In recent years, the white bar on the black belt has become more and more popular in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. However, what does it mean? There are multiple reasons for wearing this unusual colored bar as opposed to the regular red bar. However, there is one main reason that will be addressed in further detail below.
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The white bar usually means active competitor
The most common times you’ll see a white tab on a black belt is when the person wearing it is an active competitor. Usually this means they’ll compete at least a few times per year, but often it’s designated towards more serious competitors that compete on a monthly or yearly basis. As seen in the picture, the likes of ATOS’s Ronaldo Junior was awarded a black belt with a white tab. This makes sense, as he is a regular competitor, and will probably go on to compete in BJJ for the next few decades at least.
Do competitors have to wear a white bar on their belt?
The answer to this is no. In fact, sourcing a black belt with a white tab is considerably more difficult than finding a regular black belt to hand out. In other words, even most regular black belt competitors will still wear the classic black belt with red tab. Often, those who wear the white tabbed belt do so as they were given it by their teacher. Nonetheless, if you look at someone like Rafael Lovato Jr who frequently competes in the gi – he often does so wearing a red tab on his black belt.
So what is the point of the white bar then?
Imagine you’re a new member at a different gym and you spar against a black belt competitor. You may get smashed and not understand why. However, you then see their white tab and it makes more sense, as they’re a competitor and maybe training hard towards an upcoming competition.
Similarly, you may roll with an older practitioner with a red tab who goes light and isn’t as athletic or competitive. Basically, in bigger gyms it’s more of a thing to differentiate who competes and who doesn’t. Obviously, there are different standards between competitors and casual hobbyists, especially at black belt.
What this also means is that generally, a black belt with a white bar will usually beat a regular black belt during a roll. Whilst this may not always happen, obviously the competitor will be at a bigger advantage due to taking BJJ more seriously.
Can you wear both?
The answer to this question is yes. The likes of Keenan Cornelius has been seen wearing both red bars and white bars on his black belt. Often, people associate the red bar with teaching as it represents knowledge whilst the white bar is for competition. As for Cornelius, he is both a regular competitor as well as a teacher. Therefore, it’s not unusual to see him wear both types of belts.
Are there other reasons why people wear white bars on their black belt?
Some gyms have certain rules regarding their gradings and belts that differ in comparison to typical gyms. For example, at Kron Gracie’s gym, visiting black belts would have to wear a belt with a white stripe between it – so gym members would know the visiting black belt would differentiate between a traveling black belt, and one of their own.
On a similar note, Royce Gracie used his own grading system when awarding black belts. Here, a newly promoted black belt would be given a belt with a white bar on it. However, after three years they’d get a new belt with a blue bar. This was Royce’s own personal take on belts and clearly the colors where his own take on the typical three year white stripe that most regular gyms give out over time.
What are the other bar colors in BJJ?
In mainstream BJJ, most people will have a black bar up until black belt. Here, you’ll be awarded four stripes on this tab from white to brown belt. After this, usually you’re awarded a black belt that has a red bar. Every three years, you’ll then be given a new stripe on the red bar that signifies the time spent at black belt. As you can imagine, a black belt with two white stripes is far more experienced than a black belt without a stripe.
At the same time, the stripes earned on the other belts aren’t given once every three years. Instead, they’re usually awarded once every few months for most regular people.
Conclusion
These days, the white bar is becoming more common on competitive BJJ black belts. However, for most of the time, most competitors will still wear the red bar. Overall, probably less than one percent of black belts will wear the white bar so it’s actually a very rare sight. Nonetheless, if you stick around BJJ long enough, you will certainly encounter people who wear these rare belts.
