Straight-talking guides to starting Brazilian jiu-jitsu and choosing the right academy.
Magomed Ankalaev's fifth-round TKO of Bogdan Guskov at UFC Abu Dhabi looked like a striking clinic on the scorecard. Go back and watch rounds four and five, and it was Ankalaev's wrestling, not his hands, that actually broke Guskov down.
The 2026 Pan Kids IBJJF Championship ran July 24-26 in Kissimmee, Florida, packing four age divisions and multiple belt levels into one weekend. If your kid trains BJJ, here's what a tournament like this actually involves before you sign them up.
The ADCC Youth World Championship lands in Austin on August 9, and nine confirmed invitees train out of 10th Planet gyms across the country. For a system built on no-gi and leg locks, that's a real signal about where its youth pipeline stands.
The heavyweight has now finished five straight opponents by submission inside round one, matching a mark set by Demian Maia. This time the tap came from a calf slicer, not his usual heel hook.
Izaak Michell had stayed on the official ADCC 2026 competitor list for months despite an active Texas warrant. The promotion pulled his name without comment and slotted in a Polaris regular instead.
The previously undefeated welterweight got dropped and nearly finished on the ground in round two. He answered by taking over in round three to claim the vacant title.
Salahdine Parnasse turned down the UFC once already over money. Now he's in, and he'll make his debut in the main event of UFC Paris against a battle-tested veteran.
Rener Gracie has certified instructors for nearly two decades, and he keeps seeing academies stall at the same headcount. His diagnosis has nothing to do with mat space or marketing budgets.
In a new podcast conversation with Royce Gracie, Georges St-Pierre traced his entire career back to a single night in 1993 watching a rented tape of the first UFC tournament. His takeaway for anyone training MMA today: skip jiu-jitsu at your own risk.
Claudia Gadelha just put real numbers on what UFC's jiu-jitsu-only promotion pays its top signees, and the structure explains a lot about why so many elite grapplers are choosing it over ADCC.
Allan Goes, a 7th-degree coral belt with real MMA experience, says the berimbolo-heavy style that made Gordon Ryan the best grappler alive would not hold up once strikes enter the picture. The debate says a lot about what actually transfers to a real fight.
Ramazan Temirov and Steve Erceg headline the co-main event in Abu Dhabi, and both of them would rather finish you on the mat than on the feet. Here's why this one is worth clearing your Saturday morning for.
Shamil Musaev pulled out of Saturday's PFL Washington D.C. title fight with almost no warning. Ernesto Rodriguez stepped in against unbeaten Thad Jean instead, and the short-notice gamble says a lot about being ready when the call comes.
Adele Fornarino is out of ADCC 2026 to compete in UFC BJJ's flyweight grand prix instead, the fourth reigning champion to skip the September event in Krakow. The pattern says something important about where elite grappling money is actually going.
A dislocated elbow ended Pantoja's reign in seconds last December. Now he's reportedly closing in on a rematch with champion Joshua Van, and his comeback says a lot about how grapplers handle the worst kind of setback.
Imavov claims the promotion has told him he's next for middleweight gold once champion Sean Strickland is healthy, setting up a rematch of a fight Imavov lost back in 2023 and clearly has not let go of.
The UFC's all-time submission leader lost to Topuria himself last year and admits he leaned too hard on his boxing. His read on how Tsarukyan could get it done comes straight from what he wishes he had done differently.
The pound-for-pound number one grappler in the world just confirmed she is skipping her usual bracket to compete in the loaded over 65kg division at ADCC 2026, a decision that doubles down on wrestling over her old guard-first identity.
Ahead of his welterweight title shot at UFC 330, Ian Machado Garry likened the fight to McGregor's 13-second win over Jose Aldo. Islam Makhachev's manager fired back with a record breakdown, and the underlying reason the comparison falls apart is Makhachev's ground game.
With the field for September's ADCC World Championship now locked in, the biggest story isn't who made the cut, it's who didn't, and who gets first crack at the vacant superfight title Gordon Ryan left behind.
