UKGCC Rules & Regulations

Competitors, Coaches and Public attending in a UK Grapplers Combat Club (UKGCC) event commit to uphold the code of conduct here described.

It is mandatory for all participants to wear footwear off the mats; non-compliance may result in disqualification.

Any form of threats, violence, harassment or anti-social behavior will lead to immediate expulsion from the event and may result in a ban from future UKGCC events.

Unsportsmanlike conduct by a participant may lead to disqualification from the event.

Addressing referees in a disrespectful manner will not be tolerated and may lead to disqualification.

Addressing event staff in a disrespectful manner will not be tolerated and may lead to disqualification.

Addressing other competitors in a disrespectful manner will not be tolerated and may lead to disqualification.

Coaches displaying unsportsmanlike conduct may result in the disqualification of the competitor they are coaching and the revocation of coaching privileges.

Participation in a UKGCC event while under the influence of illegal drugs or any substance impairing judgment or physical abilities is strictly prohibited and leads to immediate disqualification.

UKGCC is committed to ensuring a fair competition environment for all participants and will assess officiating at events based on the following conditions:

All review requests must be submitted at the Head Table and not directly with the referee.

Reviews will only consider submissions and potential errors in enforcing the list of allowed techniques. Any situation involving a competitor 'tapping' will be treated as a submission. For example, an illegal submission that is not flagged by the referee and did not cause the competitor to tap is not reason for review.

Competitors or their coaches are responsible for initiating review requests.

Review requests must be made promptly at the conclusion of the match, within a 10-minute timeframe. Requests made after this period will not be considered.

Requests must be accompanied by video evidence; otherwise, they will be declined. Prepared videos should focus on the specific referee call in question, limited to a maximum duration of 2 minutes.

Video evidence must be provided by the requesting competitor or their coach. It is not technically feasible for UKGCC to provide video evidence even when events are live streamed.

No rematches will be scheduled regardless of the review outcome.

All requests must be communicated in a respectful manner towards event staff and referees. Insults or questioning of referee abilities will not be tolerated.

Competitors are limited to one review request per division.

Review outcomes are at the discretion of the event's Head Table staff.

A successful review may lead to a change in match result, such as declaring a submission victory/disqualification or an alternative solution deemed appropriate by the Head Table staff.

The result of a review is final and cannot be contested further.

Sandbagging is defined as the intentional act of competing at a lower skill level than one's actual ability.

UKGCC is dedicated to maintaining fair competition and, to safeguard the integrity of our events, does not allow sandbagging practices and establish clear repercussions.

Competitors found to be sandbagging will face strict consequences, including disqualification from the current event and suspension from future UKGCC events.

Upon identification of sandbagging, the competitor’s rank and skill level will be reassessed by the tournament organizers, and appropriate action will be taken to ensure fair competition.

Repeated offenses of sandbagging by a competitor may result in an extended suspension or a complete ban from all UKGCC tournaments.

All complaints related to sandbagging before the event day should be submitted via email to UKGCC (info@ukgrapplers.com) for review as soon as they are realized.

Any sandbagging complaints on the event day should be submitted to the event’s Head Table and not to referees. Only the Head Table will have the authority to take action.

UKGCC reserves the right to refuse entry to any competitor who has been found to be sandbagging at other tournaments.

Sandbagging practices include, but are not limited to, the following instances:

For Gi competitors, competing at a belt level lower than their actual rank.

For NoGi competitors, competing at a skill level lower than their categorization based on rank or experience.

Competitors with significant wrestling experience competing in White Belt/Beginner divisions.

Competitors with a black belt in Judo or a Luta Livre rank of blue and above competing in White Belt/Beginner divisions.

Catch Wrestlers with significant competition experience competing at a level lower than they would in a Catch Wrestling tournament.

Professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighters competing in Beginner/White Belt divisions.

Gis and belts will not be checked or measured before the tournament.

Regardless, UKGCC officials have the right to ask a competitor to change their uniform if they judge it is inappropriate for fighting. If a competitor refuses to change their uniform when requested to do so, they will be disqualified.

For example: the Gi or belt is obviously too short or too long

For example: there are too many patches on the Gi preventing the opponent from gripping it.

For example: the Gi shows visible tears, is wet or dirty, or emanates unpleasant odors.

