Jack Brown is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu brown belt from Kilmarnock, Scotland which as he puts it is “Maybe a 20 minute drive from the best city in the world, Glasgow.” He began training BJJ in 2013 at the age of 20 and has gone on to receive all of his belt promotions under Marcos Nardini at his MNBJJ in Scotland. Outside of MNBJJ, he lists Craig Jones as his biggest influence, adding “I’ve modeled my whole game on his. Triangles and heel hooks. Lachlan’s 50/50 system changed the way I roll but I think Craig takes it based on overall influence. My favorite grappler by a mile. His overhook Harai Goshi is my favorite takedown.”
Jack details his entry into grappling here, saying “There were a few factors that came together. I was in university at the time and knew I wanted to join the police when I graduated so I’d decided some martial arts knowledge would be useful. I turned out to be very correct about that one! And also I was a typical Scottish teenager drinking too much alcohol and getting myself into fights outside pubs. There was a particular fight I didn’t do so well in and I wanted to learn how to defend myself. I had a friend who recommended BJJ and I was very lucky in that there was a Brazilian black belt in Marcos Nardini coaching about a ten minute walk from my house.
In hindsight the fact that there was such a high level Brazilian who just happened to be coaching in a small Scottish town when BJJ was still relatively obscure is insane. I got very lucky there and Marcos is still my coach to this day. I’m happy to say that the second I got into BJJ any desire to get into stupid fights on the street instantly vanished. It’s very humbling to have just how terrible at fighting you really are demonstrated to you on a daily basis.”
We asked Jack about his overall BJJ style and game, beginning with guard he said “When I’m rolling my main game is usually to play the relationship between leglocks and triangles. If my opponent is standing and keeping good posture I love to attack leglocks. Lachlan Giles’ 50/50 K guard system has been revolutionary for me I absolutely love it. Once my opponent realizes I like playing footsie they’ll usually come to low posture or on their knees which is when I love attacking triangles. Craig Jones is my go to guy for triangle details. When you’re traveling and you’re usually the coach it can be difficult to pick up new details from any source other than online instructionals. I probably watch about two hours of footage every day on top of training just trying to keep myself sharp!”
He also spoke in detail about his main sweeps and added “My favorite sweep by far is the dummy sweep. I’m admittedly pretty awful at it and on the rare occasion I do hit it I’m too busy laughing to actually get up and capitalize on it. There’s a great clip from the Gordon Ryan vs Keenan Cornelius hour and a half match from years ago where Gordon hits Keenan with it twice in a row and you can tell Keenan just feels awful about it.
I think he actually just flops back and starts playing guard. My favorite sweep that I actually use in rolling is probably the shoulder crunch from butterfly.” When passing he mentions “Gordon Ryan’s guard passing instructional is out of this world. There’s nothing more satisfying than hitting one of his floating passes.” As you may have gathered by now, Jack is clearly a big fan of instructional DVD’s!
Whilst on the subject of his game, we ended by asking about his main submission, of which he responded, “It’s the Inside heel hook by a mile. It’s my highest percentage move and everything I love about jiu jitsu encapsulated in a sub, complete control over your opponent and mechanical/technical accuracy. Shifting your elbow half an inch inch can be the difference between your opponent escaping completely or his knee exploding. Aside from that there’s something very satisfying about hitting a perfect guillotine and your opponent tapping out and immediately coughing and spluttering.”
As people may be aware of, Jack is fairly nomadic when it comes to training BJJ and has been known for teaching in Kenya most recently. We also asked about what this was like and his relationship was like with Marcos Nardini. This was his response, “Marcos has been my coach from day one and we still talk frequently. He’s an excellent coach. However I’d say my most consistent coach for the past 6 months during my travels have been the gentlemen at BJJ Fanatics. I really feel like I’d completely dominate the Jack that left Scotland 6 months ago so I’d definitely say it’s an effective way of learning. I typically watch some instructionals or some fights on Flo and then drill what I’ve seen that day after I teach class.
If all I have to roll with are white and blue belts I’ll say for example ‘ok I’ll start each roll in bottom mount and the only submissions I’m allowed to hit tonight are those armbars from mount I watched earlier’. It keeps rolling challenging in the absence of my usual high level training partners.”
Like many, Jack also likes to compete and usually does so at the 77-80KG, dependent on his diet at the time, or as he puts it “I’ve been known to turn up in a higher weight class due to love of chocolate.” He has also claims “Competition wise I won the British nogi open in the purple belt absolute division last year. My proudest match was on Grapplefest 8 where I won in about 15 seconds by inside heel hook from K-guard. I’d been drilling Lachlan’s leg system like a mad man since his ADCC performance I was so impressed by it. It was really rewarding to hit it on a big stage. Outside of BJJ I convinced my fiancee to agree to marry me recently which was nice, still not sure how I managed that one.”
Jack also detailed his hardest ever opponents, and mentions Jed Hue as one of his toughest – alongside an unknown Serbian too, “I’ve had my fair share of arse kickings over the years. Ellis Younger gave me a pretty good doing that he probably doesn’t even remember at the British Open a few years ago, he might be the best I’ve faced in competition. I’ve had a couple matches with Jed Hue also and he came out on top with some slick leg locks and kimuras. I don’t feel I’m a million miles off these guys but they’re definitely more accomplished. Post covid I’d love to hit the competition scene hard and prove I’m worthy of matches with guys of that calibre.
