Five Finger Death Punch founder & guitarist, as well as longtime Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner Zoltan Bathory has weighed in on the growing debate surrounding black belt legitimacy – particularly when it comes to celebrities in the sport.
Here is what Bathory had to share in one of his recent social media posts:
I see the big debate blowing up about BJJ black belts… Fake black belts, celebrity black belts…
Who’s legit, who’s not… How long it ‘should’ take to get there…
He acknowledged that when a person is in the public eye, scrutiny is inevitable, especially in a martial art where the rank of black belt carries deep meaning:
So here’s the truth… When you’re in the spotlight, if you are famous… You know there will be assumptions and critics….
But you need to expect that…Because a jiu jitsu black belt is sacred as the path there is through blood and sweat and injuries.
Bathory, who has decades of training and a visible competition history – as well as one of the founders of the Professional Grappling Federation – said he anticipated criticism from the moment he earned his black belt:
So Even with my decades of training and clearly visible competition history, still… Even for me it was inevitable.
I knew they’d come for me, as they should.
Rather than shy away from the challenge, Bathory met it head-on by stepping into competition and proving himself on the mats:
So I went out, competed, and medaled at almost every tournament I entered…
Including two silvers at the nationals… That’s how it’s done.
For Bathory, this is the clearest way to address questions about legitimacy: compete and let the results speak for themselves:
Highly recommend it to anyone… Especially if legitimacy is questioned.
In Jiu-Jitsu, the mat tells the truth. Always.
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