(VIDEO) Ramzan Kadyrov’s 16-year-old Son Successfully Debuted in MMA

By
Filip Zanki
-
Khamzat Chimaev and Ali Kadyrov

Young Ali Kadyrov made many people laugh with his victory in the organization run by his father.

The Kadyrov family has been attracting the attention of the MMA public more and more recently. Various UFC fighters openly hang out with Ramzan Kadyrov, get his support, and some like Khamzat Chimaev and Cody Garbrandt occasionally train with Ramzan’s son Ali.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Kadyrov Ali (@za_kadyrova_k209ra)

16-year-old Ali made his professional MMA debut yesterday, debuting under the auspices of ACA (Absolute Championship Akhmat). The young Kadyrov’s debut proved to be successful and Ali scored a first-round knockout victory over Islam Akbarov, a 17-year-old who was also making his professional MMA debut.

It took the son of the Chechen leader exactly three minutes to record his first victory, but many actually mocked his lukewarm performance, especially the finish with which he achieved victory. It was far from something more serious and worthy of such a strong MMA organization, but it should be taken into account that young Ali is only 16 years old.

It is hard to say how relevant his appearances within the ACA will be, given that the owner of that MMA organization is his father Ramzan. There is no doubt that young Ali will score in similar matches as this debut he did, but who knows, maybe he will develop into a respectable fighter in time.

Nevertheless, he is a young man who is an equal match for Khamzat Chimaev in the sparring matches they do together. Detractors will say that Chimaev is not allowed to overpower the Chechen leader’s son, but Ramzan would disagree.

“Despite a formidable and eminent opponent, the boys were not inferior to Khamzat when it came to skills. As befits fighters, they analyzed their opponent’s movements and weaknesses, and then set up their counterattacks. At the end of the training, I couldn’t resist the desire to test my strength in a friendly duel with our dear brother.

It is difficult to add anything meaningful, except that it will be interesting to follow the direction in which Ali Kadyrov’s MMA career will go. So far, it only causes ridicule.

“Islam Makhachev’s days are numbered”, is one of the more popular comments on Ali Kadyrov’s debut.

Stephan Bonnar, UFC Hall Of Famer, Dead at the age of 45

By
Filip Zanki
-
Stephan Bonnar Died

A little more than a month after the news of the death of Anthony “Rumble” Johnson shook the martial arts world, another MMA great has sadly passed away.

UFC hall of Famer Stephan Bonnar died on December 24, 2022, at the age of 45.

The reason for his death is still unknown, but UFC issued a statement saying that Bonnar died of a heart complication while being at work. Late yesterday evening, the UFC confirmed the death of Stephan Bonnar (15-9-0), but later it was announced that Bonnar passed away on December 22 (12th month), on Thursday.

Stephan Patrick Bonnar was a professional mixed martial Artist and UFC hall of Famer. He competed as the light heavyweight in UFC. While known for very intense and good fights in UFC he was probably most known for the fight he lost to Forrest Griffin in The Ultimate Fighter 1 finale. That fight is also considered one of the most important fights in UFC History.

He was a Jiu-Jitsu master with a nine-year-long career in UFC. He fought many UFC former and future champions like Mark Coleman, Anderson Silva, Jon Jones, Rashad Evans, etc.

Bonnar would have celebrated his 46th birthday in the 4th month of next year, and he is one of the members of the UFC Hall of Fame. Back in 2013, Bonnar received the honor of being included, and he received this credit because of the iconic match he did against Forrest Griffin in the finals of The Ultimate Fighter in 2005.

Bonnar and Griffin then did, according to Dana White, “the most important fight in the history of the UFC.” In fact, the UFC was broadcast live for the first time through a publicly available TV channel. It was about the Spike TV channel, and the UFC was about to collapse and be sold before that match.

The Fertitta brothers were not satisfied with the development of the company and felt that running the UFC was not worth their invested time, money, and effort. The sale of the company was considered, and the first season of The Ultimate Fighter was the last straw for the survival of the Fertitta brothers. The viewership of that show was surprisingly good, but they needed an additional step forward on a publicly available TV channel, and that it was not a PPV, that is, that the audience could watch the event for free.

Stephan Bonnar and Forrest Griffin put on one of the best fights in UFC history that night and earned them a handful of new fans. It was the breakthrough that the UFC needed, and the two entered UFC eternity with that fight. Forrest Griffin won by unanimous decision after three rounds, but the UFC decided to reward both men with contracts.

