Quote:
"What I can tell you, without a doubt in my mind, is that 99% of the guys Ive rolled with who come from no gi backgrounds (there are some exceptions, like Mac Danzig and some of Gokor's students) are NOTHING on the ground compared to decent purple belts who put their time in with the gi. It's night and day, and Ive rolled with tons from both sides of the debate over the years."
Quote:
"The best part is the arrogance.
In Brazil they have been training with the gi and developing insane jiujitsu skills for both gi and no gi. The best pure grapplers still come from Brazil and only a few Americans come close.
And ALL of those grapplers still believe in the gi.
But then it gets to America and the Americans think they've figured it all out. They think, "Those Brazilians use primitive training methods," as if the Brazilians never considered the possibility that FIGHTING, which is what they were doing in Vale Tudo (and with just shorts) could possibly be better prepared for if training was done without the gi.
The truth is that some Brazilians DID abandon the gi, and their technique suffered for it. Ever see match ups between Luta Livre guys and BJJers? It wasnt even close. Same techniques for the most part, but vastly different level when it came to skill and execution.
I honestly hope more people train without the gi than with it. It really makes them easier to roll with."
This was a thread that Eddie and Louis Ho had both already posted in. So, he was basically saying this all right in the face of pure no-gi guys. So, it wasn't like they were off handed remarks that he never intended any no-gi guys to see.