Rodrigo, Marcelo

GMA member Rodrigo Mendes scheduled a special class in Florida.

The leader of Gracie Barra Delray Beach will welcome fellow black belt Marcelo Ribeiro.

The seminar is scheduled October 20th, from 6:00pm – 9:00pm.

The cost is US$ 30 form GB members and US$ 40 for non-members and sign ups end on October 19th.

Ribeiro is a third degree black belt under Carlos Gracie Jr.

For more info, go to rmbjj.com

Mandes (center) and his team

GMA member Rodrigo Mendes had some tough  times recently.

He was away from Jiu-Jitsu competitions for three years, due to injuries: “My last fight was against Fábio Leopoldo, at the 2008 Pan. I had two surgeries since, one on my back and the other on my gallbladder.”

The comeback was scheduled for the American Nationals, two weeks ago. The leader of Gracie Barra Delray Beach, in Florida, travelled to California with one thing in mind; come back with a blast.

And that he did: “I won my division and the absolute in the nogi competition and my weight category at the gi tournament”.

A bronze medal completed the set of jewerly:”The gi open class semifinal ended with a tie and the referee gave the match to my adversary, who went to the final against Saulo Ribeiro. The crowd thought I won, but I know how hard it is to ref a Jiu-Jitsu match.”

To make things perfect, Rodrigo also had some team results to celebrate, as his students gave a real showing: “With only five guys, we went back home with 13 medals.”

Rodrigo, recently graduated to the 2nd degree of the black belt by the IBJJF, knows that such results are just the beginning.

Here is a video of the absolute Nogi final:

For more info, go to rmbjjacademy.com

Rolles in MMA action / Photo: Susumu Naga

Son of the legendary Rolls Gracie, MMA fighter, and teacher at Renzo Gracie’s academy in Holmdel – Rolles Gracie will be conducting a seminar at our GMA Gracie Barra Delray Beach in Florida on June 12.

The third-degree black belt will be demonstrating some of his favorite Jiu-Jitsu techniques. It’s also a great opportunity for practitioners to learn a bit more about the Gracie family.

Space is limited. Anyone interested should contact the school or email rodrigo@rmbjj.com.

Rolles em ação no MMA. Foto: Susumu Nagao

Filho do lendário Rolls Gracie, lutador de MMA e instrutor de Renzo Gracie em Holmdel, NJ, Rolles Gracie conduz um seminário, no dia 12 de junho, na Gracie Barra Delray Beach, nossa GMA na Flórida.

O faixa-preta três graus mostra algumas das suas técnicas favoritas de Jiu-Jitsu. Também é uma grande oportunidade para os praticantes aprenderem um pouco mais sobre a família Gracie.

As inscrições são limitadas. Os interessados devem entrar em contato com a escola ou pelo e-mail rodrigo@rmbjj.com.

Full house

Our GMA Rodrigo Mendes had a graduation ceremony last week.

Over 70 students showed up for the celebration.

Yhe evening featured some skill displays from the students, diplomas to each pupil with a new degree or belt and a lot of fun, as Rodrigo tells us.

Group take down

“All 70 students tried to take me down but I held my feet”.

For more info, go to rmbjjacademy.com

Gracie Barra Naples Annual Potluck

This year our party was at Sugden Park in beautiful, sunny Naples, Florida! After the park, later on that evening, they invited everyone out to go bowling, so students who could not make it to the park, could come try to beat Prof. Paulo at bowling, which he swears he is the best at! Professor Paulo said, “The party was awesome! It was a great turn out, with tons of delicious plates! We here at GB Naples consider our students our friends and family. They are a large part of our lives, and without them we would not be here. We love the holidays because they give us a chance to relate that message to them and really fortify that family spirit that we are all about.”

Gracie Barra America's 1st annual potluck party

This year GB America held their first annual potluck party for their students. They had a special class schedule for the students and a potluck party after the classes. The staff had a great time getting to know their students and families better. The students enjoyed socializing with each other, especially since they have been training together diligently throughout their BJJ journey. Erika Carrillo Program Director GBA USHQ said, “We had a great time at our holiday party this year! It was awesome being able to get to know our students off the mats. We have created such a strong bond on the mats with each and every one of them and this gave us an opportunity to get to know them on a personal level.”

Gracie Barra Long Island’s 2nd Annual Holiday Party and Belt Ceremony

Gracie Barra Long Island rented out a catering hall and held their 2nd Annual Holiday Party and Belt Ceremony. They had 12 promotions this year. Some of them were put off for a few months in order to make this a very memorable occasion. They promoted two students to brown belt, three to purple belt, and seven to blue belt. One instructor said, “To make this occasion special and to truly exemplify the slogan ‘Organized like a team, fighting like a family’ we flew in a special guest from the North Pole. This year Santa Claus was our host for our 2nd Annual Belt Ceremony. Having Santa Claus there was fun, but mostly it’s the camaraderie and family atmosphere that Gracie Barra instills in us that makes it special and all the GB Professors that make these occasions possible.

Gracie Barra Delray’s Holiday Graduation Ceremony

Professor Rodrigo Mendes runs Florida’s newest GB school, GB Delray Beach. They recently held their Holiday Graduation Ceremony. It was a celebration of not only the holiday season and the accomplishments of their students, but also their brand new location and their new affiliation with Gracie Barra. Professor Rodrigo praised his students, “Among the many students who graduated to higher levels in bjj were: Savio Bianchi, who was awarded his Orange Belt. He is a terrific example for all the kids in our program. Two others in our juvenile program, Lidio Meira and Marcelo Fonseca, were awarded their blue belts. Both Lidio and Marcelo won their respective juvenile blue belt divisions at the recent Miami International Open, even though they were white belts at the time of the competition. While several of our adults also increased their rank, I would like to mention that Paul Geller is a full time lawyer who makes time to train whenever he can and he also helps me teach the kids’ classes. Paul recently won his division in the Miami International Open (and took second in the absolute). Paul was awarded his Purple Belt at the ceremony. It was a great day!”

Gracie Barra Yorba Linda’s 1st Annual Holiday Potluck

Gracie Barra Yorba Linda celebrated their 1st annual holiday potluck celebration with their students and staff. The event was especially fun because it gave the staff, as well as the students, a chance to get to know each other much better. Some of the students have been training together for almost two years and they hoped that all of their students could start to truly enjoy Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as a lifestyle.