Brazilian jiu-jitsu

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) (; /dʒuːˈdʒɪtsuː/; Portuguese: [ˈʒiw ˈʒit(i)su], [ˈʒu ˈʒit(i)su], [dʒiˈu dʒit(i)ˈsu]; jiu-jitsu brasileiro) is a self-defense martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting and submission holds. It focuses on the skill of controlling one's opponent, gaining a dominant position and using a number of techniques to force them in to submission via joint locks or chokeholds (Newaza)

"BJJ" redirects here. For other uses, see BJJ (disambiguation).
"Gracie jiu-jitsu" redirects here. For the book by Helio Gracie, see Gracie Jiu-Jitsu (book).
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Also known asBJJ, Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, Gi/Nogi Jiu-Jitsu, Submission Grappling
Japanese name:
Jujutsu (グレイシー柔術, Gureishī Jūjutsu)
FocusSubmission Grappling, Grappling
HardnessFull contact
Country of originBrazil
CreatorTomita Tsunejirō, Mitsuyo Maeda, Takeo Yano, Soshihiro Satake, Geo Omori,[1] Jachintho Ferro,[2] Donato Pires dos Reis,[2] Carlos Gracie, Hélio Gracie,[3] Luiz França, Oswaldo Fadda
Famous practitionersSee full list
ParenthoodJapanese Jujutsu, Kodokan Judo, [4] Wrestling

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was first developed and modified in the 1920s by Brazilian brothers Carlos, Oswaldo, Gastão jr, George and Hélio Gracie after Carlos Gracie was taught traditional Kodokan Judo by a travelling Japanese judoka (Mitsuyo Maeda) in 1917, later going on to develop their own self defence system named Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.

BJJ eventually came to be its own defined combat sport through the innovations, practices, and adaptation of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and Judo, with governing bodies such as the IBJJF working worldwide, becoming an essential martial art for MMA

BJJ teaches that a smaller, weaker person can successfully defend themselves against a bigger, stronger, heavier opponent by using leverage and weight distribution to take the fight to the ground and then using submissions to defeat them. BJJ training can be used for sport grappling tournaments and in self-defense situations.[5] Sparring, commonly referred to as "rolling" within the BJJ community, and live drilling play a major role in training and the practitioner's development. BJJ is considered a martial art, a sport, a method of promoting physical fitness and building character, and a way of life.[6][7]

History

Origins

Geo Omori opened the first Jiu-Jitsu/Judo school in Brazil in 1925.[8] He taught a number of individuals including Luiz França’ Later, Mitsuyo Maeda was one of five of the Kodokan's top groundwork (newaza) experts that judo's founder Kano Jigoro sent overseas to demonstrate and spread his art to the world. Maeda had trained first in sumo as a teenager, and after the interest generated by stories about the success of Kodokan Judo at competitions with other jujutsu schools of the time, became a student of Jigoro Kano.[9] Maeda left Japan in 1904 and visited a number of countries[9] giving "jiu-do" demonstrations and accepting challenges from wrestlers, boxers, savate fighters and various other martial artists before eventually arriving in Brazil on November 14, 1914.[10]

Gracie & Maeda

Gastão Gracie was a business partner of the American Circus in Belém. In 1916, Italian Argentine circus Queirolo Brothers staged shows there and presented Maeda.[11][12] In 1917 Carlos Gracie (eldest son of Gastão Gracie)[13] watched a ‘Kano Jiu-Jitsu’ demonstration by Maeda at the Da Paz Theatre and decided he wanted to learn. Maeda accepted Carlos as a student and Carlos was taught for a few years (believed 5-6 years), eventually passing his knowledge on to his brothers. Gracie's account of the events is that his younger sibling Hélio Gracie gradually developed Gracie Jiu-Jitsu as a softer, pragmatic adaptation that focused more on the ground fighting and leverage aspect of Judo (newaza) rather than the throws, as he was unable to perform many Judo throws (due to his size) that require direct opposition to an opponent's strength.[14][15]

