What can BJJ to stop and reverse this trend?

After years of being someone who defended militant training, it has come to my realization that I was misled and that softer approaches to training absolutely can work and do. Even making the claim that BJJ is becoming like TMA and trying to paint this picture that TMA has somehow been rendered useless in the US is nonsense. There are plenty of fighters who have become highly successful in MMA with notable TMA backgrounds. TMA provides some good building blocks for a striking athlete that should not be overlooked. Your typical TMA stylist is more fluid, has better footwork, defense, hand speed, and timing than those of Muay Thai. Trying to say those skills that were gained in American dogos aren’t I port at is silly. America is doing a fine job of producing top grapples as well.
Coming from a karate background I agree TMAs can be excellent for fighting the problem is the chances of finding a place that can manage that is pretty low.
Heck even the dojo I grew up in is pure mcdojo these days and one of the reasons I’m not upset to have quit they place
 
If they don't allow visitors and tell their students not to train elsewhere they won't grow. We live in a connected world, that isn't going backward.

This stuff is covered in the video you posted- the mat is honest

Edit- it's much easier for fakes to say moves are to dangerous or whatever in a striking situation-. Grappling can be done near 100% safely-

WOAH WOAH WOAH, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

You can't isolate the knee to do a leg lock.

It's too dangerous!


Actually got told that a few weeks back.

Literally replied, "the IBJJF rules are stupid and fully controlling the knee is safer than giving you the room and mobility to torque yourself in the wrong direction".

My advice was not appreciated.
 
some MMA places do use belts, i remember when i was coaching an MMA class this dude who fancied himself a coach wanted to do belts for the MMA class...i told him to fuck off lol

in the stand up forums i remember someone mentioning that some MT places were also doing belts, or shorts color coded by rank, or arm bands or something.
Belts I've only heard of on the internet, colored shorts are common in that regard. Still a rarity at most gyms. These forms of rank like another poster said, are one side business incentives to help keep students willing to strive for something. They're an internal rank though, specific to the gym, not actually meant as a recognized rank from a governing body like belt rank in BJJ or TMAs.
 
Belts I've only heard of on the internet, colored shorts are common in that regard. Still a rarity at most gyms. These forms of rank like another poster said, are one side business incentives to help keep students willing to strive for something. They're an internal rank though, specific to the gym, not actually meant as a recognized rank from a governing body like belt rank in BJJ or TMAs.
It's my understanding that Judo originated the 'belt' system. It can be perverted (like anything).

From my perspective, belts make a great tool for structure in one's training. Progression is the operating goal, and belts provide a regimen to strive and assess that.

Firas ought to be more concerned with his own training regimen, without which GSP would have never made it in MMA (<Dany07>).
 
Firas opens with his famous Big Name, lead in, Mas Oyama, who originated kyokushin style of karate. He says Mas Oyama took 3 of his black-belts to Thailand for a Muay Thai challenge match, taking 2 out of 3. Today, Firas says, the Thai's of today are killing karate. Proof positive, Firas says.

I'm looking at striking styles (now doing Judo), and here's where I've come out so far, and taking into account MMA type competition.

Boxing most pragmatic and generally workable style.
(Muay Thai applicable too, but I donna like it).

Next, the Karate's(3 main styles by my ranking):

  1. Shotokan
  2. TKD (Rogan's original art)
  3. Kyoskushin

Kyokushin is last, Firas, because it has degenerated into MMA like thinking. Guys (&gals) wanting to beat up other guys (&gals). Not that there aren't some impressive kyokushin practitioners out there. Here's a vid I recently posted to show Firas's never ending BS is BS.

Female Kyokushin Karate Fight With Wheel Kick KNOCKOUT!
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•Sep 29, 2014


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This idea that sparring makes the fighter is just ridiculous. As this video shows.

