A minor brouhaha erupted in the Brazilian jiu-jitsu community when Rickson Gracie — undefeated MMA fighter and son of BJJ founder Helio Gracie — was awarded his red belt.
While many of the comments were congratulatory, some were critical of Rickson’s promotion, as he was not only too young by IBJJF standards, but he skipped the red-and-white belt and went directly to red belt.
Rickson himself even seemed unsure of his new rank, and he appeared in many pictures and videos with his old red-and-black belt rather than his red one.
Gracie later explained why he hadn’t be wearing his belt:
In the latest issue of Black Belt magazine, Rickson once again donned his red belt. This will no doubt result in some old criticisms resurfacing.
However, one man who’s ready to deal with these criticisms is Ryan Young, student of Rickson Gracie black belt, Dave Kama.
Check out the video below to hear what Ryan Young has to say about Rickson Gracie being promoted to red belt.
The post Does Rickson Gracie Deserve His Red Belt? appeared first on Jiu-Jitsu Times.