This is the first of a long series of gi reviews that we will have on the website. We will cover all the major brands and the newest gis on the market.
In the 10 years that I’ve been training BJJ, I must have purchased over 20 gis. That may seem like a lot but when you’ve been training between 4 to 7 times a week over a 10 year period (of course there were breaks) you will go through a lot of gis! My first BJJ gi was an Atama blue single weave, and my last one is the MANTO Evo 2.0.
Here are the specs:
– Pearl weave (550 g)
– Ripstop pants
– High quality rope and extra belt loops
– Reinforced knee area
– EVA foam inside the collar
– Highest quality embroidery and patches
– Adjusted and comfortable fit
Sizing:
M= A1 (160-170 CM/60-70KG), weight of GI (1,7kg)
L= A2 (170-180CM/70-80 KG), weight of GI (1,9kg)
XL= A3 (180-195CM/80-95KG), weight of GI (2,0kg)
XXL= A4 (195-205CM/ 100+ KG), weight of GI (2,2kg)
This product has natural shrinkage rate of approx. 3-5% after washing in warm/hot water.
Washing in hot water can be used to shrink the GI and adjust it to your body type.
Wash cold only if you are satisfied with the fit.
Sizing: I purchased the gi through Danijel at BJJShop (http://www.bjjshop.rs/) in Serbia so I was able to try the gi on first which is a nice change compared to ordering it through the internet and having a 50% chance of the gi being too small or too big . The A3 fit me perfectly (I’m 1m86 and 86 kilos with Gibbon ape long arms and legs). Since the gi is shrink to fit, I wanted it to fit me like a glove, so I washed it 60 degrees celsius the first time, and the gi shrinked perfectly and now fit me like a glove. I wash it at 30 degrees now.
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| My Manto and me with Alliance bjj legend Alexandre “Gigi” Paiva |
Material and durability: The Gi top is Pearl weave and the fabric is very light but also very solid which a nice change. I live in Serbia where a lot of my training partners are heavyweights and have crab like grips so a strong gi is a requirement. The pants are rip stop but not the waxy rip stop that you find on some gi pants. The knees are reinforced, and the pants look like they can survive tough trainings. The drawstring is of blue rope material with 4 loops which is a nice detail. The collar is not that thick but honestly I’m not obsessed with having a thick collar anymore. When a guy grabs my collar I work to break the grip immediatly.
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| Kohei Yasumi, top japanese black belt (LOTUS BJJ) |
Look: The look is simple and classy. I have enough room to put my academy patches.
Feeling when rolling: The gi feels great when I roll as it’s so light and well fitted to my body. I was wearining a HCK gi very often before this one, and I really feel that I’m 20% lighter and faster when I use a lighter gi. There is only 500 gram difference between an HCK and the MANTO evo 2.0 but for me it’s a big deal in terms of how it feels when you roll.
So on my personal opinion I would give this gi a 9/10 rating in terms of satisfaction.
If you haven’t seen it yet, here is the great Video of two Polish bjj players (Maciej Polok and Marcin Held) training and competing in Rio. They both wear MANTO evo 2.0 in black and white models,
