, i've had 2 collapsed lungs and some big holes in my lungs, had surgery and 3% of my lung removed and then a pleurodesis where they attach the lung to the wall of the chest cavity to stop it collapsing again. I been wanting to learn a new martial art but i'll maybe find something else instead of sambo if having a bad lung is not a good idea

[@youtubemodsaresnowflakelef7692]

@@the_ag_101 That's what these BJJ cultists don't get... BJJ is essentially very old school Judo with a little bit of old school Jiu Jitsu thrown in. The Judo we see nowadays is very watered down, many tournaments don't even allow chokes anymore (let alone any lever submissions)...

[@the_ag_101]

​@@youtubemodsaresnowflakelef7692 It doesn't even have old Ju Jutsu in it as Kano himself made sure all the battlefield techniques are removed from every aspect of Judo except kata, and of course count locks and chokes. Real Judo is 50% stand-up, 50% groundwork, always has been. Everything else is a matter of specific rulesets (IJF, Kosen...).

[@wigletron2846]

@@the_ag_101 BJJ has kodokan Judo moves

[@arturo_cruz]

So essentially Sambo is one of the best MMA because Sambo itself is a MMA.

[@heymelon]

Kind of, yeah.

[@Biden977]

It’s judo and wrestling and bjj

[@_rd_kocaman]

@@Biden977 bjj is judo + wrestling + ground submissions

[@juanvi.n]

@@_rd_kocaman plus Muay Thai and Headbutts

[@brandonfitzgerald-eo3tk]

​@@juanvi.nlithwei

[@dustinsegers4534]

It's great to see you visiting my old gym! I wasn't able to do Sambo there due to a chronic illness, but I did BJJ there. That's a great gym and one of the best gyms to train grappling at in the Southeastern U.S. Good job, you picked a super tough martial art to try that time!

[@sanic0718]

I like Sambo!! I LOVE that incorporated judo, freestyle wrestling, AND striking. That’s like all of my fave things!

[@gailvalleymartialarts]

That's very cool that you did Sambo and Rokas did Kudo! I think these two arts are quite similar. It would be interesting if you tried Kudo next and he tries Sambo, and then you can get together and review/compare both arts.

[@ArkhBaegor]

Yes please! Just started Kudo myself, it's awesome! (Sadly Seth will have a hard time finding a Kudo dojo, I think there are only 3 in the US)

[@franklynjoseph9855]

That's such a cool idea

[@piccorigoulo8727]

But... why not MMA tho? Isn't that pretty much the same?

[@thesun564]

@@piccorigoulo8727 mma doesn’t have cool fucking gi bro

[@MartialArtsJourney]

That's a great idea! Sambo is definitely on my list! I was even thinking about making my own: "I Tried The Toughest Martial Art" video by doing Sambo, but Seth beat me to it 😄 But that of course doesn't mean I shouldn't try it anymore 😂 And yes, Seth and I will meet in Sydney in February for the Ultimate Self Defense Championship, so maybe we can compare our experience then :)

[@PhilipZeplinDK]

Still looking forward to a Lethwei video someday! Headbutts gooooooooo!

[@cashofferorterms]

Just about to start training in Sambo myself. I wrestled in 8th grade so Sambo is up my alley. Injured from BJJ so having to recover 1st. Lucky to have one of Ben's students who is teaching it. I Need to work on building my chest up is the biggest challenge I have. I would love and attend to train with Ben when possible. Mad respect, thanks for the video!

[@Kemp1730]

Love your stuff man, thank you so much for putting yourself through all of this!! From battling in armor to kickin it with Wonderboy I appreciate you sharing your journey.

[@maxiebojangles5823]

Sensi seth ..i am a new subscriber an thanks for the experience. Life long Judo here an love sambo. Jitz is great too lol Anyway i enjoyed your honesty an genuine personality. Keep up the good work !