The sparring has to be directed at something. That much I know.
I've got my first randori coming up this weekend (Saturday). Wonder how'll I'll do?<Arya01>
 
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We are not even into a minute of the video, when Firas jumps on karate, " take out all the sparring, take out all the hard training, and give you a black-belt in 4 years." I checked with a local karate school, and the latter is quite true. They want you to have that black-belt, I was told in 5 years. Is that so bad? Since we know what is going on?

MMA does it's own brand of this, and one of the huge dimensions is SPARRING, HARD SPARRING. First of all, karate practice tradition wise was changed about a hundred years ago to do exactly what Firas calls for: Kumite = sparring.

Karate tradition, with some exception styles like Kyokushin, controlled contact for SAFETY. The tradeoff was safety over contact training to do what (Firas)?

They got upset with my last good karate kumite post, so I don't dare. But there are plenty of crappy karate kumite YT's around if you want to dump on the style.

Ending Moral: There is a method to the madness in the traditional martial arts.<Sansa00>Sansa Queen of the North.
 
Firas is teaching (Selling) the 'real' BJJ.

Rory MacDonald vs. Stephen Thompson
Round 1
Veteran official John McCarthy is the referee for tonight’s five-round welterweight main event, with judges Sal D’Amato, Chris Lee and David Therien scoring at cageside. Thompson starts the fight in the center of the cage, working from his wide southpaw stance and playing a bit of patty-cake with MacDonald in the opening minute. MacDonald unexpectedly divebombs Thompson’s legs, looking for a surprise heel hook, but “Wonderboy” extracts the limb without trouble. Thompson strikes with a stiff left hand down the middle and then avoids another heel hook attempt from the “Red King.” Thompson creeps toward MacDonald, delivers a side kick and backs out again. The welterweights tangle near the fence and wind up clinched against the cage with Thompson on the outside. Thompson breaks away with a pair of punches which don’t seem to faze MacDonald, and the round ends shortly thereafter.
Sherdog Scores
Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Thompson
Tristen Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Thompson
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Thompson

Courtesy of the 'dog.

Anyone looking for a real MMA Coach (NOPE!)?<Ellaria01>
 
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At the 5, 6 minute mark, Firas does concede that there are really good karate instructors out there, who have really good students.

Why not step up like Mas Oyama then, Firas? Hold a challenge match. Oooppps. Already did that and your man (MacDonald) lost. Your BJJ with full contact, hard sparring, lost. Your striking adapted especially for MMA lost against Wonderboy's sport karate style. Along with your great philosophical insights into fighter psychology. Lost.

Firas, the only thing this interview shows is that you are LOST. Selling like everyone else. My interview for an MMA coaching position is now officially over, fired before I was hired.<JerryWWF>
 
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Firas is teaching (Selling) the 'real' BJJ.

Rory MacDonald vs. Stephen Thompson
Round 1
Veteran official John McCarthy is the referee for tonight’s five-round welterweight main event, with judges Sal D’Amato, Chris Lee and David Therien scoring at cageside. Thompson starts the fight in the center of the cage, working from his wide southpaw stance and playing a bit of patty-cake with MacDonald in the opening minute. MacDonald unexpectedly divebombs Thompson’s legs, looking for a surprise heel hook, but “Wonderboy” extracts the limb without trouble. Thompson strikes with a stiff left hand down the middle and then avoids another heel hook attempt from the “Red King.” Thompson creeps toward MacDonald, delivers a side kick and backs out again. The welterweights tangle near the fence and wind up clinched against the cage with Thompson on the outside. Thompson breaks away with a pair of punches which don’t seem to faze MacDonald, and the roun

Courtesy of the 'dog.

Anyone looking for a real MMA Coach (NOPE!)?<Ellaria01>



Rory McDonald vs JT Torres (2x ADCC Champ) Goes to a draw after 20 minutes and is fairly competitive. McDonald is a very high level grappler.
 


