One of the must-see Youtube channels on BJJ is GracieBreakdown with the Gracie brothers, Ryron and Rener, who are among the very best teachers of jiu-jitsu anywhere.
In the longer video below (worth the watch if you have some extra time) the Gracie brothers discuss the difference in training BJJ for self-defense and sports. The difference is significant!
The most interesting point the brothers made – and I am paraphrasing here – is discussing the concept of “Jiu-jitsu for the .01% vs the 99%”.
That is to say that perhaps .01% of the population – or lower! – will ever try a BJJ class, and those who do sign up for one are doing so for reasons of self-defense. Few people start training BJJ with dreams of a Mundials title.
Yet many academies teach only sports jiu-jitsu. These academies emphasize sweeps using the sleeves and other positions that score points in a competition, but are impractical for a real fight.
The Gracie brothers pose the question: if 99.9% of the population will not be trying to sweep you with a lasso guard, and if the attacks that an untrained person (the 99.9%) typically try are very different from sports BJJ techniques, should your BJJ training also include techniques for common self-defense and fight situations?
This is an important and sobering question!
The Gracie brothers understand that after students have achieved competence in the basic self-defense techniques, they will go on to learn the amazing variations of sports techniques, of course. But never forget the foundation of BJJ is self-defense and how to win a real fight!
Read also on Jiu-jitsu Times: How Much Self Defense Do You Need?
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