Machado Belts

ohyeah290 said:
Awesome. More jackasses. I don't understand the hostility. I HAVE been to the clases. I've done no gi for quite the while as well as gi more so recently. I'm doing nothing more than dispelling things that I've HEARD. Never once said it was fact. GTFO if you have nothing constructive. It's like buying a car. You won't buy a car that you know nothing about. Someone says it's crap another says it's gold. I'm just wanting an opinion from someone who isn't biased (my friends) and that has actually trained at a Machado school. I have been going to one since last December and just switched to a Machado school recently.
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Then why the fuck does your sig say the path to blue began today? You got information from 3 people in this thread that have trained under a Machado, are you waiting on someone to confirm your friends bullshit? You're an ass clown if you would take what people say on the internet, who haven't even been to your particular school, over your own personal experience.

I hope one of their "got a blue way too soon belts" breaks your arm.


Mods: I'm done with this argument, no need to ban me.
 
Ok, I am not passing judgement on anyone or any affiliation.

Some people do not like the fact that some JJ guys (no one in particular) have open affiliations with what is considered TMA schools.

Suddenly, they see affiliate programs which leaders have a guaranteed BB on a long term basis as long as the check keep clearing and they keep paying for expansive seminars.
 
I probably shouldn't post this.

There is a "Machado" black belt in my state (that came from a very TMA background) that some people think gives belts too easy. I don't know which brother gave it to him. He gave a guy a blue belt who came to a Carlson Gracie Jr. seminar at our school a year or so ago. Carlson Jr. was outraged that this guy was a blue belt (no hip movement, clueless, etc).

This same guy gave another two guys their purple belt after only a couple years training and they started their own school. I have heard some people say they are not very good, but I have not really seen them other then some of the students at a tournament (they didn't do well).

At the Michigan Open, a very prominent 5th degree+ black belt wanted all the black belts together for a picture. He specifically refused another Machado black belt, saying he didn't feel he was real black belt. He originally trained under the other Machado black belt in the first two paragraphs. I have seen him ref matches and he clearly didn't understand the rules.

I'm just a lowly blue belt, so I'm not agreeing or passing judgment. These are just things I hear.
 
Names! Don't worry, you have the magic of the internetz to protect your anonymity. :icon_twis
 
They were the top instructors at Gracie Barra for years. Thats speaks for itself.
 
I got my Blackbelt in 2005, after 13 yrs of training.
 
redaxe said:
They don't hand them out like candy. But they do award them to people who deserve them.

Back in the day, the Gracies hardly awarded black belts to anyone--no non-Brazilians until the 1990's. Some of the Gracies (like Rorion) even purposely withheld their good techniques from their students. How long has Rorion been teaching BJJ again? And how many of his students have earned black belts? Yeah...

The Machados were the first to really award black belts to their deserving students who were not part of the family and not even Brazilian. The list of the first twelve non-Brazilian BJJ black belts, aka the "Dirty Dozen," is testament to that, look how many of them are from Rigan Machado:

* Craig Kukuk (Renzo Gracie) - 1992
* Ken Gabrielson (Reylson Gracie) - 1992
* Rick Lucero (Rickson Gracie) - ?
* David Kama (Rickson Gracie) - 1995
* Chris Saunders (Rickson Gracie) - 1995
* Bob Bass (Rigan Machado) - 1996
* Rick Williams (Rigan Machado) - 1996
* Chris Haueter (Rigan Machado) - 1996
* David Meyer (Rigan Machado) - 1997
* Rick Minter (Rigan Machado) - 1997
* John Will (Rigan Machado) - 1998
* Roy Harris (Joe Moreira) - 1998

And those Machado black belts in turn have awarded a lot of black belts to their deserving students, so as a result there are a lot of Machado black belts out there.
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this right here sums it up. your friend my think belts just get handed out to anyone, but that's just in comparison to the gracies because the gracies held back techniques and belts, from non brazilians especially for a while.

the machados on the other hand gave belts to whoever deserved them. i'm currently with a machado black belt who was awarded his black by dave meyer and john will, two of the dirty dozen, and i for damn sure am working my ass off to advance. no free belts here.
 
Wrestleben said:
Many people on here know me from here and several have met me in person.
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Well then, your story sucks then. :p

Though, I will say that there is a difference between a "Machado black belt" (i.e. someone who was promoted by one of the Machados) and a "guy that was promoted by a Machado who hands out belts easily). The belts that he/she hands out are not "Machado black belts".
 
Wrestleben, you're from Grand Rapids BJJ? I remember meeting you at the Michigan open 2 years ago? You were buddies with the guy who beat a Ukranian Judo player? Yeah I brought that guy.
Anyways, there are some affiliates of Machado BB around the Mid-Michigan area and they just are not up to par with the rest of the schools I have been to. I have no idea how the Machado's run their business outside of this particular affiliate, but, this one even told a "purple" belt that he could now belt up to blue 3 stripes. This purple belt was by far the worst I had ever rolled with. I don't think that is an accurate reflection of the Machado's, though. I think if they were really aware of these kinds of things they'd be pretty upset. I'm not trying to upset anyone, or say I know more than the Machado's, or any black belt out there, I am just giving my point of view from the many school's I've visited.
 