Although the Gracie family is typically recognized as the main family to first promote Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as it is known today, there was also another prominent lineage derived from Maeda via another Brazilian disciple, Luiz França.[16] This lineage had been represented particularly by Oswaldo Fadda. Fadda and his students were famous for the influential use of footlocks[17] and the lineage still survives through Fadda's links in teams such as Nova União and Grappling Fight Team (GF Team).[18]

Name

The name "Jiu-Jitsu" derives from an older romanization of its original spelling in the West (is still in common use); the modern Hepburn romanization of 柔術 is "jūjutsu".

When Maeda left Japan, judo was still often referred to as "Kano jiu-jitsu",[19] or, even more generically, simply as Jiu-Jitsu.[20][21] Higashi, the co-author of Kano Jiu-Jitsu[19] wrote in the foreword:

Some confusion has arisen over the employment of the term 'jiudo'. To make the matter clear I will state that jiudo is the term selected by Professor Kano as describing his system more accurately than jiu-jitsu does. Professor Kano is one of the leading educators of Japan, and it is natural that he should cast about for the technical word that would most accurately describe his system. But the Japanese people generally still cling to the more popular nomenclature and call it jiu-jitsu.[19]

Outside Japan, however, this distinction was noted even less. Thus, when Maeda and Satake arrived in Brazil in 1914, every newspaper announced their art as being "Jiu-Jitsu", despite both men being Kodokan judoka.[6]

It was not until 1925 that the Japanese government itself officially mandated that the correct name for the martial art taught in the Japanese public schools should be "judo" rather than "jujutsu".[22] In Brazil, the art is still called "Jiu-Jitsu". When the Gracies went to the United States and spread Jiu-Jitsu, they used the terms "Gracie Jiu-Jitsu" and non Gracies using the term ”Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu” to differentiate from the already present styles using similar-sounding names. In a 1994 interview with Yoshinori Nishi, Hélio Gracie said that he didn't even know the word of Judo itself until the sport came in the 1950s to Brazil, because he heard that Mitsuyo Maeda called his style "Jiu-Jitsu".

The art is sometimes referred to as Gracie Jiu-Jitsu (GJJ), a name trademarked by Rorion Gracie, but after a legal dispute with his cousin Carley Gracie, his trademark to the name was voided.[23] Other members of the Gracie family often call their style by personalized names, such as Ceaser Gracie Jiu-Jitsu or Renzo Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, and similarly, the Machado family call their style Machado Jiu-Jitsu (MJJ). While each style and its instructors have their own unique aspects, they are all basic variations of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. There are currently four major BJJ branches in Brazil: Gracie Humaita, Gracie Barra, Carlson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and Alliance Jiu Jitsu. Each branch traces its roots back to Mitsuyo Maeda via Donato Pires Dos Reis,[24] and then through the Gracie family or Oswaldo Fadda.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has vast similarities to the original Kodokan Judo,[25][26] widely practiced before Judo became part of the Olympics, and still practiced in lesser extent,[27][28][29] as well as some similarity to earlier ryu (schools) Ju-Jitsu.[30]

Divergence from Kodokan rules

Certain changes were made to the rules of sport judo after judo was introduced to Brazil. Some of these rule changes sought to enhance it as a spectator sport, and others aimed to improve safety. Several of these rule changes de-emphasised the groundwork aspects of judo, and others have reduced the range of joint locks application. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu did not follow these changes to judo rules, and this divergence gave BJJ a distinct identity as a grappling art,[31] although it's still recognizably related to judo. Other factors that have contributed towards the stylistic divergence of BJJ from the sport judo include the Gracies' contribution to the art, including emphasis on full-contact fighting.