Outside of competition, there was this guy in Serbia called Jovan Manojlovic who was one of the best I’ve ever seen on the mats. The guy is crazy, he lets people pass his guard and instantly chokes them out with a variety of weird stuff. I don’t think he’s very well known outside of Serbia but I could easily see this guy competing at ADCC. Hopefully he gets the exposure he deserves very soon.”
Q&A
You’re known for teaching BJJ in Kenya, how did that happen exactly? I imagine BJJ is still very new out there so how did the opportunity come about?
“I left the police in October 2020 and went traveling with my fiancee Ashton, mainly to avoid Covid with a view to relocating to South East Asia where Ashton has lived in the past. South East Asia closed their borders so we first went to Greece, then Serbia and next up was Kenya. I coached in all these places but I linked up with the Lionheart Initiative charity who directed me to Mombasa. I started coaching the Sharks who are based in a local mosque in one of the most poverty stricken areas in Kenya.
I was blown away by their enthusiasm for the sport. Great, welcoming people doing a lot with so little. Some of the guys out there have actually been training longer than me but are still blue belts! They rely purely on traveling higher belts to show them a few moves at a time. I felt I wanted to do more than that for them so I could leave a lasting impression which would help them improve themselves over years, as opposed to showing a few moves and leaving them to it.
We started a fundraiser which purchased new mats, gear and equipment. I wrote a huge document detailing everything that I felt was required to run a successful BJJ gym, just using all my experience of visiting high level gyms around the world and noting what they were doing to produce champions. I focused far more on concepts from certain positions rather than individual techniques with the hope that they would create their own techniques over the years using the concepts I’d left behind. Doing all this I’m hoping that I leave a lasting impression on the Sharks that keeps them improving steadily over years as opposed to just showing them a triangle, an armbar option etc.”
As you used to be a policeman, what are your thoughts on grappling for police? It’s a bit of a hot topic now with the assumption that police can’t grapple – did you see this or is it a bit different?
“The vast majority of police can’t grapple at all. They’re useless in a fight. But then so was I before someone showed me how! You can’t teach cops dog shit techniques then expect them to keep themselves and others safe. BJJ is completely perfect for the police. I’ve used it in several situations where it has literally saved my life or the lives of others. Any other cop who trains consistently will tell you the same. It’s an absolute must that BJJ is incorporated into police training ASAP.”
What made you change from being a policeman to a BJJ teacher in Kenya? It seems like a massive life change.
“I entered into the police straight from university. I don’t mind saying I was very competent at it and was promoted to detective within three years of joining. But I met an amazing woman who had been enjoying life, traveling the world, living in Asia and I really wanted to do that with her. BJJ gave me the option where there was a possibility I could feed myself by coaching so I took the jump. I couldn’t have timed it worse with the pandemic but I’ve seen and done some truly amazing things so far that I’m really proud of. Who knows if this big decision will pay off or come back and bite me on the arse, but I’m delighted I did it either way.”
I assume some of the Kenyan students can speak English, or your Kenyan isn’t perfect. Is this a barrier whilst teaching or for the most part are you comfortable with the language differences?
“Everyone here speaks English! The only language barrier is my thick, terrible Scottish accent. Most people just smile and nod when I’m talking. I tend to teach techniques by demonstrating them, grunting and pointing. It’s worked wonders so far!”
Due to the heat, do you find yourself doing more no gi than gi? And how do you get hold of gis in Kenya?
“The Kenyan sun is an excellent excuse to completely shirk any gi responsibilities I may have. I intentionally didn’t pack a gi for my travels so I could frequently pull the ‘sorry no gi only’ card but some very kind (arsehole) individuals have provided me with spares. Nogi is my true love but I do begrudgingly put a gi on when I have to.”
I imagine there’s not much of a salary teaching Kenyan BJJ so are you given a wage by a charity or is it completely self-funded?
“Money is of course an issue when you chuck your job to travel around the world teaching armbars for food. I didn’t receive any funding from any charity and didn’t get paid during my months with the Sharks so it was all self funded with my police savings. Currently I’m in Nairobi where the locals are slightly better off and can afford to pay a little for classes so it’s eased the pressure on me a little bit. There’s other options for me here such as teaching self defense to local security companies I’m looking in to so I’m hoping I’ll be able to settle in Nairobi for a few months at least. OnlyFans and an extensive, in depth oil checking instructional have also been considered.”
What’s life like in Kenya compared to Scotland? I assume it’s a massive culture shock but you’ve enjoyed it
“It’s sunny, the people are very friendly and everyone’s so chilled out almost to the point where nothing gets done. It’s a massive culture shock but it helps having a Scottish fiancee to relate everything back to. I’ve loved every country I’ve visited, you can even see the different cultures showing themselves in the way people roll on the mats! The Serbs are a hard, disciplined people who favor big takedowns and heavy top game pressure whereas the Greeks were so much more chilled and would play a laid back, lapel based game. It’s really cool to experience all these different places. I’m loving all of it so far.”
Lastly, do you have any plans for the future? (Goals etc?)
“In the future my absolute dream is to be a BJJ gym owner. To do that and not feel like a fraud I would need to feel I have a genuinely deep knowledge of both gi and nogi jiu jitsu and an accomplished and respected competition record. I know many amazing coaches that have never competed but my coach Marcos is a European champion, Polaris/Grapplefest vet and has always led by example. I’d love to follow in his footsteps. Not too sure where in the world that gym is going to be yet but that’s the goal!”
Any other comments you want to be mentioned (if you want us to link to your gym website etc)?
“I suppose just my Instagram to keep up with whatever nonsense I’m getting up to that day: @jackbrownbjj“
