Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has been around since the 1920s. The techniques used have been around considerably longer, with roots in Judo and catch wrestling. In this sense, BJJ is still a relatively new martial art compared to other forms of grappling. Because of this, BJJ is still evolving and constantly changing at a fast pace. With this in mind the question is often asked, are there still undiscovered techniques in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu?
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Examples of recently discovered moves in BJJ
Over the past 15 years or so, there has been a development of new moves and positions that were previously unknown or considerably under-developed in the sport. An example of this is the 50/50 guard. Whilst this position may have been around for years before, it was mostly neglected. In Gi competition, the 50/50 guard developed into something of a strategic battle. Here, competitors would battle for advantages and points to win matches.
This simply wasn’t done in the previous years to the 50/50 revolution, nobody thought of 50/50 as a way to win a match. Instead, it would be either pull guard and sweep, or takedown and pass the guard. Some old-school practitioners complained that the guard was ruining the combat nature of the art. However, in more recent times the 50/50 has been developed into the Nogi game where it is used more aggressively to attack leg locks.
Other examples of recently discovered moves include the likes of Berimbolos, lapel guards and the evolution of foot locks. However, where these moves always used?
Perhaps most recently we saw Kade Ruotolo win the CJJ worlds with a buggy choke. Not too much is known about the buggy choke, although it’s thought to be under 10 years old.
Are BJJ techniques discovered or just re-invented?
As previously mentioned, some moves have gained popularity in recent times. However, are these techniques new or just re-invented? One example of this can be seen in the picture below, which shows a centaur applying a heel hook to a man. This picture was from ancient Greece and is a mythological image, but even still, the artist must have had some kind of knowledge about heel hooks. In short, the ancient Greeks practiced grappling and enjoyed Pankration. It’s likely that a lot of moves and submissions were performed in ancient Greece and lost over time. Although perhaps there were civilizations that used it well before the Greeks. Similarly, in more modern times, clinch holds and joint submissions were also used in catch wrestling which happened during the 1870’s in Britain.
With this in mind, it’s possible that a lot of BJJ moves have already been invented at some point in history. However, like all things in life they can grow and decline in popularity over the years. Does this mean heel hooks are new? No.
However, the evolution of heel hooks are new and the improvement of the technique has probably grown in recent times. This means you can both credit the older generations, whilst also acknowledging new pioneers can also add new twists to BJJ. It is quite unlikely that there was a Greek equivalent of John Danaher who had a system based on leg control.
Lapel guards are new techniques
The lapel was only introduced in Judo and was absent from older grappling martial arts. Due to this, lapel guards are genuinely an undiscovered technique set. For instance, when Keenan Cornelius created worm guard, the likelihood is it was probably not used before. This is because without the Gi there would be no practical implications of using lapel guards.
In more recent times, Cornelius has added to Worm guard with the likes of Gubber guard and Squid guard. Again, these use lapels and were previously not used in history. Regarding this, it’s very probable that the lapel game is still in it’s infancy and can still be developed upon in the future.
Even techniques such as a gi based Peruvian necktie are relatively new. Before people were wearing kimonos it would not have been possible for these techniques to have been founded.
Summary
As considered above, BJJ has constantly evolved over the years. Whilst the origins of all moves are not known, it’s clear that some moves are genuinely new whilst others may have been covered at some point in ancient history. Because of this, it’s safe to assume that certain areas of BJJ will advance in the future and it’s also a very real possibility that there are new BJJ techniques to be discovered.
Not much is known about how moves and positions are actually discovered or rediscovered. The Estima brothers found the Estima lock by pure accident when their foot got stuck in the other lapel and caused an unintentional toehold.