BJJ permits the same techniques that judo allows when taking combat to the ground. These include judo's scoring throws as well as judo's non-scoring techniques that it refers to as "skillful takedowns" (such as the flying armbar). BJJ also allows any and all takedowns used in wrestling, sambo, or any other grappling arts including direct attempts to take down by touching the legs. Spinal locks and cervical locks are not allowed in gi Jiu-Jitsu,[32] amateur MMA,[33] multiple forms of no-gi Jiu-Jitsu,[32] Judo,[34] and other martial arts,[35] due to potential to cause serious bodily injury.

BJJ also differs from judo in that it also allows a competitor to drag opponents to the ground.[36] Although early Kodokan judo rules were initially similar to BJJ's, in recent years it has become increasingly restrictive in comparison. BJJ has also become more "sports oriented" in recent years, prohibiting techniques such as slams.[37]

Prominence

In 1972, Carley Gracie moved to the United States to teach Jiu-Jitsu, and in 1978 was followed by Rorion Gracie, who co-founded the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in 1993.[38][39] Jiu-Jitsu came to international prominence in martial arts circles when Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu expert Royce Gracie won the first, second and fourth Ultimate Fighting Championships, which at the time were single elimination martial arts tournaments.[5] Royce fought against several larger opponents in other styles, including boxing, shoot-fighting, muay thai, karate, wrestling, and taekwondo. BJJ has since become an elementary aspect of MMA, revealing the importance of ground fighting in a fight. Sport BJJ tournaments continue to grow in popularity and have given rise to no-gi submission grappling tournaments, such as the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship and NAGA, the North American Grappling Association. Sport BJJ has also become a popular method of fitness around the world in recent years.[40][41]

Style of fighting
See also: List of Brazilian jiu-jitsu techniques

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu focuses on getting an opponent to the ground in order to neutralize possible strength or size advantages through ground fighting techniques and submission holds involving joint-locks and chokeholds. On the ground, physical strength can be offset or enhanced through proper grappling techniques.

BJJ employs a wide range of takedown techniques to bring an opponent to the ground such as "pulling guard", which is not used in other combat sports such as Judo or Wrestling. Once the opponent is on the ground, a number of maneuvers (and counter-maneuvers) are available to manipulate the opponent into a suitable position for the application of a submission technique. Achieving a dominant position on the ground is one of the hallmarks of BJJ, which includes effective use of the guard position to defend oneself from bottom (using both submissions and sweeps, with sweeps leading to the possibility of dominant position or an opportunity to pass the guard), and passing the guard to dominate from top position with side control, mount, and back mount positions. This system of maneuvering and manipulation can be likened to a form of kinetic or physical chess when executed by two experienced practitioners.[42] A submission hold in BJJ is often assimilated to the equivalent of "checkmate", where the opponent is left with no other option but to tap, be injured, or choked.

Renzo Gracie wrote in his book Mastering JUJITSU:

"The classical jujutsu of old Japan appeared to have no common strategy to guide a combatant over the course of a fight. Indeed, this was one of Kano's most fundamental and perceptive criticisms of the classical program." Maeda not only taught the art of judo to Carlos Gracie, but also taught a particular philosophy about the nature of combat developed by Kano, and further refined by Maeda based on his worldwide travels competing against fighters skilled in a wide variety of martial arts.[43]

The book details Maeda's theory as arguing that physical combat could be broken down into distinct phases, such as the striking phase, the grappling phase, the ground phase, etc. Thus, it was a smart fighter's task to keep the fight located in the phase of combat best suited to his own strengths. Renzo Gracie stated that this was a fundamental influence of the Gracie approach to combat. These strategies were further developed over time by the Gracies and others, and became prominent in contemporary MMA.

Ground fighting

BJJ is mainly differentiated from other martial arts by its greater emphasis on ground fighting. Commonly, striking-based martial arts place little to no emphasis on groundwork. BJJ also places little emphasis on standing techniques, such as striking and throws, although it employs some basic takedowns, such as single and double leg takedowns, and some BJJ clubs and practitioners cross train with wrestling, judo, and sambo.

