Braulio Estima recently defended Gracie Barra’s strict uniform policy – arguing that wearing the team kit builds a sense of unity that outweighs individual preference on the mat.

Estima, who runs his own Gracie Barra academy in Birmingham, addressed criticism that the policy feels outdated in a sport increasingly leaning toward casual, no-gi culture:

The thing is when you wear a Gracie Barra uniform, you feel part of the team. You feel no different than any other.
We are very proud to wear the shield, the red shield, you know, and by wearing the Gracie Barra we represent all those values what Gracie Barra is about.

He acknowledged pushback from some practitioners, but argued academies that skip the requirement pay for it long-term:

A lot of people will say, especially people from the old school that are close-minded: “Oh, but I want to have my gear.”
But if you see those academies they never develop in a bigger group, because it becomes very messy.

He compared the gi requirement to the military uniform:

If you see the armies, they all wear the uniform.
You can tell like when you go to the army of the American army, the Saudi army, the UAE army, all armies, Japan, they have the uniform and they represent a nation, and that’s what we represent.

Our nation is Gracie Barra in the universe of jiu-jitsu.

Estima credited the policy for Gracie Barra’s growth to more than 1,300 schools worldwide without outside investment:

Unity is the secret, and when you understand the why of you’re wearing it, you are proud.
You see now many other schools following the same trend because they know it works.

You see the Alliance, they’re doing the same, Atos is doing the same, AOJ, Roger Gracie, you name it.
This is a way of keeping people together that feels that you belong to something bigger than yourself.

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