Jiu Jitsu Idiots

Max @onejudoka is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Justin "J.Flo" Flores. He is also world class in judo and wrestling. 

Jean Jacques is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt under Master Carlos Gracie Jr and a Coral Belt under Master Rickson Gracie. We trained and rolled at his new location in Beverly Hills called Training Center LA and then recorded this podcast in his studio at his main gym in Woodland Hills, California.

Gavin @gavinsanity_ is the Midwest Finishers 170 lb champion and we talked to him after he submitted his way to the top of a 16-man bracket. Lucas Jones @lucasjonesbjj put on a show but was eliminated early by the champ. He trains the ecological approach and as a purple belt he is competing at the highest levels of competition. Joe @lilzilla_the_grappler won his super fight by arm bar in 11 seconds which is the new record fastest finish for Midwest Finishers. 

Eddie Bravo is a black belt under Jean Jacques Machado and founder of 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu. He invented the rubber guard and the EBI ruleset.

Max @maxhansonbjj is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt currently ranked #10 in the world at 155 pounds.

Brian _bjj_hub_ is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and wrestler with over 30 years of experience on the mats. 

Formiga is a 5th degree Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and the head coach and co-owner of Rafael Formiga Jiu Jitsu Academy - Double Five Highland Village located about 20 miles northwest of Dallas, TX.

Anthony Zito is an old friend, teammate, and training partner. He is also a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt and currently trains at Newbreed under Mark Vives. The Jiu Jitsu Idiots Podcast owes a lot to Zito and the groundwork he laid with creating and hosting Grappler Union Podcast for so many years antebellum.

We recorded some conversations at Midwest Finishers 20: 1. Matt Harandi is a dedicated father and a blue belt under Omar at 10th Planet Lombard.  2. Pedro Serrano is a Black Belt and he won Midwest Finishers 1 and 3.  3. Manny Vazquez is a Black Belt under Omar, owner of 10th Planet Greenville, and a highly decorated mixed martial artist. 4. Lucas Jones is a blue belt under Isaac Greeley and he buggy choked David Garcia (Black Belt) and then buggy choked Pedro Serrano (Black Belt) before losing in the finals to Andrew Degraff. 5. Andrew Degraff is Midwest Finishers triple champ and hungry for more. 6. Omar Ocasio hopped on the mics after it was all over. MWF 20 was epic

Jason Rau is a notorious black belt. He taught a seminar at Scott "The Snake" Gave's Fit 2 Defend academy in Lake Bluff, IL and then hung out to chat about Jiu Jitsu.

Jason Bender just expanded @bendermartialarts into the basement of his original location and it is impressive. Sprung jiu jitsu mats, boxing ring, weight room, and multiple showers. He has created the perfect environment for martial artists. If you are sober and looking for a good time check out his Self Defense class he hosts through The Phoenix: A sober community that gives you unique access to really cool events.

Orlando @orlando_fightsports is a BJJ Black Belt under Roberto "Cyborg" Abreu based in Miami, Florida. He is an active competitor, instructor, and he has dedicated the past few years to developing a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu curriculum for public schools that has now been formally adopted for PE credit. 

Luke Pomerantz MD @dr_lucius is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt and a Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon and Hand Surgeon. He has also competed in MMA and was most recently the doctor on call at Craig Jones Invitational. 

Rana @ranawillink is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu blue belt and active competitor in no-gi. She has very technical submission skills including a tarikoplata finish at ADCC West Coast trials.

Pete @pete.origin is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and founder of Origin @originusa. He wrestled a broken loom out of an old barn and brought manufacturing back to the United States of America. Everything Origin offers is not only made in the USA but the cotton, leather, and other materials are all sourced from American farmers and ranchers. Pete also created the Origin Immersion Camp which brings insanely talented jiu jitsu instructors from around the world to the deep woods of Maine for a week of non-stop training and rolling.

Kara & Jeff are the owners of @ColoradoCraftBeef and their family has been ranching northeast Colorado for five generations. We can't wait to visit the ranch and rustle up some cows and wrestle with some cowboys. Other than Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone's place this might be the only ranch with jiu jitsu mats. Colorado Craft Beef is providing all of the steaks and ribs for Origin Immersion Camp this year.

Jared Fekete @feketejj is a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and an elite wrestler. He owns Sleeping Bear Jiu-Jitsu in Traverse City, Michigan and competes regularly around the midwest. He has an explosive style which he put on display in the 16-man 185 pound bracket at Midwest Finishers 19. Huge thanks to Omar Ocasio @omarocasio10p who runs Midwest Finishers and is the owner of 10th Planet Lombard. The winner of the bracket takes home $2,500 and the whole tournament is streamed LIVE on YouTube. Definitely worth watching just to see Kevin Beuhring's insane leg breaking skills. The sound of the break is haunting. 

We stopped by Top Level MMA in Niles, IL for some no-gi training and podcasting with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt Leon Ambubuyog. Our good friend Ed Serra showed up in time for rolling and stuck around to join us for a fun conversation after class. 

Chris Wojcik is a black belt under Jeff Serafin and will be competing in the 88kg division at ADCC in Las Vegas August 17th and 18th.

