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ARE THERE BELTS IN NO GI BJJ?

By Benjamin Strusnik, May 25, 2022

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is an old school traditional Martial Art that dates back to the early 1900's. The art is a highly complex form of combat grappling that incorporates ground fighting and submission holds. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a series of movements that incorporates taking an opponent from the standing position to the ground, and then controlling and gaining dominant positions. Athletes will then utilise a series of techniques that can force an opponent into submissions like arm locks, leg locks or chokeholds.

What This Article Covers:

What Is No Gi Brazilian Jiu Jitsu All About
What Is the Origin of No Gi Brazilian Jiu Jitsu?
Nogi Grappling
Can Practitioners Earn Ranks in No Gi BJJ
How Many No Gi Grapplers Are Black Belts
No-Gi White Belt
No Gi Competitions
Is No Gi Better Than Gi Jiu Jitsu

Traditional Brazilian Jiu Jitsu uses a uniform called a Gi, where the two opponents can use the lapels on the Gi to choke their opponents. They can also utilise grips on the sleeves or their pants in order to set up submissions, passes or sweeps. All students wear a coloured belt varying from white to black, which signifies the rank of the student. In more recent times Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has become split into two main sporting competitions, Gi and No Gi. In the No Gi variation, athletes wear a rashguard and shorts and have a slightly modified rule set. Nowadays the popularity and growth of the No Gi version of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has become exponential, as it has forced the two versions into nearly becoming two separate sports.

Learn directly from the mad scientist of No Gi grappling, John Danaher!

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WHAT IS NO GI BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU ALL ABOUT

The name No Gi derives from the traditional art of Gi Jiu Jitsu, in the No Gi version athletes would not wear the Gi instead they would wear shorts and a rashguard, hence the name No Gi. Another term that has more recently come into the fold is submission grappling, as the No Gi form has a significantly higher rate of submission wins. The art of No Gi has become almost a separate sport to Gi Jiu Jitsu, as the popularity of the submission grappling art is growing everyday.

The No Gi sport has been made famous by athletes like John Daniher, Marcelo Garcia, Andre Galvao, Royler Gracie and Dean Lister. These combat athletes have become pioneers to the sport of No Gi Jiu Jitsu, as they have all added their concepts and ideologies to the Martial Art. Nowadays No Gi BJJ is a faster paced game than the traditional Gi Jiu Jitsu, mainly due to the inability to stifle an opponent with collar grips, instead an athlete must rely on securing chokes, armlocks and leg locks by utilising neck ties, underhooks, overhooks, drags and a more wrestling based attack system.

In the modern format there are many gifted athletes like Gordon Ryan, Craig Jones, Augusto Mendes, Gary Tonnen and one of the fastest bjj black belts to achieve the rank in Geo Martinez. All of these submission grapplers are highly connected to the No Gi variant of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. There is a wide variety of specialised No Gi tournaments like the famous ADCC, No Gi Worlds, Polaris, Submission Underground, Quintet, Five Grappling, Who's Number One and Fight 2 Win, these tournaments are seeing highly experienced brown and black belts fight in mini divisions and super fights to see who can take home the coveted title belt.

WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF NO GI BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU

No Gi Brazilian Jiu Jitsu originates with the famous Japanese Martial Artist Mitsuyo Maeda who was also known as Count Combat in Spanish and Conde Koma in Portuguese. When Mitsuyo delivered BJJ to the Gracie family in the early 1900's, he also introduced a different variation of the art in No Gi submission grappling. Mitsuyo was always about facing challenges and when he went touring the world to find them, he was drawn to a catch wrestling event at Leicester Square in London. This event was a tournament that utilised choke holds and joint locks but without the traditional Gi uniforms. Mitsuyo impressed many onlookers including Time magazine with his impressive Judo techniques, the 154 pound Maeda secured several throws like seoi nage and ogoshi before falling victim to the 297 pound winner in the final.

Later on when Mitsuyo came to the Amazon in Brazil, he began helping many Japanese settlers face adversity including human conflicts. Mitsuyo Maeda has been described to have had an incredible fortitude and a humbling spirit, which he passed on to all of his students. Mitsuyo taught Carlos Gracie Snr all of his ideologies in life and Jiu Jitsu, including the hybrid variation of No Gi submission grappling. Even though the art was taught mainly by practitioners wearing the traditional Gi uniform, the No Gi variant slowly gained in popularity until nowadays there has been an explosion into the world arena of competitive grappling.

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CAN PRACTITIONERS EARN RANKS IN NO GI BJJ

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has become increasingly popular, as many athletes are opting for the No Gi variation of the Brazilian art. A No Gi competitor cannot wear a belt while they compete, but they are still given belt ranks by their instructors. Most practitioners train in Gi and No Gi, so when they are handed out a belt it still applies to the No Gi version. Some academies are purely No Gi and will hand out belt ranks to athletes that only compete in No Gi tournaments, this is common with Eddie Bravo at his 10th Planet BJJ academy. It is also quite common to see MMA fighters receive high ranking belts after showing submission prowess in their bouts, like when Rolles Gracie Jr gave a controversial black belt to the UFC legend Rashad Evans.

Handing out belts to No Gi grapplers can prove tricky if they don't train in the Gi, this is because it comes highly criticised by the media and the BJJ community. Considering how long are you a white belt in bjj for, it will serve a student well to put in some hours on the mats wearing the Gi. Some Instructors say that a student cannot fully understand Jiu Jitsu concepts without experiencing wearing the traditional uniform. Other practitioners will have a different opinion, saying that the No Gi variation has become its own entity and deserves to have its own rankings handed out without basing them on wearing the Gi.