The 2026 Pan Kids IBJJF Championship opens July 24 in Kissimmee, and for parents wondering if competition is right for a young grappler, this is the event that answers the question at scale.
Magomed Ankalaev headlines July 25 in Abu Dhabi, but heavyweight Valter Walker's run of first-round finishes is the fight jiu-jitsu fans should actually be watching for.
Magomed Ankalaev's light heavyweight main event got a last-minute makeover this week when an injury pulled Khalil Rountree Jr. out and perfect finisher Bogdan Guskov agreed to jump in with less than two weeks to prepare for July 25 in Abu Dhabi.
Dricus du Plessis took a lopsided decision over Kamaru Usman to headline UFC Oklahoma City on July 18, but the real grappling story of the night belonged to Chase Hooper, who needed barely two minutes to lock up a rear-naked choke.
Colby Covington scored a points win over previously unbeaten wrestler Arman Tsarukyan to claim the first RAF crossover title in Milwaukee, but the emotional story of the night was Ben Askren competing again barely a year after a double lung transplant.
Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Volkan Oezdemir went public this week with a 16-month suspension for using EPO, admitting he took a banned blood-doping drug from a stranger who approached him online. It is a stark reminder that shortcuts in combat sports carry real consequences.
Johnny Eblen finished Impa Kasanganay with strikes to claim the PFL interim middleweight title in Austin, but two undercard submissions, including a rare twister finish, gave grappling fans the more interesting fights of the night.
Helena Crevar took Paige Ivette Clymer the full 10 minutes at The Inner Circle 22 in Bangkok, controlling the action from mount to the back but unable to close the show, while Clymer's escapes offered a preview of what her Legion training brings to a big stage.
Chase Hooper, one of the UFC's most jiu-jitsu-forward lightweights, missed weight for the first time in his career ahead of UFC Fight Night: Du Plessis vs. Usman, forfeiting part of his purse just a day before he needed his ground game most.
Fresh off surviving Khamzat Chimaev's wrestling to win the middleweight title, Sean Strickland says training with UFC welterweight Yaroslav Amosov changed his opinion of who the division's best grappler really is, all while Chimaev keeps pushing for an immediate rematch.
The Olympic gold medalist finished his first professional MMA fight without landing a single takedown, a detail that says as much about modern MMA grappling as the win itself.
Two of the sport's most technical competitors are arguing about strength training, and the disagreement is a useful way into a question almost every gym-going grappler eventually asks.
The largest girls' freestyle field in the history of USA Wrestling's Junior Nationals just took the mat in North Dakota, and the growth curve behind it matters well beyond wrestling rooms.
A three-time NCAA Division I qualifier turned Rizin bantamweight champion puts his belt on the line against a submission specialist, in the exact stylistic clash grappling fans should be tuning into.
A brand-new freestyle wrestling league landed in Tbilisi on July 11, and the card doubled as a reminder that some of the toughest grapplers in combat sports right now built their games on a wrestling mat long before they ever stepped into a cage.
The two biggest names in grappling media and Asian combat sports confirmed a new working relationship this week, and the timing matters for a sport that has spent the last year splitting into competing, exclusive-contract camps.
One of the most technical grapplers the UFC has ever produced isn't done competing, and his answer about who he'd still want to face says a lot about how long a real jiu-jitsu foundation can carry a career.
On July 11 in Las Vegas, Max Holloway's rematch with Conor McGregor ended almost as fast as it started, while a bantamweight fight two bouts earlier turned into the most instructive grappling clinic of the night.
An active UFC featherweight is stepping onto a submission-only mat against one of the best grapplers alive this September, in a stretch of news that also has Mikey Musumeci plotting his own move into MMA.
Joshua Pacio needed one round to erase the doubts from his first fight with Mansur Malachiev, escaping a dangerous face crank before finishing the rematch with a rear-naked choke at The Inner Circle 21 on July 10, 2026.
