Lovato Jr. himself broke a FIVE record by winning all four black belt champion belts: weight and absolute in both gi and no-gi!

See the champions in action in this highlight by KnockEm or LockEm:

Learn more about Rafael Lovato Jr. and the Lovato School of BJJ at www.okbjj.com

Rafael Lovato Jr. of GMA Lovato’s School of BJJ & MMA will be out on the road for a few seminars coming up this summer. This Saturday, July 26, he will be making his way to the Texas area for a three-hour seminar in Garland.

The seminar starts at 12 p.m. and will run until 3 p.m. at Redemption Jiu-Jitsu located at 354 E. I-30 Suite B Garland, TX.

The cost is $90 for students of Redemption Jiu-Jitsu and $100 for guests.

To reserve your spot call 972-861-2551.

On the following day, Lovato will visit Wichita Falls, TX for another three-hour event. This seminar runs from 12 to 3 p.m. at Texoma BJJ located at 4020 Rhea Rd Suite 7C Wichita Falls, TX.

The cost is $85 for Texoma BJJ members and $100 for guests.

Reserve your spot by visiting www.texomabjj.com

And on August 5, GMA Seaside Jiu-Jitsu will host Lovato in Seaside, OR. This seminar will cost $75 per person. The location will be 1601 S. Roosevelt Seaside, OR.

Register at www.oregonjjevents.com

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Learn more about Rafael Lovato Jr. and his GMA academy at www.okbjj.com

Lovato, who heads a school in Oklahoma City, is an avid competitor and at the 2014 World Championship he faced Alexandro Ceconi. Here is how the match went down:

Check out more of Rafael Lovato Jr. and his academy at www.okbjj.com

The black belt world champion works hard each and every year to promote Jiu-Jitsu, his students at his academy in Oklahoma City, and his progress on the competition mats.

Check out this match between Lovato and Antonio Peinado at the 2014 European Jiu-Jitsu Championship earlier this year and wish him a happy birthday.

You can follow his GMA academy news at www.okbjj.com

James Puopolo with his judo professor Andy Hung after his brown belt promotion. Photo: Personal Archive

What most high-level athletes do with their training extends outside of training Jiu-Jitsu. Drilling, conditioning, wrestling, crossfit are all ways in which competitors can raise their skill levels for tournaments and becoming well-rounded martial artists.

For James Puopolo, a black belt competitor under GMA member Rafael Lovato Jr., judo has been a great addition to his training routine. In fact, he just received his brown belt from Andy Hung at Portland Judo in Portland, OR so we decided to ask about his training.

James recently won double gold at the 2014 IBJJF Houston Open on Feb. 22-23 and will be competing at the Pan American Championship in two weeks. See how he trains and constantly improves his skills:

GRACIEMAG: How long have you been training Judo and why did you seek out that martial art?

JAMES PUOPOLO: I’ve been training judo for about three years. It’s been great supplementary training. Like any of my training my main motivation was to find another way to win. Almost all of the great champions have judo. Saulo, Xande, and Rafael all have great judo.

What other ways do you cross train?

I do a lot of cross training since I’m out here in Oregon. I do a lot of strength and conditioning, tons of yoga/ flexibility training, and I’ve recently added pilates twice a week which has been really helpful.

Does training  judo give you confidence to stay standing with opponents in competition?

At this point I feel like my judo is getting to where I feel confident standing with most guys. I would definitely still consider myself a guard player, but I have seen judo as a long term project that I will use a lot in the future.

Besides stand-up, how does Judo help your Jiu-Jitsu?

Judo has really helped my grips. Once I started training with Lovato I realized I was getting destroyed by his gripping. Also, I think judo helps your base and being able to manipulate your opponent’s weight on sweeps.

What has your training been like for Pan-Ams?

Training for Pan-Ams has been awesome. I just got back from a ten day trip to OKC training with Rafael and Ben Baxter. Houston was a great prep tournament. My nutrition is good right now and I’m feeling strong. Can’t wait to show my progression down in Irvine.

To compete alongside James at the Pan American Championship, go to www.ibjjf.org to register!