When you look at the high level No Gi tournaments today, there is definitely validity in how the sport has become its own identity. It is quite common to see a bjj blue belt vs untrained black belts in No Gi techniques, defeating the higher belts with cheeky leg lock submissions. This is a testament to the extensive work that many No Gi pioneers like Dean Lister, John Daniher and Andre Galvao have put into the art. Nowadays some of the world's most talented and exciting black belts only compete in No Gi submission grappling tournaments.

NOGI GRAPPLING

Nogi Grappling, or simply No-Gi, is an exciting and fast-paced variant of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu that has exploded in popularity within the martial arts community. Often called submission grappling, No-Gi eliminates the traditional Gi uniform, instead, competitors wear rashguards and shorts. The absence of the Gi results in a different strategic approach, as the grips available in traditional BJJ are not present in No-Gi. The matches tend to be more dynamic and rely heavily on controlling an opponent through underhooks, overhooks, and neck ties. With significant influences from wrestling, No-Gi BJJ emphasizes speed, agility, and a fluid game of transitions. Today, it's not just seen as an offshoot of traditional BJJ, but as a standalone martial art with its own pioneers and icons who have shaped it into what it is today.

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HOW MANY NO GI GRAPPLERS ARE BLACK BELTS

BJJ has become a mainstream sensation with many subscribers logging into flow grappling and other YouTube channels that air grappling matches and technical information. With the rise of No Gi submission grappling there is an avenue for practitioners to earn some fame and money if they are good enough. Students will need to advance through all of the coloured belt levels so they can reach the coveted black belt rank. How many bjj black belts are there in No Gi? The number of No Gi black belts is a tough one to answer, as there is little record keeping, in terms of how many. There is a significant amount of black belts that are now competing on the world stage of No Gi submission grappling.

Nowadays there are quite a lot of traditional Gi black belts transitioning into No Gi events like ADCC or even Mixed Martial Arts. Even though the traditional Gi style will never die, the No Gi variation seems to be more popular with the younger generations of BJJ practitioners. No Gi is even extremely popular within the youth Jiu Jitsu belt ranking system, as kids as young as five and up to teenagers are competing in the ever popular No Gi version of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

NO-GI WHITE BELT

Starting your journey in No-Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as a white belt can be an exhilarating yet challenging experience. While the absence of the Gi might seem intimidating initially, the No-Gi white belt phase is a crucial time to build a solid foundation in core concepts, techniques, and positional understanding. Without the Gi grips, white belts focus more on movement, body control, and the use of hooks and levers to control and submit their opponents. It's also a time to understand the significant rule differences between Gi and No-Gi, especially with submissions like heel hooks or neck cranks that are more prevalent in No-Gi. Although you won't physically wear a belt during No-Gi training or competition, the rank still applies, and progress is marked by your instructor, often based on skill, time, and dedication in training.

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NO GI COMPETITIONS

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has become an extremely popular Martial Art all across the globe with many practitioners desperate to make a name for themselves. Many young athletes are lighting up the world stage with their newer evolution of No Gi Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. There has been a significant rise in No Gi submissions like heel hooks and toe holds as they are becoming more and more prominent in No Gi competitions. This kind of submission will level the playing fields as a lower belted student has a chance at snatching victory over a more seasoned and experienced grappler.

There are many No Gi competitions that have modified rule sets and modified divisions. Instead of the traditional belt rank, weight and age groups, some No Gi competitions adopt a system that includes a skill level division. Usually the divisions are beginner which is one year in BJJ or intermediate which is over a year but under four years of BJJ experience which is usually blue and purple belts. The advanced division is usually over four years or brown and black belts, the good thing about this format is blue belts can enter the advanced division so they can test their skills if they want to. The only issue with competing in the advanced division is the rule set as it will allow heel hooks, knee reaping, toeholds and neck cranks making this quite a dangerous division to enter. Meaning a practitioner that has less experience than a traditional higher ranked competitor may have a hard time competing.

Nowadays grapplers like a challenge and with the different styles of No Gi tournaments like round robin or super fight match ups, No Gi is beginning to lead the way in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. There are also newer developments on the No Gi front with team Jiu Jitsu in tournaments like the quintet, where teams of five go up against another team to try and win the team title. There are also movements in the evolution of Combat Jiu Jitsu, where the grapplers are allowed to open hand palm strike each other making the bout a unique and exciting match up.

IS NO GI BETTER THAN GI JIU JITSU

There are plenty of people across the world with different opinions on this topic. No Gi has significant popularity across the board as the success of the Abu Dhabi tournaments are becoming more and more profitable. The No Gi style is definitely a more fast paced and free Martial Art compared to its brother in Gi. In No Gi there is a wider rule set so a practitioner can access higher level finishes and they can also attack from a larger series of positions that are illegal in the Gi version. There is also a more considerable amount of fame attached with the No Gi variation as well as a wider opportunity for lower belts to compete against black belts, which is great for the progression of a student.

Learning to effectively pass the No Gi guard has never been easier. Check out Danaher's new NO GI Guard Passing instructional from BJJFanatics!

On the other hand the traditional Gi version of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is still number one in terms of high level practitioners. More professional athletes compete at IBJJF Worlds as most of them have values that still align with the old traditions. There is also a significant difference wearing a Gi, a practitioner can utilise a series of Gi chokes by using the lapels that can't be done in the No Gi variant. In the Gi there are a lot more techniques to learn, so a big argument is that due to the complexity of Gi movements, the Gi version is a better way to train in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

At the end of the day it really comes down to personal opinion, some will like the Gi more while others will opt for the No Gi style. Both versions are really just threads from the same cloth, as many of the movements in each art are quite similar. So whether you like the Gi or the No Gi variation, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is one of the most gratifying Martial Arts on the planet.

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