[@vladimirgertner3960]

To be fair to Seth, in the combat sambo round, he found some openings, and if it wasn't friendly sparring, he would maybe have a shot there with a good strike. Of course, he was never going to be "winning" but still, very impressive.

[@GOBRAGH2]

Bring Shintaro with you next time and lets see how that works out. Very interesting content Seth!

[@Calmzat]

Great video Seth I too recently went back to training BJJ and Muay Thai after the Flu/Cold/Covid don’t beat yourself up to much over it and rest if you need too!

[@johnschroeder7039]

You got my subscribe. I’m an amalgamation of martial arts training and skills. I love your honesty and transparency. I feel like if we genuinely pursue truth and allow ourselves to be changed by it and to change with it, there is stable and sustainable growth. Very strong. I appreciated this video and I will watch your next one.

[@ChanceC5]

Thanks!

[@SenseiSeth]

No, thank you!

[@znail4675]

That warmup looked very much like wrestling.

[@SenseiSeth]

Cause he made me look like a baby, I was trying hard lol

[@BaneTier]

Late reply. But sambo is recognised as an actual wrestling style.

[@benjaminkuhn2878]

honestly this looks like so most real fighting you can get with a martial arts.

[@محمدالكناني-ق6ب]

Sensei seath ,You are capable and distinguished in all your topics and information about martial arts around the world. Thank you for all your wonderful and distinguished videos. I wish you prosperity

[@arrubla08]

I've been training for the last few months and I totally understand how overwhelming it can get to be, but with discipline and practice you start to get a hold of techniques and escapes and you start to feel powerful, glad to see sambo getting more exposure.

[@camiloiribarren1450]

And this is why it’s good to come in with open mind. You never know how tough the training will be in different schools. That’s definitely a strong lesson

[@isrracho3918]

I loved the video, just awesome how sensei try new things, no ego on him, respect.

[@jaygannon1095]

They're all closely related, coming from judo, and my own feeling is that judo training is the best for mastering the art of throwing someone, BJJ's the best for control on the ground especially if you have unlimited time to work with but SAMBO is by far better than both at managing the transition from standing to the ground and the subsequent scrambles that happen, and the reason it has seen such success is that the reality of fights is that it often comes down to who manages that transition between the phases of a fight most effectively that prevails. Thanks for a great video, have you ever considered taking up one of these grappling arts full time? :) It would be great to watch your progress over time in it.

[@ramizbari8923]

I am always impressed with your willingness to try new combat arts more so this time having just, kind of, recovered from flu 😮

[@robinjowitt1234]

I'm a huge jiu jitsu fan, but if the first UFC had a sambo fighter we'd probably be looking at quite a different martial arts world right now

[@C-F98]

​@Dnomyar Akunawik Remember how everyone wanted to take down Khabib Nurmagomedov? That was one helluva fighter.

[@User-rf3iq]

Sambo is russian MMA, it's not a style.. it doesn't have anything uniquely as its own thing

[@hakimgillard-nc3lm]

@@User-rf3iqmost fighting styles are mma

[@TheproGamer_Z]

ayo hard2hurt and sensiseth uploading in the same day?! i must be LUCKY!

[@darrellowings2343]

Very good video. See this is what we need. People like Seth and surely the MMA community waking up and studying this stuff. You've got to be asleep by this point to not see there is an advantage here. I believe it's the next phase of MMA.

[@mikuspalmis]

I don't even train and I've been doing research over the past year and it doesn't take much thought to realize that a progressively refined synthesis sambo+judo+bjj+catch wrestling would be the ultimate for grappling alone or part of mma.

