BJJ Myth Busted: Technique vs. Strength - MacQueen's Shocking Truth!

Hey,

There’s something we need to talk about.

For years, we’ve been repeating the same comfortable lie at every BJJ gym on the planet: “Technique beats strength every time.”

It’s a beautiful idea. It lets the 150-pound blue belt believe they can neutralize any opponent with just the right leverage. It’s the philosophical foundation our sport was built on.​

But here’s the thing—a two-time ADCC trials winner thinks we’ve been lying to ourselves.​

Mark MacQueen—a world champion powerlifter turned elite grappler—just put it bluntly: “Anybody that says strength doesn’t matter is just not existing in the real world.”​

Is he onto something we’ve been too afraid to admit? Or is this just a giant justifying his advantages?

Let’s dig in.

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Think about the story we tell beginners on day one.​

We inherited this narrative straight from the Gracie family, and for good reason—they had to prove their system could work against anyone, regardless of physical advantages. Those early Gracie Challenge matches were marketing genius, and they created a generation of believers.​

But somewhere along the way, that marketing message became dogma.​

Using strength in the gym became almost shameful. If you muscled through a position, you were “spazzing”. Real grapplers, we were told, float effortlessly through technique while the meatheads tire themselves out.​

Here’s what nobody wants to admit: that philosophy might be holding us back.

MacQueen isn’t just questioning this belief—he’s demolishing it with both logic and results. And his background makes it impossible to dismiss him.​

Before Mark MacQueen ever stepped on a mat, he was already elite.​

Not “gym strong.” Not “athletic.” World-champion-in-the-heaviest-weight-class strong.​

His resume reads like something out of a strength sports fantasy:

Think about what that means. This is someone who spent years in a sport where there’s no technique to save you. The barbell doesn’t care about leverage or timing. You’re either strong enough to move it, or you’re not.​

That mentality is what makes his BJJ take so disruptive. He didn’t arrive as a blank slate—he came as an expert in the one thing our sport spent decades downplaying.​

In 2018, MacQueen was burnt out. Tired of being massively heavy, exhausted by the full-time job of eating 8,000 calories, he needed something new.​

His brother, a blue belt, suggested Jiu-Jitsu. So in April 2019, one of the strongest humans on the planet became a white belt.​

And at first? He hated it.​

Everything felt awkward, confusing, uncomfortable. Here was a man who’d mastered his domain, suddenly fumbling through the most basic positions.​

But then the weight came off. Competitions started. And five months in, he won his first tournament.​

That’s when everything clicked.​

The same obsessive drive that made him a world champion found a new target. Training at Marcos Nardini BJJ in Scotland, MacQueen went all-in: BJJ six days a week, lifting three times, plus wrestling on top.​

The results were absurd:

All in just six years.​

Sure, he’s technically skilled now. But let’s be honest—his world-class strength gave him a massive head start that closed the gap at frightening speed.​

Here’s where MacQueen’s philosophy gets uncomfortable.​

“If strength didn’t matter, we wouldn’t have gender divisions. We wouldn’t divide things by weight class.”​

This is checkmate for the “technique conquers all” crowd.​

Every combat sport—including BJJ—splits competitors by weight to keep things fair. The sport itself admits that bigger, stronger athletes have significant advantages.​

If technique was everything, we’d just have one big open tournament. The best technician would win whether they’re 130 or 300 pounds. But that’s not reality.​

The rules of the sport prove MacQueen’s point.​

MacQueen isn’t saying a strong beginner beats a skilled black belt. His argument is about high-level competition where margins are razor-thin.​

“If skills are equated for, if size is equated for, if experience is equated for, but I’m way stronger… out of 10 times I’m probably going to win 80, 90, 100% of them.”​

At the elite level, everyone has incredible technique. The technical gap is microscopic. So what decides matches?​

Physical advantages become the tiebreaker. Strength doesn’t replace skill—it’s the engine that powers it.​

To show that strength gaps can become impossible to overcome, MacQueen poses a wild hypothetical: the world’s best fighter versus a silverback gorilla that magically knows the rules but has zero training.​

His conclusion: “There is a certain strength deficit that you just can’t actually overcome… It literally could pull your limb off.”​

It’s absurd, sure. But the point lands: there’s a physical threshold where technique stops mattering.​

You’ll never fight a gorilla. But you will face people significantly stronger than you. MacQueen’s asking: why would you willingly be that weaker person?​

We’ve put together “The Grappler’s Strength Blueprint”—a practical guide that breaks down:

Grab it free!

I hear you.​

“Of course strength matters for a 275-pound guy. What about us featherweights?”

Here’s where MacQueen’s logic is airtight.​

If strength only mattered for heavyweights, why do we have flyweight divisions?​

The principle scales across every weight class. Even at 135 pounds, someone is stronger and someone is weaker. Take two featherweights with identical skill, cardio, and experience—the stronger one still wins most of the time.​

They’ll dominate grip fights. Their guard will be harder to pass. Their submissions will be tougher to escape.​

Nobody’s saying you need to become a powerlifter. The point is simpler: be as strong as you can be for your division.​

Choosing to be the weaker person in your weight class because of outdated philosophy? That’s just giving away free advantages.​

You don’t need to eat 8,000 calories or squat 900 pounds to benefit from MacQueen’s philosophy.​

His advice for regular grapplers is surprisingly sustainable:​

✅ Two lifting sessions per week​
That’s it. Totally manageable for anyone with a life.​

✅ Stick to compound movements​
Squats, deadlifts, horizontal press, overhead press, rows, pull-ups.​

✅ Rep ranges: 5-8 for main lifts, 6-12 for accessories​
This builds strength without the injury risk of max attempts.​

✅ The golden rule: “Compliance over ten years matters more than heroic six-month efforts.”​

This isn’t about becoming a powerlifter. It’s about building smart, sustainable strength that compounds over years.​

Here’s what might matter most, especially for hobbyists: longevity.​

Forget medals for a second. MacQueen’s philosophy is really about staying on the mats.​

“The stronger you are… through full ranges of motion, you’re going to be way more robust. You’re going to stay on the mats way, way longer.”​

Jiu-Jitsu destroys bodies. We all know the injury stories. But stronger muscles and connective tissues are more resilient—they handle the awkward twists and sudden forces better.​

When someone stacks you hard or cranks a submission you didn’t see coming, that foundation of strength can be the difference between soreness and surgery.​

For anyone who wants to train into their 40s, 50s, and beyond, building strength is the best investment you can make.​

So is Helio Gracie’s legacy dead?

Not even close.​

Technique is still the soul of Jiu-Jitsu. But pretending strength doesn’t matter? That’s willful ignorance.​

The modern truth is this: strength multiplies technique.​

MacQueen’s own journey proves it. His career exploded when his technical game caught up to his world-class strength. It wasn’t one or the other—it was the combination that created the athlete dominating ADCC trials today.​

Strength lets you:

MacQueen’s message isn’t anti-technique. It’s anti-weakness.​

Whether you’re 275 pounds or 145, heavyweight or featherweight, the principle is the same: Why would you willingly leave this much of your potential untapped?​

Hit reply and tell me—do you think strength is the most underrated factor in modern BJJ? Or are we losing something essential by focusing on the physical?

I read every response, and I’m genuinely curious where you stand.

Train smart, stay strong,
Ben—The Grappler's Toolkit

P.S. If this resonated with you, forward it to a training partner who’s still saying, “Technique beats everything.” They might thank you, or they might argue with you for an hour. Either way, it’ll be entertaining.​