ZR Team in London – Ukrainian fighters won gold!

 

Ukrainian fighters of the SC Borets/ ZR Team Kropivnitskiy Yaroslav Blazhko and Roman Nepota won gold medals during the Open Championship in Great Britain!


The best representatives of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu from all over the word gathered together for the gold in England. Ukrainian fighters have met on the mat with the representatives of Brazil, Greece, Italy and Germany.

Yaroslav Blazhko had 4 fights – one fight he clinched and 3 fights he defeated on points. Roman Nepota also had 4 fights which he won by technical superiority.

Fighters and coach of SC Borets/ZR Team Kropivnitskiy are satisfied with competition in London and its results for Ukraine. Fighters wrote words of thank on their social media pages. They have thanked friends, relatives and sponsor (“BioTexCom” company) for great support and faith in their victory. In addition, fighters have noted they are happy of these victories nevertheless they are not ready to rest and will continue to glorify their country abroad.
http://jiu-jitsu.news/zr-team-in-london-ukrainian-fighters-won-gold/ 

Kim Terra Talks Achieving the American Dream, Next Stop Law Degree

 

Kim Terra has had a thorny relationship to the community in many ways. The fired up brother of World Champion Caio Terra hasn’t had it the easiest.

In the past he’s called on many opponents but also Kim Terra was banned for 2 years by IBJJF in 2009 for having kicked the sponsor stands at the Worlds, and having called a few names to head referee Muzio de Angelis, face to face and online.
 He recently shared his tumultuous journey to fulfilling the American Dream:

 "Exactly 10 years ago, in 2007, I came to the US for the first time with @caioterrabjj.
We didn’t just figuratively “live” at the gym. We literately lived at the gym. There was no heater during winter and no A/C during summer. I cleaned the mats every night, because if I didn’t, my brother would have to. I wasn’t payed to do it. I didn’t have a salary, or a sponsor.

I survived by doing small jobs like delivering newspapers before dawn, teaching privates once in a while, and bouncing at bars. I didn’t reach the “American dream” back then.

 In 2009, I returned to Brazil and got into Law School. I thought about quitting many times, but I never did, and I am proud of myself for that. I graduated in 2015 and came back to the US for a shot at becoming a Black Belt World Champion.

I haven’t fulfilled that dream yet, but I came closer than most people ever will, with two bronze medals. Although I will keep trying to become a World Champion, I’ve also recently decided it’s time to focus on my education once again, by pursuing a Juris Doctor degree in California. I will never forget the long cold winters, the crazy hot summers, and everyone who has helped me along the way”. 
http://jiu-jitsu.news/kim-terra-talks-achieving-the-american-dream-next-stop-law-degree/ 

Benson Henderson Gets The Win Over AJ Agazarm At Fight To Win Pro 37

 

Fight to Win Pro 37 in Scottsdale, Arizona concluded with a main event that was so action-packed, it couldn’t be contained to the stage. 


The headline match, which featured former UFC champ Benson Henderson against former no-gi world champion AJ Agazarm, started off strong, with Agazarm attempting a flying triangle. Henderson managed to avoid getting submitted before getting trapped in his opponent’s lasso guard. A scramble led to both athletes tumbling right off the stage, then a guillotine attempt by Henderson ended with them pushing the referee off the platform. Although Agazarm shot for numerous ankle picks and takedowns, Henderson’s aggressive sprawls were able to keep him out of trouble. When it was all over, the judges awarded victory to Henderson by unanimous decision.

http://jiu-jitsu.news/benson-henderson-gets-the-win-over-aj-agazarm-at-fight-to-win-pro-37/ 

Remco Pardoel Leaves Gracie Barra After 14yrs

 

Remco Pardoel made his MMA debut at UFC 2. Since then, he has become one of Europe’s most sought after BJJ instructors. 

He was recently a guest on the best BJJ podcast – Grappling central podcast where he talked about various interesting topics including MMA’s early days, Europe’s early BJJ scene and also major announcement: He is leaving Gracie Barra after 14 years with them!

Gracie Barra is the world’s largest BJJ affiliation with over 444 academies worldwide.

Remco was leading Gracie Barra Netherlands but decided to leave them for various reasons, notably that in his opinion, too many GB members were cross training with other teams and that his students wanted for other people to lead GB in Holland instead of him. 

Last year another major GB leader left to form his own team: Ze Radiola who created ZR TEAM.

http://jiu-jitsu.news/remco-pardoel-leaves-gracie-barra-after-14yrs/ 

 

Nicky Ryan Receives Purple belt At Age 15

A 15 year old Nicky Ryan made the headlines and receive purple belt.

The young Danaher Death Squad member has had the honor of being promoted to the ranking of purple belt under Renzo Gracie Academy Head Coach John Danaher.

Nicky Ryan has proven himself quite a good competitor having defeated Marvin Castelle – a 10th planet brown belt and placed 3rd in the ADCC trials this year.

John Danaher shares some warm words about his apprentice on his Instagram page.

Mackenzie Dern Comments On Weight Issue, Says She’s Nearing Decision To Give Up Either BJJ or MMA

Mackenzie Dern is a veteran of sport bjj at age 24.

She’s done so much for the female bjj scene it’s no wonder that it’s hard to be faced with a decision that she has to make a definitive choice – it’s either bjj or mma.

