Jew Jitsu – the Art Within an Art

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Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is nothing if not diverse. It takes just one look at the roots of BJJ to see that. Originating from Japan, developed in Brazil and eventually, spread all over the world. Asia, South America, North America and then everywhere. It is an art that transcends national and racial barriers, bringing people together. In BJJ, racism, sexism, nationalism and the likes are virtually nonexistent, because people are used to rolling with all kinds of partners. In addition, sometimes, BJJ can be promoted in a humorous way and still result with friendship and overcoming of political issues. Take Jew Jitsu as an example.

Although some may consider it politically incorrect, the term Jew Jitsu is by no means derogatory. Not intentionally, at the very least. Despite some mockery and humor on the subject, there is a project worth mentioning that falls under this category. But before we take a look at the serious side, let’s have some fun and piss off social justice warriors.

The Funny Side Of Jew Jitsu

One Google search of the term Jew Jitsu and what pops up is a certain book title among the first few results. Jew Jitsu: The Hebrew hands of fury is a humor book depicting the ancient martial art of Jew Jitsu. According to the authors, there is no defense against this vicious art. It claims to strike fear in the hearts of those who mess with Kosher kids. It gets even cooler, as the weapon of choice for Jew Jitsu are throwing stars of David. 😀

The book actually has good reviews and is really accepted amongst the Jewish community. So before everyone loses their head about it, maybe try and read it before judging the title.

Famous American comedian, Adama Carolla has a bit regarding Jew Jitsu, although in a different manner. According to him, the principles are the same as in BJJ. It is just the context it is used in, that is different. Check it out:

There was also a Facebook group, since disbanded, that made fun of the term Jew Jitsu in an abusive way. It referred to the big Jewish community in the town of Middleton, England. This is the only negative connotation in the online use of the term Jew Jitsu so far.

Jew Jitsu For Peace

In terms of spreading the true Jiu-Jitsu message of understanding and compassion, here’s the incredible story of Jew Jitsu at work. Namely, there is a Brazilian instructor with Jewish root, by the name of Marcos Gorinstein, who has devoted to achieving a great cause through Jiu Jitsu. He currently resides in Jerusalem, Israel, where he uses the gentle art to bring together Jewish and Palestinian kids.

Jerusalem’s west and east parts are divided by a border, marking the territories of Israel with Cisjordan. This is the spot where Gorenstein has opened a BJJ academy. The idea behind the undertaking is to use the sport to unite children and teenagers of Palestine and Israel. The location of the academy is in a volatile region where kids are growing up with violence and aggression.

According to Gorinstein: “The acceptance of these children, in getting to know the other side, is a very brave act. They can be seen in a bad way by the people around them“.

So far this project has yielded great results despite attempts for sabotage. It is a perfect example of how Jiu-Jitsu, or, even better, Jew Jitsu can lead to positive things. Check out Gorenstein’s message and spread the word of this impressive project. Also, remember, that not every use of a term deemed derogatory is actually such and humor is also a tool to spread the Gentle art even further among communities.

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Jay Queiroz – Fake BJJ Black Belt – The Latest Update

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BJJ World

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Jay Queiroz - BJJ Fake Black Belt - The Latest Update

As you probably know Jay Queiroz is the worlds most known Fake (BJJ) Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt. He was exposed in 2015 when Mike Palladino, a brown belt at the time, went into Jay Queiroz’ gym and challenged him. You can check it HERE.

4 FAKE BJJ Black Belts that will piss you off and make you laugh at the same time!

Some of Jay Quieroz’s videos while teaching people were coming out and you watch them HERE, but till now, no one really knew what really happened with Jay Queiroz after he was exposed.

Recently, Mike Palladino known as Tee Sunami on Reddit BJJ answered the question of some guy about Jay Queiroz. Where is Jay Queiroz now, how come he was discovered and how Mike knew about him.

“I never really went into detail about how bizarre of a situation it really was.”

“He worked as a line cook at a local strip club and told the owner he was a black belt in BJJ and wondered if he could transfer from the kitchen to security. The owner upon hearing this, not only transferred Jay, but he made him the head of security.”

