Roman Bravo-Young is (by force) leaving his bread and butter, which is the NCAA wrestling mat. After running out his collegiate eligibility, he walked away with enough team and individual hardware to last a lifetime.
With plenty of gas in the tank and the ambition to continue to conquer other spaces, RBY is looking to first conquer the submission grappling world at the FIGHT PASS Invitational.
Watch The UFC FIGHT PASS Invitational 4 Live June 29
Taking on former flyweight title challenger Alex Perez, Bravo-Young has his work cut out for him. Despite having folk style wrestling completely mastered, the two-time National champion is a relatively green white belt with proven scramble capabilities but no proven submission game.
He’s one of three types of incoming athletes in submission grappling. One with too much hype, one with a quiet entry void of any noise at all or, the rarest of the three, the “never enough hype.”
Watch The UFC FIGHT PASS Invitational 4 Live June 29
A wrestling legend with hardware of his own explains that while he may not be a traditional, devoted jiu jitsu practitioner, the Penn State 133-pounder has a lot to offer the grappling fans.
“BJJ fans should be excited about RBY because he’s the two-time NCAA Champion and one of the most acrobatic and crafty wrestlers the last four years,” explained two-time NCAA National champion and Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson.
Dual-wielding National championships himself, Steveson is the rare athlete who knows what it’s like to be as decorated as Bravo-Young. Although he accomplished everything he has thanks to a lifelong devotion to one craft, Steveson recognizes Bravo-Young’s potential impact and assures all wrestling fans that RBY in a rash guard is as exciting as RBY in a Penn State singlet.
“Wrestling fans should be excited about him branching off to new things because he’s growing himself and will always be remembered as an amateur wrestler for Penn State,” Steveson said. “Now it’s time for him to do his thing.”
Spoken like a true champion.
Do not miss the submission grappling debut of Penn State legend Roman Bravo-Young at the FIGHT PASS Invitational 4, LIVE Thursday, June 29, ONLY on UFC FIGHT PASS!
