Building another bridge between jiu jitsu and MMA, Eddie Bravo introduces combat jiu jitsu.
MMA is growing at a pace consistent with the sport’s ever improving talent pool. With so many different aspects of a mixed martial artist’s game coming into play in every bout, the ability for a fighter to utilize his or her strengths in a fight is what separates success from frustrating failure in this intricate sport. Many ground specialists that have made the switch to MMA find certain roadblocks that prevent them from playing their game in a fight. While it is difficult for MMA fighters to bring fights into their comfort zone and attack with their strengths, it is very possible in almost every scenario. The founder of 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu and creator of an unconventional no-gi style of jiu jitsu designed for fighters, Eddie Bravo is now bridging the gap from jiu jitsu to MMA in attempts to revamp a sport within a sport.
Bravo joined me on Fighting Solo Radio and we discussed his new project. It is called combat jiu jitsu and it is simply a grappling match with strikes allowed once one fighter has gone to the ground. Elbows and punches to the head and body, kicks and knees to the body, and up kicks are all permitted as long as one competitor is on the ground. Until the fight reaches the ground it is purely wrestling with takedowns and no striking. Bravo believes this new sport will serve the purpose of filling a void that exists between MMA and pure grappling.
“There is a hole in between MMA and grappling,” Bravo said. “The hole is combat jiu jitsu, right there in the middle. It’s not quite MMA but it is way more brutal than standard jiu jitsu.”
Making the leap from jiu jitsu directly to MMA is no easy task, in fact many grapplers turned fighters struggle with having to begin fights vulnerable to strikes. Bravo thinks that not only will the sport serve as a middle ground for grapplers transitioning into MMA, but that seeing world class grapplers compete in jiu jitsu with punches will test them in a way that 10th planet has built its style off of.
“There are so many amazing grapplers out there that will never do MMA,” he said. “Before combat jiu jitsu we would never see how [these grapplers’] jiu jitsu looks when someone is trying to smash them.”
For Bravo, the objective for this new concoction is simple.
“The goal is to have a sport thrive that will prepare grapplers better for MMA than regular grappling does,” Bravo said. “It is also a sport for people that don’t want to do MMA at all but do want to punch on the ground.”
A prime example of a jiu jitsu expert failing to employ his grappling in an MMA fight was on the first live fight of The Ultimate Fighter season 15. Cristiano Marcello, a fourth degree BJJ black belt under Royler Gracie, fought against Black House MMA’s striking specialist Justin Lawrence, and was unable to employ his ground game. Bravo mentioned this fight to highlight the importance of a grappler knowing how to effectively pull guard in a fight.
“Obviously Cristiano is amazing at jiu jitsu but he couldn’t get the fight down, so he was left to strike with Lawrence,” he said. “Pulling guard is not mastered enough by jiu jitsu guys. Most guys aren’t willing to pull guard, but you have to pull guard, you have to have faith in your guard. [As a grappler] if you don’t have that third option you are going to hit a (expletive) wall.”
Now fully sanctioned under the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) with the help of U of MMA (a popular southern California amateur MMA promotion) president Turi Altavilla, combat jiu jitsu is set for its debut. On May 20 at the Nokia Center for U of MMA’s ‘Tomorrow’s World Champions’ event, combat jiu jitsu will share the stage with three matches to take place in the MMA cage. Bravo envisions the sport moving from the cage to an open mat (similar to the venue of grappling tournaments), in hopes that the sport will become it’s own entity.
“When you put combat jiu jitsu on an open mat, that is where it is going to shine,” he said. “This is just the beginning, we are just testing it out.”
Until then, Bravo is simply aiming to get his new sport off the ground.
“Right now we are just trying to get it through the door, just to have some matches and some history,” he said.
Three 10th planet grapplers are set to christen the combat jiu jitsu canvas. Brown belts Jeremy Shields and Justin Milos, and blue belt Jared McCourt are all awaiting the announcement of their opponents for May 20.
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