Brazilian Jiu Jitsu - Are you a champion?

You can be a killer blue belt, you can tap out 6 black belt world champions at any event but when you compete at worlds and you don’t win you are still not a world champion.


There was a point in my life around 18 years ago that I took great pride in our guys/gals defeating higher ranked opponents and opponents that had actual real titles.


At a seminar once one of my blue belts gave a VERY hard time to a Bb world champion during a roll.
The blue belt was so excited, told me and I said “man if you can’t win worlds at your own belt rank none of that matters! He already has his world titles”

Of course I was the bad guy BUT I was telling the truth.

Then an Olympian made the statement above to me.
It was 18+ years ago that I stopped caring/putting high value on who beat who that had so and so title.
Before that I would market the hell out of it.

Now I say nothing.

The NFL has the super bowl, NBA has their championship, NHL the Stanley cup, Olympic Sports has the Olympics, college has the ncaa championships etc etc etc

For GI we have IBJJF Worlds, for no gi we have ADCC!

If you defeat a ADCC champion in a random event it doesn’t make you an ADCC champion.
If you defeat a BJJ World Champion in a random event it doesn’t make you a World Champion.
Does it feel good? Of course it does.
But stay focused on the real goal and don’t fall into the marketing hype.
And if you ever attain these goals your name will be written in the history books forever!
There is no history book for you beating so and so champion at so and so event.


To all of the elite/soon to be elite players... If you focus on gi go for your own world title.... if you focus on no gi go get that ADCC Title
Simply getting on that stand is challenging enough, standing at the top of that podium is truly elite!