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well, the IBJJF has similar policies if no BB are available in the whole country:
"In some countries the IBJJF allows athletes who have not achieved the rank of black belt yet to sign as instructors. Actually these athletes are officially considered supervisors.
Brown and purple belts can be supervisors, although in some countries only brown belts can have the rank. In case the supervisor is a purple belt, he can only grade students up to blue belt; in case the supervisor is a brown belt, he can only grade students up to purple belt.
This is a temporary measure that will only be applied in countries that do not have yet enough certified black belt instructors available for the development of the sport. Once there are enough black belts, the supervisor rank will no longer exist.
"
 
Yeah, when I heard this I immediately looked it up and got that. When I kind of scrutinized the belts there his response was something along the lines of "We are just trying to grow the sport". I don't think you need to be a world beater as a blue belt, I mean, it is only a blue belt, no biggie. I just think you should have a good handle on the basics. These guys did not. Since then a Machado brown belt came to our gym and he was really, really good. That guy had a whole bunch of big tourney wins and is now a black belt, so, again, I don't think this is really a Machado thing.
 
My coach got his black belt from Orlando Waugh who got his from Carlos machado. All my coach has done is place third in masters black belt at the pan ams, won the rio open I believe, and just won the adult pluma black belt class at the Miami open.

Defintley belted him too early.

Seriously the machado bros are awesome guys and who can honestly question any of them when they decide someone is a *insert color* belt or not.
 
Psshhttt, Nate, your instructor stinks. Haha, jk, it's Dan Alvarez isn't it? Yeah, he is really good.
P.s. He was just up here, on top of being a good BJJ guy, he is just an outstanding human being. I cannot say enough positive things about that guy. And as previously stated, I don't think it is the Machados at all.
 
Caecus said:
Psshhttt, Nate, your instructor stinks. Haha, jk, it's Dan Alvarez isn't it? Yeah, he is really good.
P.s. He was just up here, on top of being a good BJJ guy, he is just an outstanding human being. I cannot say enough positive things about that guy.
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He's an alright dude. I would go to battle for him if he asked me. He truly cares to improve his students lives not only their jiu jitsu.

Drop in soon we are having a couple of seminars soon. Orlando Waugh is doing a spider guard seminar next Friday night and Bruno bastos is doing a 1/2 guard seminar dec 11th.
 
mweaver123 said:
Well then, your story sucks then. :p

Though, I will say that there is a difference between a "Machado black belt" (i.e. someone who was promoted by one of the Machados) and a "guy that was promoted by a Machado who hands out belts easily). The belts that he/she hands out are not "Machado black belts".
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They ALL identify themselves as "Machado black belt", "Machado brown belt", etc. Even the lower belts (who got presumably got their belts from their teachers, not the Machados) identify themselves as "Machado" belts.
 
Caecus said:
Wrestleben, you're from Grand Rapids BJJ? I remember meeting you at the Michigan open 2 years ago? You were buddies with the guy who beat a Ukranian Judo player? Yeah I brought that guy.
Anyways, there are some affiliates of Machado BB around the Mid-Michigan area and they just are not up to par with the rest of the schools I have been to. I have no idea how the Machado's run their business outside of this particular affiliate, but, this one even told a "purple" belt that he could now belt up to blue 3 stripes. This purple belt was by far the worst I had ever rolled with. I don't think that is an accurate reflection of the Machado's, though. I think if they were really aware of these kinds of things they'd be pretty upset. I'm not trying to upset anyone, or say I know more than the Machado's, or any black belt out there, I am just giving my point of view from the many school's I've visited.
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Yes sir, that's me...and that was my buddy that your guy threw around :icon_chee

The affiliation around that area seems a little different, but again; I don't think it's necessarily my place to judge. I have heard plenty of high ranking players (ie more then one black belt) complain about this school.
 
Wrestleben said:
They ALL identify themselves as "Machado black belt", "Machado brown belt", etc. Even the lower belts (who got presumably got their belts from their teachers, not the Machados) identify themselves as "Machado" belts.
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Hmm, I wonder if that's an "affiliate" thing then...not really sure (I've only ever trained at an actual Machado school, so not sure how the satellite thing works). I understand where you're coming from, but I don't think those guys should be calling themselves "Machado <fill-in-blank-belt>" if they're being promoted by a guy who's last name isn't Machado. My personal opinion.
 
I'm sure everyone wants to feel that their own instructor or lineage is legit, and many take it as a sign of pride when their instructor is seen as slow promoting. One of the first bluebelts I ever met was from the machado system, this was in 1998/1999. Guy was teaching me and others at the swt judo club meetings at the university. He was certainly good and knowledgeable.

As affilaiations grow and our sport as well, there are bound to be guys at a particular level that may not be as developed as others. To me its not a huge deal as they will grow into their belt eventually. If not, their students will eventually realize it. If they aren't teaching or competing, then it doesn't really matter.
 
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