A troubling video featuring a Brazilian jiu-jitsu demonstration has gone viral, sparking outrage and debate within the BJJ community. The clip shows a coach executing an armbar technique on his uke (training partner), but things take a startling turn when the coach appears to deliberately dislocate the uke’s elbow.
The controversial footage begins like many other BJJ instruction videos, with the coach and uke demonstrating a takedown and armbar sequence. However, as the coach rolls to apply the armbar, he twists the uke’s arm in an awkward manner, causing the elbow to bend at an unnatural angle. The uke is visibly in pain as he examines his distorted elbow joint.
In a move that has drawn widespread condemnation, the coach then appears to strike or kick the uke’s bent elbow before the video abruptly ends. The clip was shared across social media platforms a few days ago and quickly went viral, igniting a firestorm of criticism directed at the unnamed coach.
“Why the actual f*** did you break your student’s arm?” one outraged user commented. Others described the coach’s actions as “ridiculous” and stated that “people like this shouldn’t be teaching.”
However, some viewers argued that the uke likely has extremely flexible joints and simply suffered a temporary dislocation, which they claimed is not a severe injury. “He’s probably double-jointed,” one person speculated, while another stated, “slightly dislocated, it’s technically painless and it’s easily fixed.”
Regardless of the extent of the uke’s injury, the coach’s apparent lack of concern for his training partner’s wellbeing has sparked a heated debate about safety standards and appropriate conduct in BJJ instruction.
It’s unknown if the uke is double jointed as some of the commenters suggests but regardless this is one of those demonstration videos that should be labeled ‘do not try this at home’. Instructors identity has been redacted.