Competitors may choose to wear a rash guard which clings to the body under their Gi. Competitors may not select to wear a t-shirt or loose rash guard under their Gi instead.

Competitors may choose to wear Gi and NoGi uniforms of any colour.

For No Gi divisions, competitors must wear board shorts without pockets or metal and plastic of any kind and they must reach at least halfway down the thigh and at most to the knee. Women may choose to wear lycra elastic pants. Spats can be worn under the shorts. Competitors also must wear a rash guard or a shirt of elastic fabric (clings to body) of any color.

Athletes cannot compete shirtless or wearing a loose shirt of any kind.

Competitors must wear undergarments underneath their uniform.

Competitors may choose to wear soft pads on their joints. Pads that contain plastic, velcro, or metal of any kind will not be permitted.

Competitors may choose to wear headgear only if it is for religious reasons. Headgear must be made of soft material and must not contain plastic, velcro, or metal of any kind.

Competitors may not wear groin protectors, jewelry, hairpins, or compression socks of any kind.

Competitors may tape joints in a thin layer of sports tape. Referees reserve the ability to ask a competitor to remove any tape if they deem it to be an unfair advantage.

Competitor’s fingernails and toenails must be trimmed and short.

Long hair must be tied up.

Competitors will be disqualified if they are wearing hair dye or makeup that stains their opponent’s Gi or the mat surface during a match.

Competitors presenting skin lesions, or any other skin condition shall be directed to the tournament medical staff. Under any circumstances, the medical staff has the final say on whether to allow a competitor to compete or not.

It is mandatory for all participants to wear footwear off the mats; non-compliance may result in disqualification.

Athletes must be present in the venue at least 60 minutes prior to their division start time in case the division starts early.

Athletes that have not checked-in by the time their first match is due to start will be disqualified.

Athletes must weigh-in anytime up to 20 minutes before the scheduled division start time.

There will be a 1.0 pound allowance. Any increment over this amount will be considered a failure to make weight.

When time allows, i.e. division start time is not imminent, failure to make weight at the first attempt can be followed by a second attempt. Failing to make weight at the second attempt will result in disqualification.

Competitors who fail to make weight during the designated period will be disqualified and will not be moved up to another weight division.

It is the competitor’s responsibility to make the weight class they signed up for, or have changed to a higher weight class by that event’s change deadline. Competitors who are disqualified will not be eligible for a refund.

Athletes competing in Gi divisions can weigh-in without their Gi on.

A competitor who competes in both their Gi and NoGi divisions has to weigh-in only once.

When making weight, athletes must at least wear underwear. No public nudity is allowed.

Competitors may weigh-in at any weight as long as it does not exceed their weight class limit (+1 pound allowance).

Mat area is clearly defined by borders and a central area of different colours. If needed, Athletes can ask the referee to show them the borders before the match starts.

The referee will call out of bounds at their discretion based on factors such as competitor safety and the ability to properly pause the action in a replicable position.

Out of bounds position are not eligible for point scoring.

Action beginning in the central mat area and ending on the borders is eligible for point scoring and will be reset in the center of the mat by the referee at the first opportunity for a pause in the action.

Any action that carries out outside the border will immediately be paused and reset in the middle of the mat by the referee.

When resetting the action in the center of the mat, the referee will replicate the position as closely as possible to the original position.

If the referee can not replicate the position when resetting the action in the center of the mat, both competitors will be restarted standing.

Any action beginning on the borders or beyond is not eligible for point scoring.

The referee is the highest authority in a match.

The referee’s ruling on the result of each match can not be contested.

The referee oversees all match scoring and enforcement of rules.

UKGCC points system is different from the IBJJF points system.

1 point will be awarded for the mount position when the competitor on top is sitting on the opponent’s torso (whether the opponent is belly up or belly down) and with two knees or one foot and one knee on the ground, facing the opponent and clear of any trap on the heels.

1 point will be awarded for the back control position when while behind the opponent, the competitor places their heels between the opponent’s thighs without crossing their feet and creates any form of lock on the upper body with their arms. Achieving back body triangle position will not award back control points.

All positions must be held and controlled for 3 seconds in order for points to be awarded.

Point scoring can only be achieved through positional progression. E.g.: A competitor cannot exit the mount back to side control by their own choice and then score mount points again.

1 point is awarded for a strong submission attempt that was stopped by the opponent escaping the submission.

