So apparently Rickson Gracie had some thoughts on modern Jiu Jitsu and how “sport” jiu jitsu is terrible, and doesn’t translate to real life. Or something of that nature. I’m pretty sure he’s said something to this effect before.

Listen, it’s all fine and good to point out the differences between sport and “real life” jiu jitsu. Believe me, there are things I have done in tournament that would have probably killed me or left me paralyzed if I had done them on the street. However I think we can all agree at this point that in order to become proficient in jiu jitsu, you need to have some basis in self defense, and that people would adjust appropriately for the situation- because there’s some level of self preservation that kicks in.

I don’t think there’s anyone that would get into a street fight and think “Oh, this is totally the time to go for a berimbolo on this dude that’s swinging his fists at me.” Of course you’re going to try to stop this person from trying to attack you, and you’re going to use what you have learned in class in a way that will leave you the least injured. I think that’s the part that people who detract from sport jiu jitsu tend to forget: life doesn’t happen in a vacuum and the human race in general is pretty good at adapting to situations that arise. It’s at least one of the reasons for how we made it this far as a species.

Anyway, those are just my thoughts. Have a great day everyone!