The
Stats
Age:
20
Belt:
Brown
Weight
class: Feather
Length
of training time: 9 years
From:
Fair Lawn, New Jersey
Nicknames:
Most recently- “Wonderboy”
Affiliation:
Renzo Gracie
Sponsors:
Shoyoroll, Manto, Athletic Body Care
Major
Titles:
3x
World Champion (Gi) (2008 at blue, 2009 at blue, 2011 at purple)
2x
NoGi World Champion (2007 at blue, 2010 at purple)
Overall
9x Worlds Medalist (5 gold, 1 silver, 3 bronze)
3x
Pan Jiu-Jitsu Champion (2009 at blue, 2011 at purple, 2012 at brown)
3x
NoGi Pan Champion (2008 at blue, 2009-2010 at purple)
Overall
7x Pan Medalist (5 gold, 2 silver)
3x
New York Open Champion (2009 at blue, 2010-2011 at purple)
2010
Chicago Open Purple Belt featherweight champion & absolute runner-up
2012
Houston Open featherweight & absolute champion
3x
Long Island Pride Champion
2x
Long Island Pride Brown Belt Absolute champion
Journey Jiu-Jitsu: What’s your story? What led to you
starting jiu-jitsu?
GG: Well before I ever put on a gi for the first time, I was
very serious about boxing and was even in numerous amateur boxing matches in
the kids 70-pound weight class (at 10 years old.) But I remember the day
someone at the gym mentioned Renzo Gracie Academy to my father, and knowing my dad,
he didn’t want to miss an opportunity for his son to try something new. The
very first time I stepped on to the mats at the academy on West 37th
street in New York City, I knew I found my true passion.
JJJ: Would you say your opportunities have contributed to
your success?
GG: Absolutely! I have been so fortunate to have so many
opportunities brought on by so many supportive people throughout my life, I
cannot be any more thankful. The people that I have been surrounded by are the
biggest keys to my success. In the beginning, for me to become an active
athlete I needed to be pushed and my father provided that for me. Also, during
my nine years in the sport I have been mentored and instructed by some of the
best minds in our sport today…those opportunities to work with these
individuals was the number one reason for my success.
JJJ: A lot of people don’t realize you were quite the
athlete growing up. Why don’t you tell us about a few of your accomplishments?
What made you ultimately choose jiu-jitsu over all of these sports?
GG: As mentioned before, I was very much into boxing before I
started training Jiu-Jitsu, where I was involved in numerous boxing matches.
But also I was an avid swimmer and swam for my local team ten months out of the
year. During that time I made the Junior Olympics for my team three years in a
row and was also one of the fastest backstrokers around hahaha! Also, in my
freshman year of high school I made my team’s varsity roster so that was a
pretty cool little accomplishment as well. In the end though what made me
choose Jiu-Jitsu was the unique quality it had to it. Everyone knew about
runners and swimmers but Jiu-Jitsu was so foreign to the U.S. and that excited
me! I always enjoyed trying something new, the difference this time is that I
stuck to it.
JJJ: How has competing in other sports helped your jiu-jitsu
game?
GG: Competing in other sports since I was merely 5 years old has
helped my mental game most of all in Jiu-Jitsu, and especially when it comes to
competitions. I know how to mentally approach a competition and I feel like I
am able to put it in its proper place. I am always nervous a bit but I realize
at the end of the day it is only a sport, so with that in mind I’m able to go
in with confidence and a calm head. Many tend to get themselves over hyped and
waste all of their energy over thinking and making too much of it. I try to
avoid the people’s common mistakes, just take it for what it is and simply
enjoy it.
JJJ: It seems your family has played a huge role in your
success in jiu-jitsu. How important is it for a competitor to have support in
jiu-jitsu?
GG: I believe it is immensely important for a serious competitor
to have at least some sort of support from friends and family. I’m not going to
say it’s impossible to do it alone, but I believe it is much easier when
supporters have your back. I have been very fortunate to have an amazing family
that has supported me throughout my Jiu-Jitsu career. For me, it makes training
and competing even more enjoyable when I know that my parents are behind me
100% and believe in me. Also, if it weren’t for the support of my parents I may
not have ever become as serious as I am about Jiu-Jitsu. My support team was
also the ones who pushed me and challenged me to become the best I could possibly
be. I would have never won a match in my life without my parents there for me.