[@operaanimelover369]

The greatest aspect of Sambo that I have learned to appreciate is that it relies on full grappling power with effective takedowns and equally powerful strikes. The video game nerd in me has also learned to appreciate Sambo on a deeper level because of how characters such as Zangief from Street Fighter implement this martial art in terms of their strikes, grapples, and power-ups. In the real world, there have also been mixed martial artists who also have Sambo in their repertoire including Fedor Emelianenko, Alexander Emelianenko, Jason Chambers, Dean Lister, Volk Han, Andrei Arlovski, and Dan Severn. Therefore, Sambo is definitely one martial art that needs a whole lot of love and appreciation just as much as Pankration, Vale Tudo, and Kapu Kuialua.

[@operaanimelover369]

@Khabib Nurmagomedov Yes, even Dragunov used Sambo.

[@wild_shaman]

Being a boy in one of post-USSR countries I can tell sambo saved a lot of lives. We did sambo trainings instead of alco, smoking, narco and all other funny stuff when you are young. Thanks to soviet legacy it was free for some years. And trainers were professionals in sport and boys' psychology.

[@Gstrugglin]

Having done Sambo for a year with a high level guy, I felt your pain all over again. Great job hanging in there bro!

[@simmme]

Awesome video! Sambo is so brutal!

[@ThousandTimesNo]

This is most interesting martial art i've seen so far. We really appreciate Your effort Seth... I mean seriously - my son and daughter train Karate and Your channel is one of two i almost force them to watch.

[@MonkeyFist]

Sambo and kudo is super cool : D I just got a sambo book week ago. I am judoka with some tma background. I will not learn a lot from "just book" but i can get some cool ideas for my judo game : D You did a good job Seth : D

[@sveinoleaase]

This is my go to when I need to unwind. You and your two friends pesonfies an important aspect of martial arts. Fun and deeper respect in a brotherhood. There are something to be said about being dangerous and kind.

[@I_Might_B_Wrong]

I'm going to start working with a Master of Sport in Sambo in my area soon. He isn't opening any classes yet, but invited me to open mat to learn some. I can't wait!

[@mikuspalmis]

Where?

[@mikuspalmis]

@@I_Might_B_Wrong Got it, thanks! That's crazy that no one would show up to Sambo! Especially considering how rare it is to have an instructor in the US, and for bein such a badass fighting system.

[@I_Might_B_Wrong]

@@mikuspalmis This coach won his weight division at Nationals for Combat Sambo this year, his second time doing so, and competed at Worlds. He's super legit. Master of Sport under AASF. USA Sambo does not award Master of Sport to Americans for political reasons. Believe it or not, Sambo is nowhere near as popular amongst the general training population as it is amongst us nerds online. Many haven't heard of it, and many straight up don't like getting thrown and that's a major part of Sambo - which is essentially a variation of Judo that kept leg attacks.

[@mikuspalmis]

@@I_Might_B_Wrong I totally believe it, and it's interesting that it's like that given how well known Fedor and Khabib are. But like you said, I guess people don't like bein thrown. 😄 BJJ's huge but, as we know, it's only part of the picture. And then some people have hang ups about Russia.

[@I_Might_B_Wrong]

@@mikuspalmis If there were a full time Sambo class, I'd be there often. It's a lot of fun. It's not entirely what people expect, but I enjoy it for sure.

[@edwardrook8146]

This is becoming one of my favorite youtube channels on martial arts

[@mr.absolute8556]

"I was in Irak and he hadn't had his first icecream" is such a badass line that I want somebody to quote sometime again

[@OppaiAI]

Well, that's how age works ....

[@thomaswhaley9799]

I just found your channel. It’s very entertaining. I can’t just watch one video. Keep up the great work!

[@orlandocarrasquillo4481]

Russians train Sambo and Judo alongside each other and tend to compete in both, not to mention, that as not uncommon that many also do freestyle wrestling too. So that's why you have the strong base of integrated grappling like many Russians do. Also, the striking like he said comes from like kyukoshinkai karate, and a somewhat of their own raw mixture of like oriental rules kickboxing, which means low kick-oriented kickboxing with no knees, elbows basically before K-1 rules. They use knees and elbows too, but from more of a kyukoshinkai perspective vs a pure muay thai one.

