Lucas Lepri of Alliance celebrating another win (photo by Dan Rod)

There’s no training today, but that doesn’t mean you can’t train your eyes and mind.

To help you in your Jiu-Jitsu studies, GRACIEMAG.com brings you a classic lightweight match that went down at the 2011 Pan.

Lucas Lepri of Alliance got the better of Soul Fighters’ Augusto Tanquinho and then rushed to celebrate closing out the division with his buddy Michael Langhi.

Watch and learn some tricks to sweeping any opponent at all.

Lucas Lepri (Alliance) comemorando mais uma vitória. Foto: Dan Rod

Hoje não tem treino, mas isso não significa que você deve deixar os olhos e a mente ficarem destreinadas.

Para auxiliar seus estudos de Jiu-Jitsu, hoje o GRACIEMAG.com traz um clássico do peso leve, que ocorreu durante o Pan de 2011.

Mineirinho radicado nos EUA, Lucas Lepri (Alliance) levou a melhor sobre Augusto Tanquinho (Soul Fighters), e depois correu para o abraço para fechar a categoria com o amigo Michael Langhi.

Assista e aprenda os macetes para raspar qualquer um.

Eduardo Telles and Saulo Ribeiro at 2012 International Masters (Photo by Gustavo Aragão/GRACIEMAG)

A Jiu-Jitsu practitioner’s routine is no walk in the park, and that’s precisely why we’re stronger and more confident even outside the academy walls.

When a practitioner is over 30 years of age, though, things get even tougher: there’s work, family life, overall responsibilities. But if you haven’t got an hour of your day to take care of your health and mind, you’re not making the most of the 24 hours per day at your disposal.

In a recent issue of GRACIEMAG, we featured two stories to serve as inspiration to those who have been away from the academy or are thinking to take up the practice once they’re already “getting up there”.

One of them is the decorated 33-year-old Vitor Shaolin. Not having competed in 11 years, he decided to try his hand in competition again last year at the inaugural Master & Senior Worlds, and he rediscovered the taste of victory.

“My wife was on my case. She said I was a nuisance at home, with no competition to go to… Besides that, some of my great friends were going to fight, like Robson Moura, Gustavo Dantas and Ricardo Bastos. That really going me going, and I decided to compete. Once signed up, I came up with reasonable enough time to train, which is no easy task when you have class to teach and kids to take care of,” the Jiu-Jitsu teacher living in New York told reporter Ivan Trindade.

Another role model from our pages is the black belt Itaborá Ferreira, 53. Itaborá had every reason in the world to stay at home—among them, prostate cancer.

But he too hit the mats at the Master & Senior Worlds and won: “I go to the hospital every day. I’m doing radiation therapy and chemotherapy but I wouldn’t let the chance to be here in Long Beach pass. This is my therapy, my fun park. Here I feel alive,” he said.

What about you? Still need inspiration to get out there and start training Jiu-Jitsu?

Refresh your memory of the tough old war horses of the 2011 Pan with the video above, and get your gi ready for the big 2013 season.

Like you, Keenan Cornelius too has learned from defeat. Photo by Dan Rod/GRACIEMAG.

Keenan Cornelius is the biggest Jiu-Jitsu revelation of 2012. After all, the Hawaiian, Lloyd Irvin-trained fighter won everything he was in at purple belt, and after winning double gold at the Worlds, earned his brown belt.

Keenan just kept turning heads at his new rank, outdoing black belt Roberto Tussa, and then raising the roof against Roberto Cyborg at the Abu Dhabis Trials last October in New York.

But a fighter’s life isn’t all wins and glory. The proof that no one is born invincible is here. Before becoming the big name of the year, Keenan got a taste of what it is to lose, at the 2011 Pan, in California.

Keenan faced another purple belt revelation that year, AJ Agazarm of Gracie Barra. Check out the two squaring off, and comment: have you ever experienced a loss that made you all the stronger?

To honor the best Jiu-Jitsu competitor of 2011, as he was deemed by GRACIEMAG, we wrap up the year with an enthralling video, where the locomotive from Campo Grande spills his heart and recounts the course of his career, from his earliest training sessions with Master Júlio Cesar to his crowning achievements.

Para homenagear o melhor lutador de Jiu-Jitsu 2011, conforme eleito pela sua GRACIEMAG, fechamos o ano com um vídeo empolgante, onde a locomotiva de Campo Grande abre o coração e conta tudo sobre sua trajetória, dos primeiros treinos com seu mestre Júlio Cesar à consagração.

