Does BJJ Work In Real Fighting?

[chubbman]

i think the answer to this lies with the individual, i'm sure there are bjjers out there who train to lose weight and have fun but just aren't tough. unfortunately for them one punch will have them in all sorts of trouble. on the flippedy flip you have palhares-espe mofos that will cripple you for looking at their crayons the wrong way. same art, different outcome

 

[SummerStriker]

Looks like it works to me.

 

[The Thrill]

its 2017, i dont think i know one single person whos trained in bjj for more than a year who hasnt also messed around with some striking

 

[2008]

What happens when you can't get the takedown? LOL

I train BJJ but I'm not a retard. I trained MT for a little bit so my 1st instinct is to stand with someone and end the fight there(if I can). I'll grab a weapon too, to defend myself if need be.

I'll use my BJJ too if it goes there, but my goal is to control the distance and end the fight quickly, if I can help it.

The average person on the street is not a highly trained boxer or mma fighter.

 

[sb413197]

Looks like it works to me.

That guy was actually a very casual judoka. But yeah it works

 

[Tchoker]

That guy was actually a very casual judoka. But yeah it works

Agreed, he momentarily gave up his back. Plus, he should have taken mount. So yeah, even a low level practitioner (who was smaller and didn't look that strong) can dominate the "average joe" per the video.

 

[j123]

its 2017, i dont think i know one single person whos trained in bjj for more than a year who hasnt also messed around with some striking

Some actually. They're usually the hobbyist students. They take a striking class here and there, but its nothing that stays, and in a fight or flight situation, its not gonna come out.

 

[mataleaos]

i think the answer to this lies with the individual, i'm sure there are bjjers out there who train to lose weight and have fun but just aren't tough. unfortunately for them one punch will have them in all sorts of trouble. on the flippedy flip you have palhares-espe mofos that will cripple you for looking at their crayons the wrong way. same art, different outcome

For what it's worth most of the people that train to lose weight and have fun quit at white or blue belt. Our sport/art throws around the term hobbyist a lot as a label for those that don't compete seriously or professionally, but most people that make it to purple and definitely those that make it to brown and black belt take it very seriously and are not in it just to lose weight or break a sweat.

another thing to consider is reason for training. Only recently has it become trendy for people to get into jiu-jitsu for fitness or as a lifestyle sport (for example surfing or Crossfit, etc). Most of us that got into the sport 10+ years ago or even 5 years ago got into it because we did traditional martial arts first and became disillusioned along the way. We realized that there was a more effective art for real fighting out there.

That last part doesn't apply now as much as it used to but from 1993-2005 I think it does. Them from 2005-2013 or so you had a lot of people starting because they wanted to do "MMA without the strikes" but again, you had a group interested in MMA.

So only very recently have I seen people getting into it for the lifestyle aspect. I can't prove this, but I think some of this is due to how the art is spoken about on podcasts by guys like Joe Rogan, Sam Harris, etc.

 

[2008]

i think the answer to this lies with the individual, i'm sure there are bjjers out there who train to lose weight and have fun but just aren't tough. unfortunately for them one punch will have them in all sorts of trouble. on the flippedy flip you have palhares-espe mofos that will cripple you for looking at their crayons the wrong way. same art, different outcome

I don't agree with this. People who train to lose weight or because it's trendy don't last in a real BJJ gym. Like someone said, most will quit at white or blue belt.

I have confidence saying all the men and women who train at least 2 years at the gym I'm in can reasonably defend themselves and even take a 'punch'. My school teaches MT too.

Unless your at a mcdojo...BJJ and MT will reasonably make you more tough(I'm not saying become a tough guy) but more tough to take physical pain.

As you advance your expected to become better and if your not getting better you usually don't stick around. You don't want to be that 7 yr blue who still suck.

 

[BJJ Devotee]

Yes, BJJ does work in street fighting situations. The emphasis on ground fighting is especially prevalent in street fights nowadays, after all, more than 90% of street fights wind up on the ground. There is also an emphasis on defense in BJJ, for example, how to maintain a good grappling stance, or what to do if the opponent is in a top position. The bottom line is, BJJ is very useful in street fights!

 

[georgegreece]

Don't fight kids, stay in school.

But yes it works, sometimes.