[@schwindsichtigaderechte5293]

I rarely ever saw anyone just exuding "experienced fighter" like Rothrock. The way he looks, the way he talks, the way he moves, you just know he means business. No flash, all substance.

[@vyderka]

as somebody who does sambo, combat version in eastern Europe, i may share some thoughts about the way it is practise here and is developing now. first the training is super demanding, i did judo, muay thai both at a competitive level, boxing, some Chinese shit, and sambo is just that harder and more demanding, maybe because it's all about ground and standing up grappling seamlessly mixed with kicks and strikes and headbutts. technically wise, where i train, most stress is placed on stand-up wrestling and then ground fighting and striking, it all has to work together seamlessly. tactically wise attacking is far more important than defense, it is taught of course, but constant aggressive pressure is the way to go. because guys take more and more part in MMA competition no-gi training becomes prevalent all the way and across the board, be it grappling or just striking game, i'm old and kind of set in my ways so i'm one of the last who often trains in gi, not the traditional sambo kurtka, but just judo gi, because who cares, it's almost the same. oh, and in shorts, we never put on these gi trousers, like never. this American guy excluded weapons, yet here we marginally learn about using a baton/stick and a knife, it's not important and not trained often, but it is present ;) i highly recommend trying sambo.

[@mralukard]

SAM-B-O - "SAMoodbrana Bez Oruzja", literally translates to "Self-defence without weapon"

[@vyderka]

@@mralukard a man learns something new all his life, in that case shame on me, I didn't know the meaning of the acronym in the language so close to my own :( all my life I was sure it means something else, what's more I practice it for so many years :/ anyway IT IS and WAS practised with weapons, historically it was also taught with a shovel, AK and whatever a soldier might have got in his hands, now we sometimes do a knife or baton. Not for the sport environment of course :D I'll edit this part in my original comment with the misinterpretation of the sambo acronym not to mislead anybody. Many thanks for the lesson!

[@mralukard]

@@vyderka No shame man, I didn't want you to feel bad, just wanted to tell you what SAMBO name meant. The Russian army sure has knives, AKs, shovels etc implemented in SAMBO in hand to hand combat arsenal

[@antonkabeshkin5399]

@@mralukard A minor linguistic correction: it would have been "Samooborona" had it been that word; officially it's "Samozatschita"("самозащита"), which means basically the same thing.

[@christopherwinrow3878]

Brilliant video mate respect YNWA brother

[@Anorexiaification]

Great respect for this tryout!

[@carlosReyes-sm5rg]

I think you will hit a million in no time! Keep it going!

[@EqualizerCombatives]

Both coaches are great blokes with incredible knowledge it seems, id definitely train there.

[@neonblack211]

super cool video ive always been interested in sambo since fedor

[@Seissmo]

Looks tough. I’m gonna eat my Mac & Cheese now.

[@threeoakshw]

I love to watch a new person spar an experienced one (new in Sambo for you). Makes the skill so much easier to see. Thank you for your humility. Super fun.

[@dungeonsanddobbers2683]

Went to a sambo seminar years ago in one of those dodgy sawdust gyms out in Glasgow that was being taught by a Russian immigrant who was (allegedly) former Spetsnaz GRU. Now, I'm not the fittest or most athletic person, but I had studied a few martial arts and sambo was, by a long shot, one of the most intense workouts I've had in my life. It was the first time I'd been pushed so hard physically that I had to vomit.

[@AugustMMA]

I have been waiting for this very video for a long time!

[@t.weber64kg]

Me too man. I love Sambo and compete internationally so I love seeing it get some coverage.

[@BobSaint]

Sambo is just a name. What it is in its core, is the earliest modern version of mixed martial arts. Jacket allows more Judo takedown techniques, the rules are a bit different, but at the end of the day, yeah - it's mma. PS: In ex-CCCP and today's Russia, cross-training between wrestlers, judokas and samboists is considered normal, almost obligatory.

