Footage has gone viral recently of a brawl that broke out in a local BJJ tournament after a match between two competitors got more heated than usual. It doesn’t appear as though it became serious enough to attract the attention of law enforcement, although several members of the crowd did have to intervene in order to settle things down. It’s far from the first time that a fight has broken out at a combat sports event, as unfortunately tempers do flare up in tournaments from time to time.
The most common theme that occurs when a brawl breaks out at a local BJJ tournament is that it always starts on the mats first. Generally either one or both of the competitors involved in a match will start pushing the boundaries and getting as physical as possible within the rules. It’s important to understand that things like heavy collar-ties and shoving are completely legal, and anyone competing should be able to endure actions like this without taking it personally or escalating the situation further. That’s usually the primary difference between a tough match and an actual fight, as a fight will require both sides to be willing to engage in it.
There’s even been fights breaking out at more prestigious tournaments as well, as this kind of behavior doesn’t stop at local events. A brawl broke out backstage at a Fight 2 Win event in 2021 and there was an even more notable altercation the following year. Just prior to ADCC 2022, the promotion held the first major ADCC Open event and a fight broke out that involved a weapon allegedly being drawn and resulted in several lifetime bans. Not only is it poor sportsmanship to engage in an actual fight at a combat sports event, but it’s also not worth risking the downsides of potentially being banned from the tournament or inviting legal troubles.
Footage of the brawl that broke out at a local BJJ tournament was uploaded to the official Instagram account of McDojoLife:
