GD Jiu-Jitsu Events and the AZSBJJF are proud to announce the 2nd Arizona Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Kids Cup on April 24, 2010 at Westwood High School in Mesa, AZ. The tournament will feature Kids (4-15) and Juvenile (16-17) Divisions ONLY. Pre-Registration prices for Kids are $40 ($50 after April 16th) and Juveniles are $50 ($60 after April 16th). The Final Registration Deadline is April 21st, but will be closed sooner if 230 competitors is reached. Don’t wait until the last minute to register, the kids division was sold out at the 5th AZ Open. All Juvenile and Pre-Registered Kids competitors will receive a FREE tournament T-Shirt. 3.5″ Medal for Juvenile Medalists and ALL Kids Competitors. ALL Kids competitors will also receive a Performance Certificate. ALL Competitors will receive the chance to win a Nintendo Wii, regardless of win or loss. The Top 5 Teams will also be awarded trophies. Registration is ONLINE ONLY. Click here to register.

The 5th AZ International Open of BJJ took place at the Westwood High School on March 13th and 14th, in Mesa,AZ. Team GD Jiu-Jitsu had an amazing performance with 9 Medals in the Kids Division (3 gold, 3 silver, and 3 bronze), and 45 Medals in the Adult Division (17 Gold, 15 Silver, and 13 bronze), taking the first place,  Adult Division Trophy home once again.

Here are the standouts of the Team:

White/Adult/Feather – Matt Mamolen and Stephen Barnes repeated the finals of the Kaju AZ/Nava BJJ Tournament, when they closed out the division.

White/Adult/Middle – In the biggest bracket of the tournament, Jeremy Larsen and Mark Garland went at it, and Jeremy won,  securing the gold.

Kristina wins Feather and Open Class

Blue/Female – Kristina Barlaan repeated her No-Gi US Nationals performance, winning again the feather weight division, and the Open Class. Kristina submitted both her opponents at Feather with triangles from upside-down guard and surpassed her Middleweight opponent in the Absolute 11-0.

Issa had 6 matches (6 submissions)

Issa and Christopher sharing 1st place

Blue/Middle/Open – Issa Able went up one division, and still dominated his opponents at Middle. With a total of 6 matches, Issa closed out the Open Class with Christopher Broadnax.

Jacob wins after his two year hiatus from BJJ Tournaments

Brown/Medium Heavy – Jacob McClintock won both of his matches by submission.

Here our Team’s Results:

Click Here for full results

Some of our AZ Open Champions

Team Many Weapons members Gustavo Dantas and Steve Rosenberg prepare GD Jiu-Jitsu kids for the 5th AZ International Open of Brazilian Jiu- Jitsu.  Check out all the pictures at Many Weapons Website

Issa won 7 matches!

The Abu Dhabi West Coast Trials took place in Santa Cruz, CA on January 24th. Acting as a qualifier for the richest and most prestigious Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu event on the planet, the Abu Dhabi Pro, the West Coast Qualifier featured the best of the best congregating upon the shores of Northern California in the United States.

The winners from the American event will compete against the best grapplers and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu athletes from across the world and for the chance at winning a massive USD$145,000 in cash and prizes at the Abu Dhabi Pro on April 15th to 17th. The 2009 AZ BJJ State Champion, Issa Able (GD Jiu-Jitsu/Nova Uniao), will represent Arizona Combat Sports in Abu Dhabi. Issa had seven matches to win the Blue Belt Light weight, and the Blue Belt Open Class under 161 lbs.

Propelled by the support of the government of Abu Dhabi, the Abu Dhabi Pro supported personally by his Highness the SupremePrince and Commander In Chief of the United Arab Emirates National Army, H.H. Sheik Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Winners of the qualifiers will have allairfares,accommodation, and meals paid for and they will also have a chance at the cash and prizes in Abu Dhabi.

Issa Able, who is only 19 years old, was born in Iran, but he has been living in the United States since the age of 11. With only 18 months of training, Issa already has an impressive resume. Since July 2009, besides his AZ State Title, Issa won the 2009 U.S. BJJ Nationals, U.S. No-Gi Nationals, 1st Southwest BJJ Classic, and finished the year winning his first World title at the No-Gi Worlds in Carson, CA, making his instructor, Gustavo Dantas, and his sponsor, “Many Weapons”, very proud. In Abu Dhabi, he will be competing for a chance to win $6000 (Weight class and Open).

Issa’s accomplishment was also accompanied by outstanding performances from other fellow AZ champions.

In the Black Belt Division, Steve Rosenberg went all the way to the finals, but ended up losing by referee’s decision (2 x 2) in a very close match to Marcos Torregrossa.

Even though the 2009 Southwest Classic standout, Christian Broadnax won the Blue/Middle Divsion, he lost in the “Heavy” Open Class over 161 lbs, not being able to qualify to the Pro Tournament, since in the blue belt division, only the winners of the Open “Light” and “Heavy” would go to Abu Dhabi. His brother, also a 2009 Southwest Classic Champion, Christopher Broadnax, lost to his team mate Issa, in the finals of the Blue/Light. Christopher lost his second match in the “Light” Open class.

