In a recent Instagram story, BJJ athlete Gutemberg Pereira challenged statements made by legendary grappler Marcelo Garcia regarding the current state of gi jiu-jitsu competition.
The controversy sparked after Garcia’s interview at One Championship 170, where he discussed the evolution of the sport and its various aspects. Pereira took to social media to express his disagreement with Garcia’s assessment that gi tournaments have lost their prestige.
“Yesterday, I watched a clip of Marcelo Garcia being interviewed. He said that gi tournaments don’t have any prestige anymore. I feel like the interviewers either don’t know what to ask, are straight-up clueless, or just hate training in the gi,” Pereira stated on Instagram.
The Brazilian competitor went on to defend the vitality of gi competition, highlighting its current dynamic state. “There are so many sick matches in both the men’s and women’s divisions, and tons of new faces trying to make a name for themselves. The OGs are out there showing how it’s done with just straight fire matches.”
Pereira has lost sight of one very important metric – Gi BJJ is losing popularity in the US, while it seems to be able to perform in Brazil and to a degree, world wide.
The trouble is clearly that the market value is in the US – ie the most money is made by competitors catering to Nogi market meaning more instructional sales and more opportunities.
Garcia, who holds both gi and no-gi world titles, has previously emphasized the importance of gi training, particularly for beginners. “Our sport is really, really tough… We try to make it convenient for normal people to go through that first phase, where everything is very new for them. I feel like the gi helps with that. It slows down their learning so it’s not too rough on them when they’re just starting,” Garcia had explained in earlier statements.
The five-time gi world champion has consistently advocated for the synergy between gi and no-gi training, stating, “I strongly believe that one helps the other. The grip helps no-gi, and the looseness helps with the gi.”
It’s no secret that Gi BJJ has been losing steam. Gordon Ryan claimed he was the only person that could save Gi BJJ.
“Most people are just painful to watch in the Gi,” Mo Jassim stated bluntly.
Rogan immitated his coach Jean Jacques Machado: “The Gi is rough. Even I don’t like watching Gi matches sometimes.”
According to Ryan, the key to revitalizing Gi BJJ lies in his unique skill set and persona. As a world-class grappler with a penchant for finishing opponents, Ryan believes he could bring a more dynamic and entertaining style to Gi competitions.
“If I started competing in the Gi, that’s the only way people would actually watch it,” Ryan asserted. “They’d be like, ‘Oh s*it, this guy’s going to go out there and try to submit everyone.'”
And while Ryan is often a bit arrogant he does have a point. Gi matches are often decided by a single advantage and the like depriving spectators of entertainment value.
Even Eddie Bravo said he’s not watching Gi matches unless they involve the older generation of submission oriented competitors.
Keenan Cornelius famously made waves for a statement that claimed Nogi BJJ demands less brainpower.
“Even though no-gi is a simplified version of gi for people with less brain power, I appreciate the simplicity.”
According to Cornelius, the mental demands of no-gi BJJ are significantly reduced compared to the traditional gi form. “It’s so simple. You actually have to underthink. You need to think less energy than you have to think in the gi. And that can be liberating,” he said.
Meanwhile Brazilians like Pena and Mica Galvao insist that Gi BJJ has a lasting place in contemporary BJJ.
During a recent interview, Galvao was asked if he’ll still compete in both Gi and Nogi (translated and transcribed by bjjdoc.com):
“Yes, I do. For one reason. As Brazilians, we still have our tradition of wearing the gi. I think it will never be overtaken in the way of… I think Nogi will overtake the competitions, because if a laymen sees two guys without the gi, which is a little easier to understand, if most of Nogi matches are finished via submissions, it’s easier for laymen to understand.”
“So I think it will be adapted for the audience.”
“The commercial part. While the Gi will be more traditional, it will be the problem solver.”
“If you go to the US, you see a different vibe.”
Felipe Pena shares there has been criticism of Gi Jiu-Jitsu compared to Nogi Jiu-Jitsu, but they are different modalities therefor not suitable for comparisons.
Gi Jiu-Jitsu has different techniques, more grips, and a more technical details.
Rules need to be adjusted to avoid stalling.
Critics of Gi Jiu-Jitsu are typically athletes who have not stood out and focus on Nogi.
Nogi has fewer grips, and a good wrestling base helps.
As per Pena, there is a difference between sport JJ and professional JJ.
The financial return for Nogi is greater for professional black belts, but Gi Jiu-Jitsu is still greater overall.
Ultimately, Gi BJJ is here to stay for now, but it’s clear that Nogi BJJ, or grappling is where all the mainstream promotions are putting in their efforts. It would be hard to convince a casual student to watch 8 hours of IBJJF championships featuring very little promotion, laggy stream and advantage driven matches opposed to say Craig Jones Invitational.
