Wrestling
What Is Wrestling?
Wrestling is a form of grappling built around controlling another person through position, movement and leverage.
A wrestler learns how to establish grips, disrupt balance, complete takedowns and maintain control against an opponent who is actively resisting.
Depending on the style, wrestling may also include throws, pins, escapes, reversals and ground-based attacks.
There are no strikes. The challenge comes from learning how to move, react and solve problems while another person is trying to do the same.
Wrestling develops balance, coordination, strength, fitness and body awareness - but its greatest value is learning how to apply those qualities with timing and control.
A Brief History of Wrestling
Wrestling is one of the oldest known forms of physical competition.
Depictions of wrestling appear in ancient Mesopotamian and Egyptian art, while wrestling became part of the ancient Olympic Games in Greece in 708 BC.
Different communities subsequently developed their own forms of wrestling, shaped by local customs, clothing and competitive traditions.
Modern organised wrestling emerged from this much wider family of regional styles. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, rules became increasingly standardised, producing the international disciplines recognised today.
Greco-Roman wrestling featured at the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896. Freestyle wrestling joined the Olympic programme in 1904, and women’s freestyle was introduced in 2004.
Beyond the Olympic styles, wrestling continues through collegiate, folk, catch, submission and traditional forms practised around the world.
Olympic Freestyle Wrestling
Freestyle is one of the two main Olympic wrestling styles.
Wrestlers can attack the whole body, including the legs. This allows techniques such as:
Single-leg and double-leg takedowns
Ankle picks
Trips and foot sweeps
Throws
Mat returns
Turns and exposure techniques
Matches begin standing, but continue on the mat after a takedown. Wrestlers score by taking an opponent down, exposing their back, reversing a position or producing a high-value throw.
A match can be won on points or immediately by pinning both of an opponent’s shoulders to the mat.
Freestyle is fast, dynamic and highly adaptable. Its leg attacks, scrambling and positional control transfer particularly well to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and mixed martial arts.
Greco-Roman Wrestling
Greco-Roman wrestling limits attacks to the upper body. Wrestlers cannot directly attack the legs or use their own legs to trip an opponent.
This places greater emphasis on:
Hand fighting
Underhooks and overhooks
Body locks
Head and arm control
Balance and posture
Lifts and throws
Upper-body pressure
Despite its name, modern Greco-Roman wrestling was not taken directly from the wrestling of ancient Greece and Rome. It developed in nineteenth-century Europe and was initially known by names including French wrestling and flat-hand wrestling.
Its upright stance and powerful clinch work make it especially useful for developing close-range control, throwing mechanics and confidence in upper-body exchanges.
Women's Wrestling
Women’s Olympic wrestling follows freestyle rules, allowing attacks to both the upper and lower body.
Women’s freestyle joined the Olympic programme at Athens in 2004 and has since become an established international discipline, with competition from grassroots level through to World and Olympic championships.
The growth of women’s wrestling has also had a wider influence across Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, submission grappling and mixed martial arts.
Folkstyle and Collegiate Wrestling
Folkstyle is a broad term for wrestling systems shaped by a particular country or community.
The best-known modern example is American folkstyle, often called collegiate wrestling at university level. It shares many takedowns with freestyle but places greater emphasis on sustained control, escapes and reversals on the mat.
Rather than briefly exposing an opponent’s back for points, the top wrestler is expected to demonstrate control. The person underneath is rewarded for escaping or reversing the position.
This focus on riding, pressure and standing back up has made collegiate wrestling particularly influential in modern MMA and no-gi grappling.
Catch Wrestling
Catch-as-catch-can wrestling developed in Britain and became especially associated with Lancashire.
The name reflects its relatively open rules: wrestlers could take hold wherever an opportunity appeared. Traditional catch wrestling combined takedowns, pins and submission holds, including joint locks.
It spread through travelling competitions and professional contests before influencing wrestling in Europe, North America and Japan.
Elements of catch wrestling remain visible in modern submission grappling, professional wrestling, shoot wrestling and MMA.
Traditional British Wrestling
Britain has its own rich collection of regional wrestling traditions.