2009 AZ State Champion, Kristina Barlaan, took 3rd at the Female/Under 139 lbs. Kristina lost by a referee’s decision (4 x 4).

Here are our team’s full results:

Issa Able – 1st place (Blue/Light) and 1st place (Blue/Open under 161 lbs)
Christian Broadnax – 1st place (Blue/Middle)
Steve Rosenberg – 2nd place (Black/Light)
Christopher Broadnax – 2nd place (Blue/Light)
Kristina Barlaan – 3rd place (Female/Under 139 lbs)

GD JIU-JITSU Events in association with the Arizona State Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (AZSBJJF) is proud to announce the 5th AZ International Open of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. The competition will take place on March 13-14 at Westwood High School located at 945 W. 8th St. in Mesa, AZ 85201.

Gracie Mag will be covering the event. Don’t forget to check out the December issue which features an article on the 1st Southwest BJJ Classic.

The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competition will offer kids, juveniles, Adult (Male and Female), Masters and Senior Divisions. There will be international competitors from Mexico, as well as Black Belt competitors representing Brazil. The Jiu-Jitsu Federation of Japan will also send their 2009 National Champion to compete in the Black Belt Division.

Kids Division competitors will now receive the improved 3.5″ medal.

The AZSBJJF Award Ceremony for the 2009 MVP Competitors of the Year and winners of the 2009 Overall School Rankings will be held during the tournament. Winners will receive trophies for their achievements and MVPs will receive a plaque and sponsorship to ALL AZSBJJF tournaments for the year of 2010. GD Jiu-Jitsu took 1st place Overall in the Adult Division, and Derling Gonzalez won the Adult MVP Award.

Adult Division

1st place - Team GD Jiu-Jitsu (444 points)
2nd place - BJJ Revolution (241 points)
3rd place – Team Megaton (197 points)

MVP of the Year – Derling Gonzalez (Team GD Jiu-Jitsu)

Register to the 5th AZ International Open

Jose Aldo (Nova Uniao Black Belt)

Nova Uniao Black Belt and the new WEC Featherweight Champion of the World, Jose Aldo, has not forgotten where he came from. Aldo has gone from being a struggling Jiu-Jitsu student living inside his gym, to now an MMA champion revered around the world. Remembering his humble beginnings he now strives to give back to the very community that helped him reach his full potential.

Aldo will be auctioning off several autographed items on eBay from the night he defeated Mike Brown for the Belt, including:

• Autographed Official WEC 44 Jose Aldo’s fight banner (4′x6′ Banner)
• 2 Autographed Corner men Dethroned Hats signed by Champion

ALL the proceeds will be donated to the Nova Uniao Community Program in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Non-profit program is focused on teaching Jiu-Jitsu to underprivileged youths. By getting them off the streets and into an environment where they can learn discipline and build confidence for their future. Organized by Nova Uniao Co-Founder, Andre Pederneiras, the program is currently operated in two locations: “Morro Azul” with classes taught by Black Belt, Fabiano “Babu” Freitas, and “Morro Santo Amaro” with classes taught by Sengoku fighter and Black Belt, Marlon Sandro.

You can also take part in helping by purchasing Nova Uniao merchandise. 10% of each purchase will be donated to the Nova Uniao Community Program. To see the full line of Nova Uniao products, go to http://www.novauniao.com/gear

Marcelo, Gustavo, Aldo, Andre and Rizzo

The GD JIU-JITSU Events in association with the Arizona State Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (AZSBJJF) is proud to announce the 1st Southwest Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Classic 2009. The competition will take place on October 10th & 11th at the Westwood High School located at 945 W. 8th St. in Mesa, AZ 85201

Gracie Mag will be covering the event.

The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competition will offer kids, juveniles, Adult (Male and Female), Masters and Senior Divisions.

IMPORTANT: Registration will be closed for the Kids division after 180 competitors. Registration for Juveniles, Adults, Masters, Seniors, and Women will be closed after 350 competitors.
Each competitor must fill out the registration form online. The Pre-registration fee is $50 for the adults and juveniles (16-17 yrs) or and $35 for the kids division until October 2nd. After this date, $60 for adults and juveniles and, $45 for the kids.

All registrations must be received by Wednesday, October 7th by 11:59 pm. No registrations after this date. Registration fees are non-refundable. No exceptions.

The brackets will be released before the tournament. On Friday, October 9th, the brackets will be available online at our website.

The weigh in system is the same used by IBJJF. The competitor will weigh in before his first match. If you don’t make weight, you will be immediately disqualified. Please make sure that you are in the correct weight category. You cannot change divisions, if you do not make your designed division. No changes will be accepted on the day of the tournament, and no refunds will be made. We offer an extra scale for people to check their weights before.

Click here for full info