Training methods
A Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor gently demonstrates how to tackle an opponent.

BJJ focuses on submissions without the use of strikes, while training allows practitioners to practice at full speed and with full strength, resembling the effort used in competition. Training methods include technique drills in which techniques are practiced against a non-resisting partner; isolation sparring (commonly referred to as positional drilling) where only a certain technique or sets of techniques are used; and full sparring where each practitioner tries to submit their opponent through technique. Physical conditioning is also an important aspect of training.

The Gracie family lineage descended from Helio Gracie focuses on practical applications of BJJ that apply primarily to self-defense.[44] They will often run development drills in which a person is surrounded by a circle of other students who will attempt to attack the defending student, who in turn must defend themselves using techniques. The student will often be unable to see the aggressor to simulate an attack that they weren't expecting.

Primary ground positions
Main article: Grappling position

Once on the ground, the BJJ practitioner strives to take a dominant or controlling position from where to apply submissions. These positions provide different submission or transition options.

Side control
Main article: Side control
An "americana" or "paintbrush" submission from traditional side control

In side control, the practitioner pins his opponent to the ground from the side of their torso. The top grappler lies across the opponent with weight applied to the opponent's chest. The opponent may be further controlled by pressure on either side of the shoulders and hips from the practitioner's elbows, shoulders, and knees. A wide variety of submissions can be initiated from side control. It is also referred to as the side mount. Additionally, the typical side mount increases opportunity for the top grappler to advance to other dominant positions. This position is often used in MMA as it allows the top fighter to strike whilst overcoming their opponents defence. There are many variants of the side control position, including kesa gatame, standard side control, reverse side control, and other positions.[45]

Knee on belly position
Main article: Knee-on-stomach

The knee on belly position is a modified side pin that is distinctly separated from the side control position. The knee on belly position is characterized primarily by the control of the opponent with one leg out for base and balance and the other leg positioned across the opponent's torso pinning them to the ground. This form of pin is a mobile pin rather than a static pin and is considered a more dominant position in many grappling formats. The knee on belly position is worth additional points because it provides a greater striking platform than traditional side control and is closer to achieving the more ideal mounted position.[46]

Full mount
Main article: Mount (grappling)
Full Mount is considered one of the most dominant grappling positions.

In the mount (or full mount) position, the practitioner sits astride the opponent's front torso or chest, controlling the opponent with his bodyweight and hips. In the strongest form of this position, the practitioner works his knees into the opponent's armpits to reduce arm movements and ability to move or counter submission attempts. Full Mount can be used to apply a variety of submissions including armlocks or chokes.

Back mount
Main article: Back mount
Back mount, also considered one of the most dominant positions in BJJ

When taking the back mount position (often known in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as the back grab or attacking the back), the practitioner attaches to the back of the opponent by wrapping his legs around and hooking the opponent's thighs with their heel,[47] or locking in a body triangle by crossing one shin across the waist like a belt then placing the back of the opposing knee over the instep as if finishing a triangle choke. Simultaneously, the upper body is controlled by wrapping the arms around the chest or neck of the opponent. This position is often used to apply chokeholds, as well as arm bars and triangles, and neutralizes an opponent's potential size or strength advantage.

North south position

The North South position occurs when a practitioner is lying on their back on the ground and their opponent is lying on top, with the head over the chest area and controlling the bottom practitioner's arms. As with most top controlling positions in BJJ, the top practitioner applies pressure by bringing their hips downwards towards the ground, generating what is referred to as deadweight. There are several submissions and transitions that are possible from the North South position, most commonly the North South choke, North South kimura, and others.[48]

Guards
Main article: Guard (grappling)
The Jiu-Jitsu practitioner in blue is demonstrating a type of closed guard

When in the "Guard" position, the practitioner is on their back controlling an opponent with his legs. The bottom practitioner pushes and pulls with the legs or feet to unbalance and limit the movements of his opponent. This position allows practitioners a wide variety of counter-attacks from the bottom position, including submissions and sweeps.

