Evolution BJJ to Serve As A Central Location for RGDA Jiu Jitsu

Cleveland, OH will be an unlikely mecca for jiu jitsu this weekend. On Saturday February 25th, David Adiv will be teaching two workshops at Donald Park's Evolution Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy.

Along with David Adiv and Donald Park, a number of Royler Gracie - David Adiv representatives will be in Cleveland for the weekend to sharpen their skills and strengthen the spirit of collaboration that is a hallmark of the Royler Gracie - David Adiv Jiu Jitsu association.

We've received word that the following RGDA representatives will be in house for the weekend of technique and training:

David Adiv (Black Belt, Head of RGDA)
Donald Park (Brown Belt - RGDA Cleveland, OH Instructor)
Jason Tabor (Brown Belt - RGDA HQ Instructor)
Jason Fox (Brown Belt - RGDA Warsaw, IN, Instructor)
Trevor Lewis (Brown Belt - RGDA Barrie, ON, Canada Instructor)
Dave Dayboll (Brown Belt - RGDA Port Colborne, ON, Canada Instructor)
Chris Robinson (Purple Belt - RGDA Newmarket, ON, Canada Instructor)
Gavin Enck (Purple Belt - RGDA Athens, OH Instructor)
David Medd (Purple Belt - RGDA Port Colborne, ON, Canada Instructor)

We also expect up to 6 more students (including another brown belt and purple belt) from our Indiana and Canada schools to travel to Cleveland for the weekend.

The strong showing from the representatives, combined with the 35+ students from RGDA Cleveland will undoubtedly make for the most active and well-attended RGDA collaboration EVER in the Midwest!

The Royler Gracie - David Adiv Jiu Jitsu association continues to grow rapidly in the Midwest and across the world. The movement is accelerating -- make sure not to miss it!

RGDA Shows Its Strength in the Cage and On the Mat.

The RGDA Jiu Jitsu Association showed its strength and versatility to the Midwest over the weekend.

On Saturday February 18th, 3 fighters -- AJ Pulling, Mike Russo and Jason Dent -- fought in the Gladiator Fighting Challenge / Caged Vengeance MMA show in Cleveland, OH. AJ, Mike and Jason are members of the Griffonrawl MMA gym and train with RGDA brown belt and
representative, Donald Park at his academy in Cleveland (Evolution Brazilian Jiu Jitsu - www.evolutionjj.com).

In the 170 lbs division, AJ Pulling dispatched Carl Miller quickly with excellent strikes from the mount, finishing the fight at 0:47 of the 1st round with an armbar.

Mike Russo put on an excellent display of Gracie self-defense by defending a guillotine attempt by his opponent, veteran Chad Truckovich, with a textbook overhook defense - to - crowd pleasing slam. Mike finished the fight early after delivering punishing strikes from the mount and ultimately catching his opponent with a rear naked choke.

Jason Dent took on Clint Zeedyk in the main event of the evening. Jason showed his talent in this fight and once again confirmed that he is quickly becoming a force in the 155lbs division. Jason took the fight by referee stoppage / TKO at 1:30 in the second round after dismantling his opponent with precision leg kicks, strikes from the clinch and excellent groundwork.

The team went 3-0 for the evening and showed an excellent blend of jiu jitsu and stand-up skill in a winning effort.

Team RGDA continued its winning ways the next day, when after a 4 hour drive (which began at 6am after the fights the night before, 8 members from Evolution Brazilian Jiu Jitsu / RGDA - Cleveland, Ohio traveled to Auburn Hills, MI to compete in the Champions Challenge no-gi
tournament.

Out of 8 competitors, the team took home 6 medals -- 1 gold and 5 silvers.

Jordan Goldberg stepped up after 6 months of training and fought hard in his first competition. Although Jordan's first round opponent was the eventual winner of the division, Jordan showed great skill and excellent technique in his first round effort. Jordan plans to compete at the Gracie Worlds / Arnold Classic in March, where he looks to build upon his tournament experience in both the gi and no-gi divisions.

David Ziegler competed on the opposite end of the bracket and dispatched of his first few opponents easily, showing a great deal of heart and superb technique on his way to a second place finish in the division.

Joe Ireland entered the lightweight division and showed why he is one of the most technical practitioners on the team. After dominating his first few opponents to reach the finals, Joe caught his opponent in a tight triangle choke early in his final match. After nearly two
minutes, Joe was forced to relinquish the submission attempt and eventually was caught with a figure four toehold at the end of the time period. Joe placed second in his division as well.

Mike Martin was equally impressive in his effort, displaying excellent takedown skills and undeniable heart on his way to a silver medal in the light heavyweight division.

Darren Branch and Brian Foley competed in the intermediate divisions (featherweight and heavyweight, respectively). Both Darren and Brian ran through their divisions with superb takedowns and impressive technique to reach the finals. Darren, who was battling illness,
fought hard in his final match against a competitor who was initially signed up for the lightweight pro division. After leaving the score 0x0 at the end of regulation, Darren and his opponent entered sudden death. Unfortunately, his illness got the better of him and Darren was forced to withdraw halfway through sudden death. Darren and Brian won second place in each of their divisions.

Back in the novice division, Steven Grubkin utilized excellent closed guard work and armdrag attempts to keep his opponent off balance during his first round match. Although he fought hard, Steven found himself in the unenviable position of being down 2x0 with time ticking
away. In an attempt to find the submission, Steven opened his game up towards the end of the match only to have his opponent take advantage of the opportunity to score more points and secure the win.

The final competitor was RGDA representative Donald Park. Donald entered the advanced middleweight division, competing above his normal weight class. After submitting his semi-final round opponent in 0:24 with a flying triangle / armbar, Donald won the division with another
triangle in a time of 2 minutes and 30 seconds.

By all accounts the team showed very well at the tournament and looks forward to the next opportunity to put on a display of RGDA technique.

R.I.P. Mestre Carlson Gracie

We received news that Carlson Gracie passed away this morning in Chicago. Mestre Carlson was a great fighter and once held the title of Gracie family champion. As a teacher and coach, he built one of the strongest jiu-jitsu teams in existence and helped develop numerous champions on the mat and in the ring and cage. Famous fighters including Amaury Bitteti, Ze Mario, Murilo Bustamante and others once listed Carlson as their instructor.

Carlson had been living in Chicago for a number of years, heading up an academy with his son (Carlson Jr.). He was in the process of building a strong jiu-jitsu and NHB team at the time of his death. His presence will be sorely missed by the entire jiu-jitsu community.

R.I.P.

Royler: #1 Jiu-Jitsu Fighter of the 90s

A few months ago, Gracie Magazine (www.graciemag.com) published their thoughts on the greatest Jiu-Jitsu fighters of the last few decades.






















Royler was voted the #1 Jiu-Jitsu fighter in the 90s. Rickson was voted the same for the 80s. Rolls held the distinction for the 70s.

Here's a link to the articles:

The 90's

http://www.graciemag.com/?c=148&a=3327


The 80's

http://www.graciemag.com/?c=148&a=2982