These include:
Cornish wrestling, traditionally practised in jackets and known for its throws
Cumberland and Westmorland wrestling, which begins from a fixed backhold position
Lancashire catch wrestling, which helped shape catch-as-catch-can
Scottish backhold wrestling, another standing style based around a prescribed hold
Each developed its own rules and customs, but all share wrestling’s central challenge: controlling and unbalancing another person without striking them.
Submission Wrestling and Grappling
Submission wrestling combines wrestling takedowns and positional control with joint locks and chokes.
Unlike Olympic wrestling, a match does not necessarily end when someone’s shoulders touch the mat. The action can continue through guard positions, passing, pins, escapes and submission attacks.
Modern submission grappling draws from several disciplines, including freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, catch wrestling, judo, sambo and luta livre.
The boundaries between these arts are not always fixed. Grapplers regularly borrow and adapt methods from one another according to the rules and problems they face.
Wrestle at Base Grapple Club
Our wrestling sessions are designed to develop practical skills that transfer across wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, no-gi grappling and MMA.
We draw from different wrestling styles rather than asking everyone to train for one particular competitive ruleset.
Training may include:
Stance, movement and positioning
Hand fighting and grip control
Single-leg and double-leg attacks
Body locks, trips and throws
Takedown defence
Front-headlock positions
Mat returns and positional control
Escapes, reversals and standing back up
Linking attacks together
Applying wrestling against realistic resistance
The aim is not simply to collect techniques. It is to become better at recognising opportunities, adapting to resistance and maintaining control through changing positions.
How We Teach
Wrestling is unpredictable. An opponent changes their stance, removes grips, defends attacks and creates new problems.
For that reason, our coaching is influenced by ecological dynamics. Alongside technical guidance, we use positional games and carefully designed constraints that allow wrestlers to develop timing, decision-making and adaptable skill.
A coach may set a starting position, define the objective and adjust the available options. One person might be trying to complete a takedown while the other works to maintain balance or escape the position.
This gives each student the opportunity to learn through genuine interaction rather than relying entirely on rehearsed movement.
What Happens in a Wrestling Class?
The exact structure may vary, but a class will usually include a combination of:
Movement preparation
Stance and footwork
Coach-led instruction
Partner practice
Positional games
Takedown rounds
Live wrestling or wrestling-based sparring
Training intensity is introduced progressively. You will learn how to fall, move and work safely with a partner before being expected to wrestle freely.
Do I Need Previous Experience?
No. Complete beginners are welcome.
You are not expected to arrive knowing wrestling terminology, how to complete a takedown or how to move comfortably from a wrestling stance.
Early sessions focus on safe movement, balance, positioning and learning how to work with a partner. Your confidence and physical conditioning will develop through regular training.
Experienced wrestlers and grapplers will also be given appropriate challenges and opportunities to build on their existing skills.
Do I Need to be Fit Before Starting?
No. You do not need to become fit before beginning wrestling.
Training will gradually help you develop strength, coordination, mobility and cardiovascular fitness. You can work at your own pace, take breaks when necessary and build the intensity over time.
Starting training is how you begin adapting to the specific demands of wrestling.
What Should I Wear?
For wrestling sessions, wear close-fitting sports clothing that allows you to move freely.
A rash guard or fitted sports top can be worn with grappling shorts or leggings. Clothing should not have zips, exposed pockets or anything that could catch on your partner.
You should also:
Keep your fingernails and toenails short
Remove jewellery, watches and piercings where possible
Bring water
Wear clean training clothing
Bring sandals or flip-flops for use away from the mat
Footwear is never worn on the training mats.
Avoid training if you have a contagious illness or skin condition. If you are unsure whether it is appropriate to train, contact us before attending.
Do I Have to Compete?
No. Competition is entirely optional.
Some people enjoy testing their skills in wrestling or grappling tournaments. Others train for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, MMA, fitness, personal development or simply because they enjoy learning.
You can become a highly skilled and valued member of the club without entering a competition.
Start Wrestling
Whether you are completely new, returning to the sport or looking to strengthen your wrestling for BJJ or MMA, you are welcome at Base.
Come ready to learn, move and solve problems.