You can watch the legendary fight between Stephan Bonnar and Forrest Griffin in a video below:

https://youtu.be/sXPVgCRIapg

At the end of his MMA career, he was under contract for Bellator MMA organization mainly for the fight with Tito Ortiz which he lost via split decision.

Soon after he went to professional wrestling where he worked till now.

He also suffered from a severe back injury that made him hospitalized together with “cavuum septi pellucid” and a potential future diagnosis of CTE.

We can conclude from everything that martial arts left a big mark on his health.

While the cause of his death is still pending he faced a series of challenges in his personal life lately. He lost his home in Las Vegas in April this year. His wife, Andrea Bonnar wrote a post on her Facebook account: “we lost everything in the blaze”.

Thanks to the former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley and his generous donation he was able to move into a new residence. Also, there was a fundraiser of over $10k raised to support Bonnar.

In September 2021 Stephan Bonnar posted a lot of videos to his Instagram profile of a confrontation at the hospital where he was looking for treatment for staph, but doctors denied him care due to him having COVID-19.

Likewise, lately, he has been posting various videos and arguments against covid masks, etc.

Watch Mighty Mouse Roll With Garry Tonon (VIDEO)

By
Filip Zanki
-
Garry Tonon roll with Mighty mouse

Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, the legendary flyweight UFC champion, who is now fighting under the ONE Fighting Championship banner recently spent time preparing for his next fight grappling with fellow ONE FC fighter and legendary Jiu-Jitsu champion Garry Tonon.

Demetrius “Mighty Mouse” Johnson is the UFC record holder in the most title defenses in history. He was the undisputed flyweight champion in the UFC, reigning from 2013 to 2017, with 11 title defenses to his name. Tensions between him and Dnaa HWite who threatened to shut down the flyweight division because such dominance from Mighty Mouse made it boring led to Johnson switching over to Singapore’s ONE FC instead.

With his next fight in the ONE circle coming in May 2023, when he’ll face Adriano Moraes for the third time, Mighty Mouse has been spending some quality grappling time on the New Wave Jiu-Jitsu mats, rolling with fellow ONE fighter Garry Tonon, under the tutelage of BJJ mastermind John Danaher.

In the footage, Tonon and Mighty Mouse are rolling for just 8 minutes, mostly flowing, but including some slick transitions, takedown exchanges, and submissions. The flyweight king is a brown belt under Matt Hume but has demonstrated excellent grappling in the octagon, submitting BJJ black belt Wilson Resi in the octagon, as well as dominating Olympic Gold medalist Henry Cejudo.

Against Tonon, 36-year-old Mighty Mouse demonstrated once again that the can hold his own, although he is clearly not at the same Jiu-Jitsu level as one of the best students to ever train under Danaher.

Age only seems to be making Johnson better though, at least according to him:

“Now, being 36, I understand how to fight and how to pace myself while pushing the pace… We haven’t crossed that bridge yet. I’m still trying to figure it out, [but] I’m not too worried about it. I’m gonna train my ass off and go out there and fight.”

Gordon Ryan: Joe Rogan Podcast Was The Worst Experience Of My Life

By
Filip Zanki
-
Gordon Ryan Joe Rogan Podcast
The “King” of submission grappling Gordon Ryan recently shared on bodybuilder turned YouTuber Flex Lewis’ podcast how his first appearance (out of two so far) on the Joe Rogan Podcast was one of the worst experiences of his life.

From 2018 to 2022 Gordon Ryan was having extreme trouble with his stomach, due to an undiagnosed condition that made him nauseous after even the smallest bite of food. When he came on the Joe Rogan Podcast for the very first time, he was in one of the worst periods of struggling with his stomach conditions, but how do you say “no” to Joe Rogan?

At the time, Ryan was in Austin looking to buy a house. As the Joe Rogan Podcast had already relocated there from L.A., Ryan got the invite and did not want to reject the opportunity, despite eating restaurant food while hunting for a house made him endure the worst period of his life:

As Ryan told Flex Lewis:

“I remember like the worst experience like pretty much my life, I guess, it would probably be like uh, when uh I went on Rogan for the first time…

I just remember getting to Rogan and being like I am so nauseous, I’m gonna die. Like almost like an inch away from throwing up, but I’m like I can’t tell Joe Rogan that I can’t do his podcast right now. … I’m like I can’t like be a **** and just tell Rogan like ‘hey man, I really can’t do this podcast but the whole podcast’, I’m just struggling like sipping water.”

