Lovato sinking a guillotine at Abu Dhabi World Pro / Photos: personal archives

Lovato says it was a good match. The matches were only six minutes long and he started behind on points, but that didn’t sway him. “He took me down with a big takedown,” he says, “That was a little difficult for me because my plan was to take him down first. So I had to battle back from that. I caught him in two guillotine sweeps and won 4-2.”

Lovato says it was a great feeling. Interestingly, he says he trains very little No-Gi and is not focused on his no Gi Jiu-Jitsu game. He says he just competed in it as a warm up for the gi competition the following weekend. Unfortunately, the next weekend didn’t go so well. “I had a few issues with referee calls,” he says, “I managed to take third place in the Gi division, but felt like I should have been in finals.”

Disappointed, Lovato returned to Oklahoma but didn’t stop training in preparation for the Worlds. “I went right back to work,” he says, “I’ve been training with my students and a good friend of mine, Johannes Wieth, who came to Oklahoma from Germany to train with me for the Worlds. He’s really good. He’s a brown belt European Champion.” Lovato says he’s getting good training, doing a lot of drilling, Judo, grip training, and conditioning.

Although Lovato wishes he could have had a better performance at the Abu Dhabis, he says it was good preparation for the Worlds. “It was good to win next to Xande (Ribeiro). He won his No-Gi division as well, but unfortunately he got injured in the gi. He’s out of the Worlds now.”

Rewatch Lovato against Rodolfo Vieira at the Abu Dhabi World Pro:

Although Ribeiro is out of the Worlds, he and Matt Jubera are flying out to Oklahoma to lead Lovato’s last week of training camp in an effort to perfect his and his students’ games for the big event. “He’s going to lead the camp, analyze my performance, and help me with any last minute details that need work,” Lovato says, “That will finish up our training.”

Lovato's team after Dallas Open, laden with medals

Lovato’s team, on the whole, has been doing quite well. “My team took third at the Dallas Open. With 34 competitors, we won 31 medals.” Lovato himself just received his ADCC invitation. “I will be in London in September,” he says, “But my main concern is the Worlds.”

Lovato wants to become world champion again. “I’ve done it once and I know what a great feeling it is,” he says, “It’s all I’m thinking about every day. When you dream about it and work so hard to achieve it, there’s no greater feeling. I want to have the best performance possible. The last twelve years of my life have been about winning the Gi Jiu-Jitsu Worlds.”

Besides his Worlds training, Lovato has some other exciting news to share. “One of my purple belts is making his UFC debut after the Worlds. His name is James Head.”

Head was recently signed by the UFC to fight on the undercard on June 11 in Vancouver. “I’m going up there to corner him,” Lovato says, “I’m really excited about that. He just beat Gerald Harris and now he’s going to face Nick Ring.”

Head started boxing when he was a teenager and has good experience. He had a few fights before he started training with Lovato. “I got him focused on Jiu-Jitsu,” Lovato says, “He’d never formally trained in it before. He got really good really fast. He took second at the Worlds as a blue belt after a year and a half of training. I gave him his purple belt and then he took second at the No-Gi Worlds. Then he defeated Gerald Harris and now he’s ready to go to the big show.”

Lovato’s good friend Mauricio “Veio” Amado, a Chute Box muay thai black belt (along with his brother Dida), has been helping Lovato get Head ready for his fight. “He’s a natural,” Lovato says about Head, “Nick Ring is undefeated. He’s Canadian and the fight will be in his hometown, but I know what James is capable of and I think this is going to be a great matchup.”

Lovato is also happy about the opening of another new academy, this time in Salem, Oregon. “The teachers who run it are very high-level competitors: Ben Baxter and James Puopolo,” he says. Puopolo has been visible on the competition scene recently, having won the ADCC trials in San Diego and his division at the Pan. He came in second in the open.

(from left) Ben Baxter, Rafael and James Puopolo

Lovato says he’s known Baxter and Puopolo for a few years. “We are really close,” he says, “They are great guys. They just opened their academy in March. I went there to officially recognize them as a Lovato Jiu Jitsu Association school. The name of their school is Salem-Keizer Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.”

Things are going well for Lovato. “My academy in Oklahoma is expanding,” he says, “I bought the building next to us and we are doing some remodeling. I will have a total of 6500 sq. feet.” Lovato now has over 200 students at his school and offers Jiu-Jitsu classes to kids and adults, including Gi and No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu, and muay thai and MMA training. For further information, check out www.okbjj.com and  www.facebook.com/lovatojr.

Kristina (middle) at Dallas Open: sights set on Worlds / Photo: publicity

Last weekend two of Nova União’s greatest hopes for the 2011 Worlds shone at the Dallas Open.

Kaue Damasceno and Kristina Barlaan won their respective weight groups and absolutes as purple belts. Kristina managed the same feat one week prior, at the Phoenix Open.

