BJJ Fighter Database

Herbert Burns is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Rafael “Fofitio”, and Gilbert “Durinho” Burns (Herbert’s brother). Herbert made a career in the lower belt divisions of the Brazilian grappling circuit, earning important titles such as the Brazilian No Gi Nationals and the Brazilian Teams tournament before his career change to mixed martial arts (MMA).

Mikey Musumeci, is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Gilbert “Durinho” Burns and Jonatas “Tagarela” Gurgel, who is also known to have trained extensively with the Mendes brothers: Rafael and Guilherme Mendes. Musumeci made a name for himself in the lower belt divisions of the sport, winning sequential world titles from juvenile blue, up to brown belt, earning his black belt at the age of 18. Michael is also the younger brother of another high level jiu jitsu athlete, Tammi Musumeci.

Matheus Diniz is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under the illustrious Marcelo Garcia, being part of an incredible generation of athletes produced by the respected grappling coach, a generation that included competitors such as Dillon Danis, Dominika Obelenyte, Jonathan Satava, Marcus Tinoco and Mansher Khera. Diniz made a name for himself in the sport, competing in the brown belt division, where he conquered important titles such as the World No Gi and Pan American.

Guilherme Augusto is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under the illustrious Everdan Olegário, commonly known as “Mestre Dan”. A member of the Alliance academy – Cohab branch, an academy that has developed high end talent such as Sergio Moraes and Dimitrius Souza, Augusto made a name for himself in the sport’s lower belt divisions, winning important titles such as Brazilian National Champion and Sao Paulo Open champion in both his weight and the open weight divisions.

Osvaldo Augusto Moizinho, commonly known as “Queixinho” is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under the Soul Fighters founding members (Rafael Barbosa, Leandro Escobar, Bruno Mendes and Augusto “Tanquinho”), although he is also known for his time spent as a student and team mate of Caio Terra. A Rio de Janeiro native, Queixinho made his name in the sport of jiu jitsu competing in the United States, where he conquered World and Pan American titles.

Venla Luukkonen is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Pedro Duarte, of the Jyväskylän Fight Club (Hilti BJJ Jyväskylä) in Finland, being the first black belt world champion to emerge from this Northern European country. Before winning the 2014 IBJJF World Championship at black belt, Venla Luukkonen was already regarded as one of the top female grapplers of her generation, having consistently medalled in jiu jitsu’s top tournaments throughout her lower belt career.

Dean Liebenberg, commonly known as “Cu Vermelho” is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Carlos “Portugues” Vieira, being regarded as one of the top representatives of the Cia Paulista academy in Australia. A former rugby player, Dean excelled in the sport of jiu jitsu, medalling in important international grappling events such as the Pan Pacific Championship, Pan American Championship, European Open and World Championship.

Beneil Dariush is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Romulo Barral, who was regarded as one of the top grappling prospects in the world before his change in career focus to mixed martial arts (MMA). A World Champion and World No Gi Champion in the lower belt divisions of BJJ, with wins over big names such as Kron Gracie, Beneil Dariush quickly climbed up the ladder of success in MMA, reaching the sport’s ultimate promotion – the UFC.

Yago de Souza is one of the top grappling competitors of his generation as well as a black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu under Cicero Costha. Yago earned his reputation in the lower belt divisions, where he earned the world championship, European Open, Brazilian National Championship as well as the South American Championship.

New Jersey born Tom DeBlass, is a well respected member of the grappling community both as a competitor as well as an instructor, having earned his Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Ricardo Almeida and produced high level athletes from his Ocean County Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy. DeBlass has also competed in MMA, with stints at the UFC and Bellator.

Antonio Passos, commonly known as Tony Passos, is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Moacir “Boca” Omena and Ricardo De La Riva, although he became better known as one of the louder voices of the Atos Jiu Jitsu team, a grappling camp he joined by the end of 2011. Passos is also recognized as one of the top jiu jitsu coaches in the United States, a country he moved to in 2004.

One of the best grapplers of her generation, Luiza Monteiro is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Rodrigo Cavaca, who’s career in the sport is commonly associated with the Projecto Social Lutando Pelo Bem team of Cicero Costha. One of the top athletes in jiu jitsu’s women’s division, Monteiro conquered numerous medals in a variety of weight classes, from featherweight to medium heavy.

Born in New Jersey, USA, Dillon Danis is an accomplished Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Marcelo Garcia of the Alliance Academy, being part of a fruitful generation of grapplers produced by the well respected Marcelinho, from his New York based gym. Dillon Danis made a name for himself at the start of 2014 through his incredible brown belt campaign that year.

Edwin Najmi is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Romulo Barral of the Gracie Barra academy (Northridge branch), a gym that has produced many talented grapplers, including Beneil Dariush, Pedro Araújo, Gabriel Larges, to name a few. One of the most talented grapplers of his generation, with a crowd pleasing submission orientated jiu jitsu style, Edwin Najmi climbed the belt ranks, stacking wins at the sport’s most revered tournaments, such as the World Championship, European Open and Pan American Championship.

Dominyka Obelenyte is a lithuanian-american grappler, being the first female Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under the legendary Marcelo Garcia. Regarded as a true grappling phenomenon since her early teens Dominyka Obelenyte proved her star quality by consistently winning at the highest level of the sport, being one of the youngest ever world champions in an adult division (14 years of age), a deed only surpassed by Luzia Fernandes.

Carlos Rollyson is a Brazilian jiu jitsu (BJJ) coral belt (7th degree) who earned his black belt from Master Carlson Gracie, having also a black belt in judo, which he achieved while training under Takise Ueda. After the passing of his BJJ mentor, Rollyson decided to leave the Carlson Gracie Academy, joining the multiple time world champion team, Alliance Jiu Jitsu. Carlos Rollyson is also one of the most high ranked jiu jitsu figures in South Florida.

André Motta is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under André Pederneiras of Nova Uniao, being one of the team’s top grappling competitors throughout the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, alongside legendary black belts such as Victor “Shaolin” Ribeiro, Robson Moura, Leo Santos and many others. Throughout André Motta’s career, he was mostly known for his incredibly technical spider guard game, a game that earned him many praises and medals, a guard that was only passed once in his career as an adult black belt.

Rosângela Conceição, is a historic Brazilian jiu jitsu figure, being the very first female world champion in the sport. Conceição is also a legendary figure in judo and freestyle wrestling having been part of the Brazilian national Olympic squad for both sports, being regarded as the most accomplished female wrestler ever produced by the south american country.

Vinícius Cruz, is a historic figure in Brazilian jiu jitsu, having medalled on multiple occasions in important tournaments such as the Copa Company, the World Championship, the Pan American Championship and many others. A former member of the Carlson Gracie Academy, Vinícius Cruz is often associated with the “loop choke”, a technique he perfected during the 1990’s applying it often in competition.

Carlos Rosado is a Brazilian jiu jitsu red belt, the highest grade possible in BJJ, being not only the youngest man to ever receive the honour in the sport, but also the only red belt ever awarded by the late Master Carlson Gracie. Regarded by many as the best student from Carlson Gracie’s first generation of black belts, Carlos Rosado is also the founder of the Rosado Jiu Jitsu Academy.