Gracie Jiu Jitsu

Gracie Jiu Jitsu (GJJ) is a martial art self defense system and a jacket-based sport grappling style, that began in the early part of the 20th Century, when Kodokan Judoka Mitsuyo Maeda arrived in Brazil whilst travelling the world spreading Kano Jigaro’s new art of Judo.

Carlos Gracie was exposed to Maeda giving a demonstration; at which time Carlos Gracie began to train under Maeda. Carlos’ youngest brother Hélio Gracie would watch Carlos and his older brothers train, but due to his inability to perform many Judo moves due to his frailty he developed his own adaptation, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Whilst Gracie Jiu Jitsu is more akin to its parent art Judo (‘gentle way’) than its grandparent art Jiu-Jitsu (‘gentle art/technique’), in that is a method of personal development as opposed to a set of techniques, the art retains the legacy of the older name. This is due to the fact that at the time of Maeda leaving Japan, Judo was still commonly known as either Jiu-Jitsu or Kano Jiu-Jitsu.

When the Gracie family moved to America, to emphasise the difference from existing Jiu-Jitsu schools, they called their style Gracie Jiu-Jitsu (GJJ). In later years, it has been common for branches within the Gracie Jiu Jitsu community to identify their unique take with their own name.

Whilst it is true to say that Gracie Jiu Jitsu is a type of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ), the reverse is not necessarily true. The primary focus of Gracie Jiu Jitsu is self-defence, compared to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, which is seen as purely a competitive sport.

In recent years, Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, and more broadly Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, combined with other grappling and striking arts, such as Judo, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Sombo and Wrestling has been used to great effect in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) competitions.

Training for the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu practitioner focuses mainly on getting the opponent to the floor to then apply joint locks or chokeholds. Techniques are first learnt on a static opponent. To ensure that learned techniques can be applied in motion, Gracie Jiu Jitsu emphasises ‘Rolling’, much like ‘Randori’ in Judo.

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