Blue belts, Jiu-Jitsu's future / Photo: Regis Chen/GRACIEMAG

At the 2012 Jiu-Jitsu World Championship, which ends this Sunday in Long Beach, California, some blue belts hit their marks, with patience and plenty of determination, of making it to the divisional top spot.

In the male and female blue belt absolutes, Pedro Lucas Araújo of Gracie Barra and Monique Elias of Alliance, respectively, came out the grand champions. They are the two best blue belts in the world today.

They’re a bit above some other aces, like silver medalist Ali Seena Munfaradi of Alliance and bronze medalists Paulo Henrique Silva of Nova União and Jared Lynn Dopp of Ribeiro JJ in the men’s division; and silver medalist Julia Forrester of Alliance and bronzes Erica Plummer of Lotus Club and Ana Carolina Vieira, Rodolfo Vieira’s sister, of GF Team.

In their honor, and yours if you’re a blue belt, your favorite Jiu-Jitsu-lesson website dug through the treasure chest and came up with an article from August 2009 – a dossier on all you need to know to make it from blue belt to purple.

The article brings a series of illustrated positions and tricks. Here, we abridged the text to feature only what is most useful, adding some videos to help out.

Milton Regis — Leader of Kioto BJJ Sayville, NY

“Confidence is something to work on and needs to be exercised, like a new move, by both students and teachers. I say teachers, as it’s their job to identify who among their students are at the point of giving up. How does one help them? By offering special attention, correcting details, motivating them every time they get something right and every time they notice a little progress, suggesting private lessons and not forcing them to participate in competitions if that’s not the student’s objective. Beyond that, if missing fundamentals are not corrected at blue belt, it’ll be hard to fix down the road.

Ricardo “Cachorrão” Almeida — leader of RABJJ in New Jersey

“If I were to point out the three most common mistakes blue belts make, the first would certainly be posture. They’re often caught in triangles or swept for having the wrong posture. To correct that, my students learn to open the guard standing and pass the guard folding their opponent over. The second mistake is in taking the back. I see blue belts lose the position for trying to put in two hooks at once. To correct that they should pull the adversary to them and put in one hook at a time. And the third mistake is using force during combat. Out of inexperience, they tend to use force rather than technique, which can cause injury. To correct that, in the young ones, time and experience fix the problem most of the time. Now with older practitioners, I make it really clear that only by getting squashed up in training will they correct their mistakes.”

Paulo Tavares — leader of Paulo Tavares Academy in Australia

“When on bottom and mounted, a good player never extends an arm or gives up his back to escape. Keep the head on the ground and elbows up against the body. That Helio Gracie used to say. I also like working on the players’ emotional side. Here in my gym, we like to say everyone’s a champion. Last year, I took my students to compete and as we’ve only been working together for a year, I’d have been happy if they just kept from getting submitted, but to my surprise, the eight who competed came out champions.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cDaa2i04CU

Sérgio Correa — leader of team Marra Senki in the USA

“When addressing the mistakes of blue belts, the first thing I think of is controlling the position, then positional variations, like for example variations on chokes and armbars; and lastly insistence on the mistake, which only ends with lots of specific training.

João Pedro Santos — leader of Choke Academy in Scandinavia

“I’ll start with the cross-over collar choke. Blue belts are premature in squeezing before sinking the hold, or squeeze bringing their elbows outwards. To correct that, the wrists need to be in contact with the neck when adjusting and the elbows near each other while pressure is focused on the wrists. In the guard, another mistake is posture. Blue belts lean forward or to one side or another, making it easier for the one on bottom to attack. And when on bottom, they don’t busy themselves with breaking the adversary’s posture before launching an attack, making it easier to pass their guards. On bottom, they should have it clear in their heads that they must break the posture of the one on top. Lastly, I see lots of blue belts buying DVDs and books by big Jiu-Jitsu stars, but for lack of experience they’re unable to discern what is really important. In this case, the best thing to do is learn the fundamentals before going on to specialize.”