Achilles Rocha and Jasmine Rocha each walked away from the ADCC Miami Open on July 11, 2026 with two gold medals apiece, while rising 19-year-old Dorian Olivarez took the absolute division in a stacked regional field.
UFC BJJ announced a welterweight title fight between Andrew Tackett and Jonnatas Gracie plus a four-woman featherweight bracket this week, and the news arrived alongside word that reigning ADCC champion Adele Fornarino will skip defending her title in Krakow to compete for the promotion instead.
On July 11, 2026, Polaris 38 crowned a new welterweight grand prix champion after eight grapplers battled through a single-day bracket, while the women's bantamweight title changed hands with a fast first-round submission.
Paddy Pimblett finished Benoit Saint Denis in the opening round at UFC 329 with a choke he had never drilled before, then used the post-fight microphone to call out former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira.
On July 17, 2026, two of America's most talked-about young grapplers meet in Bangkok when Helena Crevar and Paige Ivette Clymer face off in a 10-minute openweight submission match that pits contrasting training pedigrees against each other.
Seven of nine preliminary bouts at UFC 329 ended by stoppage on July 11, 2026, a night that showed exactly why submission grappling and wrestling are the deciding factors in modern MMA.
Murtazali Magomedov's Scottish twister won MMA Fighting's Submission of the Midyear for 2026, and it belongs on a list with ninja chokes and Suloev stretches as proof that grappling creativity is thriving.
Conor McGregor returns after five years off to face Max Holloway at welterweight in tonight's UFC 329 main event at T-Mobile Arena. Here is the full grappling breakdown and why this card matters for BJJ fans.
The ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship heads to Tauron Arena in Krakow, Poland on September 12-13, 2026, with a 15,000-seat capacity making it the largest venue in event history.
The two-time world champion and Olympic gold medalist steps into the UFC cage at 329 tonight. His debut is a case study in what elite wrestling brings to grappling sports, and what BJJ still has to offer in return.
UFC 329 is built around McGregor-Holloway 2, but the lightweight fight between Paddy Pimblett and Benoit Saint Denis is one of the most grappling-rich matchups on the card. Here is what the ground game looks like for Saturday.
The former middleweight champion steps up to 205 for the first time at UFC 329. Whittaker has always been a technically sound grappler. How that game translates against a heavier, stronger field is one of the most interesting questions on Saturday's card.
ADCC organizers gave Mateusz Gamrot a discretionary invitation to compete in Krakow. The UFC lightweight contender's wrestling pedigree is real, his home crowd will be enormous, and his presence raises the question of how elite wrestling performs under pure grappling rules.
With Diogo Reis, Mica Galvao, and Giancarlo Bodoni all removed from the ADCC 2026 card ahead of the September event in Krakow, the division brackets have shifted significantly. Kaynan Duarte and Yuri Simoes are set for a super fight that looks better than ever.
Gilbert 'Durinho' Burns delivered a submission finish at UFC BJJ 9 in Las Vegas after retiring from MMA, joining a wave of elite fighters making the transition from cage to grappling-only competition. Here is what his debut means for the sport.
UFC 329 lands July 11 at T-Mobile Arena with McGregor vs. Holloway 2 headlining at 170 pounds. This is a grappling preview - what the ground game looks like, what submission opportunities exist, and why this fight matters for BJJ practitioners following elite MMA.
Watching UFC and thinking about what happens when fights go to the ground? Here is why BJJ and submission grappling have become the defining skill set for MMA fighters - and what that means for anyone training or considering starting.
The ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship comes to Krakow, Poland on September 12-13, 2026 - the first time the sport's biggest event has been held in Eastern Europe. Kaynan Duarte defends double gold, Mica Galvao hunts another title at 21, and five deep male divisions are stacked with the best no-gi grapplers alive.
