As the entire gracie barra family prepares for the compnet, there are however things that a competitor must know. Although training (or lots of it) does a lot to fighters, remember the basics before entering a competition is the key.

Before the competition

1. Making the Weight

Needless to say, making weight is one of the best strategies in every BJJ tournament. For the sole reason that every fighter performs better in their ideal weight class. Fighters who come in over, or under their weight limit tend to perform worse than those who meets weight.

Statistically, fighters who make weight win 28% more than those who do not. But remember there are pitfalls in making weight.

If let’s say you are still 20lbs away from your weight class, but the tournament is less than 10 days away, consider moving up class instead. The main reason is that you do not want your body all stressed out because of dehydration, overtraining, rapid weight loss et al.

 Remember the Pacquaio-Dela Hoya fight?  

2. Know the Rules

I have seen a lot of good fighters get slammed with the two scariest acronyms in every competitive sport. This is the DQ. Yes. Not doing your homework by knowing the rules can set you up for a fateful disqualification, or worse injuring someone because you didn’t know that some moves are illegal in your belt level.

If the rules are unclear, go see your coach immediately. You wouldn’t want to waste weeks of training just to be disqualified on a technicality.

3. Come in Early

There is always wisdom in coming in early. I am saying come in around 1-2 hours before the competition. Coming in early sets you at ease. Your mind transitions to your new environment if you come to the venue early. Remember that

Use this time to get a feel of the mats. Relaxing a bit before the big fight can do you good.

4. Warming Up

Oh my. It’s basic. But take it from me: you are setting yourself up for failure if you don’t do warm ups. Yes. A bjjj fighter is a high performance engine. These engines work well if the cranks, the pistons and the valves are at optimum temperature. A cold engine eats up more gas and oxygen. It is noisier. It is The same goes with the human body.

I cannot stress this enough: Warm up. Or do not compete at all.

5. Wear Protective Gear

This is self-explanatory

6. Humility in Winning, Grace In Losing

In every competition, there will be winners and losers. It’s reality. But the difference is made by the fighter who can come into terms with the result of the competition; regardless whether he was able to get his hand raised or not. A fighter who remains humble after winning will continue to win. A fighter who keeps grace after losing will eventually win.