MMA is still a relatively young sport, even if you compare it with only other fighting disciplines it has not been around for long. Almost everyone will have heard of MMA pioneer Bruce Lee who realized his Jeet Kun Do was too restrictive and wanted to learn other martial arts. Almost nobody will have heard of pioneers for arts such as boxing or karate, since they began so long ago.
With this being said, BJJ is also still quite new compared to other martial arts, although not as new as MMA, BJJ still has a lot of undiscovered techniques and areas which need improvement.
For those of you wanting an immediate answer to the question, Yes, BJJ is still effective in MMA. We are not in a heyday for BJJ right now, but even with current rulesets and styles it is still used effectively and is 100% necessary.
Table of Contents
The decline of BJJ in MMA
The decline of the use of BJJ can be separated in to two different reasons.
- First of all everyone who is a professional MMA fighter is now aware of BJJ and at least has SOME understanding of the basics. Even if we go back 15 years, there were still fighters who would be great at a sport such as kickboxing, yet would dive into an opponent’s guard, get triangled and have no idea what just happened.
If we look back at events such as the Vale Tudo tournament there are literally competitors in this high level of fighting competition who do not know anything other than various striking styles. Another example is the beginning of MMA legend Bas Rutten’s career, he lost 3 fights at the start because he did not know any grappling, went away and learnt it, then never lost again by submission. - The ruleset has changed since Vale Tudo, whilst not having a particular set time limit (changing on each competition), there were various lengths, with the first round of the fight often lasting 15 minutes. In modern day UFC/Bellator fights, it takes you 3.5 minutes to take an opponent to the ground and then a further 60 seconds to reach their back or mount, you only have 30 seconds to submit them. If a 15 minute round started the fight, you would now have 10.5 minutes to submit your opponent. This is a meteoric shift in rulesets.
The rise of wrestlers in MMA
During the past decade, there have been a lot of UFC champions and top level fighters with a background of elite wrestling. Notable examples of this are Colby Covington, Khabib Nurmagomedov & Cain Velasquez. The way in which MMA fights are scored is not favorable to submission specialists, as you will not score too well for almost choking someone, but you will score very highly for almost knocking someone out.
If these wrestlers are able to stand up and punch people consistently, as well as taking people to the ground for 5 minutes without getting damaged themselves, they will often score very highly.
If a BJJ specialist cannot get the opponent on to the floor, then they will have a very hard time submitting them. Another example would be if Colby Covington took down a guard specialist and was very worried about being in the said opponents guard. He could simply take down the opponent, walk backwards and demand the referee stand the fighter up. A BJJ player fighter cannot demand that the top fighter must come down to the ground and try to pass his guard.
The rise in competency of BJJ
Briefly mentioned earlier, fighting has evolved a lot over the last 10 years. In modern day MMA we will see competitors such as B.J Penn, who once was one of the best in the world and dominated with their BJJ skills, look relatively normal.
We also see the average fighter defend submissions a lot better and engage in stalling tactics. 10th planet techniques are more popularised such as the lockdown from half guard. Whilst this technique does not need to be used as a stalling position, in MMA it often is.
It can stop your opponent from reaching side control or mount and relieves any pressure you are getting from an arm triangle or crossface. Sadly in modern day fights we will also hear “STAND THEM UP” shouted from the crowd which can often result in a good position being wasted. I can remember UFC fights being stood up after one fighter has worked their way to side control, which is beyond ridiculous.
Leglocks and other new hopes for BJJ in fighting
Perhaps the brightest hope for modern day MMA is Ryan Hall. Quite an unimposing figure, Hall has a very unique style that frustrates opponents and leaves them wondering what they should do to beat him. Known for his heel hooks and various entries into 50/50 guard, Hall is often avoided by a lot of high level fighters, since they have never fought anyone like this. Diving into a leglock from an Imanari roll is not a particularly new feature of MMA, but rarely used. It’s a strong possibility we could see this no-gi grappling style find its way into modern day MMA.
Lastly, if the ruleset was changed back to what it once was, or UFC decides that fights will now be structured as 10/5 instead of 5/5/5, we may see a resurgence in the popularity of BJJ.
Summary
Whilst BJJ is not ineffective or useless in MMA. It is probably at it’s lowest point of effectiveness. Even being at this low point, it is still extremely effective. Just because there is no Rickson Gracie destroying people who do not know how to grapple well, does not mean that BJJ has become useless.
Styles change over time and people get better of things. Overall the level of BJJ displayed in MMA today is light years ahead of what it was 20 years ago. There is not a single fighter in the UFC who does not know basic ground game, with most fighters being far ahead of this fundamental level.
