When it comes to grabbing clothes in no gi, almost all rulesets fall under the same umbrella. It doesn’t really matter if you’re talking ADCC or no gi Worlds, the rules are pretty set across the board. Having said that, there’s still a bit of misinformation floating around about the specifics of grabbing clothes in no gi. With this said, this article should help explain some of these issues.
Not only is this article ideal for argument’s sake, but it is also worth reading for those who compete. When competing, you should know the rules at all times to give yourself the best chance of winning.
Table of Contents
Can I grip the opponent’s clothes?
In short, no you can’t. This is considered cheating and gives an unfair advantage. Imagine using the opponent’s long-sleeved rashguard with grips like a spider guard. This would be a clear example of cheating and is certainly not allowed. Whilst most people wouldn’t go this far and it’s obvious, there are more subtle ways. For instance, grabbing the opponent’s pants whilst defending a Kimura is also illegal, but may go unseen. The entire point of no gi is to take away the grips that are used in no gi. By using grips to slow down and divert the opponent, this is deemed illegal.
Can I grip my own clothes?
In short, yes you can. This rule isn’t as commonly known as the above rule. For example, imagine you’re defending an armbar. It’s completely legal to grab onto your own shorts. In fact, there was one particular BJJ clothing company that once produced a line of shorts with added fabric in your shorts. This was designed purely for competition to hold onto your old shorts and defend. Whilst you may not agree with this mentality, it’s completely legal and is simply exploiting a loophole.
Wearing pants is not wise
It seems the likes of Eddie Bravo love the rashguard-pants combo. However, in competition this is a very bad idea. Whilst some competitions may ban pants and only allow shorts, some may not. You do not want to compete in pants for a very obvious reason. Basically, people will grab your pants as if training in the gi. If ever you’ve trained in pants in the gym you will have had them gripped at some point.
Often this isn’t even intentional, but for those training in the gi – it’s almost a natural reaction. The last thing you’d want in a competition would be to lose by getting pants gripped. Remember, especially at smaller competitions these ‘small’ things are less likely to go punished.
Conclusion
In summary, gripping the rashguard or pants of the opponent is not prohibited. However, it is completely legal to grab your own shorts. Not only can this help improve your own game in competition, but may also be useful when training in the gym when defending. Overall, this may seem a minor footnote to some, but as John Danaher once said, it’s worth looking over the rules when competing. For more weird BJJ rules and stories, check out our greasing article here.
