The MMA world is buzzing now, and why won’t it? A re-innovation has taken place when it comes to combat sports. We have all heard of grappling competitions in Gi and no Gi, but did you ever imagine fighting with full suits on? Yes, that’s exactly what we’re talking about after a new kind of competition, inspired by Hollywood action star Keanu Reeves‘ famous movie character, ‘John Wick.’

Yes, we’re talking about Keanu Reeves, who is not only known for his kindness but also his success in Hollywood. His movies have become pop culture treasures, and it seems like some of his movies, the John Wick franchise, have taken over the combat sports world. That may come as a surprise since Reeves is a martial artist himself and does many stunts by himself in his movies. Well, here’s what we know.

What is the John Wick Invitational?

Dubbed as the John Wick Invitational: Suit Jitsu or JWI for short, the competition involves fighters wrestling suits just like Keanu Reeves does in the movies. The second edition of the JWI, hosted by Pit Boss Grappling and presented by xSuit, has set the combat world on fire, with fights that can only end by submission. However, there are a few twists. In the fights, there’s a provision for the use of prop guns and knives as well.

Pitt Boss Grappling recently streamed the John Wick Invitational: Suit Jitsu 2 on YouTube on the 20th of April. In these eight days, the video has racked up over 12,000 viewers, which shows that certain fights have taken an interest in it. However, there’s still an ambiguity surrounding the whole competition, so let’s take a look at the details of JWI.

John Wick Invitational’s format and other details

If we take a look at the format, the fights normally last four minutes, and it’s during this period that the opponents need to take each other down via submissions. If fighters fail to submit their opponents within four minutes, either a prop gun or a knife, decided via a coin flip, is tossed into the middle, with the fighters getting one minute to either get a shot or go for the stab.

It’s when fighters go overtime that we get to see the elements of the John Wick movie franchise in the fights. This concept has changed the dynamic of grappling combat, but so far, there’s no public information when it comes to the prize pool or what the winning amount is. It could be $1 million, like in the Craig Jones Invitational, or it could be over $200,000, like in the ADCC. Nevertheless, we’ll surely get those updates in the coming days since it has become the talk of the community.

The first JWI was a great success, and that’s what has prompted a second edition of the event. What do you think about fighting with suits on? Do you UFC fighters like former middleweight champion Sean Strickland, and former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling, and others who’ve competed in grappling competitions fancy this one? Drop your comments below.