[@conmcgrath7174]

Thanks for the honesty and your efforts. I grew up in the martial arts boom when Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris and Bill Wallace certainly had an audience of avid teenagers who definitely wanted to be cool and indestructible. As a skinny, wiry, poverty stricken youth (with a life-changing injury) I would train whenever I could but when I became an adult I trained regularly in the local most 'bad ass' club I could find. I won't mention the 'style' out of respect for the many great lessons from excellent tutors, they were good and so I became good at full contact 'punchy-kicky' stuff, which has it's limitations. Fast forward plenty years and I was moving with my work in a nomadic style but I was always drawn to Jiu Jitsu and also to the significant fact that I simply can't rely on over-powering a stronger guy. I feel your pain, to submit in training is a good thing but be careful not to accept it too often. It's a fine balance with good training (at high levels) to not get 'fucked up', you don't want to injure your partner just doing techniques (we work for a living) but you absolutely need to forget about tapping out when you go for real? It's an old problem, just how realistic can you make training before people simply cannot continue ? At it's most basic level, martial arts in any style should be about 'effing up' the other guy as quickly and efficiently as possible, nothing pretty about doing it for real. You cannot spar with strikes to the eyes, spitting, biting, slams to the ear etc but in the real world everything is possible. Well impressed. Pax dude Edit Subscribed!

[@LukeC908]

A few months ago, I decided to go back to my bjj class after taking some time off and went to the 7:00 am class, but didn’t realize that I was going to the bjj-wrestling takedown class where the competition guys go. Pretty much felt the same way.

[@TheKing-dm3br]

I start my sambo training for a cage match in 4 months tomorrow. Thanks for the motivation!

[@twasgracethattaught]

Okay I may not be a Sambo guy but I'm somewhat close. I am a second year wrestler and have studied Japanese jujitsu and judo for about 5 years now. As somebody who is primarily a striker I can firmly say wrestling is harder. It's more taxing you can never be off or you lose, striking you can get room take a little time and manage distance. Wrestling your in the tie up or looking to set up the tie up. That's it.

[@Septoneien]

Having wrestled for 11 years. Can confirm. Folkstyle and freestyle. I'm aware strikes are useful but grappling wears people out like nothing else. Especially if they never trained for it at all.

[@mikuspalmis]

There is sport sambo which is just grappling and then combat sambo which is basically mma.

[@jonsincc]

YOOOOOO THATS MY OLD INSTRUCTOR OVER AT OCTAGON MMA IN GREENSBORO HOLY SHIT MAN THATS SO CRAZY I TRAINED AT HIS SCHOOL FOR A FEW fun times good gym i wanna go back

[@jedijudoka]

I’ve been doin judo for 12 years. I actually wanted to do sambo but there wasn’t any around me. I’d still love to cross train if I could.

[@connorblack8731]

I love sambo, I've not been consistent enough to be very good as I specialise in wushu however that's a W.I.P but it's an awesome sport to experience. Totally with you on when you said he's always just there, attached to you, that's the biggest struggle with gi/kurtkha based sports and what makes them so fascinating

[@phtevenmolz5030]

Coach meant your first post-game ice cream during little league season, not your first ever. 😂

[@eb3279]

Sambo is cool. I'm a wrestling/BJJ/Judo guy and tried it out. I found my experience was useful but I also got to learn some new, clever ideas. Great to cross train! I also love how they start as MMA as opposed to learning MT, BJJ, some takedowns, mostly from different coaches and classes, and having to learn to combine them.

[@jimmynich4791]

I think sambo is the perfect mix of emphasis on throws and time on the floor grappling. Like the pre IOC nerfed version of Judo.

