Judo is a style created by Professor Kano that took all the Jujitsu techniques that could be practiced safely in randori and thus established the Kodokan. Judo now is mostly a grappling sport with heavy focus on throws from standup/Ippon scoring. Some Judoka practice the other aspects (groundwork) to some degree and the Judo syllabus actually contains a broad range of other techniques (arm locks, strangles/chokes) but they aren't used to often in competition. Wrestling is one of the oldest sports that I believe originated in Greece. It was basically a 1 on 1 fight for dominance (minimal rules). Techniques include takedowns, some throws, reversals and groundwork/pinning. Now we have the main styles being Freestyle and Greco Roman, both of which just have minor differences. Both Judo and Wrestling are Olympic sports.
I do judo now and I did wrestling in high school. The biggest differences I've noticed are... -There are submission holds in judo. -In wrestling your takedown points for any time the match ends up on the ground with you in control. And you score the same amount of points for any takedown (unless it's a throw that goes directly into a pin). -In judo, you score different point values for different types of takedowns. Some of them are nearly worthless (except for the fact that you have moved things to the ground) and others win the match then and there. -In wrestling, you only need a three second pin to win the match. -In judo, hold-downs take a lot longer, but you don't need both of the opponents shoulder blades to be touching the ground for the entire duration of the hold-down. -In judo, a half-nelson with the palm pressing against the head is illegal. -Standing technique that would be fair game in wrestling is stalling in judo. -Ground technique that would be stalling in wrestling is normal in judo. -In wrestling, if you're using a guard, you're being pinned. -Wrestling moves seem to require more strength to execute. Also, I'm not trying to promote judo (I liked wrestling, and if I had to go back, I'd do it all over again, and probably start both sports much earlier) with this, but I cannot help but notice, in my own limited experience (I wrestled in junior high and all throughout high school and I also did judo in high school and now do it through a local dojo) that judo stresses safety much moreso than wrestling does and has far fewer injuries. And for some reason, wrestling seems to feature poor hygiene. I don't know what the deal is with that, and it probably isn't true for collegiate wrestling so much as for high school, but in high school wrestling teams, there seem to be guys who don't show after every practice or who otherwise don't maintain their hygiene. And the wrestling teams I was on didn't clean the mats very thoroughly compared to when I did judo in high school (on the same wrestling mats). I'm probably forgetting some other important thing...
Judo has more clothing than wrestling, the scoring is totally different, and you spend more time on your feet.
Additionally, there are many different styles of wrestling. So you might want to learn more about what styles there... a few to look up would be: Greco-Roman Collegiate style Folk Style Catch Wrestling etc.
Both have great takedown games but judo has some throws that rely on a gi. Also, there are submissions in judo as freestyle and greco-roman have no submissions.
One major difference It looks like the others have hit the main points, but I wanted to point out one very important difference between the two sports. Though both wrestling and Judo have throws, the throws of Judo tend to be far more "dynamic." Dynamic here serves as a code word for "it's ok to slam your opponent onto the mat very, very hard." In both high school and collegiate wrestling a person can be called for "slamming" an opponent if for example he was to take his opponent off of the mat and above his head, then extend his arms, and slam him onto his back. In fact to do such a thing would result in a penalty costing the thrower the match. If the same thing were to happen in Judo the only thing the referee would say in that case is Ippon (the referee's call signifying that a full point has been scored ending the match). Oh and a little bit of Olympic trivia. Judo is the only Olympic sport where it is legal to choke your opponent until he becomes unconscious. How cool is that!? But seriously in Judo you wear a heavy jacket which is designed to make throwing the most important aspect of the sport. In wrestling the grappling is the most important aspect. Both are excellent sports, and a person who studies one seriously will find it much easier to do well in the other. I hope this helps. Sincerely Russ (The Judo Guy) The JudoGi Store www.judogis.com May Your Way Be Gentle
Only thing that sucks in judo is there are many dirty techniques that you can't do which is all legal in BJJ
In judo you wear a gi in which you grip. judo relies heavly on throws, joint locks, and pins. The competitive aspect is different too. In a judo match you win by an ippon (a point earned by throwing your opponent) or a 25 second pin move (17 years and over can win by a submission holds). In wrestling you wear head gear, wrestling shoes, and a singlet (spandex body suit). Wrestling is restricted to takedowns, minor throws, and pins. You can win a wrestling match by decision (takedown=2 pts, backpoints (per second)=2 pts), or you can win by a three second pin (both shoulders must be on the mat). Judo is derived from the MA Jujitsu, Wrestling originated in ancient Greece.
The only times I've seen a wrestler lose a match for slamming was when he gave his opponent a concussion. Judo doesn't have the same restriction against slamming, but most guys I've faced have been pretty good at spotting anyway. I haven't seen a significant difference in the force with which one hits the mat for the two sports.
Generally I agree, but the bottom line is that while the very goal of Judo is to throw an opponent onto his back from a standing position, which is not by any means the ultimate goal of wrestling. As a result while the maximum force of impact is more or less the same, the frequency of occurance is far higher in Judo. Also don't discount fact that Judoka have been trained to take the falls while most wrestlers have not, in explaining why most Judo falls don't end in a concussion. But the bottom line for me is that I love both sports. I'm just too old and fat to wear a singlet. Sincerely Russ (The Judo Guy) The JudoGi Store www.judogis.com
My cousin was a Scottish/Brittish Judo champion and now goes all about Europe wrestling. I keep meaning to ask her, and go to a few classes.