JJJ: You have mentioned that Magno Gama played a huge role
in the beginning of your jiu-jitsu career. What did you learn from him, and how
has it helped your game?
GG: When I first started training at Renzo’s at age 10 there
were no kids and no one even close to my size, so for my first three years all
I did was take private lessons with Magno and during that time he made me into
who I am today. He helped me build a foundation and now my game revolves a lot
around his style of Jiu-Jitsu. He also helped make me into an aggressive
competitor. When I first started training I found myself to be timid and
tentative, unwilling to let go open up my game. But Magno helped me open up and
become less fearful of trying new things and always continue to be the
aggressor in a match. Like my parents, I’d be nowhere without Magno Gama.
JJJ: Danaher?
GG: John Danaher is the mad genius of Jiu-Jitsu and I have been
very fortunate to have him as an instructor and a mentor over the last few
years. What I pick up mostly from John is not any specific technique John
performs but how he approaches the overall game. Many may think of John Danaher
as an old school Jiu-Jitsu player and someone that isn’t into look into the new
techniques making a big impact in the sport today. People who think like that
are dead wrong. Unlike many “old school” black belts, John is always trying to
add onto his game and he continually studies the more modern game we see today.
He already holds so much knowledge and is already a master at all aspects of
the game, but he is never satisfied and always looking to add to what he
already has.
JJJ: Renzo?
GG: Renzo is such an amazing and charismatic individual. He has
taught me (and all of his students) how an athlete and champion should carry
his or herself. Of course he is an emotional person and has his disputes, but
he is also the nicest person you’ll ever be around. No matter whom you are,
when you approach him to say hello there is always a smile on his face, he
would never let anyone know that he may be upset about something. Renzo sets
the standard for how people should act: humble, kind, respectful and caring.
JJJ: I have talked to and interviewed a lot of world
champions, and they all have one thing in common. I call it the switch. The
switch is the moment when you realize that your current training is not enough
and you know you have to step it up. When did this happen for you, and what
triggered it?
GG: I always feel like I trained a lot when I was younger and
always had the mental focus even at the lower belt ranks. But I realized I had
to take it up a level once I went through my first year at purple belt. In 2010
at the Pans and Worlds I experienced something I was not very used to…failure.
I came in 2nd and 3rd at the Pans and Worlds that year
and not getting what I wanted left a sour taste in my mouth. From those
failures I discovered in myself how much I really wanted to be champion and
from there I knew I had to take up training a notch. So when I started my first
semester in college in the fall of 2010 I made sure to schedule all my classes
for early morning so I could train double sessions everyday and also include
strength and conditioning sessions four times a week. I came into 2011 never
wanting the taste of bitter failure again, and after completely focusing my
life on Jiu-Jitsu, I came away with the Pan and World title I’d dreamed of.
JJJ: Everyone has their surefire method to drilling. Some
prefer to do specific sparring, while others like high repetition drilling.
What is your philosophy on drilling, and your preferred method?
GG: I have to admit something…I didn’t take my drilling all to
seriously until this past summer where I attended a Mendes Brother seminar at
Joseph Capizzi’s school in Staten Island. There I learned the importance of
drilling, and not just once, but a million times over! Now with our competition
group I set up our drilling sessions month-by-month. Every month we will be
doing about 4 or 5 techniques from one specific position and go over it every
day until we become completely sick of it! Because of this drilling schedule I
see a big difference in my game and I have been able to implement new moves
into my arsenal with relative ease. If you look back at my first tournament in
2012 (the Houston Open) I won’t reveal which techniques, but I can tell you
that after only 2 months of our new drilling system I was able to pull off
every move we’ve been working on at least once and that made me far happier
than any win I had that day!
JJJ: You compete quite frequently. How do you manage to stay
in competition shape year round without burning out?
GG: What I believe has helped keep me from burning out are a few
simple things:
I eat healthy and take care of my body. Even
when I was 10 years old I knew the importance of maintaining a healthy
lifestyle and treating my body like a treasure! Nowadays I don’t go to parties
and drink (I don’t even drink soda) and I’ve still never been to a McDonald’s,
so no matter what time of year it is I always make sure I maintain a healthy
diet and lifestyle.
