Wrestling IS a martial art. I've seen plenty of freestyle and greco-roman guys go to town on plenty of black belts who had no grappling skills. These days it's practically mandatory for professional fighters to study some form of wrestling, whether it's a western style or eastern style. It doesn't really matter what the heritage, grappling skills are a must. Striking skills are a must too, but if it's all you have, you're screwed if you come across some guy with years of experience striking AND grappling.

Better for what?

I wouldn't get into a wrestling match with multiple opponents. I also don't think a martial artist will fare too well in a sports wrestling match with the rules of wrestling. Before wrestling became a sport it was trained for self defense and thus was a martial art at least at one point. It's all how and what you train.

So you see there is no better just different. They simply serve different purposes. Why is different so hard to understand, let alone accept? There are many right ways. Things are never just one or the other. Trust me when you get older and hopefully wiser you will understand this concept more.

That's a complicated question. I wrestled for 4 years and then got into cage fighting afterwards and have done that for at least 4 years now. Wrestling is a great foundation for fighting. I have wrestled with some of the best in the nation. One guy I trained with was a 3 time collegiate national champion. Wrestling teaches you great endurance and tenacity that takes you the extra mile in a fight. Most ufc fighters are former collegiate wrestlers. With that being said, in my experience jiu jitsu will outmatch wrestling on the mats every time. Wrestling teaches you how to pin someone and you're not allowed to submit opponents. So take a wrestler that knows no martial arts at all and the only thing he'll know to do is either slam someone or choke them out. Jiu jitsu has a ridiculous amount of submission techniques that will always win. So to sum it up, yes martial arts is better.

Now I have experience in both wrestling and martial arts. I have a brown belt in jujitsu and

have wrestled in my school which is ranked 2nd in New york city. Martial arts is defiantly better in a self defense scenario. Wrestling is better for play fighting with your friends. An example would be that if someone tries to shoot at me in wrestling I would have to lunge to the floor and put all my weight on them in MMA, I would choke them or give them a good kick or punch to the face.

Martial Arts.

Some form of wrestling (grappling, groundwork, etc.) is incorporated into almost every Martial System in existence. Since wrestling is just on aspect of martial training, isn't it better to go beyond it into the more complete training systems?

The immediate question I ask people is "Superior how?" That's when they have to stop and think. People are quick to tell you how one style is better than another, but when you ask the "how" question suddenly they realize they have no reason to actuall think that.

Wrestling (amateur, Olympic, Catch, folk) IS a martial art.

Martial arts.

I would like to settle this once and for all,

There is three people in my grade who think that Wrestling is superior to Martial Arts. I am very open minded, but I would like to know other people's opinion. So, if you have been in one or both, please list reasons why you think one is better than the other. (Only if you have been in one.) Thanks!

Let the games begin!