THE BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU:

The self-defense strategy for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu students is clear: taking the opponent to the ground. Once the fight is on the ground, the BJJ Practitioner strives to achieve a position where the level of control and dominance over the opponent, and then apply a submission hold. With this end in mind, any Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu student pursues a common set of positions which are called the BJJ Fundamentals. In order to perform this overall strategy, the student must be aware of the three phases of combat.

Free Movement Phase: This is where any fight begins. Without grips and body dominance, striking techniques become the most important. The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner needs to avoid the "fire line" and seek the opportunity of getting into the standing clinch as a means to take his opponent to the ground;

Standing Clinch: Once the clinch is established, the range of striking options diminishes dramatically. On this situation the fighters are looking for spaces to strike and striving to stay in balance. The BJJ Practitioner needs to unbalance his opponent and take him down and utilize Ground Combat techniques.

Ground Combat: Almost every fight ends on the ground, even if the two opponents involved are strikers. On the ground, the fight nature changes, grips and body control become the rule and not the exception. The constant contact creates a lot of op-portunities for the BJJ practitioner move up the level of control until he can defeat his opponent. The common strategy is performed through a set of interrelated ground techniques including: closed guard, open guard, side control, mount control and back control.

Dojo Etiquette

1. Bow to the center of the mat when you enter.

02. Bow to the centre of the mat when you exit.

03. Keep a respectful posture on the dojo.

04. Classes begin with a formal bow to the instructor with students lining up in descending grade order.

05. Classes end with a formal bow to the instructor and then to the picture of Carlos Gracie Senior.

06. During Class, when the instructor is demonstrating the techniques, every student must sit in seize.

07. For safety reasons, if you are late sit by the side of the mat and wait for the permission from the Professor.

08. For safety reasons, if you need to leave the mat or leave earlier you must ask permission from the Professor.

09. Bow to your partner before and after practice.

10. Talking should be kept to a minimum level and should relate to the class subject.

11. Absolutely no foul language inside the school.

12. Do not belch inside the dojo.

13. Keep finger and toe nails short for everyones safety.

14. All students must wear the official Gracie Barra uniform. The uniform pants and top must be the same color.

15. It is mandatory to wear a t-shirt or rash guard underneath the Kimono.

16. The Kimono must be washed at least once a weekly. A dirty kimono is a sign of disrespect.

17. The Kimono must be worn at all times.

18. When tying the Kimono, face the wall.

19. The belt is represents your progress. Keep it on.

20. Refer to Black-Belt Instructors as "Professor" and to Carlos Gracie Jr. as "Master".

21. All metal objects, jewelry, piercing, neckless or other such items should be removed.

22. No shoes, food or drink on the mat.

23. No Cell Phones in the dojo area.

MMA

Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a combat sport in which a wide variety of fighting techniques are used, including striking and grappling.

Modern mixed martial arts tournaments as a popular phenomenon emerged in 1993 with the Ultimate Fighting Championship , based on the concept of pitting different fighting styles against each other in competition with minimal rules, in an attempt to determine which system would be more effective in a real, unregulated combat situation.In the late 1990s and early 2000s, mixed martial arts competitions implemented additional rules for the safety of the athletes and to promote acceptance of the sport, while maintaining as much of the original no-holds-barred concept as possible. Since these changes, the sport has grown rapidly, to the point of setting pay-per-view records.

The history of the modern MMA tournament can be traced to the Gracie family 's vale tudo martial arts tournaments in Brazil starting in the 1920s, and early mixed martial arts matches hosted by Antonio Inoki in Japan in the 1970s. The fighting concept of combining various combat disciplines gained popularity in the late 1960s and early 1970s with the emergence of Bruce Lee and his theories of mixing various martial art styles. The sport gained international exposure and widespread publicity in the United States in 1993, when Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighter Royce Gracie dominated the Ultimate Fighting Championship, sparking a revolution in the martial arts, while in Japan the continued interest in the sport resulted in 1997's creation of the PRIDE Fighting Championships.

Training:

Today, mixed martial artists train in a variety of styles that have been proven effective in the ring, so that they can be effective in all the phases of combat. Although fighters will try to play to their particular specialties, they will inevitably encounter all kinds of situations; a stand-up fighting specialist will probably get taken down at some point and a submission artist might need to fight standing-up for a while before he can complete a takedown. A mixed martial artist might train in a particular style to enhance his or her skills in the phase of combat that the style encompasses. Typical styles, known for their effectiveness, that have been trained prior to the mixed martial arts career, and that are trained individually to enhance a particular phase of combat, are:

Stand-up: Boxing, kickboxing , Muay Thai, and/or forms of full contact karate are trained to improve footwork, elbowing , kicking, kneeing and punching .
Clinch: Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling , Sambo, and Judo are trained to improve clinching, takedowns and throws, while Muay Thai is trained to improve the striking aspect of the clinch.
Ground: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, shoot wrestling , catch wrestling, Judo, and Sambo are trained to improve submission holds, and defense against them. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, pankration, and styles of amateur wrestling are trained to improve positioning and maintain ground control.

Many styles have to be adapted slightly for use in the sport. For example, several boxing stances are ineffective because they leave fighters vulnerable to leg kicks or takedowns. Similarly, Judo techniques have to be adapted to an opponent not wearing a judogi. Commonly, modern fighters do not train in any particular style, but either train in multiple styles with multiple coaches, or train in teams with other athletes focusing specifically on competition. Energy system training, speed drills, strength training and flexibility are also important aspects of an MMA fighter's training. Mixed martial arts competition is very demanding physically, and the athletes need to be in top shape to be successful.

While mixed martial arts was initially practiced almost exclusively by competitive fighters, this is no longer the case. As the sport has become more mainstream and widely taught it has become available to all ages. Proponents of this sort of training argue that it is safe for anyone, of any age, with varying levels of competition.