 

[tekkenfan]

Yeah, cuz it’s gonna take an all-American wrestler to stop a takedown from a dweeb who trains bjj a couple times a week.

sorry but you come form holland where the best grappler is a purple belt basically lol i went to europe the level fo grappling is pathetic compared to usa and thats why all those guys got wrestle fucked when they went to ufc

 

[Grassshoppa]

I've seen lots of one-on-one fights on the internet. I've never seen a one-on-one fight in real life. It's always been multiples against one.

I do think this is the last generation to which this will even matter. Boxing is on life support. The UFC is in decline. One day even the NFL will be a victim of the further research of CTE. Technology will end most, if not all, contact sports eventually. We'll be such an advanced society one day that fighting and training will be a thing for the neanderthals of the early 2000's. Artificial intelligence and technology will make boxing, BJJ, martial arts, the NFL, and such.... obsolete.

 

[rmongler]

I've seen lots of one-on-one fights on the internet. I've never seen a one-on-one fight in real life. It's always been multiples against one.

I do think this is the last generation to which this will even matter. Boxing is on life support. The UFC is in decline. One day even the NFL will be a victim of the further research of CTE. Technology will end most, if not all, contact sports eventually. We'll be such an advanced society one day that fighting and training will be a thing for the neanderthals of the early 2000's. Artificial intelligence and technology will make boxing, BJJ, martial arts, the NFL, and such.... obsolete.

Yeah, along with the humans (including resentful struggle nerds) too.

 

[Judoka1532]

What happens when you can't get the takedown? LOL

So a couple of things. You either keep trying by wearing your opponent down and then go for takedown, or you pull guard and invite them down (essentially you could play hooky here). I don't really recommend that but if you are desperate enough then yea. Also, if you've been in a fight long enough to realize takedowns are not working, that tells me you've survived the other guys strikes. So either strike or simply remove yourself from the situation. That's self defense.

 

[Orion]

I only do BJJ at the moment, but having been in a few street fights I'd say boxing is the most useful thing to have for your average fight. The simple ability to slip a haymaker and throw a fast 1-2 counter is usually enough to stun someone and put an end to a fight quickly. Muay thai would be a close second due to the clinch work and ability to get someone off you in close quarters.

The only thing I'd want to do BJJ-wise in a fight is sweep to get the fuck back to my feet ASAP. Anytime I've been in a fight there has been other people nearby that knew the guy so I wouldn't want to sit there in mount and get kicked in the back of the head or stomped while setting up a triangle from guard etc. Someone ALWAYS interferes to either break up the fight or back someone up

 

[Judoka1532]

I only do BJJ at the moment, but having been in a few street fights I'd say boxing is the most useful thing to have for your average fight. The simple ability to slip a haymaker and throw a fast 1-2 counter is usually enough to stun someone and put an end to a fight quickly. Muay thai would be a close second due to the clinch work and ability to get someone off you in close quarters.

The only thing I'd want to do BJJ-wise in a fight is sweep to get the fuck back to my feet ASAP. Anytime I've been in a fight there has been other people nearby that knew the guy so I wouldn't want to sit there in mount and get kicked in the back of the head or stomped while setting up a triangle from guard etc. Someone ALWAYS interferes to either break up the fight or back someone up

Assuming I'm fighting somebody on the streets, my intent is to size that person up. I'm going to throw some test punches just to see if they have any skill. I've seen big guys that can't throw a punch, and I've seen other guys that don't look like much who have surprising explosive ability. If a guys fights like a girl, then yea I'm wasting no time grappling I'm just going to cover-up and throw down. But if that person is quick and explosive I'm going for a takedown immediately.

 

[judoka loca]

Does it work? Yes, but as everyone who knows anything about martial arts would tell you, it depends on the practitioner, not the art. As a general rule of thumb, though, anything that spars has at least a little better chance of winning a street fight than the average untrained citizen.

Take tae kwon do for example, while not "full contact" as a striking art like kyokushinkai or even a grappling art like judo, practitioners will still know how to defend against attacks and will have trained both their defenses and their attacks live against a resisting opponent. Live sparring is the key when talking about these things, and is the reason why boxing is so effective. It is what separates the tried-and-true arts like wrestling and Muay Thai from things like aikido and krav maga.

BJJ is pure live sparring.