Langhi in action at Pan 2011

Michael Langhi has packed his bags for Florida, where he will open a new academy, as GRACIEMAG.com readers already know. In the following interview the black belt comments on his hopes in his career as a teacher and addresses talk following his first loss after three years undefeated: “I’m not retired.”

Here’s what he had to say:

Why move to the USA?

Here in Brazil we know that that’s the best move for the future. We aren’t worth what we would be teaching abroad, where we are more appreciated. So I’ve had this idea in my head for a while now. I’ve been mulling it over with [Rubens] Cobrinha and decided to accept a good offer I was made. I’ll get to teach what I know.

Where will competitions fit into this new routine of yours?

I’m not going to stop competing. I read some comments about that on GRACIEMAG.com. There comes a time in an athlete’s life where he has to change paths a bit. Now I’ll get to work on my new academy, but I’m going to continue competing at events like the Pan and the Worlds. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to participate in some others, like the European Open, but I’m going to be competing to win. I’m not retiring, nothing of the sort. I’m just thinking about my future and I’m still going to be taking everyone on.

But how will you be able to keep up the quality of training you’re used to, have you thought about that?

I’m only going to be an hour’s plane ride from Atlanta, where there are lots of tough training partners. I’ll be a two-hour flight from New York, where Lucas Lepri is. I’ve also worked it out so I’ll be able to go to Brazil to finish up training prior to the Pan and the Worlds. Of course I won’t have the level of training I have here, but that doesn’t mean it’s a determining factor. Cobrinha left Brazil with one world title and won another four while living abroad. Marcelo Garcia left here with two titles and won another four while abroad. I know what I have to do and will always be able to rely on friends like my brother [Michael Langhi], Bruno Malfacine, Gabriel Gulart. Every two months someone will come stay with me.

Will you be in any other competitions this year? Will you be at the ADCC?

Marcelo is in my division at the ADCC and they don’t invite two athletes from the same academy and weight group. Marcelo to me is the best No-Gi athlete in the world, so I know the academy will be well represented. I fly out the last week of September and in late October there’s the Miami Open, who I’ll compete at to motivate the guys at the academy. We’ll see if compete at the No-Gi Worlds, but I’ll be at the Miami Open for sure.

What challenges do you think await you as a teacher?

I try to be at my best in whatever I do. It’s what I love doing. I’ve been a black belt for four years, competing at all the tournaments and going three years without losing. In the Jiu-Jitsu of today, I feel that’s a great achievement. It’ll be the same thing as a teacher, I want to be the best I can be. I know this year I didn’t perform that well, but even so I had good results. I won the Pan and Euro, beat Durinho in the World Pro qualifiers, made it to the podium at the Brazilian Nationals and the Worlds, where I lost to Kron Gracie but feel I deserved to win. I’m going to keep giving my all.

Langhi em ação no Pan 2011.

Michael Langhi, o leitor já ficou sabendo aqui no GRACIEMAG.com, está de mudança para a Flórida, onde vai comandar a nova academia. Num bate-papo, o faixa-preta comenta o que espera da vida como professor, como seguirão os treinos, o fato de ter perdido após três anos invicto e promete: “Não estou me aposentando”.

Confira:

Por que a mudança para os EUA?

Aqui no Brasil sabemos que o futuro muitas vezes é esse. Não temos o valor que gostaríamos e temos que dar aulas lá fora, onde somos mais valorizados. Então, já vinha com essa ideia na cabeça, vinha amadurecendo isso com o (Rubens) Cobrinha e resolvi aceitar essa boa proposta. Vou ensinar o que eu sei para os alunos.

Como ficam as competições nesta nova rotina?

Não vou deixar de lutar. Li alguns comentários sobre isso no GRACIEMAG.com. Há um momento na vida do atleta que ele tem que mudar um pouco o caminho. Agora quero trabalhar em cima da minha academia, mas vou continuar lutando eventos como o Pan e Mundial. Infelizmente, não vou participar de alguns outros, como o Europeu, mas o que eu lutar vai ser para ganhar. Não estou me aposentando, não é nada disso. Estou apenas pensando no meu futuro e ainda vou bater de frente com a galera.

Mas como vai ser possível manter a qualidade dos treinos, já pensou nisso?

