The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community’s backlash against Derek Moneyberg’s questionable black belt promotion continues to escalate with Joe Rogan weighing in during a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience alongside artist Mike Maxwell
The topic arose organically as they discussed martial arts and Maxwell brought up Moneyberg—a financial influencer with no competitive grappling record—who claims to have earned his black belt in just 3.5 years. The announcement was made with fanfare flanked by photos alongside UFC legends Jake Shields, Lyoto Machida, Glover Teixeira and Frank Mir seemingly as character witnesses.
But unlike someone like Mark Zuckerberg who has quietly and consistently trained in both Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and MMA—competing publicly and working with top-tier athletes while also training with a regular team—Moneyberg’s martial arts path feels more like a curated photo-op. According to his own statements he refuses to train with anyone who isn’t already a legend in the sport as if proximity to fame can substitute for mat time. Instead of building skills in the trenches with regular practitioners he boasts about avoiding them altogether
Craig Jones one of the most respected grapplers on the planet recently pulled back the curtain on Moneyberg’s supposed dedication. Jones alleged that Shields offered him $2,000 just to appear in a training video and roll with Moneyberg—hardly the kind of organic mentorship that defines legitimate progression in the sport. The suggestion was clear: Moneyberg is paying for access not proving skill through the grind
Despite this Joe Rogan offered a more cautious take
“Someone who is super rich which apparently this guy is who trains with the best trainers in the world and actually puts the time in every day—it’s super easy to dismiss someone because they’re rich”
Rogan then attempted to draw parallels to Zuckerberg whose approach is fundamentally different
“I know for a fact Zuckerberg trains really f***ing hard”
“He goes with real guys and he brings in people like Dave Camarillo He takes it very seriously”
That comparison doesn’t hold water. Zuckerberg trains regularly in a team environment spars with everyday students competes publicly and takes losses on the chin. Moneyberg on the other hand curates his image by surrounding himself with famous names avoids public testing and allegedly pays for appearances with elite athletes
Rogan did make an important point
“If this guy’s training multiple hours a day every f***ing day at jiu-jitsu you can get to black belt level”
But that’s a big “if” and most in the BJJ community remain unconvinced that Moneyberg has done the work outside the Instagram frame
Even so Rogan hedged
“The only way to get good at jiu-jitsu is hard work”
while conceding that access to personal instruction from the likes of Danaher or Gordon Ryan is
“100% a chea* code”
But ch*** codes only work if you’re playing the game—something Moneyberg doesn’t seem to be doing in any traditional sense
The credibility of his promotion rests almost entirely on the shoulders of Jake Shields an MMA star Rogan respects deeply
“Jake is top of the food chain… I can’t imagine Jake giving out a belt that wasn’t deserved”
But even that endorsement hasn’t silenced critics
Maxwell also a black belt offered a simple solution
“Let me just see him do an arm bar from closed guard Let me just see how sloppy that is and then I’ll know for sure”
The broader issue isn’t just about Moneyberg—it’s about the creeping commercialization of martial arts. While outliers like BJ Penn and Travis Stevens reached black belt quickly due to intense training and high-level backgrounds they also tested themselves under real scrutiny in real competitions
Moneyberg has done none of that. Instead he’s positioned himself as a product of elite proximity curated branding and alleged pay-to-play sessions with champions. That may be enough to fool the uninformed but in jiu-jitsu real recognition is earned on the mat not on a flyer
Rogan’s comments may have been diplomatic but the community sentiment is clear: Moneyberg isn’t the next Zuckerberg—he’s just cosplaying as one.