“In addition to this, the owner helped Jay open his school and get his program off the ground. In return, Jay promoted the owner to Purple belt after a whopping 3 weeks of training!”

“I can go super in-depth, but I’ll keep it short for now ;-)”

“To answer your questions, Jay closed down the very next day. He called me the night I busted him to apologize for the confusion, but he was still adamant that he was a black belt(this was before the video was released). The next morning, I released the video and it went viral. Jay called a meeting amongst his students and closed down the academy that day.”

“The student who was in the video, whom I had never met before going to Jays, was accosted upon arriving at the meeting. Jay and the other students thought that he set them up.”

“Jay had about 10-15 students including kids and adults. The majority of his students were employees of the strip club(none were strippers), a few cooks, two valet boys, and the rest of the security team. However there were 3-4 students who had no affiliation to the strip club, they just lived near his gym and they came to me after everything went down.”

“The employees stood by him, saying he wasn’t a fraud, and as one fellow said to me “Jay ain’t no fraud, cuz I ain’t no bitch. Jay beat me and made me look like a bitch, so he ain’t no fraud” I kept it civil and just laughed.”

“It was kind of a sad ending for Jay. Marlboro is a small village where everyone knows everyone. So when the video went viral, he lost a lot of respect from the locals. He was fired from his job and began working as a cook again in a town called New Paltz. From there he went back to Brazil.”

“What makes it more unbelievable is the fact that I have a student who is a regular at the strip club and knew Jay. A year before I ‘outed’ Jay, my student who is oblivious, said “Yo bro, my boy from Brazil has a gym. He’s a black belt and he’s got cauliflower’ed ears!” – I laughed it off and said “Your boy is a fraud!” totally as a joke…only a year later to find out he really was a fraud.”

“Well, at the time of the ‘outing’, I had believed he was a purple belt because I saw a picture of him with a purple belt. What I found out from the man he said was his coach in Brazil, was that Jay went to him at white belt, left and came back with a blue belt a year later and said he received it at the Gracie Academy. Then he left to America where he bought a purple belt and took pictures with it. What wound up happening is, he never was awarded beyond white.”

“Even when he started teaching in America, he started with a purple belt. I have a student who was his and he said that when he started with Jay, Jay taught in a purple belt, he randomly showed up one day with a black belt and told the students he was a black belt the whole time but left it in Brazil and just bought a new one now.”

“You have to realize, that every one of his students wasn’t ‘in the know’ about Jiu Jitsu. Jay abused his power, he was a charlatan. He made people believe he was something he wasn’t, and they had no knowledge so they were oblivious to his falsities and lies.”

Fake BJJ Black Belt Jay Queiroz Teaching and Rolling in the Park! Is it Possible That This Guy is Still Teaching People?

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RED BELTS Documentary Trailer Released and Story Behind it

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BJJ World

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After three years Hywel Teague from BJJ Hacks released a trailer of a Red Belts Documentary- Red Belts: Grand Masters of Jiu-Jitsu.

If you’re not familiar with the story of this trailer and the problems around it here is.

3 years ago Hywel Teague, owner of the popular video site BJJ Hacks, said he will be making a documentary about BJJ Red Belts. He said that he will track down, interview and film the remaining red belt masters living in Brazil. In his words: “it will be an intimate and revealing look into the art of jiu-jitsu, focusing on a group of men with amazing history in the sport.”

There wouldn’t be any problems about this documentary if Hywel Teague wasn’t looking for money from BJJ Community. He gathered $17,417 and for 3 years he didn’t mention a single word about it. That’s the reason Hywel Teague, who currently works for FloGrappling, has been accused of scamming BJJ Community.

3 years ago and two years after promising the Red Belts documentary Hywel Teague posted on Reddit BJJ:

“Hello, first of all sorry there haven’t been too many updates of late and that the site is pretty much static nowadays. I did send out an update to all contributors and everybody on the BJJ Hacks newsletter just last month – which I will paraphrase below.”

