Why MMA Fighters Should Train Jiu Jitsu in a Gi

By Hywel Teague

Jiu Jitsu is devastatingly efficient and capable of completely incapacitating someone, but it still carries a stigma when set against the more obviously "manly" art of caving someone's skull in. There was a stretch — Chael Sonnen flew the flag for it, famously declaring he didn't enjoy lying between another man's legs — when a vocal share of MMA fighters openly scorned Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. That attitude hasn't entirely gone away.

Walk into a gym that offers classes across multiple disciplines and the MMA sessions are usually packed while the BJJ class struggles to fill the mat. Wannabe cage fighters will happily pound away at a floor bag or grappling dummy and tell anyone within earshot how they train full contact three times a week, but you rarely hear them describe drilling guard passes or guillotines with the same enthusiasm.

Buoyed by the popularity of the UFC — and now a whole streaming ecosystem of fights on demand — it's easy to see why MMA is the cool thing to do. It's fun, rewarding, and a great workout. But hitting Thai pads and practising a little ground and pound is not MMA.

Mixed martial arts is a synthesis, a name given to a combination of styles that is in essence freestyle fighting. It doesn't matter if your kick came from karate or kickboxing, and few people can tell the difference between a wrestling throw and a judo trip.

Jiu Jitsu is different. The submission holds that make the art so devastatingly effective exist in other grappling styles, but nobody does them as well as those from the Arte Suave. The UFC was created by the Gracie family to showcase exactly this, and they proved beyond doubt that a real understanding of Jiu Jitsu was essential if you were going to step into a cage.

Anyone delving into MMA should know that you need a good grasp of the ground game if you hope to walk out with your pride (and limbs) intact. If you're serious about fighting, of course you'll get specific and train nogi and wrestling, otherwise you'll be woefully unprepared for what awaits. MMA fighters have a lot of plates to spin: they balance striking and grappling, juggle strength and conditioning with planning their strategy. The early stages of a career are where you lay your foundations, and seasoned pros often use the off-season to sharpen neglected skills. Whatever the motivating factor, putting the gi on is a very worthwhile activity.

Training in a gi can only make you a better MMA fighter, and here are a few reasons why:

1: The more Jiu Jitsu mat time, the better

If you train at a gym with only two or three MMA classes a week, that's 2–3 hours spent on a mix of stand-up, clinch work and submission grappling. Depending on the focus of the session, you might do an hour of stuff on the floor, or none at all.

Boost the amount of time you spend on the deck by jumping into the BJJ class — it'll make your grappling, and your MMA, better. Trust us.

2: If you can escape in a gi, you can escape damn near anything without one

Boxers hold weights in their hands when they shadowbox. Drop the weights and the hands move a whole lot quicker. It's the same reasoning behind running in a weighted vest or dragging a sled. Once you take the resistance away, your body moves faster.

Wearing a gi has much the same effect. The added weight and friction of the cloth make it harder to move when you're on your back, so you learn to escape tight submissions through clean technique and timing rather than low-percentage explosive scrambles. Take the gi off and those escapes feel like they happen in fast-forward.

3: If gi BJJ is good enough for the champions, it's good enough for you

Plenty of UFC champions, past and present, are black belts in BJJ — and not just nogi black belts. From José Aldo to GSP and Anderson Silva, they put in the work to earn the coveted faixa preta. GSP trained in the kimono with Renzo and Roger Gracie, and it's not hard to find footage of Aldo competing in the gi back when he was a purple belt. Look at today's roster and the pattern holds: Charles Oliveira, a Demian Maia–era stylist if ever there was one, racked up more submission wins than anyone in UFC history off the back of relentless gi-honed Jiu Jitsu.

None of them could be described as pure "grapplers," but if you doubt the usefulness of a black belt in the cage, go back and watch Silva's epic 2010 submission win over Jiu Jitsu–trasher Sonnen. A better advertisement for the effectiveness of the art is hard to find — and it's a click away on YouTube whenever you need reminding.

THE BLACK BELT CLUB

The fighters below are all Jiu Jitsu black belts who built their game in the gi. Their success is a prime example of how training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in the kimono benefits your nogi and your MMA repertoire.

BJ PENN: Black belt under André Pederneiras

NICK DIAZ: Black belt under Cesar Gracie

DEMIAN MAIA: Black belt under Fabio Gurgel

ANDERSON SILVA: Black belt under Antônio Nogueira

SHINYA AOKI: Black belt under Yuki Nakai

GEORGES ST-PIERRE: Black belt under Bruno Fernandes

So if you've been skipping the gi class because it doesn't feel like "fight training," reconsider. The cloth slows you down so the cage speeds you up. See you on the mats.

Originally published in Jiu Jitsu Style by Hywel Teague. Refreshed for 2026.