Mastering Jujitsu (Mastering Martial Arts Series)
by Renzo Gracie, John Danaher

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Book Reviews of Mastering Jujitsu (Mastering Martial Arts Series)

Book Review: Notable addition to the literature of fighting strategy
Summary: 5 Stars

The book has several remarkable strengths, especially for a martial arts technical book. It treats cultural evolution of martial arts in an unusually serious and competent manner, it is relatively free of stylistic bias despite being written from within the perspective of Brazilian Jujutsu, it is very well written, and it has a logical structure with clear, useful, well-chosen examples.

The book also has a couple of minor but notable problems. First, the authors chose a completely non-scholarly format, and so they have some difficulty making serious historical and technical points with a very bare minimum of sources. Second, the authors treat principles as if all principles were strategic, thus largely missing technical (e.g. biomechanical) principles.

Third, the authors avoid an important central issue, the classification of strategies based on the degree of risk and commitment. An important distinction should be made between strategies that minimize the damage an opponent can do to us ("minimax"), and strategies that create the maximum opportunity to do damage to an opponent ("maximax"). Without this distinction, Japanese Judo and Jujutsu seem to the authors to be 'without a systematic strategy," when in fact they have a consistent systematic strategy but it is based upon the Japanese aesthetic and strategic principle of the "sudden death" finish. The goal is to use first opportunity to execute a devastating finishing move rather than to accumulate positional advantage in a series of phases.

The difference is one of the logical relation between preconditions and commitments in strategy. Just as in chess strategy (e.g. see Vukovic, "The Art of Attack in Chess", ch. 11) there are in general a set of preconditions that make a commitment to an attack sound, and missing those preconditions the attack is unsound and can be countered devastatingly by a skilled opponent. Knowing the preconditions that will make the risk of a move worth taking is an extremely complex and error-prone matter that in most fighting strategies has to be done through experience and intuition.

Since an attack necessarily requires a commitment and therefore produces vulnerability, it is important at high levels of skill that the attack (finish or transitional move) be done when the necessary preconditions are in place rather than simply hoping to pull them off through speed and strength. What the BJJ phased positional strategy does is to break down the preconditions for attack uniquely well and ensure that they are present. A finish (or transition) doesn't begin until the advantage is present for it to succeed with a high degree of likelihood, unless a very clear target of opportunity opens up. This way, BJJ fighters rarely get countered and frequently succeed at reaching the next step of their positional goal, especially against opponents who are waiting for larger openings to appear, even though they may have great technical skill. This is what I think is the reality behind the "lack of strategy" of other grappling approaches.

This book does a very competent job placing the (strategic) principles of Jujutsu into Japanese social and cultural context, using more than just the standard uncritical mythology usually found in books of this type. The difficult topic of cultural evolution in general and martial arts evolution in particular is covered unusually well, although it stops well short of being a scholarly presentation. The general problem of trying to explain both convergent and divergent evolutionary patterns in culture is introduced in an understandable way, and the weaknesses of the "common origins" theory of Asian martial arts are made very clear.

Having detached their analysis from the questionable "common origins" theory, the authors are able to make a strategic analysis of unarmed combat based on a more sophisticated combination of historical, social, and technical factors. With this analysis, they accomplish something akin to what Bruce Lee and the Jeet Kune Do theorists attempted years ago, and what Paul Maslak addressed in his "Strategy in Unarmed Combat" and "What the Masters Know," but with a new twist. Whereas previous analyses focused on the range-dependence of standing fighting, the authors of "Mastering Jujutsu" add their understanding of mixed martial arts fighting. This allows them to incorporate both the principles of grappling strategy and the principles involved in fighting against grapplers, and to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the of the range-based strategic approach.

They find the range-based approach marginally useful. Where they consider range important to standing fighting is in the same sense that Maslak divided ranges into "infighting and outfighting," and classical Budo considers a single critical distance or Ma-Ai to be important. The JKD-inspired idea of separate ranges for "kicking, punching, trapping, and grappling" ranges is found to be an inferior teaching tool in a very persuasive analysis using both practical examples and general principles. The authors divide standing ranges into "non-contact" and "contact," and demonstrate why this is as useful a range-based analysis as can be attempted.

Where the book has its greatest value is in its clear and very general presentation of the origin and application of the phased positional strategy of BJJ, and the examples of how it is executed in mixed martial arts, submission, and self-protection fighting. This is one of those rare books that while written from the perspective of one discipline has value that easily crosses disciplines. An excellent addition to the literature of unarmed fighting strategy.

Summary of Mastering Jujitsu (Mastering Martial Arts Series)

In recent years, the grappling arts have proven to be the most effective form of combat in mixed martial arts (MMA) and no-holds-barred (NHB) competitions. Above all others, the Gracie brand of Brazilian jujitsu has become recognized as the preeminent fighting style in unarmed combat. Now Renzo Gracie?instructor; competitor; and champion of numerous grappling, MMA, and NHB events?reveals the inner workings of the art in his latest book, Mastering Jujitsu.

From the origins of the art to personal techniques, you will experience the impact the Gracies have had on jujitsu and learn the strategies they have developed to dominate their opponents. Gracie shares the subtleties of the techniques necessary for mastering the art, and he clearly demonstrates the flow of movement with more than 250 high-quality photos.

Not only will Mastering Jujitsu help you progress from isolated skill development techniques to a full set of tactics and fight plans, but it will also introduce you to the concept of combat phases and teach you to attack from any phase. You will learn how to react to your opponent in any situation. Whether you're caught in a bottom position or attacking from the top, Gracie reveals the key strategies designed to give you the upper hand.

The depth and breadth of topics covered in Mastering Jujitsu will aid even the most experienced black belts in their understanding and execution of Brazilian jujitsu. With detailed coverage on advanced principles, you will get all the tactics, strategies, techniques, and drills you need for close combat fighting.

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