UFC 329 takes place July 11, 2026 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas -- the centerpiece of UFC International Fight Week. Conor McGregor makes his long-awaited return after five years away, facing Max Holloway in a rematch of their 2013 bout. The undercard is stacked: Paddy Pimblett vs. Benoit Saint Denis at lightweight, Robert Whittaker's light heavyweight debut, and Gable Steveson making his UFC debut. If you have been looking for a reason to try a BJJ class, this is the event that gets people through gym doors.
Gable Steveson, a two-time NCAA wrestling champion and 2020 Olympic gold medalist, makes his UFC debut at UFC 329 on July 11, 2026. His wrestling pedigree is among the most decorated in combat sports history. But wrestling ability alone does not guarantee MMA success -- and the BJJ and striking development that will determine his ceiling are still unknowns. Here is what to watch for and what his debut tells us about the path from elite wrestling to elite MMA.
The 2026 ADCC World Championship returns September 12-13 at Tauron Arena in Krakow, Poland -- the first time Poland has hosted grappling's most prestigious event. With five men's divisions and three women's divisions, the world's best no-gi submission grapplers will compete in front of a live audience for titles that matter more in the grappling community than almost any other. Here is your complete guide to what ADCC is, how to watch, who to follow, and why this event makes a strong case for trying a no-gi class.
The ADCC World Championship -- widely called the Olympics of Grappling -- heads to Krakow, Poland for the first time in the event's history on September 12-13, 2026. Six men's divisions, three women's divisions, a loaded defending champion roster, and a headline super fight between Kaynan Duarte and Yuri Simoes. Here is everything you need to know before the mats open at Tauron Arena -- and why watching elite no-gi grappling at this level might be the thing that finally gets you into a BJJ class.
The first half of 2026 delivered a remarkable run of UFC finishes -- three title changes, a rear-naked choke highlight from Alexa Grasso, Justin Gaethje claiming undisputed lightweight gold, and a series of grappling-adjacent moments that tell a clear story about how jiu-jitsu and wrestling shape outcomes at the sport's highest level. Here is the breakdown of what happened and what anyone thinking about starting BJJ should take from it.
UFC 329 takes over T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on July 11, 2026, headlining International Fight Week with the long-anticipated rematch between Conor McGregor and Max Holloway at welterweight. But the McGregor headline is only part of the story. The undercard is loaded with grappling action, Paddy Pimblett brings his submission game to a tough lightweight matchup, and a rising heavyweight with elite wrestling credentials is on the prelims. Here is what to watch -- and why Fight Week always sends a surge of new students to the mat.
UFC Fight Night 281 lands in Oklahoma City on July 18, 2026, headlined by former UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis against former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. This is a grappling-heavy fight with serious title implications. Here is everything you need to know about the card, the wrestling and BJJ matchup, and why this fight matters for martial arts fans at every level.
Late June brought two of the biggest events on the submission grappling calendar: Kade Ruotolo's title defense at ONE Championship's The Inner Circle on June 26, and UFC BJJ 9 featuring Mason Fowler, Gilbert Burns, Nick Rodriguez, and Ffion Davies all submitting their opponents. Here is what happened and why it matters for the sport.
UFC 329 lands at T-Mobile Arena on July 11 with one of the most anticipated welterweight matchups in years, an elite lightweight scrap, and an Olympic wrestler making his UFC debut. Here is what to watch from a BJJ and grappling lens - and why any of these fight styles are worth studying on the mat.
The Olympic gold medalist and multi-time NCAA champion makes his UFC debut on July 11 in Las Vegas. His transition from the wrestling mat to the Octagon is one of the cleanest windows we have into what foundational grappling excellence looks like - and what it needs to become inside MMA.
Khamzat Chimaev looked like the most dangerous wrestler in the division entering UFC 328. Sean Strickland walked out with the belt anyway. The round-by-round grappling story explains why.
UFC's annual showcase week returns to Las Vegas with a stacked schedule, a Hall of Fame ceremony, and a main event that has the BJJ and MMA community paying close attention. Here is what is happening and what it means for grapplers.
