A rundown of the biggest headlines and news from the world of competitive grappling.
Rener Gracie managed to direct a great deal of attention towards the success of a BJJ training program conducted for Marietta Police Department in Georgia recently. The program was conducted over two years and they managed to report measurable improvements to outcomes both for officers involved and the public that they interacted with, lending credence to Rener’s recent push for national police reform.
According to the numbers they’ve released, the program managed to show a significant reduction in the officer’s use of a taser, the officer’s incidents where force was used, and the actual number of use-of-force injuries to suspects. Not only this, but they managed to demonstrate a massive reduction in injuries sustained by officers which also led to the department actually saving money by having their officers undertake the BJJ program.
Gracie posted the statistics on their website:
To date, 95 of the 145 sworn MPD officers have opted in to the BJJ program and 50 officers have not. The officers who averaged at least (1) BJJ class per week, are referred to as “BJJ officers.” Here is a summary of the data collected thus far:
Training Injuries
MPD has had 95 officers attend over 2,600 civilian-operated BJJ classes with one reported training injury.
Taser Deployments
Since the inception of the program, non-BJJ officers used their Taser in 77% of Use of Force (UOF) incidents.
BJJ officers used their Taser in 54% of UOF incidents (85% of which were used to stop a foot pursuit – not to end the physical altercation)
23% reduction in Taser deployments in the BJJ officer group.
Use of Force (UOF) Injuries to Officers
In the 18 months prior to instituting mandatory BJJ training, 29 officers were injured while carrying out arrests.
In the 18 months after instituting mandatory BJJ training for new hires, 15officers were injured while carrying out arrests.
48% reduction in officer injuries department wide.
None of the injured officers were BJJ officers.
Use of Force (UOF) Injuries to Suspects
In 2020, there were 33 UOF incidents involving Marietta PD officers: 20 incidents involving non-BJJ officers, and 13 incidents involving BJJ officers.
In the 20 incidents involving non-BJJ officers, the suspect sustained injuries requiring hospitalization 65% of the time (13 incidents of suspect hospitalization).
In the 13 incidents involving BJJ officers, the suspect sustained injuries requiring hospitalization 31% of the time (4 incidents of suspect hospitalization).
Serious injuries to a suspect are 53% less likely when interacting with BJJ officers.
BJJ officers are 59% less likely to engage in UOF than non-BJJ officers.
Financial Implications
Based on an average workers’ comp claim of $4,768, the total estimated savings from the reduction in officers’ injuries is estimated at $66,752.
Training Investment: $26,000 (2600 department-sponsored classes charged at $10 per class).
Net Savings for MPD: $40,752
Kennedy Maciel Continues Hot-Streak at Fight 2 Win 163
Kennedy Maciel defended his Lightweight gi title against Diego Oliveira at F2W 163 and although the match was reasonably close, the youngsters performance was enough to earn him the decision victory. This marked his third consecutive win on the F2W mats and he’s only lost four out of his twenty-one matches since the start of 2020, a timespan that saw him pick up gold at the IBJJF no gi Pan-Ams.
Alongside the main event, there was another belt on the line as Rafael ‘Formiga’ Barbosa defended his Masters Middleweight title against Johnny Souza. This match had a much more emphatic ending as Souza was slammed into the mat and Barbosa immediately passed into side control with no resistance, leading the referee to conclude that Souza had been rendered unconscious by the slam, thereby losing the match by knockout.
Full results for the event can be found here.
Evolve Ur Game Announces Inaugural $10,000 Tournament Lineup
Evolve Ur Game, or EUG promotions, have never actually put on a grappling event before but they’re certainly trying to start big. The fledgeling promotion’s CEO is Hector Vasquez, a black belt under the legendary Rubens ‘Cobrinha’ Charles, and he made waves when it was first revealed that the inaugural event would be awarding a $10,000 prize to their tournament champion.
The anticipation for the event has only grown since the full lineup has been revealed, along with the announced superfight between AOJ’s Jessa Khan and Thamires Aquino. Khan’s teammate Johnatha Alves will be in the tournament alongside recent ATOS black belt Andy Murasaki, Matheus Gabriel, and Isaac Doederlein. They’re joined by the legendary Gianni Grippo and Marcio Andre, while Jamil Hill-Taylor and Thiago Macedo round out the bracket.
Third Coast Grappling Reveals Several Names For 3CG 6 Grand Prix
Third Coast Grappling made a huge move recently when they announced that they were leaving the safe haven of FloGrappling and branching out on their own by selling all future events as PPVs on FITE TV. Their first event being run in this new format is 3CG 6 and it takes place on the 3rd of April, headlined by an eight-man tournament where the winner takes home $15,000 and the runner-up is awarded a $5,000 consolation prize.
The promotion has just announced their first two entrants in the eight-man grand prix and it seems as though the impressive prize money has already attracted some huge names. The first competitor revealed was the Danaher Death Squad’s most physically-imposing specimen, Nicky Rodriguez. He was quickly joined by one of his most frequent rivals, Kaynan Duarte, who beat him in the final of ADCC 2019 and once more at F2W shortly after.
Quick Hits
- UFC Flyweight veteran Brandon Moreno was awarded his BJJ black belt at Entram Jiu Jitsu in Tijuana, after 15 years training in the art.
- ATOS founder Andre Galvao is getting the next generation ready after promoting his daughter Sarah to orange and white belt after winning her debut superfight for F2W.
- Submission Underground have announced their intention to try Tag-Team Jiu-Jitsu again, with UFC veteran Ricky Simon and frequent SUG competitor John Simon on the same team.
- BJJ black belt and ex-Fight Sports affiliate coach, Marcel Goncalves, announced his intention to ‘rely on defense of insanity’ in response to sexual assault allegations.