Francisco Iturralde

Francisco Iturralde, commonly known as “Sinistro” is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Fernando “Soluço” Di Piero of the Alliance academy, being the first big name to come out of Ecuador in this sport. A 2x World Champion in the juvenile division, Sinistro was quick to make his mark in grappling, later cementing his status as the top talent in South America’s west coast with medals at the Pan American Championships, European Open and countless others.

Francisco Iturralde Jiu Jitsu

Full Name: Francisco Antonio Iturralde Lara

Nickname: “Sinistro” literally means sinister in portuguese, however, the common use of the word in Brazilian slang is to describe something out of the ordinary. In Francisco’s case, his coach Fernando di Piero labeled Iturralde “Sinistro” due to his outstanding skill on the mat when he was just 14 years old.

Lineage: Mitsuyo Maeda > Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie >Rolls Gracie > Romero Cavalcanti > Fábio Gurgel > Fernando Di Piero > Francisco Iturralde

Main Achievements:

• IBJJF Pan Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Champion (2013)
• IBJJF European International Champion (2014)
• IBJJF Pan American Championship Runner-up (2016)
• IBJJF World No-Gi Championship 3rd Place (2016)
• IBJJF Pan Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championship 3rd Place (2014)
• IBJJF European Championship 3rd Place (2014*/2015)

Main Achievements (Colored Belts):

• IBJJF World Champion (2008/2009 blue juvenile, 2011 purple)
• IBJJF Pan American Champion (2008/2009* blue juvenile)
• IBJJF Pan Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Champion (2012 brown)
• IBJJF World No-Gi Championship Runner-up (2009 purple, 2011 brown)
• IBJJF World Championship 3rd Place (2010 purple/2013 brown)
• IBJJF World No-Gi Championship 3rd Place (2009* purple, 2010** purple, 2011 brown)
• IBJJF Pan American Championship 3rd Place (2009 blue juvenile, 2011* purple)

* Absolute
** Weight and absolute

Favorite Position/Technique: n/a

Weight Division: Peso Leve (76kg/167lbs)

Team/Association: Alliance

Francisco Iturralde Biography

Francisco Iturralde was born on May 17, 1992 in Guayquil, Ecuador.

During his early teens, 13 years old to be precise, Francisco started training jiu jitsu, influenced by his older brothers Leonardo and Juan Miguel who already practised the martial art. Sinistro’s tuition would later be taken over by Fernando “Soluço” Di Piero, a pioneering figure for jiu jitsu in Ecuador.

Franciso’s talent was evident from the get-go, earning him to junior world titles and the “Sinistro” (Sinister) nickname. Even though he was only a teenager, Iturralde was incredibly focussed and soon understood what it took to be an elite athlete in such a demanding sport, making the decision to move to Florida – USA (where he had family members) to train at Alliance HQ more regularly and be closer to the main Brazilian jiu jitsu competition circuit.

As a brown belt Sinistro spent some time training at the Alliance Academy with Fabio Clemente and Babs Olusanmokun.

Climbing the ranks of jiu jitsu, Sinistro became well known for his entertaining grappling style, often depicted as scrambly and submission driven. His incredible style ultimately led to his black belt, awarded on June 17, 2013 by Fernando Soluço (who had also awarded all of Francisco’s previous belts).

2013 was also the year when Francisco decided to change his diet, first to vegetarianism and later to vegan, becoming one of the strongest ambassadors for this plant based lifestyle in the sport of jiu jitsu, an ethos followed my many important figures in combat sports such as Carlos and Helio Gracie, Walid Ismail, Nick and Nate Diaz, to name a few.

After two years spent in New York Sinistro moved to Los Angeles, to train with Rubens Charles “Cobrinha” in one of Alliance’s top affiliates.

Cover photo by William Burkhardt of BJJPix.

Francisco Iturralde vs Kim Terra

Francisco Iturralde vs Rafael Pereira