The three most common types of guards include the Closed Guard, Half Guard, and Open Guard.

In closed guard, the bottom grappler has his legs around the opponent's hips, with ankles closed together to control their opponent. The closed guard can be an effective position. This guard allows many setups for submissions such as jointlocks and chokes, as well as sweeps. In the open guard, the legs are not hooked together and the bottom grappler uses his legs or feet to push or pull their opponent.

There are many variations of open guard with distinct names and positioning including the Butterfly Guard, De La Riva Guard, X-Guard, Rubber guard, Spider Guard, Octopus Guard, Lapel Guard, Worm Guard (made popular by Keenan Cornelius) and others. Butterfly guard is when the bottom grappler brings his legs up and feet together against the inner thighs of top opponent. The name is derived from the resulting butterfly wing shape. Butterfly guard increases both space to maneuver and the ability counter the opponent with the shins or arches of the feet against the competitor's inner thighs.

In the half guard, one of the top grappler's legs is controlled by the bottom grappler's legs, preventing the top opponent from passing side control or full mount positions. There is also a variant of half guard called "50/50 guard", which consist of each opponent usually in sitting positions with one of their legs hooking the same leg of their opponent in a mirrored fashion. This position is called 50/50 because neither opponent has a distinct advantage, where both sides have the same possibilities of sweeps and attacks.

Another variation of the half guard position is the "deep half guard", which involves the bottom grappler positioning themselves underneath their opponent, grabbing the top grappler's thigh. This gives the individual on the bottom the opportunity to sweep their opponent, and end up on a more dominant, top position. This position was popularized by American BJJ Black Belt, Jeff Glover.[49]

Submissions

The majority of submission holds can be grouped into two broad categories: joint locks and chokes. Joint locks typically involve isolating an opponent's limb and creating a lever with the body position, which will force the joint to move past its normal range of motion.[5] Pressure is increased in a controlled manner and released if the opponent cannot escape the hold and signals defeat by tapping. A choke hold can disrupt the blood supply to the brain and cause unconsciousness if the opponent does not tap when required.

Compression locks

See also Compression lock

A less common type of submission hold is a compression lock, where the muscle of an opponent is compressed against a hard, large bone (commonly the shin or wrist), causing significant pain to the opponent. These types of locks are not usually allowed in competition due to the high risk of tearing muscle tissue. This type of lock also often hyper-extends the joint in the opposite direction, pulling it apart. Some compression locks include the Achilles lock, Bicep slicer, and Leg slicer (or Calf slicer).

Joint locks
A practitioner attempting an armbar submission

While many joint locks are permitted in BJJ, most competitions ban or restrict some or all joint locks that involve the knees, ankles, and spine. The reason for this is that the angles of manipulation required to cause pain are nearly the same as those that would cause serious injury. Joint locks that require a twisting motion of the knee (such as heel hooks or knee bars) are usually banned in competitions because successfully completing the move can frequently result in permanent damage, often requiring surgery. Similarly, joint manipulations of the spine are typically barred due to the inherent danger of crushing or misaligning cervical vertebrae. Leglocks are allowed in varying degrees depending on skill level, with the most prominent BJJ tournaments typically allowing only the straight ankle lock and muscle stretching submissions such as the "banana split" from white through purple belt, with the kneebar, toehold, and calf slicer submissions being permitted at brown and black belt. Most competitions do not allow heel hooks, which are considered to be exceptionally dangerous.[37][50] However, most joint locks involving the wrist, elbow, shoulder or ankle are permitted as there is a great deal more flexibility in those joints and those locks are usually safe.