“A LONG overdue update on production of the crowdfunded documentary Hi guys and first of all sorry for the lack of updates about the Red Belts Documentary film.
In truth, I haven’t released any updates for a while because progress has been painfully (and sometimes embarrassingly) slow.
The IndieGoGo campaign that was used to fund production came to end exactly two years ago today (July 19th).
We’ve had a few messages lately asking about where we’re up to, so I just want to put a few things straight.
Yes, we’re still working on it.
No, it’s not finished yet.
As we have been since late last year, we’re editing together the 18 months + worth of footage that we recorded while interviewing the grand masters.
At the same time, we’re also going back over 50 years in the Brazilian national newspaper archives in an effort to source old photos of our subjects in action. This is not an easy task, and is one thing that is holding us up the most.
All I can say is sorry it’s taking so long, and thank you for your patience and understanding.
If you want to contact me directly to ask any questions about production, please feel free to email me (BJJHacks at gmail)
Thanks again for your support
Hywel Teague BJJ Hacks”

one year ago and after many accusations for scamming BJJ Communit Hywel Teague posted on Reddit BJJ again.

“Sorry for the late response, I didn’t see this until now as I’ve been taking a break from Reddit.”

“First off, I apologise that this project has run on and on. I readily admit to anybody who asked that I bit off more than I could chew and underestimated the difficulties in making this project a reality, but I’m not one to give up and have been working quietly on this as much as possible. I have a responsibility to those who donated to complete this, but I also have a responsibility to jiu-jitsu to make sure a part of history is recorded before it’s too late.”

“Why is it taking so long?”

“I wasn’t as proficient speaking Portuguese then as I am now, so I spent a lot of money on translators. With that budget gone, it means things slowed down in translating the many, many interviews we conducted.

Research. Though this project is, in effect, an oral history, I am doing my best to gather primary sources that will substantiate claims made by interviewees. Accessing these is no easy task. Roberto Pereira, the author of Choque, spent years in the National Library and can attest to the difficulties of finding the relevant info.

A word re Red Belts and FloGrappling

These two things are in now way connected. Red Belts Documentary film is my own personal project, FloGrappling is a part of the private company FloSports. Red Belts documentary will not appear on Flo, and they have no responsibility in producing this project.

My contact email is [email protected] – feel free to get in touch with any questions. I am busy but will do my best to answer.”

After all of this, the good thing is, Hywel Teague finally released a BJJ Red Belts Documentary Trailer. Is this documentary really going on or this is just a short movie to quiet the BJJ Community, the future will show.

https://youtu.be/zFX9t8FYHOE

BJJ Red Belts – Full List UPDATED 2023

Dean Lister And Keenan Cornelius Explains The Best Triangle Defense

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BJJ World

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Dean Lister And Keenan Cornelius Explains The Best Triangle Defense

A triangle choke, or sankaku-jime in judo, is a type of chokehold which strangles the opponent by encircling the opponent’s neck and one arm with the legs in a configuration similar to the shape of a triangle. The technique is a type of lateral vascular restraint that constricts the blood flow from the carotid arteries to the brain.

Dean Lister Shows The Very Triangle Escape He Used at ADCC 2013 to Defend Keenan Cornelius’ Triangle on Keenan himself.

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Peruvian Necktie – A Tight Choke And A Brutal Neck Crank

By

Dino Moskatelo

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The South American country of Peru is a fascinating place. Boasting rich jungles, delicious food, and the Machu Picchu, it is a destination worth visiting. Apart from its famous landscapes and culture (and Ayahuasca, of course), Peru has a cool contribution to Jiu-Jitsu. Namely, the country is related to one of the most devastating submissions in BJJ. It is a rarely seen, immensely tight submission that even bears the country’s name – the Peruvian Necktie.

The Peruvian Necktie is considered to be somewhere in between a choke and a neck crank. Technically, it should be a choke, but the angle of execution can often turn it into a vicious crank. Nonetheless, it’s a move that’s not really in the spotlight, though it’s been proven very effective. It has been used in both high-level Jiu-Jitsu and MMA matches, providing efficient and entertaining finishes.

The Peruvian Connection

The name Peruvian Necktie is due to the origins of the move’s creator, Tony DeSouza. A UFC welterweight veteran, DeSouza is a BJJ black belt under Andre Pederneiras. He came up with a very successful guillotine modification that turned out to be the Peruvian Necktie we know today. Other MMA fighters, like C.B. Dollaway and Brad Pickett, quickly picked up DeSouza’s trademark submission to get submission finishes of their own.

