The Craig Jones Invitational has been widely praised for shaking up professional grappling bringing real money and mainstream attention into a sport long stuck in obscurity. But not everything about CJI 2 hit the mark. The lowest point by far came from a painfully awkward segment featuring Rhasaan Orange’s alter ego Renato Laranja a character that has long divided opinion in the Jiu-Jitsu world.
What was supposed to be comedy instead turned into one of the most cringe-inducing moments in combat sports media. UFC veteran and ADCC veteran Tom DeBlass who has openly shared his experiences of childhood trauma and written about them in his autobiography was subjected to an “interview” that crossed every possible line.
The exchange started with a surface-level conversation about men’s mental health where DeBlass emphasized the need for men to express feelings rather than bottling them up. But when he revealed—once again with vulnerability—that he had been abused the response from the Laranja character was appalling. Rather than offering any sensitivity the host quipped that DeBlass
“must have been an attractive young gentleman,”
before stumbling into a horrific one-liner:
“When life give you a s**ual abuse, you gotta make lemon juice.”
DeBlass to his credit showed immense composure simply thanking him for the
“advice”
and moving on. Later he clarified on Instagram that it was a skit and that he wasn’t offended. But the reaction online was telling—viewers found it cringey insulting and emblematic of the worst instincts in Jiu-Jitsu culture. Mikey Musumeci didn’t hold back writing:
“What is wrong with the Jiu Jitsu community is in this video. @tomdeblass I’m so sorry what you have been through in your life and that’s not funny. I respect so much you not breaking his neck when he said that to you. This generation of saying and insulting people to get a rise out of them and then when they react playing victim is horrible. This sums up Reddit BJJ as well. We need a flood @renato_laranja shame on you. This was so cringe & hard to watch.”
That sentiment resonated across social media. While Craig Jones’ project has been about legitimacy respect and pushing grappling into the spotlight the Laranja character feels like a relic of a different era one that leaned on cheap stereotypes awkward skits and humor to cover for lack of skill.
There’s a place for comedy in Jiu-Jitsu but not at the expense of survivorsor at the cost of mocking the very people who’ve helped build the community into something bigger. DeBlass serves as VP of grappling for ONE FC and played a role in green lighting ONE FC competitors to participate. To turn his personal pain into a punchline even under the guise of satire was the worst kind of misstep.
Craig Jones Invitational has momentum credibility and the eyes of the grappling world. If it wants to stay that way there’s one clear takeaway from this fiasco: Renato Laranja needs to go.
