BJJ Fighter Database

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.

Wellington Luís, commonly known as Wellington “Alemão”, is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Cicero Costha, and member of the Jiu Jitsu New School Brotherhood Team, an academy that spawned from the Projecto Social Lutando Pelo Bem (PSLPB) camp on October 2015. Alemão made a career competing in the lower belt divisions of the sport, where he became known as one of the best lightweight prospects of his generation.

Stephen Maxwell, commonly known as Steve Maxwell, is a fitness coach, physical educator, as well as the first American born Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Relson Gracie. Known as one of the pioneers of the gentle art in the East Coast of the United States, Maxwell ran the first certified Gracie Jiu Jitsu Academy in the region, while also developing the first Brazilian jiu jitsu tournaments in the Coast.

AJ Sousa is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Pablo Popovitch, who became known to jiu jitsu’s mainstream audience after participating in Lloyd Irvin’s Kumite, a web series/tournament designed to find who the best brown belt in the sport was, back in 2013. Since then AJ Sousa has cemented his status as one of the top competitors in the world, with wins at the Miami, Las Vegas and Boca Raton IBJJF Opens, as well as a fantastic performance at the 2015 edition of the Abu Dhabi World Pro.

Gustavo Pires, commonly known as “Siri”, is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Carlos Gracie Junior, and one of the top Gracie Barra competitors in the sport’s super-heavyweight division with medals at the Pan American, No Gi World, World Masters and Brazilian National Championships. Founder of the Gracie Barra Fullerton academy, Gustavo Siri is also known for his coaching abilities, having been crucial in the development of important grapplers such as André Campos and Bruno Rocha.