Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Fighter Wiki, All their history from their favorite techniques to the meaning behind their Portuguese nicknames as well as fight videos and techniques. Learn more about your favorite Jiu Jitsu figures on this section.
The 5th edition of EBI seemed promising at the start, with the promoters toying with the idea of adding a few prominent grapplers from jiu jitsu’s main competitive environment, namely IBJJF or the ADCC medalists. The card is finally out, find out who is involved.
Rodrigo Freitas is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Aldo Januário (Caveirinha), known as one of the top competitors of his generation, a …
Thiago Gaia is a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter and Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Marco Barbosa, having spent most of his lower belt career under the tutelage of Leonardo Vieira. Regarded as one of the hottest prospects in the sport since his purple belt campaign (2009/10), Gaia confirmed his talent as a black belt medalling in some of Brazil’s top tournaments, particularly in Sao Paulo’s No-Gi grappling scene.
Thiago Abreu, commonly known as Thiago “Baiano” is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Rodrigo Cavaca and a representative of the Checkmat team in the sport’s competitive circuit, having conquered medals in some of the main tournaments of the grappling world, including the World Championship (Gi and No-Gi) as well as the Pan American Championship and Sao Paulo Open.
Daniel Wanderley, also known as “Cachorrão” or Big Dog, is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Gutenberg Melo commonly known for his involvement in the development of mixed martial arts (MMA) stars such as Anthony Pettis, Erik Koch and Ben Askren at the Roufusport MMA academy. As a competitor, Wanderley has also ventured into MMA, while achieving important medals in jiu jitsu, particularly in the “over 30” category (masters) where he won the Pan American No-Gi Champion and placed 2nd in the World No-Gi Championship.
Felicia Oh is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Jean Jacques Machado, being part of the Woman’s BJJ Dirty Dozen as the 6th woman outside Brazil to achieve the rank in this martial art (5th in the USA). Oh is also an accomplished competitor in both gi and no-gi, having medalled in important events such as the World and Pan American Championships (gi and nogi), the ADCC as well as the US Open, to name a few.
Fábio Nascimento, commonly known as Fábio “Negão” is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Moises Muradi, who is widely recognized as one of the best competitors of the 2000’s decade, a period in which he earned numerous titles and defeated many big names of the sport, including Ronaldo Souza, Demian Maia, Roger Coelho and many others. Nascimento is also a highly regarded BJJ referee as well as a former professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter.
Jorge Pereira is a Brazilian jiu jitsu coral belt (7th degree) who earned his black belt training under Rickson Gracie (1986). Pereira is known …
Jared Dopp is an American competitor in the sport of jiu-jitsu and a black belt under Rafael Lovato Junior. Dopp became widely recognized as …
Chris Haueter is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Rigan Machado, a grade achieved on December 1996 which made Haueter part of the BJJ Dirty Dozen, the first 12 practitioners outside Brazil to achieve the rank of black belt in this martial art. Haueter is also a former US marine and creator of the Combat Base Jiu Jitsu school, being known among the grappling community for his pioneering teaching style and conceptual coaching ability.
Deborah Christine Maxwell, commonly known as DC Maxwell is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Saulo Ribeiro, being part of the Woman’s BJJ Dirty Dozen as the 3rd woman outside Brazil to achieve the rank in this martial art (2nd in the USA). Maxwell is an extremely important figure in the development of the sport/martial art in the East Coast of the United States, particularly within the Delaware Valley and Tri-State area, where DC was one of the very first female athletes and jiu jitsu gym owners.
One of the main Brazilian jiu jitsu tournaments of this year’s fall, the Azusa Pacific University was the host to the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tour – Los Angeles. Find the full results of the black belts here.
Mahamed Aly is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Lloyd Irvin, and a former student of Everaldo Penco as well as Antônio Rogério & Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira. Aly made a name for himself in the lower belt divisions of the sport, particularly in the brown belt category where he conquered important titles such as IBJJF World Champion, European Open Champion, as well as Pan American (No Gi) and American National Champion.
André Glodzinski is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Master Max Trombini being one of the top representatives of Cia Paulista in the United States. One of the most prestigious referees in the sport, Glodzinski is also known for his inspirational life story, one that saw André return to activity with a prosperous career as a coach and a competitor after a severe car crash which left permanent physical damage.
Everdan Olegário, commonly known as “Mestre Dan” (Master Dan), is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt who trained under the illustrious Fernando Tererê, being also one of the leading figures in the grappling world. From his Cohab Jiu Jitsu, a small academy located inside the social housing community of COHAB in Itaquera – Sao Paulo, Master Dan has produced numerous high level jiu jitsu competitors, including Sérgio Moraes, Guilherme Augusto, Dimitrius Souza, Paulo Baraúna, and to name a few.
Bruno Paulista, also known as Bruno “Mamute”, is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Alexandre de Souza and a World and Pan American No-Gi Champion, who on April 2010 suffered a severe and life changing car accident in which Paulista lost many of his basic motor capabilities, such as walking down stairs or chewing. After 4 surgeries and many years of recovery, on March 2015 Bruno Mamute returned to competition at the IBJJF Pan American Championships.
José Tiago Barros is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Cicero Costha, and one of the top light featherweight competitors of his generation, having earned podium spots in the top grappling tournaments, including the Brazilian Nationals, European Open and World Championships. A guard passer by nature (an unusual trait in his weight class), Barros was one of the leading figures to leave the Projecto Social Lutando Pelo Bem (PSLPB) team on October 2015, to join the Jiu Jitsu New School Brotherhood academy.
Paulo Guillobel is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt (5th degree) under Jorge Pereira, being also one of the most highly regarded figures in the community, as an instructor, a competitor and ambassador of this grappling style. Having started his training in Rio de Janeiro – Brazil (1988), Guillobel moved to the US in 2000 where he established his own academy in San Clemente – California, a gym affiliated to the Ribeiro Jiu Jitsu Association.
Cynthia Omatsu, commonly known as Cindy Omatsu, is a Japanese-American black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu under Rigan Machado and Leka Vieira, being best known as the first female grappler outside of Brazil to have achieved the rank of black belt in this martial art (2002). Omatsu also gained notoriety in the jiu jitsu circuit as an interviewer for Grapple TV during the early/mid 2000’s, co-hosting the online show with a fellow teammate Felicia Oh.
Rikako Yuasa, also known as “Lady Sasa”, is a Japanese born, Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under the prestigious Yukinori Sasa, being also one of the most accomplished female competitors of her generation. Competing in the light featherweight division (53.5kg/118lbs) for the Paraestra (Shinagawa) academy, Yuasa won important titles, such as the World Championship, Asian Open as well as European Open.