Can you get your black belt online? ( is it fair )

[Wade Hamilton]

I know this probably isn't a place to ask but i frequent here often, and is the onlu BJJ/JJ forum visit so.. I was just curious if someone could receive a black belt online through the gracie university (or any other online sites) without ever meeting or rolling with a certified instructor in person. Do you think online promotions are fair? I've heard many BJJ well knows like draculino say you have to come in and at least roll and train for a week to see how you move and how you roll and what your attitude is.

Personally I think it's fair for someone who may live in a place where there is no BJJ school for hundreds of miles to recieve a blue, and even purple strictly online. But getting a brown, and especially a black without ever meeting your instructor or rolling with him/her... I don't know. But what do I know, I'm only a white belt... What do you guys think?

P.S would 10P consider this? I'm sure there's a lot of money in it if someone is dying to train 10P and wants to rank up within the system, but there are no affiliates near where he lives, only BJJ schools.

[Sam Sales]

I think with the Gracie University you have to go to their Torrence academy for the actual grading. You can do the work at home but to get the grade you do need to go to them. Am sure somebody will correct me if i am wrong.

I am of the opinion that nobody should be given a belt via online video demos and stuff. I am sure there are guys that are technically sound, sure, but i bet (guys that train solely from their homes) many wouldn't last 5 minutes in a roll in a regular jj gym, even with a 3 month training white belt.
If someone is training in a gym on the regular, then ok fine, but why would they want grading from another academy? Yes being graded in 10p and gi bjj separately is all cool. IMO they are different. Just seems like all this online grading bullshit caters to people too lazy to train in a real class. People that would have never got a belt 10 years ago, get them now. They don't get humbled every single session - which IMO is a HUGE part of jiu jitsu (the gradual breaking down of ones ego). It just doesn't sit well with me.
But I am a nooby white belt too, so what do I know? :-)

e2a - just to be clear, I am not saying all guys that train solely from home are too lazy to train in a real class, but between them, and the guys that were assholes and couldn't handle training at a gym so slowly stopped going and want to take an 'easier' route, the posers, etc etc. I just feel everyone should go through the same shit to get their belts. Somebody training from home doesn't go through the same hard times we all do in our classes. Obviously there are exceptions, like i am sure there are a few guys that have like 6+ guys in their basement training, but a lone dude, or even just a couple guys, its just not the same. :-)

[Wade Hamilton]

I did some research this may surprise you sam

What separates Gracie University from every other web-based martial arts instructional program, aside from the effectiveness of the techniques and easy-to-follow lesson structure, is the Video Evaluation Process. This groundbreaking interactive evaluation system allows you to test for official belt promotions and receive detailed feedback from anywhere in the world. Once you have mastered all the techniques in a learning module, such as Gracie Combatives, you will digitally record yourself performing five belt qualification drills with a training partner. Then, you will upload the videos to the online testing center at GracieUniversity.com for evaluation by a Gracie Academy instructor. If your performance meets Gracie Academy standards, then we will promote you and mail you your official belt and rank certificate. Four-stripe brown belt is the highest rank you can achieve through the Video Evaluation Process. Testing for black belt requires participate in a five-day qualification test at the Gracie Academy headquarters in Torrance, CA. Please visit the Gracie University Testing Center for more information.



So up to 4 stripe brown.. Guess black is the only one you got to go in for haha...

[Compella]

Hell fucking no.

[Brandon Woolsey]

hell fucking no.

this ^^^^^

[Arun Sharma]

Online Brown/Black Belts = NO

[Mike May]

There should absolutely be online promotion, in fact all the way to camouflage belt the rank of ultimate awesomeness.
Once they receive their rank they must then wear it and compete in advanced open and black belt divisions, where their rank will receive all the gentle respect it deserves. [\ end sarcasm]

Seriously, for those that think they are black belt level: just go compete in the advanced division, let your skill speak for it self, and don't get hung up on the rank issue.

[Josh Passini]

Wow four stripe brown online. That's crazy.

[lannie]

Totally unfair even for getting blue belt. If schools are miles and miles away and you have passion for the sport so be it. but you wanna have a belt..... then show everybody you deserve a promo in any color belt there is . Jiu jitsu is an art and you can find that in a BJJ school.

[Ryan Brick]

If the online blackbelt can hold his own against a school trained blackbelt then i see no reason why not.

But the belt only covers your physical ass you have to defend your arms and neck on your own.

the is a gracie garage near my house run by an online bluebelt. He doesnt allow sparing for the students first year. They probably should be learning from an actual person or the other gracie school.

Sometimes people want online belts to give credit to there school but its fake credit.

I believe it was marcelo that used to bus to rio 1 time a month and then drilled the shit out of it. so that he could learn bjj.