Team Lovato kids at the AGF tournament in Oklahoma City on Nov. 16. Photo: Personal Archive

On Nov. 16, GMA Team Lovato sent an army to the AGF tournament which happened right in their hometown. Both adults and kids competed in the gi and no-gi divisions. There were nearly 90 members of the team at The Cube representing. Some of those numbers were from Lovato’s affiliate in Wichita, KS.

The overall team trophy was won as determined by the number one rankings in kids gi and no-gi as well as adult gi and no-gi. The students of Team Lovato represented Professor Rafael Lovato Jr. and coach Justin Rader well!

Here are the overall team results:

Kids No-Gi
First – Lovato BJJ (117)
Second – Triton Fight Center (52)
Third – Defiant Martial Arts (39)

Kids Gi
First – Lovato BJJ (179)
Second – Triton Fight Center (57)
Third – Ryan BJJ (39)

Adults No-Gi
First – Lovato BJJ (67)
Second – Apex BJJ (48)
Third – Cobra BJJ (47)

Adults Gi
First – Lovato BJJ (116)
Second – American Elite MMA (113)
Third – Triton FIght Center (79)

Overall Team Champion
Lovato BJJ (479 points)

Follow more of Team Lovato’s competition results at www.okbjj.com

Rafael Lovato Jr. pays tribute to his father who competed at the 2013 Masters and Seniors Worlds. Photo: Instagram @Lovatojrbjj

This past weekend on Oct. 5 and 6 at the 2013 IBJJF Masters and Seniors World Championship, the father of Rafael Lovato Jr., was present. He competed in the black belt senior 4 category and took home the bronze at his first black belt competition. As Lovato Jr. explains on his instagram, the American black belt world champion pays tribute to the man who helped him become who he is today. Even though the roles were reversed as he took on the role of leading his father’s training for the tournament, he still looks up to him as a role model.

He says:

“In April 2009, my family & I, & all the @lovatobjjmma students were hit with a huge shock when my father suffered a heart attack and was rushed to the hospital where his heart actually stopped and he was revived. My father stayed strong, recovered, and came back a new man. He got himself back into great shape and set out to accomplish two missions. The first was to walk the Camino de Santiago across Spain. This is a 6wk journey that you do with nothing but a backpack and he accomplished this goal last year. The picture on top is from the day he left.

The 2nd mission was to finally compete as a Black Belt and he was able to achieve that goal today! He trained for over 6 weeks to get ready for the competition and I had the pleasure to help him get ready and be the trainer for my father, when it was the other way around for most of my life. He hadn’t competed since he was a purple belt, over 13 years ago. Despite that and having to go down an age category, he still fought great and only lost by a takedown, giving his all the whole time. If you want to know where my heart, dedication, work ethic, and passion come from, it his from him.”

Congrats to Rafael Lovato Sr. and Jr. for their continuous inspiration in the community.

Alongside Lovato who will be competing in the -88kg division will be his first black belt Justin Rader in the -66kg division, another one of his black belts James Puopolo in the -99kg and purple belt Jared Dopp in the +99kg division.

See how the road to ADCC 2013 is coming along for the team:

This year Justin announced his move to MMA and save for his invitation to ADCC, his Jiu-Jitsu competition schedule is no longer booked. At the beginning of the year he completed his masters degree in dietetics from Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and plans to take on the ADCC title in the under 77 kg category later this year in Beijing, China. So far, a good year for the busy American black belt.

Roger Gracie, Coach Josuel Distak and Ronaldo Jacaré in Oklahoma on the days leading up to weigh-ins (personal archive photo)

Former rivals from their days in competition Jiu-Jitsu, where they made their mark on the sport’s history, Roger Gracie and Ronaldo “Jacaré” Souza fought for the same dream: to become absolute champion of the world. Both of them succeeded.

With time the two aces decided to migrate to MMA, where they carry on in their battle to the top. And both are already knocking on the door of the world’s premier MMA promotion, the UFC, as their tenure at Strikeforce ends with their participation on the company’s farewell card this Saturday, Jan. 12, in Oklahoma.