“I’m getting Kristina ready to be world champion this year. We know it’s no easy task, she just missed in 2009 and 2010 with two bronzes, but she’s going to try and keep up the solid campaign from Phoenix and Dallas by competing at weight and open weight again. That’s a surefire way to make history,” remarked GMA and president of Nova União USA Gustavo Dantas.

“Kaue made some noise here by winning at weight and absolute at the Dallas Open, but we told him how the bar is much higher at the Worlds,” says Bruno Bastos, the team’s leader in Dallas. “The best will be there, but he for sure has what it takes to be with the best of them, he’s just never had the chance to compete here before. He won everything there was to win in Brazil as a purple belt, now it’s time for him to win here,” said Bastos in closing.

Kristina no topo, no Dallas Open: alvo agora é o Mundial. Foto: Divulgação.

No último fim de semana, duas apostas da Nova União para o Mundial 2011 brilharam no Dallas Open.

Kaue Damasceno e Kristina Barlaan levaram peso e absoluto na faixa-roxa masculino/feminino. Kristina havia feito o mesmo na semana anterior durante o Phoenix Open.

“Estou preparando a Kristina pra ser campeã mundial este ano. Sabemos que não é uma tarefa fácil, ela bateu na trave em 2009 e 2010 com dois bronzes, mas ela vai tentar manter a boa campanha de Phoenix e Dallas lutando peso e absoluto. Esse é o jeito certo de fazer história”, comentou o GMA e presidente da Nova União USA, Gustavo Dantas.

“O Kaue chegou fazendo barulho aqui faturando peso e absoluto no Dallas Open, porém conversei com ele que o Mundial é um outro nível”, lembra Bruno Bastos, líder da equipe em Dallas. “Os melhores vão estar lá, mas ele com certeza está entre os melhores, apenas nunca tinha tido a oportunidade de lutar aqui. Ele ganhou tudo no Brasil na faixa-roxa, agora é hora de ganhar aqui”, encerra Bastos.

E se você é fã dos atletas da Nova União, não deixe de conferir o Plano de Aula com Vítor Shaolin, na nova GRACIEMAG, nas bancas!

What’s not so simple is how they plan to get there. Without the aid of many of their top counterparts in Brazil, the team has to rely on its growing stable of US talent. Talent that has helped capture two IBJJF International Open titles for Nova União in just two weeks. Having played an integral part by leading the charge to victory in both Phoenix and Dallas, Gustavo Dantas black belt Steve Rosenberg is a shining example of how deep the talent pool is at Nova União’s stateside branch.

Steve Rosenbergb in action

Having shown his mettle at earlier belts, through such achievements as winning the lightweight class in the 2009 Pan adult division as a brown belt, Steve is no stranger to competition. Belonging to what is considered one of the toughest weight brackets, he has been working hard to stand his ground as a black belt, a division predominantly won by Brazilians.

With the momentum from his back-to-back wins at the Phoenix and Dallas Opens, Steve isn’t planning on slowing down as he heads into the 2011 World Championship. Being only one in a handful of American black belts representing Nova União at the 2011 Worlds, Steve represents the caliber of the team’s US-bred competitors. Characterized by fierce loyalty, hunger to succeed, abilty to rise to challenges, and willingness to defend the team’s flag to the death, Steve has become the beacon of hope Nova União has been waiting for.

It’s the beginning of a new age for Nova União. With team unity playing a pivotal part in achieving its goals, Nova União is set to create a new squad of elite competitors to lead the team. Just as Robson Moura and Vitor Shaolin were part of Nova União’s elite during the team’s golden age, in the late nineties in Brazil, the team is ready to recreate its frontline with the American talents under Nova União’s main leaders in the US. Consider Steve Rosenberg ready for battle.

Watch the Dallas Open semifinal between Steve Rosenberg and Tony Tipton:

The venue for the Dallas Open prior to the action / Ph: publicity/IBJJF

Two weeks after its conquest of the IBJJF’s Phoenix International Open, Nova União repeated the feat in Dallas. Led by Professor Bruno Bastos and before the eyes of team president in America Gustavo Dantas, the team went all the way, notching over a hundred points ahead of second-placed team Alliance.

Chased down by GRACIEMAG.com, Bruno commented on the achievement:

“I was expecting us to win, as we went in with a really big and strong team here in Dallas. I signed a lot of students up and had the help of my affiliates as well, beside some reinforcements from Robson Moura and Gustavo, who only brought three athletes from Arizona, but even so they made a difference,” said a jubilant Bastos.

“The gang fought really well, with kudos to Steve Rosenberg, runner-up in the absolute and winner of the lightweight division. Kaue Damasceno won at weight and open weight as a purple belt and Kristina Barlaan took weight and open weight in the purple belt female division. Better still, both finals were wars against another Nova União representative, Sue Ausman. Kelly Faszholz took her weight division and the absolute in the blue belt female category, while Arnold Monterroso came over from Arizona and won the blue belt light featherweight division. And there were plenty of others, in the master contest,” he recounted.