Joint locks include armbars, kimuras, Americanas, straight-arm lock, omoplata, marceloplata, banana split (or electric chair), twister, wrist lock, heel hook, toehold, kneebar, straight ankle lock, and others.[51]

Chokes
A rear naked choke, as demonstrated by a MCMAP instructor

Chokes are common forms of submission. In BJJ, the chokes that are used put pressure on the carotid arteries, and may also apply pressure to the nerve baroreceptors in the neck. This kind of choke is very fast acting (if done properly) with victims typically losing consciousness in around 3–5 seconds. In contrast, an air choke (involving constriction of the windpipe) can take up to two minutes, depending on how long the person can hold their breath, and may cause serious damage to the throat.

Chokes include rear-naked choke, triangle, bow and arrow choke, sleeve choke (or Ezekiel choke), guillotine, cross collar choke (or X choke), baseball choke, D'Arce, clock choke, Arm triangle choke, north–south choke, crucifix choke, anaconda choke, Gogoplata, loop choke, and others.

Uniform

The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner's uniform (commonly referred to using the Japanese terms gi or kimono) is similar to a judogi, but often made of lighter material with tighter cuffs on the pants and jacket. This allows the practitioner to benefit from a closer fit, providing less material for an opponent to manipulate, although there is a significant overlap in the standards that allows for a carefully selected gi to be legal for competition in both styles. Traditionally, to be promoted in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the wearing of the Jiu-Jitsu gi while training is a requirement. Recently with the growing popularity of "no-gi" Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the practice of giving out belts to no gi practitioners (e.g., Rolles Gracie awarding Rashad Evans a black belt) has become more common.

Grading
Black belt grades
(19 and over)
Black 0–6
Black/Red 7
Red/White 8
Red 9–10
Senior belt colors
(16 and over)
White
Blue
Purple
Brown
Junior belt colours
(16 and under)
White
Grey
Yellow
Orange
Green
Main articles: Brazilian jiu-jitsu ranking system and Gracie jiu-jitsu ranking system

The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ranking system awards a practitioner different colored belts to signify increasing levels of technical knowledge and practical skill. While the system's structure shares its origins with the judo ranking system and the origins of all colored belts, it now contains many of its own unique aspects and themes. Some of these differences are relatively minor, such as the division between youth and adult belts and the stripe/degree system. Others are quite distinct and have become synonymous with the art, such as a marked informality in promotional criteria, including as a focus on a competitive demonstration of skill, and a conservative approach to promotion in general.[52][53]

Traditionally, the concept of competitive skill demonstration as a quickened and earned route of promotion holds true.[52][53] Some schools have placed a green belt for adults between the white and blue belt ranks due to the long periods between advancement. In addition, the use of a grey belt has been instituted for many children's programs to signal progress between the white and yellow belt rankings.

Unlike in some martial arts such as taekwondo and karate, a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu commonly takes more than several years to earn, and the rank is generally considered expert level. The amount of time it takes to achieve the rank of black belt varies between the practitioner. Some notable individuals who had previous backgrounds in other martial arts have been promoted directly to black belt rank without going through any intermediate rank, though this has fallen out of favor in recent times.[54] Others have achieved the rank in relatively short timeframes.[55] Outside of exceptions such as these, the average timeframe is around 10 years with a consistent training schedule.[56] However, Ryron Gracie (grandson/grandnephew of founders Hélio and Carlos Gracie) has stated that the average of 10–12 years is longer than necessary, suggesting that the ego of the practitioner often hinders progress, and advancement to black belt should take 7 years.[57]

Federations

Since its inception in Brazil, Jiu-Jitsu has had different registered federations and tournaments (some organizations illegitimately calling themselves federations). The first Jiu-Jitsu Federation was the Jiu-Jitsu Federation of Guanabara, which has remained a regional federation of Rio de Janeiro, while many others were founded. Among the most prestigious of the many federations are the Sport Jiu Jitsu International Federation (SJJIF), a nonprofit organization with federations and tournaments around the globe with the mission of making Jiu-Jitsu an Olympic sport, and the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation, a profit organization that hosts a number of tournaments.[58]

