MMA is what it is today, thanks to Jiu-Jitsu. As many know, the UFC was created by Rorion Gracie as a way to test Jiu-Jitsu against  other martial arts. In the early days, Jiu-Jitsu was the clear winner. As more and more fighters began to realize that without Jiu-Jitsu, their MMA game would be severely lacking, many began to focus on Jiu-Jitsu, thus leveling the playing field.

Nowadays, being an amazing Jiu-Jitsu practitioner doesn’t guarantee you a victory. However, it’s always great to see Jiu-Jitsu win fights. Below are our 5 favorite MMA comebacks that were won last minute thanks to Jiu-Jitsu. Enjoy!

1) Frank Mir vs Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira / Submission: Kimura

Frank Mir and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira were the co-main event at UFC 140, which took place Dec. 10, 2011. The two had fought 3 years earlier and Mir had defeated Nogueira due to technical knockout. In this fight, Nogueira put on the pressure quickly in the first round and punched Mir. Mir turtled up and Nogueira kept pounding him – it almost looked like Mir was out. Then Nogueira decides to go for a guillotine. It all looked lost for Mir, but he was he was finally able to escape. The crowd goes nuts and he grabs Nogueira’s arm for a kimura. They then began to roll over several times which was awesome while still holding the kimura, until finally Mir got some stability and started cranking on his arm. Nogueira’s arm ended up breaking!

2) Brock Lesnar vs Shane Carwin / Submission: Arm Triangle

Shane Carwin was coming off a win of Frank Mir for interim heavyweight champion and was ready to face the current champ, Brock Lesnar at UFC 116 July 3, 2010. During this time, Brock was suffering an illness so had to pull out of previous fights due to his condition. In this fight, Lesnar survived a first round massacre. The ref almost stopped the fight several times, as Shane Carwin continued to pound Lesnar. As the 2nd round began. Lesnar is all bloodied up. He takes Carwin down and goes from full mount to the side in order to sink in the arm triangle. Amazing comeback.

3) Ronda Rousey vs Liz Carmouche / Submission: Armbar

Ronda was a heavy favorite in this UFC 157 on February 23, 2013. The important thing to note, is that this was the first women’s fight in UFC history. Ronda comes out super aggressive, as always, and begins to pound  on Carmouche. While on the ground, Carmouche ends up taking Rousey’s back and sinks in a choke. We had never seen Rousey in this much danger before. This choke was in deep and anyone else would have tapped out. Rousey refuses and ends up shaking Carmouche off her back. Rousey was very lucky. Then she ends up controlling the rest of the match, holding Carmouche, in her judo side control and eventually gets the armbar.

4) Fedor Emelianenko vs Kevin Randleman / Submission: Kimura

Kevin Randleman was set to face off Fedor Emelianenko in Pride Critical Countdown 2004 on June 20. In this fight, Kevin Randelman was a heavy underdog against Fedor, a true MMA legend. Kevin initially goes for a quick takedown. From there, he does one of the most amazing suplexes we have ever seen in MMA history. Fedor falls right on his neck. How Fedor survived remains a mystery, but in true Fedor fashion, he remains calm with no expression in his face. From there Fedor turns it around. He gets on top and gets a kimura!

5) Anderson Silva vs Chael Sonnen / Submission: Triangle Choke

This match took place Aug. 7, 2010 at UFC 117. Dana White wasn’t happy with Anderson Silva’s performance at UFC 112 and told the press that if he fought the same way – he would cut him. Chael Sonnen, like always, talked some great trash leading up to this fight. And maybe the combination of Chael’s trash talking, and Dana’s threats affected the way Silva fought. MMA fans around the world were in shock as Chael was winning all 4 rounds. Anderson Silva seemed indestructible up to this event. However, in round 5, as Chael kept pounding Silva, Silva must have prayed to the Jiu-Jitsu Gods, because out of nowhere, he pulled off a triangle. This was perhaps one of the greatest comebacks in history thanks to Jiu-Jitsu.

As you can see, it just takes one submission to end a fight. Remain calm and wait for your opportunity.