Today, the Peruvian Necktie is a move mostly attributed to No-Gi and has countless variations. It is one of those moves that people either pick up straight away or not at all. This is why, perhaps, it never got to be the as high percentage as the guillotine or brabo chokes.

Peruvian Necktie Mechanics

The Peruvian Necktie is a submission that is most effectively done from the front headlock position. This is a position often utilized in wrestling, offering very strong control over an opponent. When an opponent is in the turtle position, it is very hard to open them up if they know what they’re doing. Despite the usual BJJ practice to attack the back from there, there is another option.

The front headlock position is done when you are in front of your opponent while they are in the turtle. Imagine sprawling against a double leg and maintain pressure while the opponents decide to turtle up. From there, the arms are threaded in an “over-under” configuration. One arm goes over an opponent’s shoulder, while the other goes around an opponent’s arm and through the armpit. They both connect on the inside, in front, or near the opponent’s chin.

From a strong front headlock, the necktie is just a few short and easy steps away. Compared to the guillotine or Darce chokes, the Peruvian Necktie is far easier to set up from the front head and arm control. In terms of grips, the preferred one is the Gable Grip, although an S-grip works just as fine. From there, you put the leg that is on the “arm over” side next to the opponent’s shoulder, as tight as possible. Next, you stand up about halfway, just enough to put your other leg over their back, as you sit back.

Key Details

The trick for correct positioning and finishing of the necktie is in the angle. When you start the move you’ll most likely be starting in front of your opponent. The key is to make sure you sit back toward the overhooked side when taking the second leg over. During the spin, you should be careful not to stand up too much or the opponent can easily spin out.

Putting the second leg over the back is crucial as well since it secures the opponent. If you’re late in placing the leg over, the opponent can roll over and escape. In some variations of the Peruvian Necktie, people try to trap the nearside leg instead of going over the back. Personally, I prefer the leg over the back version as it takes all the slack out of the choke.

For finishing pressure, you keep your elbows together and you look to keep your arms straight. The pressure comes from the extension of the full body. Imagine doing a deadlift, only from a different position. The leg that is over the head applies pressure to the back of it, while the back extension movement tightens the pressure on the neck due to the Gable grip. Now, this is where the choke or crank debate starts. If the arms are correctly positioned deep on the neck, then the opponent will tap to a very tight choke. If during the transition the grip got loose, or the opponent has a strong neck, the pressure on the back of their head, via the leg is going to turn the move in a brutal neck crank.

Submission Chains

The Peruvian necktie is not the only option available from the front headlock. Japanese necktie, German necktie, Hawaiian necktie, Mexican necktie – you name the country and there’s probably a necktie associated with it. Although not all of these variations are as effective as the Peruvian, some do provide great follow-ups. And if none of them are available, there’s always the Guillotine Choke, Darce, and Anaconda to transition into.

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Gender Wars – Man vs Woman – Live Stream

By

BJJ World

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Whether you think a man vs woman is absurd or not it’s going to happen.

It will happen under the special rules of, “no cage, no ropes, backyard rules. It actually means, “everything goes” We’re not sure if there will be groin kicks and eye gouges and similar stupidities allowed, but if a man vs woman is allowed nothing would surprise us.

The main fight of Gender Wars 1 is Tess Barral vs Trent.

Tess Barrall, actually, doesn’t have any MMA experience. She’s a fitness instructor and mother of two. Looks like she just wants to claim the prize of $1,000,000 that organizers of this event promised to a winner.

This event will take place on January 12, 2018 in Russia, as Russia is probably the only country that would allow events like this one. You can purchase the live stream on inplayer.com

Gender Wars fighting or Woman vs Man fighting is a product of former UFC fighter Brad Kohler along with his business partner, A.J. Hiller.

According to them their idea of events like this is to put and end on debate of Woman vs Man. Just like UFC decided to put an end to a debate of which martial art is the best in the world in 1993 when Royce Gracie won first UFC tournaments.

This duo looked for fighters for more than 2 months. While many were in doubt of them finding a woman to fight, this is what they said about it.

