Here's Why BJJ Is So Boring to Watch

Competitive Jiu-Jitsu vs. Professional Jiu-Jitsu

Photo by Zac Ong on Unsplash

Every time a big Jiu-Jitsu event happens, there’s always at least one match that makes you go:

“Well, that was boring.”

These “boring matches” are often between 2 extremely successful athletes. They’re often a match with a great deal of anticipation surrounding them. They’re often a match that has a lot of potential.

And they flop.

But why?

What’s wrong with competitive Jiu-Jitsu? Why is it so damn boring sometimes?

Why is the World Sign Flipping Championship getting air time on ESPN, but we’re stuck with inconsistent streams and dodgy YouTube clips for the rest of forever?

In my experience and from my research on the most exciting matches in BJJ, boring matches often come down to these things:

• Both athletes are so evenly matched that neither of them wants to take a risk.

• One athlete is so much better than another but just can’t finish them.

• Sometimes it’s the ruleset — no time limit sub-only, for example, can create a lot of snoozefests.

But I think the problem is deeper than that. I think that Jiu-Jitsu has a lot of potential as a professional sport and as a spectator sport, but there are a few big things we need to fix about our sport.

Here’s why BJJ is so damn boring…