The stomach issues even sidelined Ryan for a year, forcing him into retirement. it was his discussion of the problem on that very first Joe Rogan Podcast appearance that eventually led Gordon to a proper diagnosis and resolution of the ailment as a result of the reach the JRE podcast has.

What Really Happened The Night Leandro Lo Was Shot?

By
Filip Zanki
-
What Happened |the Night Leandro Lo Was Shot ?
2022 is going to be remembered in the BJJ world as a tragic year, when Jiu-Jitsu legend Leandro Lo needlessly lost his life in an incident in a night-club in Brazil, when an off-duty cop shot him in the head, killing him on the spot. Now, Dillon Danis sheds some more light on what happened that night.

In the latest episode of the “MMA Hour,” Dillon Danis had something interesting to say for a change. During the interview which focused mostly on his upcoming fight with YouTuber KSI, Danis told the story about Leandro Lo getting shot, adding some details about what happened.

Apparently, the two of them spent some time together not long before the inside. according to Dannis:

”I was with him not that long before he… what happened to him and it’s just like so crazy because something like that could happen to me too.”

When Ariel Helwani inquired further looking for the reason for the incident in which Leandro Lo was killed, Danis explained that:

“Apparently the guy was like uh jealous of him and he was outside and the Leandro had a bunch of girls they were hanging out, and then guy was just jealous.

So he took the bottle [of tequilla] like that and like drank it and Leandro took him down choked him out and like and then they got separated in there the guy is like ‘oh I’m good’ and then he was like pacing back and forth and just came up and shot him”.

Danis went on to say the cop that shot Leandro Lo is in prison, but he is in a special prison for cops, and as such is removed from the general population that could be looking to avenge Lo.

After all, the BJJ World adored Leandro, which was clear as protests in front of police stations were held after his death and his close friends went to his funerals wearing Gis to show their respect for the impact Leanro Lo had on Jiu-Jitsu.

Gordon Ryan Admits That Sambo Is Better Than BJJ…For MMA

By
Filip Zanki
-
Gordon Ryan Admits Sambo si better than BJJ
Gordon Ryan recently went against the grain when replying to a fan on social media about the efficiency of Sambo over Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. the best grappler in the world supported the claim of Khabib, that Sambo is better than BJJ… But only when it comes to MMA.

Gordon Ryan loves stirring up trouble with his opinions, and his latest one goes completely against what was demonstrated so far in ONE Championship, where BJJ athletes have 4 wins over Sambo athletes. Namely, Ryan supported the claim of Dagestani grapplers like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Mahkachev that Sambo is better than BJJ when discussing the subject with one of his fans.

“Gordon. How come BJJ guys keep getting destroyed on the ground vs sambo guys the last few years??? Genuinely keen to hear your input on this. Do you think there are any BJJers that could stop guys like Khabib and Islam in MMA????” asked the fan.

Gordon replied, explaining very astutely why Sambo is better than BJJ when it comes to grappling for mixed martial arts:

“Sambo guys” are more well-equipped to wrestle under an MMA rule set. Meaning they dominate the pace and direction of the fight, and end on top. And make their opponents carry body weight, forming a discrepancy in the work rate that leads to fatigue over time. plus the guys they’re fighting aren’t, in my opinion, world-level jiu-jitsu that focuses on MMA, not specialists.”

The part of the answer that lacks, though is who would be able to deal with the superior grappling of Sambo athletes, and who those world-level Jiu-Jitsu fighters Gordon has in mind are.  Ryan’s teammate and friend Garry Tonon certainly qualifies as one, but he is currently on the roster of ONE FC.

With the likes of Kron Gracie and Rodolfo Vieira on the UFC roster though, it is not difficult to foresee a match where the debate about whether or not Sambo is better than BJJ for MMA is put to the test inside the octagon.

Sambo is better than BJJ for MMA explains Gordon Ryan

Steffen Banta, The Most Decorated Brown Belt In US History

By
Filip Zanki
-
Steffen Banta, the most decorated brown belt in America

Steffen Banta, a 23-year-old student at SMU received his black belt just 3 days ago (on December 18, 2022. While this may sound just like any other jiu-jitsu belt promotion in any other gym, it is not. Namely, Steffen is the most decorated brown belt ever to compete representing the US (according to the IBJJF rankings), and managed to win every competition in Gi and No-Gi in 2022.