“…we had a contest for both the man and woman, Had over 50 women and 200 men who wanted to compete. We will be announcing on the show where and when the next show will be and who wants to compete can enter and where to enter.”

As you can see there’s more than enough females interested in this kind of fighting. So, if you’re a female and interested in events like this check for requirements below.

How to enter:
Must be a female over the age of 20 yrs old and able to travel.
Reply to [email protected]
Answer these questions below and send us a one minute video telling us about yourself and why should you be a contestant on Gender Wars and how you believe that you could beat a man in a MMA bout.
1) Age
2) Where did you grow up and where are you from.
3) Tell us about your family.
4) Hobbies
5) What do you do for a career
6) How often do you train, what type training do you do
7) Do you have a passport
8) Have yo ever had a armature or professional mma fight
9) What would your friends tell us about you. List three friends and their phone numbers for references
10) If you were selected and won,what would you do with the money.
All questions must have full complete answers with a video attached to be considered

You can check a video of Brad Kohler and A.J. Hiller introducing their first Female Fighter:

Anyway, absurd or not we’re sure there will be a lot of people interested in this event. Just like there’s a lot of people interested in Trained female MMA fighter vs Internet Troll.

https://bjj-world.com/woman-vs-man-challenge-match-brazil/

https://bjj-world.com/female-mma-fighter-vs-internet-troll/

Highest Percentage Jiu-Jitsu Moves To Beat Any Opponent

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BJJ World

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Highest Percentage Jiu Jitsu Moves To Beat Any Opponent

The depth of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is truly a staggering one. While most martial arts have a predetermined number of moves, BJJ is structured such that it never ends. While the number of moves is not endless, the variations and possibilities are unlimited. In an art where the angle of your finger might decide if you tap or not effectiveness gets a whole different meaning. Namely, the wealth of possibilities in BJJ is actually the grayest enemy of grapples. All Jiu-Jitsu moves are not made equal and some are more effective than others.

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Of course, the context of the application of a move has to be taken into consideration. A rear naked choke cannot be performed from the closed guard, no matter what. Even though it is one of the highest percentage moves in both BJJ and MMA it has to be properly applied. So, proper positioning is the base of a Jiu-jitsu move’s success rate in training or competition.

Highest Percentage Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Moves

When we speak of the highest percentage of Jiu-Jitsu moves, most people automatically think of submissions. While submitting an opponent is the ultimate goal, competition practice shows that it is not the only outcome. In fact, depending on rules, submission is rarely on the top of the pile of winning techniques. That is because, no matter how competition is structured, positional control and transitional pressure almost always preceded submissions. With that in mind, it is easy to see that a match begins long before a submission is applied. So, in order to get the most out of competing, one has to use the best Jiu-Jitsu moves in every aspect of the game.

Guard Passes

When in doubt about which technique is the best for any situation just go with the fundamentals. In terms of passing the guard, it’s more of a concept of passing, than a technique itself that results in the highest percentage of success. Smash passing has been statistically proven as the most utilized way in which to pass. Countless top competitors, like Rodolfo Vieira and Xande Ribeiro, have built complete games around smash passing.

The pressure passing game offers great positional control over the opponent. The pressure opens up opportunities to attain high control positions like mount straight off the pass. Any kind of technique can be used, as long as the smashing principles are applied.

Bottom Game Moves

When you’re playing guard, apart from submitting someone, the best move is to sweep. As surprising as this may sound, the berimbolo is not on the list of the highest percentage guard moves. If the opponent is standing, then the best option is as basic as the tripod sickle sweep. Done from a simple open guard and taught at a fundamental level, it just works. You can see it done in competition at every belt level.

When facing a crouching or semi-crouching opponent, nothing works as well as the butterfly sweep. Applicable from a host of positions, from butterfly to half guard, it’s one of the staples of BJJ. In both Gi and No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu, the butterfly reigns supreme in the sweeps department.

Best Escapes

Remember all those bridges and hip escapes the instructor makes you do in every class? Well, those “boring warm-up” moves are actually what works best when you’re stuck. Since everyone gets stuck at some point, everyone training BJJ needs a way out. Bridging to create space and hip escaping in order to be able to build a structure is as fundamental as it gets. As cool as spinning and inverting escapes are, when a wrestler gets on top nothing but the bridge-hip escape combo is going to work.

