Dilon celebrates his win at the 2014 Pan Jiu-Jitsu Championship. Photo: Erin Herle

After the double gold at the 2014 IBJJF New York Open, a brown belt taught by star Marcelo Garcia gained prominence in the Jiu-Jitsu scene. Dillon Danis, 20, won the middleweight and absolute, closing with teammates. The promising young athlete won five fights.

Dillon also dominated the middleweight category at the the Pans and Worlds this year.

In conversation with GRACIEMAG, the Alliance athlete told how he plays against heavier opponents, and passed on the lessons he learns from his teacher Marcelo.

GRACIEMAG: What did you do differently in this competition, Dillon?

DILLON DANIS: Nothing different. I always do the same thing. I want to dominant, that’s my style. I like to score as many points as possible while always attacking. I want my opponent to never want to fight me again.

In the middleweight category, you closed out the competition with your teammate Jonathan Satava. But, for that to happen, first you had to take on Tye Ryan Murphy of Team Lloyd Irvin. Talk me through how you subbed him.

I know from watching Tye before that he is very physical and aggressive so going in I knew I had to be smart and use my mind and go around his force using it against him, which I did eventually finishing with a toehold.

You were also successful in the open. What was the secret to beating that division?

For me I love fighting the absolute because it gives me the chance to try my Jiu-Jitsu against all sizes especially bigger opponents. A big thing for me is when I was growing up I was very weak and was always on the defense because I was training with men. When I was a kid my defense became really good so now when I fight bigger opponents I don’t have to change my style. I do the same thing: go for the kill because I have no fear. I attack without caution because I am comfortable in bad positions.

In the absolute semi final you overcame Gustavo. Can you talk about that one in some detail?

He was very flexible with very strong grips and the thing about strong grips is that they can’t last forever so I kept the pressure and never stopped moving forward until he got tired and I could work my game.

You are a student of one of the greatest talents ever produced by BJJ, Marcelo Garcia. What was your most unforgettable training session with him?

I don’t remember an exact session but every time I train with Marcelo it’s unforgettable. He is a special talent. I am so blessed to get to roll with him. I don’t know if there will ever be anyone like him again. People ask me all the time what it’s like to roll with him and I say I can’t explain; you have to feel it for yourself.

And what sorts of BJJ lessons does he currently pass onto you?

Marcelo is the best role model in Jiu-Jitsu and in life he has taught me so much on how to be humble and many other things. I can’t thank him enough but the best lesson he has taught me in Jiu- Jitsu is to always attack, never move backward.

At WPJJC this year you didn’t close it out with your teammate Satava. Do you have a policy against that? What is your opinion?

At our gym we have a policy as a team that you either fight or flip a coin to decide the winner so when the time comes we talk and choose what we’re gonna do between each other. In my opinion the big events should be fought because the fans deserve a fight but it’s easier said than done because my training partners are like family. We do everything together.

Michael Sergi in the blue. Photo: Erin Herle

Michael Sergi of GMA Serg BJJ traveled from Savannah to NYC for the 2014 IBJJF New York Summer Open. Along with him came two students from his school and one other from Marcio Cruz BJJ.

In total, they took home one gold, one silver and one bronze. For Michael, this was his first tournament as a black belt. Of the experience he says, “I competed against some very good and very experienced competitors.” He earned silver in his medium-heavy weight class and a silver in the open class.

The team as a whole, Marcio Cruz BJJ, came in 24 out of 140 teams with only four competitors. Congratulations.

To learn more about Serg BJJ in Savannah, GA, visit www.sergbjj.com

Após guerra, Gianni Grippo vence Rodrigo Freitas na decisão. Foto: Erin Herle/GRACIEMAG

O New York Summer Open, realizado nesse sábado, dia 19, trouxe alguns dos mais duros faixas-pretas para o Ginásio Nat Holman.

O atleta que ficou com dois ouros no dia foi Gianni Grippo, da Alliance/Marcelo Garcia. Outros nomes de destaque, como Rodrigo Freitas e Vitor Oliveira estiveram presentes no acirrado campeonato.

Nas divisão de peso, os resultados foram:

Galo: David Zennario (Vicente Jr.)
Pluma: John Cho (Alliance NYC) venceu Sidemar Honorio (Renzo Gracie) por 4 a 2 nos pontos
Pena: Edson Oliveira (Barbosa) venceu Joseph Taliercio (Renzo Gracie)
Leve: Gianni Grippo (Alliance/Marcelo Garcia) venceu Rodrigo Freitas (Gracie Barra) por 2 a 0 nos pontos
Médio: Vitor Oliveira (GFTeam) finalizou Fletcher Linton (Maxercise) no armlock
Meio-pesado: Antonio Antonioli (Atos) finalizou Vinicius Silva (Team Link) no armlock
Pesado: Vitor Toledo (Atos) finalizou Thomas Johannessen (Frontline) no armlock
Super-pesado: Lincoln Pereira (Renzo Gracie) Rodrigo Reis (Tanque Jiu-Jitsu) na chave de pé.
Pesadíssimo: Kenny Brown (Lloyd Irvin) finalizou Tiago Ribeiro (Team Giraffe Academy) no ezequiel.