Steffen Banta managed to earn the number one spot in the IBJJF rankings this year (2022) after competing relentlessly at every Gi and No-Gi tournament he could get to. This not only earned him the historic achievement of being the most decorated brown belt in America to date but also resulted in his promotion to black belt after the No-Gi Worlds.

“#1 Ranked, pound for pound, NoGi Brown Belt in the world @ibjjf. This year I’ve been able to hold the #1 ranking (overall for Brown Belts) in both Gi, and now No-Gi,” declared Steffen.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Steffen Banta (@steffenbanta)

Banta started training as a teenager and has been training for only 6 years before making history at brown belt and earning his black. The most decorated brown belt in America is now going to have to prove himself in the “big leagues” with all his idols being his perspective rivals from now on.

According to his Instagram account, Steffen is grateful to his teammates and parents for his achievements. The most decorated brown belt, now turned black belt, trains under João Gabriel Rocha in the Alliance Jiu-Jitsu gym in Dallas, Texas.

“2022 has been a long, and fruitful year, with a lot of mountain-top moments. None of them possible without the incredible support team I have behind me. Namely my dad, Michael. (@cityboygardener) He has traveled the country, and the world, the last few years chasing dreams with me. And he’s selflessly sacrificed his time, sick leave days, and work (as a councilor saving lives) to come to support me.

I want to thank my teammates and team: @alliancedallas. The biggest pillars of this team are my Professor @jgrocha who has believed in me, and nurtured me since I was a 17-year-old Bluebelt who wouldn’t stop showing up to “pro training.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by João Gabriel Rocha (@jgrocha)

Grisly Murders Cause Surge Of New Students In Local BJJ Gym

By
Filip Zanki
-
Idaho Murders Cause Surge in Local BJJ gym
A grisly quadruple murder in the small town of Moscow, Idaho has put residents in a state of fear, causing a huge spike in the interest in self-defense in a Local BJJ gym, as well as increased interest in firearm training.

Moscow, Idaho is a small town that was rocked by a gruesome quadruple murder on November 13, 2022. The brutal stabbing of four students in the vicinity of the University of Idaho has instilled fear in residents, and with police unable to identify or apprehend a suspect in more than a month, people are now surging to a local BJJ gym in the quest for self-defense training.

The gnarly murder happened in a house just yards away from the University of Idaho campus, where the bodies of four students, Kaylee Goncalves (21), Madison Mogen (21), Xana Kernodle (20), and Ethan Chapin (20) were discovered last month. According to the police, the murderer used a fixed-blade knife and is still at large.

Victims of Idaho murders draw people to local BJJ gym

Many students have decided not to return to the University of Idaho for the spring semester, and locals are reporting that they are rattled and concerned about getting to work or being alone. This has caused a massive interest in classes in a local BJJ gym.

WIth heavy snow preventing people from actively obtaining firearms training despite triple the usual interest, Jiu-Jitsu emerges as the people’s choice for regaining some control and safety in everyday life.

“What happened has certainly heightened interest in classes, but the trend towards more female participation has been on the rise for the past years. Having said that, I would say that the past month has led to even more calls about our striking classes,” Cathy Curry from local BJJ Gym “V7 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu” told Fox News Digital.

“During our classes we promote the importance of self-awareness and self-security to avoid situations, as well as teach the skills to address situations as they arise through a variety of drills and live training.”

So far, five weeks have passed with no results, but local police are pledging that they are doing everything possible to solve the case.

Idaho Murders cause interest in self defense

Danielle Kelly: 2022 Was The Best Year For Jiu-Jitsu!

By
Filip Zanki
-
2022 was the best year for Jiu-Jitsu says Danielle Kelly
According to ONE submission grappling superstar and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Danielle Kelly, 2022 was the best year for Jiu-Jitsu in the history of the sport and expects 2023 is only going to bring more opportunities for grappling athletes.

Silverfox black belt Danielle Kelly really had a stellar 2022 in terms of her competition performances on the mats. She made history by competing in and winning, the first-ever female submission grappling match in ONE FC against MMA legend Mei Yamaguchi. That was not only a big moment for the 27-year-old grappler, but for female Jiu-Jitsu in general.