“Gustavo held a seminar on the day before where he gave a speech about the importance of being a part of a team and how we want to put in a lot of work to be sure we’ll always be fighting for the top spots, to win a World Championship again. That was great for the athletes,” he said in finishing.

O palco do Dallas Open antes das disputas. Foto: Divulgação/IBJJF.

Após conquistar o Phoenix International Open da IBJJF, a Nova União repetiu o feito uma semana depois em Dallas. Liderada pelo professor Bruno Bastos e sob os olhares do presidente da equipe na América, nosso GMA Gustavo Dantas, a equipe sobrou, com mais de cem pontos de vantagem sobre a vice-colocada, a Alliance.

Procurado pelo GRACIEMAG.com, Bruno comentou o feito:

“Eu esperava que fôssemos ganhar, pois realmente entramos com um time grande e forte aqui em Dallas. Coloquei muitos alunos e tivemos a ajuda das minhas filiais também, além de algumas do Robinho Moura e do Gustavo, que trouxe apenas três atletas do Arizona, mas que mesmo assim fizeram diferença”, celebrou Bastos.

“A galera lutou muito bem, com destaque para Steve Rosemberg, vice no absoluto preta e campeão leve. Kaue Damasceno faturou peso e absoluto na roxa e Kristina Barlaan faturou peso e absoluto na roxa feminino, e o melhor, em duas guerras na final contra a também Nova União Sue Ausman. Kelly Faszholz faturou peso e absoluto no azul feminino, enquanto Arnold Monterroso veio do Arizona para faturar o pluma azul. E muitos outros, no master”, enumerou.

“O Gustavo deu um seminário no dia anterior onde fez um discurso sobre a importância do sentido de equipe e de como nós queremos trabalhar muito e estar sempre brigando no topo, para poder ganhar um Mundial novamente. Isso foi ótimo para os atletas”, encerrou.

Dallas Open 2011 / Photo: IBJJF publicity

Sunday was also Dallas Open day, with the inaugural IBJJF tournament being held in Texas’s second city.

There were not few among the standouts, among them some of our GMAs and a number of well-known names from purple to brown belt in both adult and master male and female divisions. At black belt the absolute champion was middleweight Carlos Diego Ferreira (Arsenal JJ), with Steven Rosenberg (Nova União) in second and Tiny Tipton (Genesis JJ) and Christopher Story (Nova União) in third.

Alex Ceconi (Rilion) also put on a fine display in winning the ultra heavyweight division, with Rafael Lovato in second.

The winning teams were:

1- Nova União – 297

2- Alliance – 160

3- Lovatos BJJ – 139

Check out the complete official results on the IBJJF website, clicking here. And leave your comment on what you saw at the tournament below, if you happened to be there.

Dallas Open 2011. Foto: IBJJF/ Divulgação.

Domingo também foi dia de Dallas Open, primeira edição do torneio aberto da IBJJF na segunda maior cidade do Texas.

Os destaques não foram poucos, entre eles alguns de nossos GMAs e muitos nomes conhecidos, da faixa-roxa à marrom, tanto no adulto como no master, tanto no masculino quanto no feminino. Na faixa-preta, o campeão absoluto foi o peso médio Carlos Diego Ferreira (Arsenal JJ), com Steven Rosenberg (Nova União) em segundo e Tiny Tipton (Genesis JJ) e Christopher Story (Nova União) em terceiro.

Alex Ceconi (Rilion) também brilhou, ao vencer o peso pesadíssimo, batendo Rafael Lovato, o vice-campeão.

Por equipe, o resultado foi:

1- Nova União – 297

2- Alliance – 160

3- Lovatos BJJ – 139

Veja os resultados oficiais completos no site da IBJJF, clicando aqui. E mande seu recado sobre o torneio, se você esteve por lá.

Gameness gi

Gameness is another excited sponsor of the first IBJJF competition in Dallas. If you are there to fight or just watch Jiu-Jitsu, visit the Gameness booth to see Gameness’s full line of gis, fight shorts, rash guards, T-shirts and more. Stop by and register to win a free elite gi. Be among the first to see the just-launched and highly-anticipated Gameness Feather for females.

For more on the Dallas Open, click here.

Bruno (on bottom) against Rodolfo Vieira / Photo: John Lamonica

Nova União’s Bruno Bastos has already stated that his team’s objective is nothing short of placing first at the tournament set to take the Kitty Magee Arena by storm this coming May 8 in Dallas, Texas, and a major contingent from the outfit appearing on the competitor list proves he means business.

