Luta Livre was developed in the mid-20th century in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The inventor of the Luta Livre system was Euclydes Hatem (Tatu). He is considered one of the best Brazilian fighters of all time. The so-called 'ground fighting' was always a priority because of its importance in Vale Tudo competitions. In the 1970s, Luta Livre was heavily influenced by technical experts such as Roberto Leitao. Leitao was a university professor and devoted many years of his life to wrestling and judo without a 'gi'. Because he was physically a lot weaker than most opponents at university, he had to rely on a very refined technique. Basically like Royce Gracie would do in the UFC 20 years later.
Luta Livre passed from generation to generation and was brought to Germany by Professor Daniel D' Dane. He taught Luta Livre to a handful of people in Cologne. Later he also became Andreas Schmidt's trainer. Luta Livre is the style with the most victories in IVC (International Vale Tudo Championships). Luta Livre means 'free fight' in Portuguese. Primarily it is a wrestling style in which fighters use locks and chokes to subdue their opponents. Luta Livra's standing components, such as punching and kicking and attacking with elbow and knee, were added later to make the martial art more complete.
Luta Livre Esportiva is the competition version of Luta Livre. Only wrestling techniques are allowed to get your opponent under. It is very important to devise a strategy before executing your movements. Luta Livre Vale Tudo is the version where Luta Livre really becomes a free fight. In addition to the wrestling elements of Luta Livre, punches, kicks, knees and elbows are now added. These parts are used to get someone to the ground and are often seen in MMA competitions. Luta Livre Vale Tudo is probably the martial art that comes closest to Mixed Martial Arts . The final variant is the Luta Livre T36. This includes 36 Luta Livre skills to end a combat situation by choking or clamping the opponent's joints.