“It was probably the best year for jiu-jitsu and being a jiu-jitsu athlete. Looking back, I wasn’t expecting to be in that spot at all. It meant a lot to be able to be the first jiu-jitsu women’s grappling match for ONE. I worked really hard,” said Kelly in an interview for ONE FC.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by EVOLVE MMA (@evolvemma)

She went on to quickly submit Sambo World Champion Mariia Molchanova, getting the third win for Jiu-Jitsu in a feud between Sambo and BJJ fueled by ONE FC. In her reflections on 2022, Kelly is grateful for her chances so far, but remains hungry for titles:

“So I think what I got out of it this year is I think I’m a different grappler. So, yeah, I’m taking it seriously and I’m just really, really grateful to be here and be in a spot that I’m in.

I want to win that women’s World Title for 115 [pounds], for sure.”

There are two possible high-profile opponents for Danielle which would bring even more attention to female grapplers, creating opportunities for Jiu-Jitsu professionals on a global level:

“Angela Lee, I only called her out because she said she can submit me. I like easy matches. I said it before. No hard feelings. But you know, I mean, if I’m such an easy match then just take the match.

If ONE would do a women’s World Title, I would love to go against Jessa Khan. People think I’m dodging jiu-jitsu people, but I’ve been studying her, so I hope I get that match.”

Mikey Musumeci: I’m Never Not Thinking About Jiu-Jitsu

By
Filip Zanki
-
Mikey Musumeci: I am never not thinking about Jiu-Jitsu

Mikey Musumeci is one of the universally loved characters in Jiu-Jitsu, who is both a beast when competing and the best human being on and off the mats when he is not. While we know a lot bout his crazy diet, competitive mindset, and his insane drilling habits, now Musumeci shares what got him into BJJ, what keeps him motivated, and what he’d like his legacy to be.

How It All Started

Musumeci moved a lot as a child, changing a total of 11 homes. That made making friends (and keeping them) hard for him, which resulted in a depression that follows him pretty much his entire life.

The way Mieky found to cope with it all was Jiu-Jitsu.

Through BJJ, Musumeci overcame many hardships, including controlling his depression and starting to enjoy life.

Initially, he did not feel like the other kids, he felt different, but on the mats, BJJ made him feel accepted and normal, it gave him an environment that valued him. Having the gift of hyperfocus helps Musumei as he says in a recent feature video for Fightlore Official:

“So if I focus on one thing, I can like focus on it a lot deeper than other people. So that’s a gift.”

Why He Completes

For Mikey Musumeci, the main reason he competes is easy – because he loves it.

He has been training since he was 4 years old, which brings the total time he spent on the mats to a whopping 22 years at the moment. That is a lot of experience and he still has many milestones to achieve.

Another reason Musumeci enjoys stepping on the competition mats is that he sees it as a way to make an impact on the next generation of competitive grapplers. He wants to inspire people through his performances on the mats, making them want to train more and achieve more after watching him grapple.

The high-level Musumeci is at is mainly due to the mindset he has adopted of being is own coach. Since the age of 14-15 (which is after a decade in the sport) Mieky started being his own coach, pushing himself further and always studying tape, instructionals, and rolling footage.

Of course, having a sister that is also a World Champion in Tammy Musumeci helps a lot, with the siblings often training in their garage.

“What keeps me going, I would say is my motivation and drive, I’m always trying to get better, and improve and I know how short our life is. I know how limited our time is. So I feel like every second that I am not working toward my goal, I feel like I’m wasting time.

I think what separates me is my obsession, I’m never not thinking about Jiu-Jitsu. Every hour in the day I am thinking of it.”

The Mikey Musumeci Legacy

While Mikey has one of the most attacking and aggressive styles in the sport, always looking for submissions, regardless if he gets them or not, he does not want his style of grappling to be his legacy.

Instead, he’d like people to remember him by the energy on the mats, and the respect and values he holds in high regard.

According to Musumeci, BJJ has a lot of amazing athletes that are horrible people. What he aspires is to be a good person on and off the mats.

Musumeci sees his legacy in giving back to the community, by showing that anyone can do BJJ, and people do not have to fulfill the stereotype of tough arrogant people which is the quintessential combat sports athlete image nowadays. Musumeci instead likes to pull people into Jiu-Jitsu by showing everyone can do BJJ.

His advice to people starting BJJ is to:

“Take it slow, don’t get completely obsessed with it and burn out. So I think a steady, long-distance mindset is the best for anyone starting Jiu-Jitsu. “

1...798081...336Page 80 of 336
© 2021 BJJ World | All rights reserved