Alexis Alduncin

Alexis Alduncin Barragan is a Mexican born black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, a rank he earned from coach Mario Delgado in 2016. Although suffering from partial blindness, Alexis Alduncin managed to overcome his disadvantage to become the first top-tier BJJ athlete from a Mexico academy, a reputation earned while competing in grappling’s international circuit, in which he conquered numerous International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) titles and medals.

Alexis Alduncin Jiu Jitsu

Full Name: Alexis Alduncin Barragan

Nickname: N/A

Lineage: Mitsuyo Maeda > Carlos Gracie (Senior) > Helio Gracie > Carlos Gracie Jr > Renzo Gracie > Mario Delgado > Alexis Alduncin

Main Achievements:

• 1st Place IBJJF Austin Open (2018)
• 1st Place IBJJF Mexico City Open (2017)
• 1st Place UAEJJF Mexico National Pro (2017)
• 1st Place IBJJF New York Summer Open (2017)
• 1st Place IBJJF Mexico City Winter Open (2018)
• 1st Place IBJJF Mexico City Summer No-Gi Open  (2017)
• 1st Place GT Open Super-fight (2017)
• 1st Place IBJJF Austin No-Gi Open (2018)
• 2nd Place IBJJF Pan No-Gi Championship (2016 / 2018)
• 2nd Place IBJJF Mexico City Summer Open (2017)
• 2nd Place IBJJF Chicago Summer Open (2017)
• 2nd Place IBJJF Chicago Summer No-Gi Open (2017)
• 3rd Place UAEJJF Abu Dhabi Pro (2019)
• 3rd Place IBJJF Mexico City Open (2017*)
• 3rd Place UAEJJF Grand Slam, LA (2017)
• 3rd Place IBJJF Miami Spring Open (2017)

Main Achievements (Colored Belts):

• 2nd Place IBJJF World No-Gi Championship (2015 brown)
• 2nd Place IBJJF American No-Gi Nationals (2015 / 2016 brown)
• 3rd Place IBJJF World Championship (2016 brown)
• 3rd Place IBJJF American Nationals (2016 brown)

* Absolute
** Weight and absolute

Favorite Position/Technique: Modern Guard

Weight Division: Pluma (64,00 kg/141.5 lbs)

Team/Association: Renzo Gracie Mexico

Alexis Alduncin Biography

Alexis Alduncin was born on November 30, 1992, in Mexico City, Mexico, where he was raised.

As an infant, Alexis suffered a life-changing accident. He was 9 months old, practicing his first few steps with the aid of a Baby Walker at his home, when he walked inside the kitchen. He found the liquor cabinet there, where a bottle of champagne was kept with a towel under it. Alexis pulled the towel and the bottle fell to the ground exploding into different glass shards, these tragically found their way into Alduncin’s eye.

Alexis went through a long period of surgeries and processes to fix his detached retina, and the many other related eye injuries caused by the kitchen accident, but in the end, none could save his sight. With zero visibility on his right eye, Alduncin had to adapt to not having depth perception and challenge his limitations. In an interview given to BJJ Heroes on November 2018, Alduncin said:

“What I struggled with the most was not having confidence in myself, especially around other people. Kids can be too honest sometimes and I used to get a lot of questions and stares from people throughout my childhood because my eye looked different. Ultimately this made me a very reserved and introverted person. At the same time, it sort of fueled me to want to prove something to the world. I wanted to prove not only that I could do whatever everyone else did, but that I could be the better. So everything I do, I try to stand out. I had the best grades throughout school, and in college, I graduated with honors for being the head of my class.”

As a child, Alduncing was most enthusiastic about football (soccer), playing competitively and even doing trial tests for a European team in Spain, though his small frame led the interest of the club to cool off.

At the age of 13, Alexis’ eye started getting worse due to a pressure built up. This forced him to have another surgery. The operation meant that part of his eye was replaced with a prosthetic, a procedure that had a lasting effect in Alexis martial arts career:

“Because of my prosthetic and limited vision I discarded sports such as boxing, MMA, and other impact sports, but jiu-jitsu seemed to fit perfectly. I didn’t need to see my opponent as much as I needed to feel him. I even enjoy blindfolding myself in rolling because of this and I feel I have developed a higher ability to distinguish touch and feel of opponents” [through this process].

During Alduncin’s mid-teens, his older brother Salvador started practicing jiu-jitsu. Alexis was living in the United States at the time (Austin, TX), but whenever they met, the big brother would show him a few moves, an exchange that fuelled his desire to join an academy. This eventually happened on June 2009, once Alexis returned to Mexico. He was 16 years old at the time.

Training under Mario Delgado, a Renzo Gracie black belt, Alexis became addicted to the sport, practicing it diligently and earning his blue belt in 9 months. Believing he had the talent to be one of the best in the world, shortly after his promotion, Alduncin decided to travel to São Paulo, Brazil to train with the best BJJ team at the time, Alliance. Alexis shared an apartment with some of the best athletes in the world there, including Bruno Malfacine, Bernardo Faria and Michael Langhi.

Unfortunately for Alexis at the time, was also a reality check, as the level was leaps more advanced than anything he had experienced in Mexico. Disenchanted with how his level paired up with that of São Paulo’s circuit, Alexis returned to base after 2 months, continuing his progress under Delgado with the hopes of one day returning to the international stage. This would happen a few years later, as a brown belt.

After a positive brown belt campaign, where Alexis medalled in 3 of the top tournaments on the IBJJF calendar, Alduncin was promoted to black belt, a celebration that took place on July 16, 2016.

Alexis Alduncin Highlight