Marines at Camp Pendleton / Photos: Gracie Barra archives

Gracie Barra has been involved with Marines for some time, teaching them as students in Gracie Barra schools all around the country, but also going out to local Marines bases, to assist them in their Jiu-Jitsu training. The Camp Pendelton Marines, specifically, have responded well to the training they have received and regularly invite Gracie Barra back to their base for further instruction.

Most recently, Gracie Barra was invited by a San Clemente student, Staff Sergeant Marie, to go to Camp Pendleton to help improve their fighting techniques. “We are honored to be invited to Camp Pendelton to assist the Marines in their Jiu-Jitsu training,” Professor Marcelo Lacerda says, “They fight for our country and are always ready and prepared to go to war when they are called to do so, so it is an honor for us to help them train and perfect their ground combat skills in preparation for that time.”

Professor Marcelo Lacerda lecturing Marines on Jiu-Jitsu technique

Gracie Barra Professors Marcelo Lacerda, Ricardo Testai, Ricardo Moraes, Bruno Antunes, Bruno Rocha, Aldo Januario, and Rodrigo de Freitas as well as Coaches Kanai Brown and Elias Ramirez III were all on hand to assist with the class.

“The Marines step up to be instructors; they help with our kids,” he said, “They have the training and discipline from being a Marine. We have to appreciate how they go to war to defend and fight for our views. It’s also important to do this through Jiu-Jitsu and they help us with that as well. The Marines and Jiu-Jitsu have a lot in common. We have the same attitude of respect and discipline.”

After Almeida thanked the Marines for their service to the country and his school, they exploded on the mats with their own hand-to-hand combat demonstration. It was a very exciting, multi-dimensional performance including weapons-based combat, a variety of martial arts and practices, including Jiu-Jitsu techniques, and their own combat style and type of fighting. Kids and adults alike were riveted to the scene they caused as their conflict situations continued to change and escalate on the mats in front of them.

Professor Marcelo Brandão, whose brother, Pedro, an Army Ranger and Gracie Barra black belt, recently passed away while on base in Georgia, assisted Almeida with the organizing and running of the event. Brandão had the children from the kid’s classes write letters to the Marines, thanking them for their service to our country. When the Marines finished their demonstration, Brandao called a few kids up from the line to read their letters to the Marines, who stood stoically in front of them listening to their heart-warming sentiments of thanks and gratitude.

GBSC Coach, Scott Pearson, an ex-Marine and current blue belt, addressed the children when they were done, “I was a Marine,” he said, “Now I’m a student here like you. Whenever something goes wrong in the world, we have these Marines. How they are used depends on the president in power. The U.S. owns the Marines. The Marines make everything better. That’s how we think and that’s how we’re trained.”

Each speech and demonstration was an attempt to teach the children in Southern California a little more about the Marines and how they affect their community and the world at large. Pearson said, “It’s part of the evolution for these kids. We live in San Clemente and the Marines are living and stationed right here with us.”

Almeida closed the ceremony by saying, “One of the reasons we have such a wonderful life is because of these Marines. They fight for our rights so we can live a free life. We all need to appreciate that.”

Group shot of Marines and GB Staff. Photos: Publicity/Camp Pendleton

Recently, GB standouts, Kayron Gracie, Otavio Sousa, Fabiana Borges, Marcelo Lacerda Brandao, Rodrigo Simoes, Lucas Rocha, Ronis Gracie, and the rest of the GBSC/GBDP staff went to the base to present a Jiu-Jitsu class to the Marines. It was the first time these GB professors and coaches had been on a military base and they were excited about the opportunity. The Marines were blown away by the level of skill and precision these Jiu-Jitsu greats brought to their community.

Kayron and Otavio Sousa demonstrating a Jiu-Jitsu move.

Kayron Gracie led the class and had a great time doing it. “We got there in the morning at around 10:00,” he says, “Coach Felipe (Guedes) and Coach Charles (Gomes) put them through an hour of physical drills and conditioning,” he says, “Then Professor Otavio, Professor Marcelo, and I taught them some Jiu-Jitsu techniques that were geared more towards the type of self-defense situations they would normally be presented with during combat.”

At the end of the class, the professors and coaches sparred with the Marines. Then as a special surprise, the Marines taught the GB participants a little bit about their combat training. Ronis Gracie was awed by the Marines’ dedication and commitment to training. “I think the most impressive thing I saw was their focus and seriousness during training,” he says, “I can see why these guys are so important to the country and why the U.S. is the strongest country in the world.”

Kayron and Otavio teaching a technique

Black belt Fabiana Borges said it was amazing to see how hard the Marines trained and how disciplined they were in class, realizing that they do it to get ready for war. “The experience changed my life,” she says, “It made me want to go back to the mats and demand more of myself as a professor and an athlete. They inspired me to train harder and teach better. We were teaching them Jiu-Jitsu techniques so they can protect themselves while they’re protecting our country. That gave more value to my art and made me expect more from myself.”

At the end of the training session, the Marines gave the professors and coaches certificates as a gesture of respect and gratitude. Fabiana said she felt a lot of pride at that moment. “I was proud to see how they respected and admired our martial art. It was a good feeling knowing that they might be able to use a little bit of the Jiu-Jitsu we taught them to protect themselves while they are so fearlessly defending the country.”