Justin Gaethje stopped Ilia Topuria in the fourth round at the White House on June 14, 2026, pulling off one of MMA's biggest upsets and claiming the undisputed UFC lightweight title. Here is a full breakdown - and what it means for grapplers.
Rafael Fiziev returned home to Azerbaijan on June 27, 2026 and delivered a stunning second-round spinning back kick KO over Manuel Torres - a fight that has jiu-jitsu practitioners everywhere talking about footwork and fight IQ.
Grappling's biggest stage lands in Krakow, Poland on September 12-13, 2026. Here is a preview of the top storylines, the athletes to watch, and why this event matters to every BJJ practitioner from beginner to advanced.
ONE Fight Night 44 delivered some of the most memorable moments of the 2026 summer grappling season on June 26 from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok. British submission grappler Owen Jones avenged a three-year-old loss to hand Fabricio 'Hokage' Andrey his first promotional defeat by split decision, while heavyweight Paul Elliott tied the record for fastest knockout in ONE Championship history by stopping Regan Upshaw in just six seconds. Here is the full breakdown of the grappling and MMA highlights and what they mean for the sport.
The 2026 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship is headed to Kraków, Poland on September 12-13, hosted at Tauron Arena -- Poland becomes the first-ever Polish host nation and the first European venue for ADCC Worlds since Finland in 2017. The field is set across eight men's divisions and three women's divisions, with defending champions, trial winners from six global regions, and a handful of at-large invitees ready to compete for the sport's most coveted title. Here is everything you need to know about the athletes, the format, and what to watch for.
UFC Fight Night: Fiziev vs. Torres took place June 27, 2026 at the National Gymnastics Arena in Baku, Azerbaijan. Rafael Fiziev closed the show with a spectacular second-round TKO over Manuel Torres using a spinning wheel kick, while the rest of the card featured multiple submission finishes including a Suloev stretch, a guillotine choke, and a rear naked choke. Here is a breakdown of the card, the grappling lessons inside the finishes, and why events like this are driving new people into jiu-jitsu gyms every week.
The 2026 ADCC Asia and Oceania Trials, held in Australia, delivered one of the most competitive regional qualifier events of the entire ADCC cycle. Eight athletes from four countries earned invitations to the World Championships in Krakow, Poland, in September, and six of them will be making their ADCC Worlds debut.
On June 20, 2026, 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu Richmond claimed the 2026 Overall Academy title at the Fuji BJJ Kentucky State Championship, with the youth team taking first place among 26 competing academies. Here is what the result means and why regional competition is where BJJ athletes are built.
The 2026 ADCC Asia and Oceania Trials, held in Australia, delivered one of the most competitive regional qualifier events of the entire ADCC cycle. Eight athletes from four countries earned invitations to the World Championships in Krakow, Poland, in September, and six of them will be making their ADCC Worlds debut.
On June 20, 2026, 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu Richmond claimed the 2026 Overall Academy title at the Fuji BJJ Kentucky State Championship, with the youth team taking first place among 26 competing academies. Here is what the result means and why regional competition is where BJJ athletes are built.
The 2026 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship heads to Krakow, Poland on September 12-13, with all eight reigning champions returning to defend their titles. Here is the full guide to the biggest event in submission grappling.
One of the most celebrated grapplers in MMA history has called time on his UFC fighting career and signed with UFC BJJ, the promotion's competitive submission grappling platform. Here is what Gilbert Burns's pivot means for the sport and what it says about where elite grappling is headed.
Kade Ruotolo was set to defend his ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling title against Fabricio Andrey on June 26, 2026, at ONE: The Inner Circle. After Ruotolo was injured following his MMA win, Andrey and newcomer Owen Jones stepped up to compete at featherweight at ONE Fight Night 44. Here is the full picture.
On June 20, 2026, UFC replaced its voter-based ranking system with the Meta UFC Rankings, a new Elo-driven mathematical approach that scores fighters based on the quality of opposition they have beaten. Here is how it works, why it matters, and what it means for how you follow the sport.
