No. There is no such thing as a black belt in MMA or Mixed Martial Arts.
MMA is a sport. It is not an art where someone gives you a colored belt.
You can certainly be a black belt in a martial art, like Brazilian Jiujitsu (BJJ), Judo, or Karate, and compete in MMA. But there is definitely no belt system in MMA.
There are no white belts, blue belts, or brown belts or any colored in MMA.
MMA does have championship belts. For example a Heavy Weight title belt, or Middle Weight title belt.
But these championship belts are not the kind of belts that you have in the martial arts which are awarded by an instructor.
These are belts are awarded by an MMA league or competition, like the UFC or many of the hundreds of other other MMA competitions, for being a champion in your weight class.
Traditionally, these championship belts usually have some large gold-colored or silver-colored plate in front signifying you’re the champion.
But these are not the same “belts” that you would get in a martial arts club or class. These are totally different things.
Do you need to be a black belt to compete in MMA?
Nope. You don’t to have a black belt in any martial art to compete in MMA.
For example, white belt in Judo can join an MMA match. A blue belt in Taekwondo can join MMA competitions too.
Even a higher-levels of the sport, you can have blue belts or brown belts in BJJ competing in MMA.
In fact, you don’t need any belt in a martial arts system to join an MMA competition. There are many MMA champions who don’t have any belts.
For example, you can be a world-class wrestler who can join MMA competitions. (Read: How to transition from Wrestling to MMA)
You can even be self-trained and still join MMA competitions. (Read: Can MMA be Self-Taught?)
Of course, to join an MMA competition, you have to be allowed by the one organizing the MMA match and the possibly the government body that sanctions MMA matches.
Can I win an MMA match without a black belt?
You definitely can.
Because MMA is a sport, what matters is that you can win according to the rules of MMA. (Read: What are the rules of MMA?)
However, you will most probably need to have skill in some kind of grappling discipline or sport to do well in MMA. (Read: What’s the difference between grappling, wrestling and jiujitsu?)
You may hear a lot about martial artists in Brazilian Jiujitsu doing well in MMA, but they’re not the only grappling sport either. There are lots of other grappling sports, like Sambo, Judo, Wrestling and Submission Wrestling, and all of them will do well in MMA.
The MMA scene is dominated by wrestlers and BJJ practitioners, but there have been MMA champions who are good in Judo. (Read: How to Transition from Judo to MMA)
It’s not all about striking. There are even MMA champions who have backgrounds in other striking martial arts like Tae Kwon Do and Karate.
Having a black belt in a martial art is helpful in MMA. Because that will mean that you are skilled in at least on fighting system.
Of course, some martial arts are more effective than others when it comes to fighting in an MMA match. (Read: Which Martial Arts are MMA Made Off?)
What matters is that you are able to train well for an MMA match. No black belts, or any belts for that matter, required. (Read: How do MMA fighters train?)
Learning More About MMA
If you’re interested in MMA, try reading up on any of the articles linked above.
You can also check our collection of articles categorized under:
There’s an overlap between the two collections, since they’re geared towards beginners, but the best way to start learning is by just diving in.
You’re wrong. MMA coaches like Greg Jackson give out belts for those who master their system of fighting.
I guess that some small gyms do give black belts, as you can open a martial arts organization and hand black belts as you wish if someone wants to get certified by you. Most MMA Gyms don’t do that as far as I know, and they might give BJJ belts if a practitioner cross-trains in BJJ, like in most places.