Inoue and Sotiropoulos both begin and end their seminar with classic jiu-jitsu escapes. Among the simple and fundamental movements that every black belt masters, escapes are especially valuable to the beginners in attendance who often find themselves in bad positions.
Inoue remembers when he learned how important it is to win the battle for positional dominance, and how it led to one of the most controversial moments of his fighting career.
The first bout between Enson Inoue and Joe Estes took place twelve years ago in Tokyo’s Korakuen Hall, but Inoue laughs, “I remember it like it was last month.”
Tommy has a great Enson Inoue interview below. But I realize there is the distinct possibility that many people reading this site may not be familiar with Inoue’s oeuvre. Enjoy the above highlight. Enson Inoue will never be remembered as a great fighter. He’s simply a man who wanted to test his limits. As an added bonus, he invented the TUF-Finale style of MMA standup. Respect due to a true warrior.
The PRIDE & Shooto legend and the budding UFC & TUF6 star talk to Total-MMA about their different martial arts paths and fighting spirit they share
“We always say, we’re cut from the same cloth,” Enson Inoue says with a smile. The pioneering MMA legend is about to begin conducting a jiu-jitsu seminar with current UFC star George Sotiropoulos at Fisticuffs Gym in Vancouver, WA. The two are friends from the days when Sotiropolous was cutting his teeth in Guam, fighting MMA at a show promoted by an old friend of Inoue.
“When I first met George, I looked at him,” Enson begins. “He was to fight this guy Sergio, this famous jiu-jitsu guy. And look at George, he doesn’t look like this mean dude. He looks like a nice guy, you know. I mean, he’s not a nice guy.”
“Hey! Come on now!” Sotiropoulos yells in a sarcastic protest.
Enson continues, mimicking George’s Australian accent: “‘Hey! I know you, Rites of Passages! Yeah!’ He wants to shake my hand… and I think, oh my God, this guy’s gonna get his ass kicked.”
