Very often, I hear jiu-jitsu compared to chess. I’ve heard it called “human chess” and seen a lot of references supporting these similarities. As an avid chess player (find me on chess.com as Efischer1000), the comparison is appealing as it takes two of my passions and theoretically makes them one. Here’s how the game of chess and the sport of jiu-jitsu are alike:
- The notion of hierarchy of position and pieces (techniques). If one looks at the game of chess, it becomes apparent that some pieces are worth more than others, some pieces are more likely to win you the game than others, and sometimes it’s best to trade a piece for another piece because that transaction can give you an advantage. Similarly, certain positions and submissions in jiu-jitsu are considered better than others. The rear naked choke is often considered the most powerful submission because of how hard it can be to defend. Regardless of what you think the hierarchy is, it definitely exists both in jiu-jitsu as well as chess.
- The concept of “material.” In chess, the goal is to develop material. This means moving pieces and then reinforcing them with other pieces, keeping yours on the board. In jiu-jitsu, the goal is similar: you want to reinforce your grips and positions with redundancy, and you want to take another person’s defenses away. A great example of this is passing the guard. Initially, when someone establishes a full guard, you have to contend with their feet, their shins, their knees, their thighs, their hips, and their hands. As you start to pass the guard, you must bypass each of these to end up in a dominant position.
- Attack chains/foresight. If I’m able to foresee what an opponent will do on the chess board I can create chains that cause them to sacrifice pieces or position. A great example of this is the classic “Queen’s Gambit” in which the player sacrifices a pawn for a turn or two in order to open up position and ultimately even the score with a better position. In jiu-jitsu, there’s similar depth of play. One of my favorite sequences is the cross-collar armbar-triangle combo — I present my opponent with the threat of a cross-collar choke, which they defend. I then attack their defending arm with an armbar, which they defend by pulling their arm back entering the triangle. This aspect makes jiu-jitsu very “chess-like.”
- The Gambit. As mentioned in #3, sometimes a chess player will temporarily make a sacrifice with the intent of gaining an appreciable advantage. Similarly, good jiujiteiros may seemingly make temporary sacrifices in order to gain a distinct advantage. A great example of this is Eduardo Telles’ turtle guard. Turtle guard, for all intents and purposes, is a terrible position because you are exposing your back, but Telles developed a series of sweeps based entirely upon this bad position. While gambits are less common in jiu-jitsu, if you watch closely, you can often see momentary sacrifices in the name of improvement of position.
- The endgame. As the number of pieces on the board starts to dwindle in a chess match, you see an entire set of strategies developed around trapping the king. A common situation will be a few pieces vying to trap the king and execute a checkmate. This sort of gameplay can be intricate, and you don’t want to run out of time or wind up stalemated. Similarly, if you’re trying to submit your opponent in a jiu-jitsu match, you need to learn how to play a jiu-jitsu endgame. A good practitioner can survive even the worst positions against someone who doesn’t know how to seal the deal, but high-level guys know which grips to take and how to chain attacks together to conclude a match by submission.
White Belt
White belt is the first belt within Brazilian jiu-jitsu. The rank is held by any practitioner new to the art and has no prerequisite. Some instructors and other high-level practitioners think that a white belt’s training should emphasize escapes and defensive positioning since a white belt will often fight from inferior positions, especially when training with more experienced practitioners. Most academies will additionally require that a white belt level practitioner works to obtain a well-rounded skills set, with a knowledge of basic offensive moves, such as common submissions and guard passes.
Blue Belt
Blue belt is the second adult rank in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. At the blue belt level, students gain a wide breadth of technical knowledge and undertake hundreds of hours of mat-time to learn how to implement these moves efficiently. Blue belt is often the rank at which the student learns a large number of techniques. The IBJJF requires that a practitioner be at least 16 years old to receive a blue belt, thereby officially entering into the adult belt system.
Purple Belt
The IBJJF requires a practitioner remain a purple belt for a minimum of 1.5 years. Purple belt is the intermediate adult ranking in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. The purple belt level practitioner has gained a large amount of knowledge, and purple belts are generally considered qualified to instruct lower-ranked students. In other martial arts, students with a similar amount of experience are often ranked as a black (instructor) level belt. The IBJJF requires student to be at least 16 years old and recommends they have spent a minimum of two years ranked as a blue belt to be eligible for a purple belt, with slightly different requirements for those graduating directly from the youth belts.
Brown Belt
The IBJJF requires a practitioner remain a brown belt for a minimum of 1 year. Aside from the exceptional belts awarded at the highest levels, brown belt is the highest ranking color belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Brown belt typically requires at least five years of dedicated training to achieve. It is often thought of as a time for refining techniques. The IBJJF requires that students be at least 18 years old and recommends they have spent a minimum of 18 months as a purple belt to be eligible for a brown belt.
Black Belt
The IBJJF requires a practitioner remain a black belt for a minimum of 3 years. As with many other martial arts, the black belt is the highest common belt within Brazilian jiu-jitsu, denoting an expert level of technical and practical skill.Estimates of the time required to achieve the rank vary, but all holders of this rank have thousands of hours of experience. Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts are often addressed within the art as professor, although some schools and organizations reserve this honorific for more senior black belts. The IBJJF requires that a student be at least 19 years old and recommends they have spent a minimum of 1 year ranked as a brown belt to be eligible for a black belt.
Coral Belt
The IBJJF requires a practitioner remain a black & red belt for a minimum of 7 years. When a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt reaches the seventh degree, he or she is awarded an alternating red-and-black belt similar to the one earned at the sixth degree in Judo. This belt is commonly known as the coral belt. Coral belts are very experienced practitioners, most of whom have made a large impact on Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and are often addressed within the art by the title master.
White/Red Coral Belt
The IBJJF requires a practitioner remain a white & red belt for a minimum of 10 years. The International Brazilian jiu-jitsu Federation recently amended the graduation guidelines with respect to the transition between seventh degree and eighth degree black belt. The transition is specifically noted on page 6 of the IBJJF General System of Graduation, Section 1.3.4. In short, a practitioner who has achieved the rank of 8th degree black belt will wear a red and white belt.
Red Belt
The 9th degree red belt is the highest rank awarded to any currently living practitioner of Brazilian jiu-jitsu. According to Renzo & Royler Gracie, in Brazilian jiu-jitsu the red belt is reserved “for those whose influence and fame takes them to the pinnacle of the art”. It is awarded in lieu of a ninth and tenth degree black belt. If a practitioner receives his or her black belt at 19 years old, the earliest they could expect to receive a ninth degree red belt would be at the age of 67. Brazilian jiu-jitsu red belt holders are often addressed within the art by the title grandmaster.