And the other big teams from around the United States look intent on throwing a wrench in Bastos’s plans, with teams Gracie Barra, Gracie Humaitá, Lovato BJJ, Lloyd Irvin, Team Lutter, Ribeiro JJ, Mohler BJJ, Marra Senki, Brasa, and Alliance all figuring in numbers on the roster, as well.

Don’t miss the chance to put your skills to the test at the first-ever IBJJF tournament to grace the Dallas area, sign up here.

Bruno in final against Rodolfo Vieira / Photo: John Lamonica

This Saturday, April 30, is the last day to get in on the gentle art action set to rock the Kitty Magee Arena in Dallas, Texas, this coming May 8.

All the big academies from around the US are set to be at the inaugural Dallas Open, with Gracie Barra, Gracie Humaitá, Lovato BJJ, Lloyd Irvin, Team Lutter, Ribeiro JJ, Mohler BJJ, Marra Senki, Brasa and Alliance all well represented on the sign-up list so far.

And team Nova União has made no secret of its intention to take the championship by storm, with the Gustavo Dantas- and Bruno Bastos-led outfit already figuring heavily on the roster. Check out what Bruno Bastos said they have planned for the event, here.

So are you going to sit around and let them have their way, or are you going do your part to rain on Nova União’s parade? Secure you spot at the best place in the house by putting your name on the competitor list, here.

Bruno in final against Rodolfo Vieira / Photo: John Lamonica

Bruno Bastos has been making life rough for his opponents. The black belt nabbed second place in Abu Dhabi, losing only to Rodolfo Vieira on points.

“I injured my arm, made it to the final with just one arm. I couldn’t believe it! But I’ve already gone through a lot of physiotherapy and will be at the Worlds looking for more medals no problem,” he assures.

The fighter has one more challenge before then, though – but as a teacher. Bruno wants to lead his team to the top of the winners’ podium in Dallas, and his chance will come May 8, when the Dallas International Open is set to take place.

“We’re going to put a bunch of guys in the event, we want to get a hundred in there. We’ll even have a reinforcement – Kaue Damasceno, one of our best purple belts in Brazil will be there,” says the Nova União rep.

“In the short time I’ve been here I think we’ve had good results. Making it to first place at the Pan and Worlds is still a hard goal to achieve, but we have what it takes at the regional tournaments. We took second at the Houston Open, for example. Here in Dallas there are other great teams, but we’re going for top spot just as we will at the Phoenix Open. That will be the kickoff for us. Who knows? We may even make it onto the podium at the Worlds, too,” he adds.

So on May 8 the competition areas at Dallas’s Kitty Magee Arena will receive athletes from all over Texas, a state boasting a great number of the USA’s finest teams.

Waste no time, get in on yet another big event from the IBJJF by clicking here. Sign-ups end April 29.

And to get some good training in while in Texas, check out the list of GRACIEMAG’s associate academies there:

Pesadelo Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
1607 W. Mockingbird
Dallas, TX. 75235
# 1 214 630 4866
www.dfwgun.com
www.pesadelotriangulo.blogspot.com

Allen Mohler BJJ & MMA
Alliance Jiu Jitsu of Texas
989 W.Sandy Lake Rd. Suite 400
Coppell TX 75019
# 1 214 738 0640
www.mohlerjiu-jitsu.com

Gracie Barra Abilene
2960 N 1st St
Abilene, TX 79606
# 1 325 480 4853
www.graciebarraabilene.com

Gracie Barra Magnolia
6960 FM 1488 Suite 103
Magnolia, TX 77354
# 1 281 259 3656

Gracie Barra Texas
363 El Dorado Blvd
Webster, TX 77598
# 1 281 218 7972
www.graciebarratx.com

Gracie Barra Westchase
9099 Westheimer Rd.
Houston, TX 77063
# 1 832 541 6535
www.gbwestchase.com

Gracie Barra The Woodlands
606 Rayford Rd.
Spring, Tx. 77386
# 1 281 298 3662
www.mmathewoodlands.com

Joao Crus Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
120 Frog Pond Lane #200
Dripping Springs, TX 78620
# 1 512 644 4560
www.joaocrusbjj.com

Joao Crus Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
14360 RR 12
Wimberley, TX 78676
# 1 512 644 4560
www.joaocrusbjj.com

Mundial Fight CO.
619 Pecan Blvd
McAllen, TX 78501
# 1 956 607 9019
www.mundialfightshop.com

North Dallas MMA
9720 Coit Road Suite 111
Plano, Texas 75025
# 1 972 679 4387
www.ndbjj.com

Marra-Senki BJJ Academy
11950 Starcrest Dr #210
San Antonio, TX 78247
# 1 210 491 3844
www.marrajj.com

Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu San Antonio
7715 Mainland Road, Suite 102
San Antonio, Tx 78250
# 1 210 680 8900
www.graciesa.com