*pictured Ruotolo brothers with their collection of medals upto green belt in BJJ
In a recent reddit discussion that has gained significant attention in the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community, practitioners are debating what many consider a problematic trend in local competitions: competitors with extraordinary records remaining at lower belt levels.
The conversation began when a competitor shared a screenshot from Smoothcomp (a competition management platform) showing a blue belt with an astonishing 218 wins, including 130 victories by submission. This record also included 78 wins by points, 8 by decision, and 2 by walkover.
“I made this as a meme. I’m not actually competing against them, but for what it’s worth, the blue belt is 26 and has been competing for 3 years,” explained the original poster, who holds a blue belt from 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu.
The community’s reaction was a mixture of disbelief, humor, and genuine concern about what many refer to as “sandbagging” – the practice of skilled practitioners remaining at lower belt levels to accumulate tournament victories.
“No one is mentioning this dude. Thousands of dollars in competitions alone,” commented one blue belt, highlighting the financial commitment such a record represents.
A brown belt added humorously, “And yet, their coach be like ‘hmm still kinda keen to see if they are really dedicated or not before giving them their purple.'”
The financial aspect of such extensive competition sparked considerable discussion. Most competitions cost between $50-80 per entry, though some competitors noted that Grappling Industries offers a lifetime pass for approximately $700, which provides unlimited entry to their events worldwide.
“95 wins by submission at blue belt and over 100 wins by points is surely enough to give the person a purple belt,” observed one brown belt, comparing these statistics to professional black belt competitors.
Several practitioners pointed out that the round-robin format of many tournaments allows competitors to accumulate numerous matches in a single day, especially when entering multiple divisions. “If you do gi and no-gi in a bracket with 5 or more people, you’ll have 8 matches by the end of the day. Say you hit a tournament a month, that’s 96 matches in a year,” explained one black belt.
The discussion reflects broader concerns about competitive fairness in jiu-jitsu tournaments. Some suggested that competition platforms should develop ranking systems similar to chess ratings, which would match competitors based on demonstrated skill rather than belt level alone.
As one purple belt noted, “This is why, although I’m only 20, I compete at Masters 6” – a tongue-in-cheek reference to avoiding such dominant competitors by entering older age brackets.
The phenomenon isn’t limited to adult divisions. One practitioner mentioned encountering 10-year-olds with 150 and 85 wins respectively, suggesting the issue extends across age categories.
Despite the concerns, many in the community defended the competitor’s record as the result of dedication rather than sandbagging. According to data shared by a black belt instructor, the individual in question has been a blue belt for approximately 2 years and 5 months – a duration not unusual for that rank.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu continues to grow in popularity, and these discussions highlight the ongoing evolution of its competitive structure and promotion standards, raising important questions about how tournaments can maintain both accessibility for newcomers and appropriate challenges for dedicated practitioners.
