When it comes to professional Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, it’s clear that the opportunity to earn large amounts of money isn’t as prevalent as those in other combat sports; let alone other major sports across the world. However, there’s a movement that’s continuing to gain momentum, that competitors are leveraging their star power and abilities into more openings for larger pay days. This is what made Vagner Rocha’s comments this week intriguing as he called out EBI, and the BJJ community as a whole, for the lack of pay for athletes such as himself.
It’s clear that Vagner Rocha is a big name in this sport. The Pablo Popovitch black belt has reached some high accolades in both mixed martial arts and competitive grappling. He’s earned wins in both the UFC and Bellator, medaled at major events such as ADCC, and is the EBI CJJ lightweight champion. His success makes him a personality to watch by fans of both sports, which makes his words about pay that much more powerful.
“For those who don’t know, I was the original opponent scheduled to compete against “Boogeyman” [Richie Martinez] for the Combat Jiu Jitsu welterweight title at EBI 16,” Rocha posted on Instagram. “However, I made the decision to withdraw back in May for reasons I’m strongly passionate about. For EBI 16, I was offered to compete in a match where my participation would be uncompensated, and where I could potentially win (in OT) and not be paid. The only opportunity for reward was submit in regulation.”
The Eddie Bravo Invitational consists of a ruleset in which competitors have the opportunity to take home winnings for every match they end via submission in regulation, if they win the entire tournament. For example, Beatriz Mesquita earned $15,000 for her tournament win on Sunday when she submitted her first three opponents during regulation, and then defeated Bianca Basilio in overtime to take the title. Rocha was not willing to compete under a similar compensation structure against Martinez, which would’ve been for the Combat Jiu-Jitsu welterweight title — a ruleset that involves striking on the ground.
“I’ve enjoyed the EBI tournament format and its emphasis on pursuing submissions; however, I don’t agree with this pay structure for a Combat Jiu Jitsu special match,” Rocha said. “I shared my concerns with the promotion and tried to negotiate on several occasions with no success. I believe I was far from unreasonable, I was just looking to not lose money considering expenses for a match in which I’m putting my body on the line much like an MMA fight.”
Competitor pay has been a major talking point across grappling for years. Many of these athletes take part in major tournaments in which a victory comes without an opportunity to earn any payment for their contributions. Some organizations have attempted to change this structure, but it is a very slow process that doesn’t seem to be picking up any steam.
Promotions such as Fight to Win Pro, where Rocha has competed, pay their competitors and big name grapplers earn at least a guaranteed salary. Last year, Fight to Win Pro hit its payout goal of $1 million dollars combined to all the men and women that shared their grappling stage.
“I think it is important to be honest and pay what you say you are going to,” said Seth Daniels, owner of Fight to Win Pro. “No matter what, we pay what we agree to pay, even if an event loses $10,000, our basic pay scale always applies.”
As more promotions such as QUINTET, Polaris, and Finishers continue to spring up in the competitive grappling space, it will be interesting to see how this story continues to evolve. It was announced today that Martinez and Rocha will meet in a submission only match for Grappling Industries on December 15, picking up on the opportunity that was missed by EBI this weekend.