One of the very first Gracie Jiu Jitsu academies in Rio de Janeiro, this historical gym has made some of the best fighters the world has ever seen.
One of the ADCC 2011 starlets, the American Justin Rader is an accomplished Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Rafael Lovato Jr and the Gracie Humaita team who has won important tournaments such as the World Nogi Championships, Grapplers Quest and the Pan American Jiu Jitsu championships.
The very first king of the lightweight division (crowned by winning the first World Jiu Jitsu Championship in 1996), Renato Barreto was part of a Gracie Humaita generation teaming with talent, with fighters such as Royler Gracie, Wellington Megaton, Paulo Barroso and many others.
Fabio Prado, also known as ‘Pateta‘ (Goofy) is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Marcelo Clemente from the famous Gracie Ilha academy in Rio …
Felipe Cavalcante is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under the illustrious Fredson Alves (Gracie Humaita team), having also worked extensively with Marcus Aurelio …
Zak Maxwell is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Regis Lebre, and one of the top representatives of the Gracie Humaita camp of his generation. Already …
Leka Vieira is one of the most important figures in the history of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, being the first female black belt World Champion of the sport (1999), Leka took women’s BJJ to the next level raising awareness to that side of the sport, paving the way to the new generation. She was also the first known woman to graduate another woman with the black belt in Jiu Jitsu (Cindy Omatsu).
Beatriz Mesquita, also known as Bia Mesquita, is an exciting Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under the legendary Leticia Ribeiro. Being pointed as the next big thing in women’s Jiu Jitsu when she was still a teenager, Beatriz Mesquita has cemented her status as one of the greatest grapplers of her generation by achieved numerous BJJ titles such as the World Nogi Championship and the Pan American title before even reaching her black belt status.
South Africa’s very first jiu jitsu black belt World champion, Penny Thomas was one of the most accomplished competitors of her generation, in Jiu …
A historical figure in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Leticia Ribeiro has collected medals in world grappling events for years on end, being considered one of the top 10 best female fighters of all time having been distinguished with a mention in the IBJJF Hall of Fame. Leticia Ribeiro is also the leader of one of the best female BJJ teams, the Gracie Humaitá, an organization teeming with talent, such as Penny Thomas, Bia Mesquita, Mackenzie Dern amongst many others.
A multiple time World Champion, Omar Salum is one of the best rooster weights (Peso Galo) in the history of Jiu Jitsu. The fighter from the Amazon state of Brazil was also considered to be one of the 5 top most technical fighters in the world by BJJ legend Royler Gracie
A TUF season finalist Vinicius Magalhaes (aka Pezao) is one of the most exciting grapplers in MMA today, with a very aggressive submission based game which he used to win some of the most prestigious grappling competitions in the World.
One of BJJ’s top instructors, the Brazilian has had a tremendous impact in some of BJJ’s elite fighters, World Champions like Leticia Ribeiro, Alexandre Ribeiro, Vinny Magalhaes amongst many others.
He is a Judo and BJJ black belt famous for his competitive spirit that has kept him at the top of his game for almost two decades. Today he is also the president of the Arizona BJJ federation and a successful BJJ coach.
He made history in BJJ by being the first American to win the Brasileiro in the black belt division. He is also a World Champion and one of the toughest competitors in his division today.
Royler Gracie was the first great champion in Jiu Jitsu, he set the record at the time for most consecutive World Championship victories and was the most successful Gracie representative of his generation in BJJ, Grappling and MMA.
Saulo Ribeiro is a 5x Brazilian jiu jitsu World Champion and one of the greatest BJJ fighters to have ever competed in the sport. A black belt in both judo and Brazilian jiu jitsu, Saulo Ribeiro has won the ADCC (the most important submission wrestling tournament in the World) on two occasions forming together with his younger brother Alexandre Ribeiro one of the most accomplished families in the sport.
Alexandre “Xande” Ribeiro is a 6x world Jiu Jitsu champion from the Ribeiro Jiu Jitsu camp. Having been taught by some of the best coaches such as Royler Gracie and Vini Aieta as well as Xande’s own brother, the legendary Saulo Ribeiro. Xande Ribeiro (who is ranked #1 on BJJ Heroes’ Top 10 BJJ Fighters of All Time) also joined MMA in 2008 premiering in Japan’s organization Sengoku.
Considered by many Brazilian Jiu Jitsu figures such as Ricardo Arona, Demian Maia, Paulo Filho (and many others) as the greatest BJJ practitioner of all time, Rickson Gracie, is the son of Helio Gracie. Through several “Vale-Tudo” fights in his native Brazil and in Japan, Rickson Gracie helped put his family’s trade (Gracie Jiu Jitsu/BJJ) on the map as a legitimate and well known fighting style.