Demian Maia Blames Opponents For Lack Of Submission Wins

Demian Maia is arguably one of the most accomplished Jiu-Jitsu practitioners currently competing in MMA. With 9 of his 19 professional MMA wins coming by way of submission, Maia is one of the most lethal submission artists in the UFC.

Ahead of his UFC Fight Night 62 bout against Ryan LaFlare, Maia spoke about why he doesn’t have more wins by submission, and his answer provides an interesting view.

“People always go to the ground with me trying to just hold me. They stall and wait for the referee to stand them back up so they can start it all over,”

“It’s hard to fight Jiu-Jitsu like that, the way rules are today. If we fought like the old days, with no time limit, it would be better to work. We only have five minutes to work per round so it’s complicated, especially because everybody knows that my ground game is good.”

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– Transcription via MMAFighting