Running out of bounds will result in a disqualification for the competitor that was fleeing the action.

When not falling within the above criteria, one point is awarded to a strong submission attempt that had to be stopped by the referee for any reason (e.g out of bounds or other safety reasons).

A penalty is worth -1 point.

A third penalty received will result in disqualification.

The referee may declare that a competitor is demonstrating a lack of combativeness/stalling after timing 20 seconds of inactivity/lack of intention to progress position.

The stalling competitor will be given a penalty point.

After 20 seconds of inactivity, the referee will call for the competitors to restart the match at the centre. The referee asks the non-stalling fighter if he/she wants to start having the opponent in closed guard or taking his/her back.

If both athletes are stalling, the referee will restart the match at the centre with both competitors standing. Each athlete will receive a penalty point.

There is no “Advantage” scoring.

Disqualification fouls will result in immediate disqualification.

A match will be deemed over immediately if a competitor taps out, screams, loses consciousness, cries, loses control of bodily functions, vomits, or verbally gives up during the match.

A competitor that is rendered unconscious in a match will be removed from their remaining matches at the event.

At the conclusion of the match’s allotted time period, the competitor that got the tap or with the most points will be awarded the victory. If there is a tie on points, the competitor with the least penalties will be declared the victor. If a tie still remains, the referee will decide the match result via Referee Decision.

Referee Tiebreaker Decision Criteria: 1. Submission Threat 2. Positional Dominance 3. Aggression

Before summoning competitors to the match area, the referee will ensure that the match area is ready for the competitors.

The referee will ensure that the competitors are ready to start the match before starting the match.

The referee may ask one of the competitors to use the yellow and grees competition belts in the Gi division or an ankle band in the No-Gi division.

To summon competitors to the match area, the referee will raise arms to shoulder height and call competitors forward.

To start the match, the referee will perform a single arm chopping motion toward the ground in between the competitors and declare “FIGHT!”.

To pause the match or declare time out, the referee will raise both arms to shoulder height and straighten them in a horizontal chopping motion while declaring “STOP!”.

To bestow a penalty for stalling to a competitor, the referee will touch the competitor and raise a closed fist to shoulder height while declaring “ACTION!”

To bestow a penalty to a competitor for a foul, the referee will touch the competitor and raise a closed fist to shoulder height while declaring “PENALTY!”

To disqualify a competitor, the referee will cross their arms in an X shape and then perform a chopping motion towards the side of the competitor.

To award 1 points to a competitor, the referee will raise the hand corresponding to the competitor’s side with their pointer finger extended.

To deduct mistakenly awarded points, the referee will raise an open hand corresponding to the side of the competitor to shoulder height and perform a waving motion.

To announce the match result, the referee will raise the arm of the winning competitor.

Pulling to guard without a grip on the opponent DOES NOT result in a penalty.

Intentionally forcing the action out of bounds while standing or while defending an attack results in a penalty.

Taking 3 steps backwards away from the opponent’s guard while standing over them/disengaging out of guard results in a penalty.

Intentionally causing wardrobe malfunctions results in a penalty.

Gripping inside the opponent’s Gi sleeves or pants, or gripping NoGi attire results in a penalty.

Disobeying a referee order results in a penalty.

Unintentionally attempting a knee reap without a submission at White Belt division results in a penalty.

Talking to coaches or spectators during the match results in a penalty.

Exiting the mat prior to the referee declaring the winner results in a penalty.

Lack of combativeness/stalling will result in a penalty.

Intentionally forcing the action out of bounds while in a submission in order to get the action stopped and reset results in a disqualification.

Exhibiting hostile behavior to officials, competitors, coaches, spectators results in a disqualification.

Striking, biting, pulling hair, applying pressure to genitals or eyes, or placing fingers and toes in the opponent’s mouth results in a disqualification.

Applying any lubricant to skin to reduce friction results in a disqualification.

Disobeying the referee’s order to stop while attacking a submission results in a disqualification.

If a competitor’s uniform is damaged in any way during the match and they are unable to immediately exchange it, they will be disqualified.

Attempting a technique not allowed at the division’s skill level results in a disqualification.

A third penalty of any kind results in a disqualification.

Intentionally causing an opponent to land on their head or neck (spiking) as a part of a takedown results in a disqualification.