Category: BJJ Athletes

Johnny Tama hails from Guayaquil, Ecuador and got into BJJ for self defense reasons. Like many, his entry into martial arts involved fighting, as he mentions “I started training BJJ […]

Justus Göschel is a BJJ athlete from Aachen, Germany who started grappling at the age of 15 years old. As mentioned here, his journey began with Combat Sambo, “I had […]

Dinu Bucalet is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu athlete originally from Bucharest, Romania – however, he now lives in London, UK. He got into BJJ around 15-16 years old, as he […]

Priit Mihkelson is a black belt from Estonia who is widely regarded as one of Europe’s biggest innovators when it comes to BJJ. Known for his defensive prowess, he has […]

Born in 1983, Rafael ‘Formiga’ Barbosa is a black belt who is from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil . He began training BJJ at age 11 after being inspired by watching […]

Shane Fishman is from Toronto, Ontario and began training BJJ at age 15 years old. As he puts it, “An MMA gym opened up in my neighbourhood. I was still […]

Maybelline Masuda is from the province of Laguna but was raised in Metro Manila, Philippines. Earning her black belt at age 29 in 2018, she trains under Deftac, which belongs […]

Giancarlo Bodoni is a brown belt competitor who trains and teaches at Bernardo Faria’s gym in Massachusetts. Growing up in Miami, Florida, he began training at a young age and […]

Wanki Chae is the owner and head instructor of The Beast Gym. He was the youngest ever Korean to receive a black belt at age 27 under John Frankl

Eli Knight is a BJJ athlete who currently lives in Paducah, KY and started training BJJ at age 17, roughly one year after he began training Japanese Jiu Jitsu. His […]