Vinícius “Draculino” Magalhães — leader of GB Texas

“Blue belt is the toughest moment in the journey through Jiu-Jitsu. In this case, there’s a great technical discrepancy between athletes, as we see in those who just got their belts and those who have become hardened training with the higher ranked. Technically, though, I point to a weakness in defending against submissions, a lack of positional adjustment and being slow to catch on to opponents’ mistakes.

Demetrius Ramos — leader of Tucson BJJ in Arizona, USA

“Blue belts don’t have great base and are taken down with ease. To improve, they need to train more stand-up techniques, as well as other options like pulling guard. Another problem is their lack of knowledge regarding the rules of the game and scoring points. For that, all they need to do is study the IBJJF’s rules and participate in refereeing courses. Lastly, blues tire too easily, mainly at big events. To improve, they need to use training sessions to get used to training even while tired.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lARD3JN1dE

Rafael Lovato Jr — leader of Lovato Jiu-Jitsu in Oklahoma, USA

“It’s hard to be specific, since blue belts still have much to learn, but there are three points that need highlighting. One should keep his arms closed when the adversary is passing his guard. Many forget to do this and let their opponent put in a hook from below, making passing the guard pretty much a sure thing. To prevent that, the arms should be stuck together and you should move on the ground till replacing guard. Another mistake is to have bad posture when trying to open the closed guard. If you are to far forward, you expose your arms to an attack. Your back should be erect. And, third, when passing guard, remember to keep your elbows tucked against your body, preventing the spider guard, sweeps, arm attacks, triangles, etc…”

Alexandre “Soca” Carneiro — leader of Soca JJ in New York, USA

“In the half-guard, on bottom, often fighters clutch the opponent’s back with the left hand, which is wrong. That way the one on bottom brings more pressure down on himself. The right thing to do is go in with the arm under the opponent’s armpit to open up room to replace guard. When caught in a foot lock, don’t roll away from the side being pulled, but to the side the pressure’s coming from. When attacked with a choke, don’t try opening your own gi, which will help your opponent sink the hand in. A good option is to protect the neck with your hands behind your head.”

What about you, what do you feel the most common mistake blue belts make in Jiu-Jitsu is? Comment below.

Bruno Frazatto sinks a triangle at Gramad WPPJC tryouts. Photo: Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG

It was a tough decision to make, but featherweight Bruno Frazatto, one of the biggest Jiu-Jitsu World Championship-medal collectors around, pulled out of this year’s tournament in Long Beach.

Bruno has the explanation on the tip of his tongue—and hands: to pick up his MMA career again.

“I’m bummed about not being in it; after all, I haven’t missed a single installment of the biggest show in world Jiu-Jitsu ever since I started in this sport. “At the same time, though, it was a natural decision. Athletes live by decisions, and I had to make this one. I have some goals for the end of the year in MMA and wouldn’t be 100% to take the title, so my teacher Ramon Lemos and I decided I should sit it out. When we set goals we have to dedicate ourselves wholeheartedly; I don’t think it would be right to divide my time.”

Frazatto also made it clear that he doesn’t have anything set in stone yet but is looking at some offers to fight in MMA, a style he cut his teeth in back in 2007. “What I know is that I have to be prepared; I don’t want to be an underdog.”

The fact he won’t be competing doesn’t mean Frazatto won’t be at the Long Beach Pyramid to study Jiu-Jitsu, though.

“I’ll be there cornering and watching the matches. We’re a tight-knit team, and their victories are mine as well. I feel Jiu-Jitsu has evolved really quickly, and I’ll be there even if just to watch and keep an eye on how the style is evolving. To do well in MMA I have to be up to date in sport Jiu-Jitsu, train with the competition team. When it comes to grappling, there’s nothing better than Jiu-Jitsu, and nothing better than watching the best in the business at the Worlds,” said the featherweight, who already holds a record of four wins in four MMA fights.

Gracie Barra school conference in Orlando. The team is organizing a mega-event for just after the 2012 Jiu-Jitsu World Championship. Publicity photo

Judging by the IBJJF’s official competitor list for the 2012 Jiu-Jitsu World Championship, which kicks off this Thursday, there will be gis with the red shield of Gracie Barra as far as the eyes can see.

