Rickson Gracie's JJGF Competition Rules

[Amir Allam]

Alright, I'll go ahead and offer my opinion.

These rules are:
a) Not significantly different than IBJJF
b) Worse even than IBJJF where they do differ
c) Anti-wrestling and anti-sambo
d) Clueless about no-gi
e) Conducive to stalling and combat avoidance

The points system is fairly standard with points for passing and back taking, etc. But the penalties are often bizarre. For example, "Pushing the opponent out of the ring" is a minor penalty. I guess that some people are tired of being punked by wrestlers. If so, they should just pull guard (no penalty or point deduction for this, so why not?). Still, these are just silly and disappointing; where the rules really fail is in the illegal techniques section.

Reaping is illegal; the stupidity of this rule has already been discussed at length and I won't rehash it. Heel hooks, twisters, scissor takedowns, and most toe holds are illegal *even for black belts*. This should be insulting to anybody who currently holds a black belt, as if their belt only indicates a pretend mastery of grappling and that there are still things they need to be protected from.

This ruleset is actually regressive from the already terrible IBJJF rules. I personally will not participate in any tournament following these rules, and I encourage everyone else to do the same.

I have loads of respect for Rickson. His tremendous grappling skills and unshakable mindset are the stuff of legend. He has fought under so many different rules and styles, and has always acquitted himself well. He has said many times that a fighter must be prepared for anything. The JGFF rules are a betrayal of Rickson, a betrayal of his legacy, and an affront to the values he has previously professed. It is clear to me that he isn't the main architect here, and that his endorsement has likely been obtained through subterfuge.

I will continue to champion sub-only as the most philosophically correct ruleset. I will not support IBJJF or this new IBJJF 2.0.

[Martin Harris]

I kind of feel like Rickson is late to the revolution. Does he even know about the 10WO? Seriously though, I think he is just starting to think about things that Eddie has been grinding away at for years. Now Rickson is going to be a political figure having to listen to an entire Masters Council that has the points system engrained in them. It will be interesting to see what the future holds.

[Mikael Chay]

The rules are disappointingly similar to the IBJJF's. Hard to find anything different to get excited about.
Hardly what was advertised beforehand, namely more aggressive penalization of stalling and strong emphasis on submission-oriented Jiu-Jitsu.

Part of me still wishes that they've just taken a shortcut by copying their main rival to put their own "product" out there as fast as they could, get the ball rolling and people talking, and start collecting funds.
(That, I can definitively see)
And that they will implement more drastic rule changes once their financial viability is ensured.
(That, not so much)

But I guess that's just wishful thinking on my disappointed part.

As Amir suggested, Rickson had probably very little to do with devising(copying) the ruleset as it does not reflect his philosophy on effectiveness at all.

[Eddie Bravo]

Near subs are worth 60% more than a sweep or a pass? That alone crushes IBJJF rules.

No advantages?? Another smasher of IBJJF rules.

But a point system is still a point system which means whoever is up on points will generally stall/hold towards the end of a match which will make matches look like IBJJF matches all over again.

And the negative point for guard pulling is something I will never be a fan of.

I will support the JJGF no matter what tho, I will always have mad respect for Rickson, at least he's attempting to do the right thing, he trying to improve the state of Jiu Jitsu so he has my backing 100%.

Hopefully he will begin to see the awesomeness of the Subonly game and start to move in that direction, he has the open mind to make it happen

[Mikael Chay]

Near subs are worth 60% more than a sweep or a pass? That alone crushes IBJJF rules.

This rule change alone would make it very intriguing indeed to see how it could influence the way matches are fought.

But, despite their being advertised as the main point of departure from IBJJF rules, I can't find any mention of points awarded for near subs in the current JJGF ruleset document (or of what constitutes a near sub in their book for that matter).

Could anybody let me know on what page they're mentioned? (I've checked again and still can't find anything on this)
Have they been left out of this 1st draft or do I need to work a lot harder on my reading comprehension?

[Amir Allam]

Near subs are worth 60% more than a sweep or a pass? That alone crushes IBJJF rules.

No advantages?? Another smasher of IBJJF rules.

I agree, Eddie, points for near subs WOULD be 10^6 times better than IBJJF.... if they existed. The current official rules (link in my original post) award no points and are essentially just a slightly modified IBJJF ruleset.

As for advantage points, we all hate them, but at least they're supposed to have some basis for being awarded. In the current JJGF rules:
"If points and minor penalties are tied, then the referee will decide who won based on who displayed more offense or who was closest to achieving submissions or point-scoring positions."

Which means the ref just makes up a winner.

We all love Rickson, but how much is he really at the helm of this one?

[BIBIANO]

This is an aside, but I like the pictures of illegal techniques on page 28. The crotch ripper from the truck is #1. At least the truck is starting to get some recognition...for the wrong reasons .

On Page 12, as far as the way matches can be decided: "If points are tied...and competitors are equal...a RANDOM pick will be made." I think if the person(s) who wrote these rules saw the OT format at EBI, they would change their mind in a second.

I think the most important thing is Rickson offering Eddie a spot on the 'advisory committee.' I hope that comes to fruition because the overtime rules, legal/illegal techniques and points really need re-working.

Eddie your stance on Sub-only and College football style OT reminds me of the Schopenhauer quote: "all truth passes thru three stages. First it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third it is accepted as being self-evident." It was great you got to talk to Rickson about sub-only and your OT format on the podcast, I think that is going to plant a lot of seeds in the young Jiu Jitsu minds.

Maybe Rickson hasn't been as involved with the rules as he would like, but now that he announced his involvement, I think whoever wrote these rules is gonna have some explaining to do.

[sean applegate]

I agree, Eddie, points for near subs WOULD be 10^6 times better than IBJJF.... if they existed. The current official rules (link in my original post) award no points and are essentially just a slightly modified IBJJF ruleset.

As for advantage points, we all hate them, but at least they're supposed to have some basis for being awarded. In the current JJGF rules:
"If points and minor penalties are tied, then the referee will decide who won based on who displayed more offense or who was closest to achieving submissions or point-scoring positions."

Which means the ref just makes up a winner.

We all love Rickson, but how much is he really at the helm of this one?

You may be on to something here amir. Rickson could just be the face. Only time will tell on this one.