Tournaments

While there are numerous local and regional tournaments administered regularly by private individuals and academies, there are two major entities in Jiu-Jitsu circles. First, is the Sport Jiu Jitsu International Federation (SJJIF), a (nonprofit) organization with international federations and tournaments. Second, is the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF), a for-profit company that hosts a number of major tournaments worldwide. These include the Pan American Championship, European Championship, and the Mundials. California, New York, and Texas are the three states in the US which host tournaments most frequently. Other promotions within North America, such as Battleground Grappling Championship, American Grappling Federation (AGF), North American BJJ Federation (NABJJF), and North American Grappling Association (NAGA) host tournaments nationwide, but visit these states multiple times within a tournament season.

Another tournament to spring from the founding Gracie lineage is the Gracie Nationals or Gracie Worlds. Founded in 2007 by Rose Gracie, daughter of Ultimate Fighting Championship creator and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu grandmaster Rorion Gracie. Gracie Nationals/Worlds followed the guidelines of other major tournaments of the time, implementing a points systems

In 2012, the Gracie Worlds introduced a new submission-only format, removing certain judging systems that many interpreted as an outdated scoring system. Rose spoke about this change when she said, "Today's tournaments aren't what my grandfather [Helio Gracie] envisioned. There's so many rules that it takes away from the actual art of Jiu-Jitsu. We don't see many submissions. We see cheating, we see decisions made by a referee. We need to stand together against this and support a submission only kind of revolution." Cheating in Jiu-Jitsu, Rose said, comes in many forms. "[A competitor] will earn a point, then hold for the entire match so they can win with that one little advantage they got at the start," Rose said. "That's not Jiu-Jitsu. That's cheating."[59]

This discontent with points-based and advantage-style competition has been echoed throughout the Jiu-Jitsu community, leading to many prominent submission-only style events. At these events, the winner of a match is determined only by submission, and these tournaments at times have no time limit, or are timed with a result of double disqualification if there is no submission victory. This form of tournament have yet to become widespread. Metamoris, a grappling competition event run by Rose's brother Ralek Gracie, has helped advocate this tournament form. Another notable example of a submission-only format is the EBI (Eddie Bravo Invitational), which was the first televised event of its kind, and is now being featured on UFC Fight Pass. Other submission-only events have cropped up all over the world including TUFF invitational and Polaris Pro, and many others.[60]

At tournaments, especially those hosted by the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF), some athletes engage in a practice called "closing out."[61] This occurs when two athletes, usually friends or members of the same team, meet in a match but refuse to fight. Tournament organizers can minimize the chance of close-outs by placing athletes from the same team on opposite sides of the bracket, a practice which makes the finals the only match in which they could possibly meet (assuming each team has no more than two competitors in a given bracket). When two athletes close out a match, they agree which one of them will technically forfeit to the other. As this most often occurs in the final matches of tournaments, this usually means deciding which of the two will win the gold medal and which will win the silver. Notable examples of closing out include Marcus "Buchecha" Almeida forfeiting the finals of the Absolute division at the 2018 IBJJF World Championship to his friend Leandro Lo, who had suffered a shoulder injury during a previous match,[62] and frequent close outs between the brothers Paulo and Joao Miyao, who often compete in the same weight division.[63] Proponents of close-outs claim it fosters team unity and allows competitors to train as hard and as freely as they can with their teammates. They say that facing a teammate in a competition would make them hold back in training. Critics of the practice say it diminishes audience enjoyment of tournaments where it is allowed,[61] and some tournaments, notably the ADCC, ban it.[64]