[@Marc-fr6ls]

Coach rothrock is a very big and strong man. And well trained. ts no shame in losing from him. Even a karate teacher. Sambo is very impressive

[@llawliet3733]

Combat Sambo is basically the hardest Discipline in the World since 1. It allows nearly all known Techniques 2. It adds some Techniques forbidden in most other Styles 3. It incorporates all known ways of winning a Match except for Ringout 4. To enter groundgrappling Phase you have to take down your opponent. Its not possible to just sit down like in BJJ

[@uuh4yj43]

you arent allowed to sit or lay into guard?? or is it just a "we dont do that" kind of thing and there is no rule against it?

[@llawliet3733]

@@uuh4yj43 you arent allowed. To start the ground fighting phase, you have to take down your opponent

[@nikvett]

@@llawliet3733 that's so cool, i wish we had sambo here in my country and city...

[@Dantrag123]

There is a problem with combat sambo: it is not so very technically refined even here in post-soviet states. A proper sambo practicioner should learn sport sambo/judo/amauter wrestling first (for solid sport basis) and only then start to learn combat sambo.

[@llawliet3733]

@@Dantrag123 Most Practitioners do the basics since their Childhood and transition into Combat Sambo in their youth.

[@napzilla]

WOW You have some serious dedication Seth; I think most people would of quite after the cramps but to walk into one of the most Deadly H2H forms in the world when your not at 100% and pitting yourself against guys that apparently need a Novel sized Book to just hold their accolades... Your a Phenom in your own Right! Thanks for getting your butt whipped so others don't have too or like this video just show the Diversity that is the Fighting arts. All my respect and praise are not enough to convey my Thanks.

[@meesert]

Its basicly MMA in a gi with a more eastern approach on wrestling. A very well rounded and tested combat art, which is why Sambo guys usually do well in high level MMA.

[@command_unit7792]

Competition wise yeah its very similar to MMA but it does have its own quirks as a martial art and training regime that make it a bit more focused then MMA

[@silverwolf6194]

"If sambo was easy it would be called jiu jitsu." Just saying that before anyone else 😄😄

[@apoleonschneider]

I wonder how that sambo teacher would do against a bjj black belt with the same weight.

[@torstenscott7571]

There was a time when bjj looked almost indistinguishable from sambo. It was much more direct and less competition oriented in the modern bjj sense.

[@Sensei_Frog]

@@apoleonschneider sambo wins, I’ve seen it and heard about it.

[@silverwolf6194]

@@torstenscott7571 You're right, similarly back in the day, Judokas had a great submission game.

[@JenniferSamedi]

@@apoleonschneider that sambo teacher is also a bjj black belt, and has been there done that. You can watch his content on my channel.

[@BMO_Creative]

Wow man! Awesome work!

[@monsterzoom5929]

Nice one! Please try Sanda as well! It would bring lung capacity to another level!

[@scifiness]

Practiced Sambo in high school and then university, trained by USSR ex--champion (he looked surprisingly similar to Leo :) ), best memories and man it was indeed tough.

[@jmiddlefinger]

Subscribed. This was great content, Seth. Look forward to going down the rabbit hole

[@JohnSmith-rr3jt]

Sambo probably is the toughest to learn because it's the only complete single martial art. Striking, grappling, wrestling, clinch fighting, all types of takedowns and ground fighting. Not sure if there is any other martial art that has every single aspect of MMA rolled into one.

[@miesvaillanykyisyytta3252]

Different types of European jujutsu (German, British and the like) have had a thing like that going on since the 70's I think. Some of their techniques may not be 'pressure tested' but these styles exist. Of course there is also hapkido, which is heavy on kicks and pain compliance grappling, which is not considered highly effective whereas these semi-obscure jujutsu styles seem to add a lot of striking to a judo base.