Most Effective Submissions in BJJ

That said, submissions still reign supreme in BJJ. Even though they’re not statistically the most utilized in competition. they’re still the coolest way to win. The list of the optimal Jiu-Jitsu moves to get a tap is just a fundamentals class curriculum in disguise. With the exception of the heel hook, of course (depending on school policies).

Chokes from the Back

When it comes to the king of submissions, it is still the back choke. The move Royce Gracie used to dominate the first UFCs is still the most used submission at tournaments. When it comes to GI competitions, the bow and arrow choke is undisputed. Done from the back with the help of the opponent’s lapel these devastating choke counts for most of the submissions in tournaments.

The bow and arrows predecessor, the original rear-naked choke is submission king in No-Gi competition. While sometimes seen in GI tournaments as well, the No-Gi scene is where this choke rules. It is so effective, that EBI rules have made back control a starting point of overtime rounds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nudDXK50wKk&w=640&h=380

Armbar

The back chokes’ runner-up (although barely) is none other than the armbar. Transcending the borders of GI or No GI competition is one of the most versatile moves in BJJ. Applicable from both the bottom and top positions, the armbar’s effectiveness has been proven again and again. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a tournament without an armbar finish.

Triangle Choke

The move most associated with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and one of the most effective submissions is the triangle choke. A strangle is done from literally everywhere, the triangle has countless variations. What’s most impressive is that they all work at every belt level, Gi or No-Gi.

Heel Hook

The heel hook is as effective as the best Jiu-Jitsu moves but notorious as none other. The heel hook has risen to its rightful place among the submission as of late. This is mainly due to the evolution of sub-only tournaments with more flexible rules than their Gi counterparts. The heel hook is probably the most devastating joint lock in Jiu-Jitsu, as effective as it is brutal. It would probably be at the top of this list, had its use not been forbidden for so long.

Guillotine & Kimura

It’s a tie! Both the guillotine and the kimura are effective submissions, but not the most often used. They probably top the list of attempted submissions, as they’re both fairly easy to set up. Finishing with them, as effective as it is, is far from the success rate of the back chokes or armbars. Do not underestimate these two moves though, as they’re more than useful in competition.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91Ka2fa1sqE&w=640&h=380

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My Instructor Doesn’t Like Me Anymore

By

BJJ World

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Have you ever had to deal with an authoritarian BJJ coach?

This is the problem our buddy “Bob” is having. Bob is someone who enjoys cracking jokes and laughing with his Brazilian Jiu-jitsu training partners.

But recently, his coach who used to be very friendly, has become more stern and standoffish. This came to a head when he greeted his BJJ coach one day when walking into the gym.

His coach, returned the greeting with a quick stern stare and a not so nice reply. Bob has now found a weird spot where he feels unable to talk to his coach. Worst of all he feels like his coach doesn’t like him. Obviously this has created some issues in his Brazilian Jiujitsu experience and he’s not sure how to progress.

As I explain in this video, I imagine it’s 1 or 2 things. Either Bob is interpreting what his coach said in a way that it was not intended. Or Maybe his coach is trying to be more standoffish due to poor advice on how he should interact with his students.

I hope this video is helpful to you if you have found yourself in this situation in your BJJ gym. Also, if you have ever had this situation. I’d love your input on what you did.

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Where in the world is Marc Laimon?

By

BJJ World

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There was a time, not so very long ago, that the name Marc Laimon would draw a look of recognition from even a casual MMA fan. Whether you knew him as the outspoken trainer and cornerman for fighters like Tito Ortiz, Johnny Hendricks and Frank Trigg, or for his ground fighting breakdown videos detailing the techniques and strategies used in the Octagon, Laimon was, for a time, synonymous with the UFC.

Those familiar with the early jiu jitsu scene in the United States know yet another story; the story of a passionate young man and a very public feud with the First Family of jiu jitsu, the Gracies. Stories abound of the early days of the Gracie Academy and Laimon’s defection, which led him to time spent with Nova Uniao and the Beverly Hills Jiu Jitsu Club.

