Guy Ritchie BJJ: A Crazy Good Jiu Jitsu Black Belt among Celebrities
Guy Ritchie is a legitimate Black Belt in BJJ under Renzo Gracie and has now spent more than 20 years training Jiu Jitsu. Most people don’t know that he is also a Black Belt in Shotokan Karate with over 15 years of experience. Like this wasn’t enough, he also holds a Black Belt in Judo.
The director, producer and screenwriter is known for movies like King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Disney’s Aladdin and the Sherlock Holmes movies.
Check out Part 1 of our YouTube BJJ Celebrities Series which covers Guy Ritchie’s complete Jiu Jitsu journey:
Guy Ritchie BJJ FAQ
Everything you need to know about Guy Ritchie’s Jiu Jitsu Journey:
Guy Ritchie’s Martial Arts and BJJ Journey
The celebrity started his martial arts career with training Shotokan Karate at the Budokwai in London, which is the oldest Japanese martial arts club in Europe. He kept training Karate for 15 years and achieved a 2nd Dan Black Belt.
After being plagued by injuries like two consecutive ACL tears in the right leg he saw a video of Helio Gracie on the mats at the age of 84 years. Guy realized he won’t be able to do martial arts at an old age if he keeps pursuing striking arts. As a result, he decided to give Judo a try as there was no Brazilian Jiu Jitsu available in London at the time. He ended up earning a Judo Black Belt over the years.
When Roger Gracie, who later became an eight-time BJJ world champion, came to London Guy Richtie decided to take lessons with him. After Guy moved to New York he started training under Renzo Gracie, who is a 6th Degree Black Belt and one of the best BJJ coaches today.
Ritchie earned all his BJJ Belts from Renzo Gracie and spent 7 years as a Brown Belt before being promoted to Black Belt.
In the following video Guy talks about his martial arts journey on Joe Rogan’s podcast:
How good is Guy Ritchie at Jiu Jitsu?
After more than 20 years of training BJJ and another 15 years of training Karate and Judo Guy has plenty experience in martial arts. He competed many times and proved his skills in competitive settings as seen below.
Many celebrities only take private lessons in BJJ and never roll with the public let alone compete in BJJ. Guy Ritchie’s path was different. He started training before he was famous and loves to test himself and grow as a martial artist. He states on Joe Rogan’s podcast:
“I know a few rich guys that got trainers and they’re not bad players. Their trainers are good, and the fighters are good but because they don’t get out of their comfort zone and go to a gym on the street it is very hard for them to really evolve. You got to keep putting yourself in uncomfortable spots in uncomfortable gyms.”
Joe and Guy go on talking about how celebrities are treated like everyone else on the mat in public gyms and that Jiu Jitsu removes the hierarchy of society for the time on the mats:
“You have no currency on the mat other than your currency on the mat. There’s a lot of clarity in that.”
Conclusion
Guy Ritchie is an experienced and versatile martial artist that really loves what he does. He earned his BJJ Black Belt under Renzo Gracie, one of the best coaches in world, and is an expert in Karate, Judo and Jiu Jitsu today. His passion for martial arts is what it takes to get to the top.
We wish him all the best for the future and hope he stays healthy and injury free for many years to come.
Check out our complete list of BJJ celebrities:
Complete List of Celebrities that do BJJ
Which stars do Brazilian Jiu Jitsu?
Which belt ranks are the celebrities?
Tom Hardy | Keanu Reeves | Jason Statham | Ed O’Neill | Demi Lovato | Russell Brand | Maynard James Keenan | Ashton Kutcher | Guy Ritchie | Jonah Hill | Joe Rogan | Chuck Norris | Jason Momoa | Mario Lopez | Joey Diaz | Jim Carrey | Henry Cavill | Charlie Hunnam | Millie Bobby Brown | Shaquille O’Neal | Dave Bautista | Vin Diesel | Robert Pattinson | Kelly Slater
