Louis Vintaloro is a judo and Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Royler Gracie, being one of the pioneers of this grappling style in New Jersey, particularly in the northern area of this American state. Vintaloro is also known as the founder of the Performance Jiu-Jitsu, an academy in which big names of the sport started their careers, names such as Dominyka Obelenyte and JT Torres.
Sebastian Lalli is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Carlos Lima, originally from Buenos Aires – Argentina. A prestigious ambassador of the sport in the South of Brazil where he established “Equipe 1”, one of the biggest teams in the region, Lalli is also a former world champion (gi and no gi) as well as one of the main figures within the Checkmat academy, a team he helped establish in 2008 together with the Vieira brothers and Chico Mendes.
João Miyao is about to participate in the ADCC for the second time in his life, having earned a 3rd place in 2013. In this article we go through the unconventional method used by Miyao in preparation for the biggest no-gi event in the sport.
Victor Honório is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under José Honório Filho and a member of GF Team. On the 9th of May 2015, Honório turned many heads his way after reaching the 2nd place of Copa Pódio’s Heavyweight GP, one of the main professional events in the jiu jitsu circuit, as a fairly unknown brown belt. Since then Victor has been widely recognized as one of the most talented ultra heavyweight grapplers of his generation.
Brazilian jiu jitsu’s most historic academy is closing its doors after 45 years of history. In this article we go through the reasons the academy is closing and the importance this incredible building had in the development of BJJ in Rio de Janeiro.
İbrahim İnal is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt under Leonardo Vieira, being one of the pioneers and driving forces of this martial art/combat sport in Turkey. İbrahim İnal made a career in the jiu jitsu competing for the Checkmat academy, earning important titles such as the European Open (gi and no gi) as well as the World Masters Championship.
One of the most utilized submissions in grappling and mixed martial arts competitions, the armbar is also one of the most traditional types of joint locks utilized in combat with it’s history dating back to ancient Greece. Find about the history of the submission as well as some of the sport’s most memorable armbar wins here.
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.
How long does it take to find the first female black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu? In this piece we go through the process of finding Yvone Duarte, the first women’s black belt in our sport, discovered by BJJ Heroes on November 2014, and insight to the research developed over a 4 year period.
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.
The butterfly guard, a style of guard playing made famous by grapplers such as Marcelo Garcia, Terere, Leonardo Santos or Renzo Gracie (to name a few) and one of the classic guards to play in the combat style of Brazilian jiu jitsu. On this article we go through the history and the various stages of the butterfly guard in the grappling world.
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.