Health considerations

Safety

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is one of the safest full contact martial arts for practitioners. Its injury rate is around 9.2-38.6 per 1000 athlete exposures.[65][66] This is lower than in mixed martial arts (236-286 per 1000), boxing (210-420 per 1000), judo (25.3-130.6) and taekwondo (20.5-139.5). It is similar to wrestling, which also uses grappling instead of striking. The few injuries that may be incurred in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu usually affect the joints and rarely the head. The most common injuries Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners suffer from are ACL tears in the knees, rotator cuff tears in the shoulders and spinal disc herniations, most commonly in the neck region. Many are repairable via surgery that require an extended rehab period before the athlete can return to BJJ training. Also many athletes suffer from minor injuries, such as elbow and wrist tendonitis, due to overtraining and the grappling nature of the martial art, which can be strenuous and taxing for the joints and the tendons.

Skin health

Besides the normal strains and pulls associated with most martial arts, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners (along with Wrestlers, Judoka, and other grapplers ) are exposed to regular skin abrasions and potential unsanitary mat conditions. They are thus at higher risk for developing skin disease.[67] Several commonly contracted skin diseases include ringworm, impetigo, herpes gladiatorum, and staph infection.[68] Proper hygiene practices, including regular cleaning of classroom mats, showering immediately after class with soap, disinfecting and covering any open wounds, thorough cleaning of any gi/rashguard/headgear used before the next class, not sharing used towels/uniforms, and using a barrier cream greatly reduces the chance of contracting a disease.

Cauliflower ear
Dominick Cruz's cauliflower ears

Due to the use of the head to maintain position and attack in Jiu-Jitsu, the ears can easily be damaged and begin to swell. Without immediate medical treatment, the cartilage in a swollen ear will separate from the perichondrium that supplies its nutrients and will become permanently swollen/deformed (cauliflower ear). Wrestling headgear is sometimes used for prevention of this condition. Treatment includes draining the hematoma or surgery.[69]

Performance-enhancing drugs

The practice of taking performance-enhancing drugs, including anabolic steroids, is believed to be relatively commonplace among competitors in Jiu-Jitsu tournaments and has sparked letters and public statements by some of Jiu-Jitsu's top competitors, including Comprido and Caio Terra.[70] In response, the IBJJF began testing for performance-enhancing drugs at IBJJF sponsored events, starting with the 2013 Pan American Championship.[71] However, most other tournaments tend to lack PED testing.

Cervical and spinal lock "neck cranks"

A spinal lock is a multiple joint lock applied to the spinal column, which is performed by forcing the spine beyond its normal ranges of motion. This is typically done by bending or twisting the head or upper body into abnormal positions. Commonly, spinal locks might strain the spinal musculature or result in a mild spinal sprain, while a forcefully and/or suddenly applied spinal lock may cause severe ligament damage or damage to the vertebrae, and possibly result in serious spinal cord injury, strokes, or death. Spinal locks and cervical locks are completely forbidden from gi Jiu-Jitsu,[32] amateur MMA,[33] multiple forms of no-gi Jiu-Jitsu,[32] Judo,[34] and other martial arts.[35] Due to its illegal nature and express purpose to cause serious, irrevocable bodily injury, paralysis, and death, its use both inside and outside of the gym can constitute aggravated assault.[72][73] The forceful application of chokes such as the Rear Naked Choke and subsequent cranking of the neck whilst being choked can potentially lead to arterial dissection, which could lead to stroke.[74] Due care should be exercised when applying these chokes in sparring situations.

Notable fighters
For a more comprehensive list, see List of Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners.

World Champions
Main articles: World Jiu-Jitsu Championship and World Nogi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Championship

International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation world champions include the following:

Jiu-Jitsu Masters (Coral Belts)

Jiu-Jitsu Grand Masters (9th degree Red Belts)

Jiu-Jitsu Grand Masters (10th degree Red Belts)

Keanu Reeves trained in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for his role in John Wick 2. The Batman lead Robert Pattinson is training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Rigan Machado for the film, which is due out June 25, 2021.[78]

See also
  • Brazil portal
  • Martial arts portal

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