Dern told flocombat:

“One thing we think might be a problem is this weight roller coaster,” Dern said. “It goes down to 116 pounds to fight MMA (at strawweight) and then it goes up. I have to gain weight — for jiu-jitsu it’s up to 130 pounds. Then I have to go down to strawweight again for MMA. Every month I’m in a weight-loss process, I’m feeling like I’m really (expletive) up my body with that and all the training. We’re thinking that I’ll make a decision soon.”

“In jiu-jitsu, you cut weight differently,” Dern said. “I’m cutting in two different ways and my body wasn’t used to it. Everyone knows that, but I still want to defend my title in the ADCC every two years. I don’t know what to do.”

Mahamed Aly is the newest addition to the IBJJF Pro League GP

 

The IBJJF announced that Mahamed Aly has been added to the Pro League heavyweight GP. He is the sixth member to be announced in the 8-man tourney.


Aly will challenge himself amongst some of the greatest competitors the sport has ever seen in one bracket. Roger Gracie, Marcus “Buchecha,” Andre Galvao, Leandro Lo and João Gabriel Rocha have all been confirmed at this time.

We will have to wait and see on August 26th at the Evexia Fit Fest in Las Vegas.

http://jiu-jitsu.news/mahamed-aly-is-the-newest-addition-to-the-ibjjf-pro-league-gp/ 

Jiu-Jitsu around the world: 5 events to compete or watch all over the globe

 

Doesn’t matter where you live in the world, there’s probably a great Jiu-Jitsu event about to happen near you. 

Fight to Win Pro 37 (June 23, Scotsdale, AZ)

The Fight to Win promotion keeps on its mission to bring Jiu-Jitsu to every important market in North America. The latest stop will be on Scotsdale, Arizona, for another stacked card of matches. The main event will feature the always exciting AJ Agazarm in a battle against former UFC champion Benson Henderson. There are other 29 matches on the program.

Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Tokyo (July 15, Tokyo, Japan)

The UAEJJF year-round tour returns to a new season that kicks off in Tokyo, Japan. The Grand Slam will award over $125k in prizes on each one of the 5 stops. Also, every UAEJJF event will add points in the annual ranking that will grant you a spot in the 2018 ADWPJJC and the chance to win even bigger prizes at the end of the season. 

Five Grappling (July 15, San Diego, CA)

It’s time for the lightweights. Eight of the best 155lb athletes in the world will clash for the division belt in San Diego. The event will also feature a series of black belt. Super matches headlined by a true war between Keenan Cornelius and Matheus Diniz. 

ACB JJ GP 6 (July 16, Moscow, Russia)

This time, fighters under 65Kg will battle for the big prizes. Augusto Tanquinho, Osvaldo Queixinho, Rafael Barata, Laercio Fernandes, Milton Bastos are some of the names competing. 

Gracie Cup (July 22-23, Rio de Janeiro Brazil)

The event put together by Kyra Gracie will combine both an open championship and a super match. In this case, the mother of all super matches featuring the two most accomplished Jiu-Jitsu competitors of all times, Marcus Buchecha and Roger Gracie.

 

http://jiu-jitsu.news/jiu-jitsu-around-the-world-5-events-to-compete-or-watch-all-over-the-globe/

UAEJJF Introduces Legend Category as Part of Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Season

 

UAEJJF has been at the forefront of innovating jiu jitsu. Just earlier this season they introduced some changes regarding national qualifiers in order to spice up the finals and introduce some diversity.


“We are delighted to announce the third season of Abu Dhabi Grand Slam. It has been an incredible experience so far in a very short space of time. Last season the Grand Slam was broadcasted to 400 million homes in 85 countries through our 14 partner TV networks around the world, and I say that with pride as this makes the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam the Jiu- Jitsu, “said Mr. Abdulmunam Al Hashemi, President of the Jiu-Jitsu Federation of the United Arab Emirates, President of the Asian Jiu-Jitsu Union and Senior Vice President of the International Jiu-Jitsu Federation.

Indeed close to a million dollars in rewards will be given out to athletes who win prizes in the upcoming season. The top three gyms will also receive cash prizes in each city hosting the event and the top contenders will receive awards at the end of the season.
http://jiu-jitsu.news/uaejjf-introduces-legend-category-as-part-of-abu-dhabi-grand-slam-season/ 

Leonardo Nogueira fails drug test, loses 2016 world title

Alliance’s Leonardo Nogueira has had his 2016 BJJ world championship rescinded after failing a drug test done by the USADA (U.S. Anti-Doping Agency) following his campaign in June of last year.

Tested positive for clomifene, a drug used for raising one’s testosterone levels. Clomifene is listed among the substances banned by the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) and the USADA.

Nogueira was handed a two-year suspension, starting June 5, when the sample was collected. He will not be allowed to compete in IBJJF contests and will have every result achieved following his test revoked, including the 2016 world title he won over Alexandro Cecconi, who is expected to be declared the rightful champion.

Leonardo Nogueira is the fourth BJJ athlete caught in a drug test since 2013, when the IBJJF started doing such tests. The other three are Gabi Garcia (2013), Bráulio Estima (2014) and Felipe “Preguiça” Pena (2014).