They also know of his unique theories on the guard and his total dedication to the art, sleeping on the mats at times in order to save all his funds and dedicate all his time to jiu jitsu. Those who knew Marc Laimon speak of his brash attitude but also his generosity, his love of jiu jitsu, and his otherworldly skill. A BJJ black belt under John Lewis, Laimon found his own competitive success in notable competitions including the 2001 ADCC Trials and a win over Ryron Gracie at Grappler’s Quest, in front of the Grandmaster himself, Helio Gracie.

Marc found great success as a competitor, and even greater success as a coach. Although he no longer trains at the legendary Cobra Kai gym that he helped to found in Las Vegas, Mr. Laimon has again found a home, and an opportunity to share his passion and knowledge. After moving home to Wisconsin to help care for his father who passed away last year, Laimon has now joined forces with Nova Gyms Martial Arts and Fitness to lead a new team to prominence. Teaming with Chris Martin of BJJ4Change, Laimon aims to help locals feel stronger, resilient, and more confident and to improve their physical and mental well-being.

“I want to work with people who enjoy jiu jitsu, not fighters who dread coming to the gym,” says Laimon.

The jiu jitsu community has seen what Marc Laimon can do. His success with various teams including his work as co-founder of team Cobra Kai speak for themselves. What the future holds for jiu jitsu in Pewaukee and nearby Oak Creek, Wisconsin is yet to be determined, but knowing Marc, it won’t be long before we are forced to pay attention.

Watch Laimon in action here. Though lingering back injuries prevent him from competing at this level today, he keeps his competitive fires burning and is known to play a mean game of Clash Royale!

https://youtu.be/EIBJs3P2o8Y

By Mike Bushby

Jiu Jitsu Tattoos – A Collection Of Art Within An Art

By

BJJ World

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Art is a big part of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Apart from the sports aspect, BJJ is first and foremost a martial art. If you believe the literal translation, “A gentle art”, though many who practice it would disagree. The beauty of BJJ (besides choking people out) is the opportunity to experiment and develop a unique style. The style a grappler develops is a true expression of themselves, which is a trait that Jiu Jitsu encourages. However, technical knowledge isn’t the only manner of expression at the disposal of grapplers. Some like to customize GIs, some go for wacky rashguards, some tie their belts in fancy ways. And some, go out and get Jiu Jitsu tattoos. Those are the cool ones.

In art that places emphasis on individual growth and development, the presence of tattoos is a certainty. People nowadays express their desires through a tattoo (or ten) since it’s a very popular way to do so. The creativity of the Jiu-Jitsu community offers a very entertaining collection of BJJ tattoos. Some are artistic and impressive, while others, well, not as impressive. In any case, it is a great way to demonstrate one’s appreciation and dedication to the art.

A Brief History Of Tattoo Culture

The name “tattoo” stands for “to mark something” in Tahitian. Historically, tattoos go as far back as 1200 BC. There were as many different meanings of tattoos, as they were cultures using them. They marked social status, practical skills, tribal affiliation or even “paranormal abilities”.

Egypt is considered the cradle of tattoo culture, using the spread of the empire to disseminate this custom. Japan was another empire with a rich history regarding tattoos. Form marking criminals, to a full body aesthetic art form Japan contributed greatly to the “needle and ink” culture.

In a warrior culture, nomadic Viking warriors are amongst the fiercest warriors with heavily decorated skins. The tattoos of Celtic warriors were called “meridian lines’ signifying their performance in battle. The famous samurai had complete torso tattoos depicting their armor patterns, so that can be identified if they died in battle. Even in modern times, special forces operators are heavy on the tattoo culture. Jiu-Jitsu Tattoos displayed by grapplers can certainly be considered in the “warrior ink” category.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tattoos

BJJ tattoos, just like BJJ styles, come in all shapes and sizes. In terms of meaning, Jiu-Jitsu tattoos mark everything, from belt rank, through brand logos to team affiliation. No matter the meaning they play a significant role in the spread of grappling culture. Jiu-Jitsu has spread so wide and far, that tattoos related to the gentle art are too many to track.

Below we present a wide selection of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tattoos. Although this modest collection doesn’t do the BJJ tattoo culture justice, it may give you some ideas. So browse through and make sure you share your BJJ ink!