The absolute pinnacle of BJJ is the red belt

Most people can agree on the significance of the black belt. In fact, most people believe that a black belt in any martial art is the highest rank one can achieve, and while it's an achievement that few people can claim, there are actually even higher ranks that can be achieved in BJJ. The absolute pinnacle of BJJ is the red belt—an honor reserved for those who have dedicated their lives to practicing and spreading this highly effective martial art.

The red belt, technically a ninth-degree black belt, is the highest possible rank that a living practitioner of BJJ may attain. Those who achieve the red belt not only have a deep understanding of the art, but they live and breathe it. To give you an idea of how difficult the red belt is to obtain, the earliest that a 19-year-old black belt (an achievement in its own right) could expect to earn his or her red belt would be at the age of 67 years old. 

Those who earn BJJ red belts are often addressed as “grandmaster.” And while no living BJJ practitioner can progress any further than the ninth degree, the 10th degree does, in fact, exist. However, it is reserved solely for the pioneers of BJJ—Carlos, Oswaldo, George, Gaston, and Helio Gracie.


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