Vou estar a apenas uma hora de avião de Atlanta, onde tem muitos treinos duros, vou estar a duas horas de Nova York, do Lucas Lepre. Já deixei combinado, também, que antes do Pan e Mundial venho ao Brasil para finalizar o treinamento. Claro que não vou ter o treino que tenho aqui, mas não quer dizer que isso seja determinante. O Cobrinha saiu do Brasil com um título mundial e ganhou mais três morando fora. O Marcelinho Garcia saiu daqui com dois títulos e ganhou mais três lá fora. Sei o que tenho que fazer e vou contar sempre com a visita de amigos como o meu irmão (Michel Langhi), do Bruno Malfacine, do Gabriel Gulart… A cada dois meses vem alguém ficar comigo.

Luta mais algum campeonato neste ano, participa do ADCC?

O ADCC tem o Marcelinho na minha categoria e eles não convidam atletas da mesma categoria e academia. O Marcelinho, para mim, é o melhor atleta do mundo sem kimono e sei que a academia vai estar bem representada. Viajo na última semana de setembro e no final de outubro tem o Miami Open, que vou lutar para incentivar a galera da academia. Vamos ver se luto o Mundial Sem Kimono, mas o Miami Open eu luto.

O que esperado desafio de ser professor?

Tudo o que eu faço, tento ser da melhor forma possível. É o que eu amo fazer. Tenho quatro anos de preta, lutando tudo, e fiquei três anos sem perder. No Jiu-Jitsu atual, acho que isso foi um grande feito. Como professor vai ser da mesma forma, quero o meu melhor. Este ano, sei, não tive um desempenho tão bom, mas, mesmo assim, tive bons resultados. Ganhei Pan e Europeu, derrotei o Durinho na seletiva para o World Pro, fui pódio no Brasileiro e Mundial, este tendo perdido para o Kron Gracie numa luta que acho que merecia ter vencido. Vou continuar dando o máximo.

O que ele aprontou antes, você confere aqui, neste vídeo sugerido pelo leitor Boi de Piranha. Valeu, Boi.

What he did before then, though, you can find here, in the video recommended by our reader Boi de Piranha. Much obliged, Boi.

Ronaldo alongside also world champ Durinho / Photo: Personal archive

One of the Atos aces to enter the scene by storm, winning the Brazilian Nationals, Pan and Worlds at light featherweight, Ronaldo Candido carries on strong in competition. Last Saturday in Las Vegas the brown belt took on the black belts in the Grapplers Quest advanced division and had a splendid display.

“I fought in the under-67kg black belt division. I won a belt and a medal, had three matches in all. The first I won on points, the semifinal by rear-naked choke, and the final by guillotine choke. Thank God I’m keeping up my solid performances in competition. I’ve been practicing a lot of No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu here in San Diego with André Galvão, Bruno Frazatto and Davi Ramos, who has been helping me a lot in training,” he told GRACIEMAG.com.

Photo: personal archive

“I’m doing a season here in San Diego and it’s been great. I’m learning a lot and I’ll be in any competition that comes up here in California. I’m hungry and want to compete. I’d like to thank Ramon Lemos and the whole Atos team,” he says in closing.

Ronaldo ao lado do também campeão mundial Durinho. Foto: Arquivo Pessoal.

Uma das feras da Atos que surge com força, depois de ser campeão do Brasileio, do Pan e do Mundial no peso pluma, Ronaldo Candido segue bem nas competições. No último sábado, em Las Vegas, o faixa-marrom lutou contra os pretas na categoria avançado do Grapplers Quest e foi bem.

“Lutei na categoria dos pretas até 67kg. Ganhei um cinturão e medalha, fiz três lutas no total. A primeira venci por pontos, a semi-final finalizei com um mata-leão e a final finalizei com uma guilhotina. Graças a Deus estou mantendo o bom ritmo nas competições. Sigo treinando muito sem kimono aqui em San Diego com o André Galvão, Bruno Frazatto, e o Davi Ramos, que estão me ajudando bastante nos treinos”, comenta ao GRACIEMAG.com.

Foto: Arquivo Pessoal.

“Passo uma temporada aqui em San Diego e está sendo muito legal. Estou aprendendo muito e qualquer competição que tiver pela Califórnia vou participar. Estou com apetite e vou cair para dentro! Agradeço também ao Ramon Lemos e a todos da equipe Atos”, encerra.