No peso aberto, tivemos os seguintes combates:

Thomas Johannessen finalizou Tiago Ribeiro no triângulo
Samuel Hertzog finalizou David Zennario no armlock
Steven Barrett finalizou Joseph Taliercio no triângulo
Rodrigo Reis finalizou Fletcher Linton no ezequiel
Thomas Johannessen venceu Kenny Brown por 4 a 0 nos pontos
Rodrigo Freitas finalizou Samuel Hertzog no triângulo
Eliot Kelly venceu Rodrigo Reis por 5 a 0 nos pontos
Gianni Grippo venceu Steven Barrett no crucifixo

Semifinais

Rodrigo Freitas venceu Thomas Johannessen nos pontos
Gianni Grippo venceu Eliot Kelly por 11 a 2 nos pontos

Final

Gianni Grippo venceu Rodrigo Freitas na decisão dos árbitros (1 a 1 nas vantagens e penalidades)

Para conferir os resultados completos do torneio, clique aqui.

The 2014 IBJJF New York Summer Open on Saturday, July 19 brought some tough black belts into the Nat Holman Gymnasium on the campus of City College of New York.

The double-gold athlete of the day went to, again, Gianni Grippo of Alliance Marcelo Garcia. Other names like Rodrigo Freitas and Vitor Oliveira were present to show their skills between the big tournaments.

Here are the results of the black belt division finals:

Rooster: David Zennario of Vicente Jr. Team had no other competitors.
Light-feather:  John Cho of Alliance NYC defeated  Sidemar Honorio of Renzo Gracie by 4-2 points.
Feather: Edson Oliveira of Barbosa Equipe defeated Joseph Taliercio of Renzo Gracie.
Light: Gianni Grippo of Alliance Marcelo Garcia defeated Rodrigo Freitas of Gracie Barra by 2 points.
Middle: Vitor Oliveira of GFTeam defeated Fletcher Linton of Maxercise by armbar.
Medium-heavy: Antonio Antonioli of Atos defeated Vinicius Silva of Team Link by armbar.
Heavy: Vitor Toledo of Atos defeated Thomas Johannessen of Frontline Academy by armbar.
Super-heavy: Lincoln Pereira of Renzo Gracie defeated Rodrigo Reis of Tanque Jiu-Jitsu by toehold.
Ultra-heavy: Kenny Brown of Team Lloyd Irvin defeated Tiago Ribeiro of Team Giraffe Academy by ezekiel.

See the photos of matches below:

Here is how the black belt absolute division unfolded:

Thomas Johannessen defeated Tiago Ribeiro by triangle.
Samuel Hertzog defeated David Zennario by armbar.
Steven Barrett defeated Joseph Taliercio by triangle.
Rodrigo Reis defeated Fletcher Linton by ezekiel.
Thomas Johannessen defeated Kenny Brown by 4-0 points.
Rodrigo Freitas defeated Samuel Hertzog by triangle.
Eliot Kelly defeated Rodrigo Reis by 5-0 points.
Gianni Grippo defeated Steven Barrett by cross choke.

Rodrigo Freitas defeated Thomas Johannessen by 3-0 points.
Gianni Grippo defeated Eliot Kelly by 11-2 points.

Gianni Grippo defeated Rodrigo Freitas by referee decision. (1-1 adv., 1-1 pen.)

Check out the full open class in photos:

See full results here.

Philipe Della Monica and Otavio Sousa close out their division at the NY Open in April. Photo: Erin Herle

The 2013 IBJJF New York Summer Open is the second championship in the Big Apple this year, both closing early due to registration reaching capacity. Many competitors from all over the country, namely up and down the coast, see this opportunity as a way to test their skills against the best in the area.

The schedule is up now, the one day event is set for 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, July 13 with the last division beginning at 7:00 p.m. Click here to see.

The Nat Holman Gymnasium is located on the campus of the City College of New York: 138 th Street & Convent Avenue New York, NY 10031.

Make sure you arrive earlier than usual as the event has security that may delay entrances, especially early in the day.

Some of the best black belts will be present including: Osvaldo ‘Queixinho’, DJ Jackson, Rafael Rosendo, Renan Borges, Daniel Beleza, Leonardo D’avila, Vitor Oliveira and more.

GMA members Marcos Torregrosa and Daniel Alvarez will be making their way from California and Texas respectively.

GMA gyms from the area include Vitor Shaolin Academy, Renzo Gracie Academy, Marcelo Garcia Academy, Gracie Barra Long Island, Alliance NYC and more.

See you there at 9 in the morning and be ready for the long day of high-level Jiu-Jitsu. More information can be seen at www.ibjjf.org