UFC Fight Night: Fiziev vs Torres takes place Saturday, June 27, at the National Gymnastics Arena in Baku, Azerbaijan. Prelims at 9 AM ET, main card at noon on Paramount+. Here is everything you need to know before you tune in, plus the grappling angles worth watching.
UFC Freedom 250 at the White House on June 14, 2026 was a statement card. Justin Gaethje dethroned Ilia Topuria via fourth-round TKO, Ciryl Gane stopped Alex Pereira for the interim heavyweight title, and Bo Nickal continued his dominant run. Here is what happened and what it tells you about grappling.
Bo Nickal won three NCAA wrestling titles, earned a BJJ blue belt, and is now 5-1 in the UFC. His path from the wrestling room to the Octagon maps onto principles that work for anyone walking into a gym for the first time.
At UFC Fight Night: Muhammad vs. Bonfim on June 6, three back-to-back prelim fights ended by submission with three different techniques. Here is what each finish was, how it happened, and what it looks like in a beginner class.
The ADCC World Championship hits Tauron Arena in Kraków on September 12-13, 2026 after a brutal global trials season. Here are the storylines worth following, and why this is the perfect moment to try the sport yourself.
When Ilia Topuria headlined UFC Freedom 250 against Justin Gaethje, he did it as a striker with knockout power and a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. He is not the exception. Here is why the grappling base keeps showing up at the top of the UFC.
On June 4, 2026 at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, eight of nine jiu-jitsu matches ended with someone tapping. Mason Fowler kept his title, Gilbert Burns made a statement in 88 seconds, and Nick Rodriguez called his shot. Here is the full breakdown plus what it means if you have ever thought about stepping on the mat.
The ADCC World Championship, submission grappling's Olympics, runs in Poland this September after a brutal global qualifying season. Here is what it is, why it matters, and how watching it can fuel your own first steps on the mat.
A practical, ten-point checklist for picking a jiu-jitsu academy you will actually keep showing up to - what matters, what does not, and the red flags worth walking back out for.
The honest differences between the two styles - pace, grips, carryover to MMA and self-defense - and how to pick a starting point.
How the jiu-jitsu belt system works, roughly how long each belt takes, and why progress in BJJ is famously slow - by design.
Exactly how a first jiu-jitsu class unfolds from the moment you walk in - the warm-up, the drilling, the first roll - plus what to wear, the etiquette nobody tells you, and how to not gas out in five minutes.
The origin, philosophy, and signature techniques of the no-gi system founded by Eddie Bravo - and why no-gi academies build their culture around it.
A fast scan of the green flags that mark a great jiu-jitsu academy - and the red flags that should send you back out the door.
The honest, no-fluff list every white belt ends up learning the hard way - collected so you do not have to.
A simple packing checklist for day one - what to wear, what to bring, and what to leave at home.
The common habits that quietly stall beginners - and the simple fixes that get you improving again.
Jiu-jitsu is safe when you train smart - here is what the research says about where injuries happen and how to keep yourself on the mat.
It is not too late - here is how to start jiu-jitsu in your 40s, 50s, and beyond, train smart, and actually enjoy it.
An honest look at what Brazilian jiu-jitsu actually gives children - confidence, discipline, fitness, and anti-bullying tools - and what to watch for.
When children can begin jiu-jitsu, how the kids belt system works, and what a good youth class looks like.
Straight answers for women considering jiu-jitsu - what the first classes are really like, the etiquette, and how to find the right room.
A straight, no-hype look at where Brazilian jiu-jitsu shines for self-defense - and the real situations where it falls short.
A no-nonsense gear guide for new grapplers - what you truly need to start, what to skip, and how to size a gi.
A clear breakdown of what Brazilian jiu-jitsu really costs - monthly memberships, gear, and the hidden fees to ask about before you sign.
Jiu-jitsu has exploded in popularity - here is what is actually driving the boom, from fitness and stress relief to self-defense and community.
The mat etiquette nobody hands you on day one - hygiene, tapping, partner respect, and the small habits that make you welcome.