One of the main reasons that people start training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is to learn self defense. Like all martial arts, BJJ promises to arm you with the right defensive tools to help you against attackers and keep you safe.
Whilst there has been a number of recorded instances where BJJ is effective in street fights, the question remains – is it effective against weapons? The reason for this is that sometimes you won’t be involved in a fist fight. Sometimes, your opponent may use weapons instead of their fists. Obviously, this changes the dynamic massively and gives the armed opponent a significant advantage. So, is BJJ effective against weapons?
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If you see a weapon, run!
Some people argue that the best form of self defense is simply to run off and escape the hostile scenario. Whilst others may argue this damages your pride, the objective of self defense is to stay safe at all costs. Therefore, it’s better to run and stay alive than try and fight an armed attacker to try and feed your ego.
Having said this, there will also be some cases where you simply can’t run. For instance, if you’re stuck in an alleyway where you literally can’t run, or you’re attacked in a building then running becomes literally impossible.
If you have to fight then BJJ is better than nothing
As mentioned, running is the sensible option but if you’re forced to engage then BJJ is better than nothing. There are a few reasons why BJJ will help you against an armed attacker. The first is that it will naturally improve your bodily awareness. In other words, you’ll be wary of where you place your feet or upper body. This will also apply to the movements of your opponent too.
Not only this but BJJ will certainly help in disarming the weapon. Imagine you’re against a person with a knife. BJJ seriously improves your hand and grip strength which will come in handy in this situation. Therefore, if you can somehow manage to get a two on one grip on the armed hand then you will significantly help your chances of survival. If you can get an arm drag off this, then it’s even better. Of course, getting into that position to begin with is the difficult bit.
Fighting against weapons is difficult
In the video below, BJJ champion Keenan Cornelius shows how fighting and using BJJ against a knife is incredibly difficult. Despite what some self defense videos teach, the reality is different from how things may play out with your head. Check out this interesting video below.
Sadly, the results are not promising and remember, Cornelius is an elite level black belt. If anything, this serves as a healthy reminder not to be too cocky if fighting against knives. As Cornelius says during the clip, “If you don’t control the knife instantly…you just die!”
If you want to try this experiment out yourself, then check out these dummy knives and gun which are made from plastic and rubber.
For takedowns, Judo is better than wrestling
Against an unarmed opponent, both forms of takedowns are fine. However, against an armed attacker – Judo is the best route to go down. Basically, the issue with wrestling is that often your body lowers to shoot the takedown. This means you’re exposed for a second or two whilst you complete a single or double leg. If the opponent punches you during this instance then it’s not the end of the world. However, if they stab you then it’s completely different.
This is where Judo works as you can grab the armed hand, close the distance whilst standing, and attack footsweeps and other throws that don’t compromise your body to attacks. Once again, this just shows us how important it is to learn takedowns whilst training BJJ. Sadly, some people neglect this but if you want to train for self defense then you’ll need to learn how to throw people and put them on the floor.
Does BJJ work against a gun?
So far, we’ve explored the idea of using BJJ against attackers that use knives of similar weapons. This is probably the most realistic sort of weapon that you will encounter. However, what if the attacker pulls out a gun?
In this case, revert back to the original advice of running away or trying to use verbal Judo to try and diffuse the situation. Arguably, BJJ could even be counter productive against a gun. If you try to close the distance, you can literally get shot dead in under a second. Despite self defense videos showing you how to effectively disarm a gunman, the reality is that this would be very difficult especially by relying on your grappling skills.
In other words, when firearms are involved you’re in trouble and it’s a different story. Interestingly, ex-SEAL Andy Stumpf has said how BJJ can complement your own arms training perfectly.
Sadly, grappling and BJJ may not be so ideal against weapons
Whilst BJJ may help in some areas against certain weapons, you’re still at a big disadvantage. This is where you may need other forms of martial arts to help you. For example, boxing is a great way to defeat opponents without getting hit. An example of this would be Floyd Mayweather who rarely got hit during his career and won boxing without getting punched much, whilst tactically grinding down his opponents.
This would be a better way of fighting an armed opponent than using BJJ. In short, the reason would be that you could do damage to them without getting hit yourself. If you get hit even once, you could die – so good footwork and speed would be vital for your survival. This is where boxing helps a lot.
Conclusion
Overall, your first priority during any self defense scenario should be to avoid any confrontation in the first place. If you truly feel uncomfortable, then the next step should be to run and live another day or deescalate the scenario using words.
However, if you absolutely have to use BJJ against weapons then it’s better than being untrained. Whilst we don’t advise pulling guard, you would have to be extra careful about your strategy whilst acknowledging you’re at a big disadvantage, despite having superior fighting knowledge.
