Rigan Machado is an 8th degree red and black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, earning his rank under Carlos Gracie Jr. He is a former Jiu-Jitsu world champion and a veteran of the ADCC. Machado currently teaches out of his Beverly Hills, California Academy.

In the April 2015 issue of Jiu Jitsu magazine , Coral belt and BJJ legend Rigan Machado talks about the special program that he has designed by his celebrity students:

“I created a new jiu jitsu system for people who can’t get hurt. It’s technical training. They learn jiu-jitsu and technically train, but it’s all safe. I created a type of jiu-jitsu for the Beverly Hills clientele. Competition, sparring… these guys can’t do that. I can’t even take a 1% chance of them getting hurt. I have 18 celebrities doing this program. Some guys have to sign disclosure agreements; others like Ashton Kutcher and Mickey Rourke come in regularly, while Usher comes in once and a while and Vin Diesel when he’s in town.”

(Read entire interview of Rigan Machado with Jiu-Jitsu magazine HERE)

Following that interview, many members of the BJJ community critcisized that principle stating that BJJ is only effective because of training against resisting opponents (sparring). In response to the critics, Master Rigan spoke to BJJ Eastern Europe about his new system specially designed for celebrities that train BJJ but can’t risk getting injured because of work commitments.

Here is what Rigan Machado had to say:

BJJEE: What do you think about the growth of BJJ in the USA ? What are threats and opportunities for BJJ there?

The growth of Brazilian jiu jitsu in America has been phenomenal. It makes me so happy to see how much it has grown since I first came to the United States, a place where Brazilian Jiu Jitsu never existed. Some of the first black belts outside of Brazil (dirty dozen) were my students and I am so proud to see how they have grown in their training, their academies and the students that are now under them. The opportunities for growth are endless for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu because it is such a unique martial art that people can adapt into their own lifestyle. Whether they want to compete, learn for self defense, or just use it is as a workout, bjj allows you to do that. Just like with everything else in life, it is about finding the right way of incorporating bjj into your life for physical and mental growth.

The threats for the expansion of bjj mostly comes from the ego associated with some practitioners. Many people get hung up on their own way of practicing and believe everyone should either follow that way. I was a very serious athlete and competitor but dont hold everyone else to that standard and believe jiu jitsu is for everyone. I have seen some of my students experience more than just the physical results that come with training. Mentally, they learn to adapt to stressful scenarios, learn new motor skills, and spend time doing something positive.

How do you see BJJ developing in 10 years time? What do you think of BJJ being one day included in the Olympic games?

It would be a dream come true to see Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in the Olympics because it can bring more attention to BJJ.

What is your view on the self defense vs sport Jiu-Jitsu debate?

Again, it is all about what a person wants to accomplish. If the person relays to the instructor the goals he or she is looking to accomplish, the instructor should help guide the student towards that goal. A good instructor knows how to adapt his teaching methods. I do believe it is important to relay to the student in certain positions what is important for self defense purposes. The most important self defense skill is resolving the situation with peace if possible.

Please tell us about your system of training for celebrities. Can one really improve in BJJ with limited sparring?

I have trained many celebrities and stunt individuals which is a great way of helping spread Jiu Jitsu. It is also very beneficial for me because I learn to adapt my teaching methods based on the students requirements. Just because a celebrity can’t spar with everyone in the class doesn’t mean he or she should not be allowed to practice or learn Jiu-Jitsu. I love watching my celebrity students train because they, along with their training partners, have to flow and transition smoothly to prevent injury, something many Jiu Jitsu practitioners don’t do that. They actually learn the techniques very effectively because when they roll with their training partners, they do not try to over power each other. All my celebrity clients possess the physical and mental capability to perform at a top level. I have to be extra cautious in my sparring methods because of the students have camera commitments. In addition many of them want to spar. I sometimes also spar with my celebrity students.

Do your celebrity students that have limited sparring, still get promoted (belts) like the other regular BJJ players that spar all the time?

I have only promoted 1 of my celebrity students and he spars almost every day that he trains, about 3-4 times a week. The rest of the celebrity students stay at their belt rank unless they begin sparring consistently. Some of the celebrity students came from other academies with their belt rankings.

Also I should mention that people should be less concerned about others training methods and ranking and more worried about the time they spend on the mat themselves.

If you want to thank somebody or sponsors, feel free.

I would like to thank my sponsor Sanabul. I am working with them closely to help create high quality BJJ products at a great price point. www.sanabulsports.com facebook.com/sanabulsports