[@cahallo5964]

Some jujutsu styles have all of that plus weapons, granted, Sambo is better on the ground (because Judo is jujutsu but incredibly improved) but they are probably even in the stand up and jujutsu is better with weapons

[@yamiyomizuki]

silat has all those things to at least some degree

[@novadhd]

I think Hapkido does

[@uuh4yj43]

@@novadhd i think hapkido has the same principles as sambo but sambo has been way more pressure tested and honed as a martial art. thats why it was so dominant in early mma(and still effective today) whereas hapkido still hasnt and probably wont nowadays break thru into the scene in any significant way since most fighters nowadays are well rounded with mastery of at least one discipline, whereas in the early days most people were either specialists or were just moderately adept at multiple disciplines. combine that with pressure testing changing fighting tactics both for mma and sambo i think hapkido is way too behind the curve.

[@bearmaple9242]

Sambo is a lot of fun. I did it as a teen and would love to do it again. Props to you!!!

[@bratwurststattsucuk4517]

Wish I had any Sambo Gyms in my Area 😒

[@ElExiawolf]

I feel ya, I wish we had one as well ):

[@StarTraining]

Awesome! I've always wanted to try this.

[@HybridMMAExtreme]

I trained at octagon mma and krav maga before with ben rothrock he is a great coach I also sparred with him before I remember one time before I had him in thai clinch and he used some judo leg trip on me and I landed on my ass lol but coach ben and coach leo are both great guys.

[@Outsidecontext]

Awesome to see you trying out all these arts. I appreciate the graft. We are similar sizes, so it is nice to see stand-up fighter roll with these guys.

[@Pifagorass]

Funny thing about my Combat Sambo experience during my teenage years - almost nothing I did is not recommended/allowed in Gracie BJJ gym ... I don't remember a single moment of couch stopping adults overdoing routines on me or my friend... I had my Sambovke full of stains from kicked lips and similar events. My Sambovke (top of Gi/Kimono) was very intimidating during Karate classes until I bought Karate 🥋 ;)

[@werewolf74]

that roll over at like 6:20 is cool. grips cross arm rolls over uses left arm to keep rotation then his right to push off thigh and transition to north south. at 9:21 if you had just braced with left leg instead of stepping inside guard from behind, you had that. he was leading you even with his back turned which is crazy.

[@bakachocorobo-kun4728]

“This is the first class I’ve taken since having the flu...” Me sitting here with a cold: “Well shoot.”

[@conchosewing]

im happy i trained sambo and judo for almost 30 years now, its real and practical stuff its cool that you managed to try it

[@GraveRave]

If there is a martial at I want to learn so much it's Sambo, it has everything.

[@rogersherrell]

Sensei Rothrock will make you see your soul escape your body. Harai Goshi hip toss slam🥋

[@LemmyAuditYou]

For us guys in our 50's, you got ice cream if you won your little league game Seth, so if you just started it, you hadn't had your first ice cream.

[@PanicMachine423]

You're a tough mama-jama man. That looked utterly demoralising and you never quit for a second

[@elramswood]

Do a follow up second video doing this style.

[@mikuspalmis]

I think so too. Full energy.

[@vig237]

Karate actually was prohibited in the USSR. Teaching Karate was sentenced to prison. I'm not joking. SAMBO appeared as a Soviet alternative mostly used for Paratroopers and other military later was evolved in Systema.

[@baconatertom8175]

S self A defense M without B weapons O (just there)

[@SusanooMain]

SAMooborona Bez Oryzhiya = Sambo

[@j.henson7089]

@@SusanooMain

[@luxurybuzz3681]

"I can't get this guy f***ing off of me!" - Dustin Porier during his fight against Khabib

[@AlphaBravoDingo]

the wrestling coach in my highschool started a grappling club. With a little jiu jitsu practice under my belt, I joined up. When I walked in, I saw his sambo jacket hanging up and knew immediately that I was in for it. The dude was made of brick.

[@mikuspalmis]

Where was this?

[@HPLNTV]

Very nice! I was fascinated by Sambo in 1982, trained a little bit. Later I switched and went into different arts. But I still think it is nice.