Live from Real Movement Martial Arts (RMMA) in Bartlett, IL hosting an in-house white belt tournament with a food truck. 

Ally Wolski is a purple belt under Nicky Ryan from B Team in Austin, TX.

Phill is a 10th Planet Black Belt directly under Eddie Bravo.

Ramses is a Black Belt under Jeff Serafin and owner of Living Art Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Willowbrook, IL.

Jeff Serafin, Jameel Massouh, Black Klassman, Mando Gutierrez, Cristal Contreras, Adam Fernandez, Mike DeMarino, and Sergio Martinez joined us on the podcast this week live from Double Gold Invitational 2. Aaron and Tam Brooks hosted the tournament at their gym Pica Pau Jiu Jitsu in Aurora, IL. DBI is the brainchild of Aaron's student Ando who delivered on the action with a submission rate over 80% across 21 matches!

Fun conversations at Midwest Finishers 18 hosted by 10th Planet Black Belt Omar Ocasio at his gym 10th Planet Lombard and streamed live for free on YouTube.

Ashur is a BJJ black belt and actively competes in both gi and no-gi. We rolled and then recorded a podcast at his gym "The Academy" located inside of the MyBody Complex in Northfield, IL.

Scott is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Jeff Serafin. We discuss his recent experience having a daughter competing in high school wrestling. Wrestling has exploded in popularity amongst young women and public schools are having to adapt quickly and in some cases begrudgingly. 

Edgar is a 1st degree Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and head of the adult programs at RŌL Academy in Orland Park. Interesting bonus if you train at RŌL Academy they have a private video library online for their students that includes actual classes and seminars. Edgar and RŌL Academy owner Thomas Rozdzynski have also implemented a Tac Fit lifting program to enhance the proper type of strength required for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. TacFit is the creation of the legendary Alberto Crane and we highly recommend listening to his interview with Joey Diaz on The Church podcast. 

Mario is a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Rodrigo "Comprido" Leite de Medeiros. He is the co-owner of The Barracks in North Aurora alongside his brother Luis where they teach elite nogi grappling.

Patrick is a 10th Planet brown belt under Josh Passini and the best insurance agent in Chicago. 

Mickey Delos Santos and Drich Alvarez are both 10th Planet Black belts and have been training with Greg & Russ for the better part of a decade. 

Ed is a white belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu but a black belt in beating brain tumors. He trains at 10th Planet Chicago under Josh Passini. 

Abe is a 10th Planet Brown Belt under Josh Passini at 10th Planet Chicago. Coming up in San Diego he earned his blue belt from Jeff Glover and his purple belt from Richie "Boogeyman" Martinez.

Danny is a 10th Planet Black Belt under Richie "Boogeyman" Martinez and he always stops by for some rolls at 10th Planet Chicago when he is in town. 

Marvin Castelle is a 10th Planet Black Belt and owner of 10th Planet Torrance in California. 

David Porter is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Pedro Sauer and has his gym operating alongside a premiere shooting range in Ashburn, Virginia.

Steven Patterson is a 3rd degree Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Rodrigo "Comprido" Medeiros and the owner of University of Ground Fighting in New Lenox, Illinois.

Mike Santiago is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt and owner of Santiago Training Center in Lombard, Illinois.

Kyle Perkins is a Team Curran Black Belt and instructor at RMMA (Real Movement and Martial Arts) in Bartlett, Illinois. 

Brandon Mccaghren earned his 10th Planet Black Belt directly from Eddie Bravo and he owns 10th Planet Decatur in Alabama. Bmac is also the creator of the Professional Grappling Federation and we discuss the record-breaking news that season 6 will culminate in a $100,000 grand prize in Las Vegas on April 21st, 2024. 

Jameel Massouh is a BJJ black belt and professor at Veneration Jiu Jitsu in Kenosha, WI.

Mike Peters is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and owner of Five Points Jiu Jitsu in East Dundee outside Chicago. 

Behold, Greg "The Butcher" is the newest 10th Planet black belt under Josh Passini!

Omar and Aaron were the two most downloaded episodes from this past year. We look forward to training hard and recording tons of new interviews in 2024. 

10th Planet black belt Keith Kavanagh joined Greg & Russ on the podcast this week.

All matches from Double Gold Invitational are now live online at DBLGLD.com and we recorded interviews with Ando the creator of Double Gold, Mike Peters from Five Points Jiu Jitsu, Javier Palomo from 3D Martial Arts, and Ramses Bugarin from Living Art BJJ.

Jay Valko is a 4th degree Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and owner of Valko BJJ in downtown Chicago.

Jennifer Dietrick is a 10th Planet black belt under Eddie Bravo and one of the instructors at 10th Planet HQ.

We chatted with 10th Planet black belt Chili Jamison, Serafin BJJ blue belt Camila Estrada, Sleeping Bear Jiu Jitsu purple belt Jared Fekete, and the champ and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt Andre Porfirio.

Jeff Serafin is a 3rd degree Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and owner of Serafin BJJ.

Dawna Gonzales is a 10th Planet Black Belt under Eddie Bravo and instructor at 10th Planet South Bay.