Raul Jimenez, also known by the nickname “Gacho”, is a jiu-jitsu black belt from Ecuador, a rank he earned from Romero “Jacare” Cavalcanti, who is also the founder of Studio 76, a successful grappling academy located in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Outside of his many accolades as a competitor, particularly in the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) Masters circuit, Raul Jimenez is also the father of one of the sport’s biggest stars, Roberto “The Natural” Jimenez.
Raul Jimenez Jiu-Jitsu
Full Name: Raul Francisco Jimenez Trivino
Nickname: Often referred to as Gacho, a word that, in Latin-American Spanish, particularly in Mexico, means an object, person, or circumstance that is mean, bad, or ugly. The name derives from Jimenez’s youth when a friend started calling him by this label due to Raul’s lazy eye.
Lineage: Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Rolls Gracie > Romero Cavalcanti (Jacaré) > Raul Jimenez
Main Achievements:
- 1st Place IBJJF World Championship NOGI (2015 M2)
- 1st Pace IBJJF Masters World Championship (2018 M3)
- 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2015 M2)
- 1st Place IBJJF European Championship (2017 M2)
- 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship NOGI (2016 M2)
- 2nd Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2016 M2)
- 2nd Place IBJJF European Championship (2015 M2)
- 3rd Place IBJJF Pan Championship (2017 / 2019 M3)
- 3rd Place IBJJF European Championship (2017* M2)
- 3rd Pace IBJJF Masters World Championship (2016 / 2017 M3)
Main Achievements (Colored Belts):
- 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship NOGI (2012** brown M2)
Favorite Position/Technique: N/A
Weight Division: Super Pesado (100,50 kg / 222.0 lbs)
Team/Association: Studio 76
Raul Jimenez Biography
Raul Jimenez was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador on March 14, 1976.
Growing up, Jimenez was an avid swimmer, a sport he played for over a decade before finding his love for martial arts.
During the 2000s Raul discovered mixed martial arts and became a fan of this sport. Through a friend of his, Jimenez found a Gracie Jiu-Jitsu school led by Roberto Bitar, a black belt under Royce Gracie with whom Gacho initiated his jiu-jitsu journey in 2005.
Although Roberto Bitar was Jimenez’s first instructor, Gacho had different influences while developing as a grappler. Among the many essential figures in Raul’s evolution are Freddy Sukata (promoted Gacho to blue belt), Chad Robbo (purple belt), and “Macaco” Patino (brown belt). Also, last but certainly not least, Romero “Jacare” Cavalcanti, who promoted Jimenez to black belt in 2014.
Unhappy with where his motherland was heading, politically, Raul opted to move with his family to the United States where he opened an affiliate of the Alliance Academy in Las Vegas which withstood for many years.
Gacho was a faithful Alliance representative up until the COVID-19 pandemic, back in 2019, when he was forced to close his academy for a few months due to the local government’s restrictions. During this period, the burden of the affiliation fees became too deer to maintain and Jimenez opted to follow his own path and start his brand, Studio 76.
After many years in the US, the Jimenez family returned to Ecuador on January 2022, making his Studio 76 headquarters there.