I think it also comes with my age. Still at 19 I
think I have the ability to keep going like the energizer bunny and never have
to stop. I know in a few years it won’t be quite the same so I’ll be ready then
to make the necessary adjustments.
I love to train and compete. Sometimes it
doesn’t matter how good or bad I feel I want to be out there putting the work
in and testing myself out on the mats.
JJJ: How does competition make you feel? What are you
thinking right before you step on the mats?
GG: I love the thrill of competing. When I’m ready to step onto
the mats and do something very few people have the opportunity to do, I know
I’m alive. Also, what I am mostly thinking of right before I step onto the mats
is how hard I’ve worked to get here. I think of how much I’ve sacrificed and
how much I’ve sweat for this one day, this one moment.
JJJ: What is your equation for success in competition?
GG: Enjoy it! How can it be possible to have any success
competing if you hate doing it? I enjoy it because I know that I’m living and
doing something very few have the ability to do. Enjoy it because life is short
and there are only so many thrills that one can have in his/her life, take it
as a part of the journey in your life and you will find success.
JJJ: Do you think it is imperative for anyone serious about
training jiu-jitsu to compete?
GG: No, I actually believe that competing isn’t necessary to be
a part of if you are serious about training Jiu-Jitsu. Although I am a serious
competitor and find competing to be an amazing experience, some may find it to
not be as enjoyable as I do. But as long as the person wants to hold a solid
knowledge of the sport and have the ability to master something in their life
than competing is not imperative for all Jiu-Jitsu players.
JJJ: What do you feel is the most important attribute to
take with you into a competition?
GG: A sense of confidence and belief in yourself. I always feel
that it doesn’t matter what other people think about you and whether they
believe in you or not. The only thing that matters is that you believe in
yourself and your ability to succeed. There have been many great teammates that
I have trained with over the years that easily could have been World Champions,
but they didn’t believe in themselves and they didn’t go into the competition
with a sense of confidence I believe every champion must have.
JJJ: We all know that a good foundation and start is
important in any endeavor you take on. You seemed to have had a lot of support
and guidance in the beginning. What advice would you give to the kid or
teenager starting jiu-jitsu for the first time?
GG: Start with the basics. For anyone that is new to the sport
it is essential to learn and understand the basic techniques and positions that
come along with the sport. Also I must add that in the beginning I stress the
importance of perfecting your defensive skills. Sometimes defense tends to go
unnoticed and what ends up happening is that someone will have amazing
offensive skills and have a full arsenal of submissions, but once they get put
into a little bit of trouble- they crumble because they never bother to work on
defense. Working on the submissions, sweeps and passes are the “sexy” part of
the sport, but defense is what wins matches. How can someone beat you if you
don’t surrender any points or positions?
JJJ: When the going gets tough what is your go to submission
or position?
GG: Whatever is available at that moment. If I focus on only one
submission or one position I may be losing sight of other openings around me.
So when the going gets tough I try to keep an open mind and simply look for any
opening my opponent may give me.
JJJ: Long term goals in Jiu-Jitsu?
GG: I want to win the World Championships at all belts and
someday win the ADCC and I won’t stop training hard and continually believing
in myself until I achieve those goals. Later on I’d like to have my own school
and be able to live off teaching Jiu-Jitsu.
JJJ: Favorite activity outside of the academy?
GG: I enjoy reading a lot, mostly stories of adventurists and
real life people such as Christopher McCandless in “Into The Wild,” Pat Tillman
in “Where Men Win Glory,” and Aron Ralston in “Between a Rock and a Hard
Place.”
JJJ: If you could have any superpower what would it be?
GG: The ability to fly! As much as I love New York, I also love
California and there are also so many places I’d love to see. If I could fly I
could quickly enjoy a day in California or somewhere nice and still be able to
come back home and sleep in my own bed at night. That would be cool.
JJJ: Top three things on your bucket list, go!
GG:
- Traveling to Italy at least 1 time in my life.
- Living in Manhattan at some point.
- Make a drive cross-country and train at a different academy at every stop along the way.