Rory McDonald vs JT Torres (2x ADCC Champ) Goes to a draw after 20 minutes and is fairly competitive. McDonald is a very high level grappler.

Rory MacDonald is a great MMA competitor, no question. I did not know about the ADCC match. So tnx.

Really, I was speaking to a broader issue of MMA, which is more forceful contact. That 'pressure testing' TSF is always lauding high.

I'm also picking on Firas, the bout w Wonderboy was just one example. Wonderboy kinda knocks around most MMA opponents. Even when he loses, they are generally very challenged in the process.

Firas is a very knowledgeable guy.<Gordonhat>
 


Rory McDonald vs JT Torres (2x ADCC Champ) Goes to a draw after 20 minutes and is fairly competitive. McDonald is a very high level grappler.


Rory wasn't really competitive, he just survived to the end because it's a silly sub only ruleset.
 
[video link deleted]

Rory McDonald vs JT Torres (2x ADCC Champ) Goes to a draw after 20 minutes and is fairly competitive. McDonald is a very high level grappler.
That's a great video, especially since I'm learning Judo which is comparatively light on ground work. In practice. I'm only 2 minutes in & like WOW!

Another video I watched to critque Firas was the MacDonald / Mousasi Bellator championship bout. Then contrasted what Rory did to take down (attempt) Gregard. The attempt ended in utter disaster. I'm Judo, we would seek to overcome the larger, stronger? opponent by NOT doing what Rory tried.

MMA accounted for Rory's loss on the ground to Gregard having that size advantage. Yet BJJ is vaunted (like Judo) for overcoming a competitor with a significant step up in size. That's a wrestling mentality, a valid excuse under wrestling. Judo does some things differently than wrestling & secondarily than BJJ.

That's why tradition in martial arts makes for an answer,,, if one is willing to put in the investment.<Ned01>
 
Rory wasn't really competitive, he just survived to the end because it's a silly sub only ruleset.
I got just past the 2 minute mark, and that opponent looked like Hell on Wheels.

The ADCC format doesn't appeal to me because it comes across as wrestling like. Judo has a different flavor, as I commented about in my early posts.

Gregard Mousasi is a very good MMA striker, having a concentrated kickboxing background. Rory was in for a long night irregardless.

My randori (1st) is coming up this Saturday. I'm not nervous but realistic that experience will be against me. Our Judo school, we do not pit beginners against beginners to start out.
 
Rory wasn't really competitive, he just survived to the end because it's a silly sub only ruleset.

Rory seemed more focused on attacking submission.

Under some of the current org's like F2W a judges decision would have been close. They seem to only judge sub attempts, not position.
 
I got just past the 2 minute mark, and that opponent looked like Hell on Wheels.

The ADCC format doesn't appeal to me because it comes across as wrestling like. Judo has a different flavor, as I commented about in my early posts.

Gregard Mousasi is a very good MMA striker, having a concentrated kickboxing background. Rory was in for a long night irregardless.

My randori (1st) is coming up this Saturday. I'm not nervous but realistic that experience will be against me. Our Judo school, we do not pit beginners against beginners to start out.

JT is hell on wheels-. He's top of the food chain.

To be able to do anything but stay completely shelled up for 20 minutes and not get tapped by him you'd have to be incredibly good.
 
I think in most cases the trend is the opposite. Gyms in my area seem so concerned about being accused of undeserved promotions, that they keep people at a given belt for much longer than they should.

This isn't a bad thing necessarily. But when you have a guy taking gold in several ibjjf opens consecutively, it starts to feel like sandbagging.
 
Under some of the current org's like F2W a judges decision would have been close. They seem to only judge sub attempts, not position.

The decision grappling ruleset are utter bullshit.
 
My randori (1st) is coming up this Saturday. I'm not nervous but realistic that experience will be against me. Our Judo school, we do not pit beginners against beginners to start out.
Make sure your ukemi is strong, try some of the throws you've already learned and have fun!
 

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