This Thursday, the two champions met up amicably, despite the pre-weigh-in hunger they were feeling. Alongside boxing coach Josuel Distak, Gracie and Jacaré sat down at the same table and exchanged pleasantries.

Five matches between Roger Gracie and Ronaldo Jacaré

Roger and Jacaré have faced each other in Jiu-Jitsu on five occasions, one of them without the gi—the absolute final at the 2005 ADCC. The one that caused the biggest hoopla came before then, though, in the absolute division at the 2004 World Championship.

Gracie and Jacaré made it to the final of the black belt absolute and starred in an epic duel where Jacaré had his arm dislocated by a Gracie armbar. Nevertheless, he held out till the end to win his first gold medal as a black belt.

On weight

The two aces have a date with the scale today, when official weigh-ins for the last Strikeforce event go down at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.

Strikeforce:  Marquardt vs. Saffiedine
Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
January 12, 2013

• Nate Marquardt vs. Tarec Saffiedine
• Daniel Cormier vs. Dion Staring
• Josh Barnett vs. Nandor Guelmino
• Gegard Mousasi vs. Mike Kyle
• Ronaldo Jacaré vs. Ed Herman

Under card (only on Showtime Extreme)

• Pat Healy vs. Kurt Holobaugh
• Roger Gracie vs. Anthony Smith
• Tim Kennedy vs. Trevor Smith
• Ryan Couture vs. K.J. Noons

Under card (not broadcast on TV)

• Jorge Gurgel vs. Adriano Martins
• Michael Bravo vs. Estevan Payan

For more UFC and MMA coverage,
visit GRACIEMAG.com’s Choke MMA section

Roger Gracie, o treinador Josuel Distak e Ronaldo Jacaré em Oklahoma, nas vésperas da pesagem. Foto: Arquivo Pessoal

Ex-rivais no Jiu-Jitsu, esporte em que deixaram suas marcas na história, Roger Gracie e Ronaldo Jacaré lutavam pelo mesmo sonho: o de se tornar campeão mundial absoluto. Ambos conseguiram.

Com o tempo as duas feras decidiram migrar para o MMA, e continuam na mesma batalha pelo topo. E ambos já estão perto da porta da maior organização de MMA, o UFC, pois fazem sua última luta no ciclo do Strikeforce, sábado, 12 de janeiro, em Oklahoma.

Nesta quinta-feira, os dois campeões se reencontraram em clima amistoso, apesar da fome que antecede as pesagens. Com o treinador Josuel Distak, Roger e Jaca sentaram à mesma mesa e trocaram elogios, que ganharam o mundo pelo Twitter e pelo Facebook.

5 lutas entre Roger Gracie e Ronaldo Jacaré

Roger e Jacaré lutaram cinco vezes no Jiu-Jitsu, uma delas sem kimono, na final do absoluto do ADCC 2005. A luta mais comentada foi antes, porém, em 2004, em luta válida pelo Campeonato Mundial, também na final do aberto.

Roger e Ronaldo Jacaré chegaram à final do absoluto faixa-preta e protagonizaram um duelo épico, em que Jacaré teve o braço deslocado num armlock, mas não bateu e ficou com seu primeiro ouro na faixa-preta.

No peso

As duas feras têm o compromisso de bater o mesmo peso amanhã, 84kg. A pesagem rola às 8h, horário de Brasília, no Chesapeake Energy Arena, na cidade de Oklahoma, no estado de mesmo nome.

Strikeforce:  Marquardt vs Saffiedine

Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

12 de janeiro de 2013

Nate Marquardt vs Tarec Saffiedine

Daniel Cormier vs Dion Staring

Josh Barnett vs Nandor Guelmino

Gegard Mousasi vs Mike Kyle

Ronaldo Jacaré vs Ed Herman

Card Preliminar (apenas no Showtime Extreme)

Pat Healy vs Kurt Holobaugh

Roger Gracie vs Anthony Smith

Tim Kennedy vs Trevor Smith

Ryan Couture vs KJ Noons

Preliminar (sem TV)

Jorge Gurgel vs Adriano Martins

Michael Bravo vs Estevan Payan

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