There are 277 Gracie Barra athletes on this year’s lineup—around 10% of the entire competition. The team members converging in California for the tournament hark from the far reaches of the globe, like Brazil, Canada, Russia and Hungary, and their objective is simple: win or learn.

So to make the most of so many thick-skinned visitors, Carlos Gracie Jr.’s school set up a special program of congresses and lectures, which begins the day after the championship in Long Beach.

“Firstly, were counting on our team to put in a good showing at the Worlds,” said team coordinator Marcio Feitosa. “Zé Radiola along with the other instructors put together training camps and managed to inspire and unite one burly team. We’re going there to take first place,” wagered the Jiu-Jitsu professor.

(Watch Carlos Gracie Jr., 56, training with the group heading to the 2012 Worlds:)

Right after the competition wraps up, the GB USA, Brazil and Canada conference season begins. There will be events mixing Jiu-Jitsu seminars (open to all the students) and meetings (for the brown and black belts and school-certified instructors).

“We’re already focused on the GB conferences, something that’s been a major help in bringing the team together. The June 4 conference in Orange County will be one of the biggest events for the school in 2012,” added Feitosa.

The conference is the brain-child of Carlos Gracie Jr., whose aim with the event is to demonstrate ow GB schools are looking to offer the utmost comfort so its teachers may teach safely and in peace—a move that has also meant comfort to the students.

“Everyone who holds a leadership role at Gracie Barra schools will see great benefits from the presentations, learning new techniques and getting a better understanding of how the in-house Gracie Barra structure works. From there, they’ll realize how they can best make use of this structure,” states the team founder in an interview posted on the official school website.

Two conferences have already taken place this year, one in April in Texas and the other in May in Orlando. Check out the schedule for the upcoming events:

* JUNE 4, ORANGE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

With: Master Carlos Gracie Jr., Professors Marcio Feitosa, Flavio Almeida, Marco Joca, Ricardo Almeida

Click here to register. 

*JUNE 23, CAMPINAS, SÃO PAULO

With: Professors Marcio Feitosa, Flavio Almeida and Carlos Liberi

* JULY 28, ATLANTA, GEORGIA

With: Master Carlos Gracie Jr., Professors Fabio Costa, Marcio Feitosa, Flavio Almeida and Marco Joca

* AUGUST 17, SEATTLE, WASHINTON

With: Master Carlos Gracie Jr., Professors Rodrigo Lopes, Marcio Feitosa, Flavio Almeida and Marco Joca

*OCTOBER 26, VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA

With: Master Carlos Gracie Jr., Professors Rodrigo Carvalho, Marcio Feitosa, Flavio Almeida and Marco Joca

Davi Ramos gets the finish at the Gramado WPJJC tryouts. He's on such a roll that this image went to the cover of the GRACIEMAG Facebook page. Photo: Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG.com

Davi Ramos Pinheiro da Silva is a dedicated athlete; but he just hasn’t had much luck. He nearly had to cut short his Jiu-Jitsu career after suffering a motorcycle crash, but managed to get back to action in fine form in 2011 and 2012.

First, he played a key role in André Galvão’s doubly victorious ADCC 2011 campaign, having shored up his friends leglock savvy to prepare to deal with heel-hunter Rousimar Toquinho, Galvão’s opponent in the under-88 kg final. Rounding out the grappling fest, Galvão even went on to use his souped up lower-limb game to win the absolute, catching Pablo Popovitch with a footlock in the final.

Next, Davi got a call-up from Daniel Moraes to help out at the pre-UFC training camp of Alan Belcher, who also went on to tame Toquinho. Now Davi has joined Brazilian soccer powerhouse team Corinthians’s Jiu-Jitsu team, under the command of Ramon Lemos.

Riding the wake of success, the lightweight fighter confesses that he feels it’s time to move from being an adjunct to the star of the show—both in MMA and at the Jiu-Jitsu Worlds, which kicks off this Thursday.

Check out the interview our Diego Marcello did with the Atos ace where he discusses footlocks, his goals, team Corinthians and more.