PICTURES IN PHOTO SECTION

Marcelo Azevedo, one of our talented Head Instructors here at Gracie Barra, just got back from Barcelona as one of the few elitist invited to compete in the ADCC. Marcelo made us proud winning the first match with a foot lock about one minute into the match against Mike Fowler. Mike Fowler is a talented young Lloyd Irvin Black Belt who has defeted big names such as Abu Dhabi World Champion Saulo Riberio and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Legend Renzo Gracie.

Marcelo goes on to battle K-Taro Nakamura in fight till the end. Marcelo was doing well, getting Nakamura in an arm triangle for three minutes. He was unable to finish him and K-Taro was able to slip out and squeeze a win out by one point.

Kristin is not only an incredible student, she is an incredible person who has been through a lot and came out the other side shinning. Her courage, motivation and commitment is inspirational and we are extremely honored to have her as a sister at Gracie Barra Texas!

1. How did you become interested in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

I started training in the martial arts in 1985 in Chayon-Ryu, a very traditional karate/hapkido system. I loved doing the traditional kata, kicking and point fighting, and learning hapkido self-defense. But when I saw Royce Gracie in UFC 1, my whole perspective about fighting (and really about self defense) changed. It made me realize the limitations of sriking and clearly demonstrated the beauty and effectiveness of BJJ.

I was attacked in my sleep in 1999. I awoke to a 6'2", 220lbs man trying to kill me. My prior martial arts training definitely saved my life. I was able to escape, but only after being slammed and thrown to the ground a half dozen times in my attempts to get away. My break falling all those years did help! After the attack I realized I needed to learn more effective self-defense. Striking doesn't work all the time.

2. What is it like to train under Professor Draculino?

It is AWESOME to train with Professor Draculino! He is a fantastic teacher and coach! And best of all, he makes all the students feel like family!

3. Is jiu-jitsu a man's sport, or does the focus on techniqe over strength give women an equal opportunity in the sport?

Of course Jiu-Jitsu has mostly been a man's sport, but I think its a great sport for women. Not only is it super for overall fitness, but you also learn something practical for self defense.

4. Many women don't want to train with men, but not you. Care to elaborate?

I think it's important to train with men. First of all, for self-defense reasons I want to "Test" my skills against men. In addition, because I compete at a very high level, I want to be pushed as hard as possible. Trainin with men improves my defense and makes me focus on technique (not strength) when executing positions and submissions.

5. How was your experience at the American Gi Nationals in September?

Winning the Gold medal was fantastic! I had two tough matches and I know my training with Professor Draculino is what prepared me! And not only did professor Draculino get me ready, but the entire school helped! It really takes a team to make a champion!

You can watch the ADCC live for 24.99

Sept 26th - 27th

http://www.adcc2009.com/

In addition to Marcelo Azevedo, Romulo Barral is now going to be competing in the ADCC. Get a few guys together to split the bill and watch our brothers compete!

 (Regaurding Romulo's late invitation from www.graciemag.com

Romulo Barral in ADCC 2009

Some Pictures from the Carlos Gracie Jr. Seminar are posted in this websites photo section

 http://www.graciebarratx.com/gallery_photos.php?id=414

The rest, are posted in Draculino's Myspace

 (Link to Draculino's Photo Section)

http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=262561902&albumId=1434330

Our guys did excellent at the lone start beat down. There performance alone was worth the ticket price and were one of the highlights of an exciting night.

First up was our very Nick Felder, coming back from a loss he dominated his opponent for 3 rounds pulling out a unanimous decision after have a few close finishes over his opponent proving that he truly is a force to be reckoned with in his division.

Nick Nitschmann did outstanding in his debut, pulling off a second round triangle. Nick shut down his opponents attempt at a rubber guard during the first round and picked up on his habit to leave his arm out during his sweeps. Nick was ready for it in the 2nd round and capitalized on this mistake with a perfectly executed triangle!

Martin Garcia was in a war for his first fight, barely losing in a controversial split decision. After a ruff start with his wrestling in the beginning of the first round Martin shook off the cobwebs and not only scored a take down, but the mount position as well at the bell. By the second round Garcia turned into Matt Hughes and was slamming his opponent all over the place. He looked good on his feet and almost finished an arm bar and a rear naked choke on the ground while suffering through some illegal elbows. Martin was definitely a winner in our book from this "Fight of the Night" and will definitely be ready for his next opponent.

THE STORK VISITED OUR DEAR STUDENTS FROM GB TEXAS  AND GRACIE BARRA BH.(Starting from Top Left Coner and moving counter clockwise)

ANOTHER ONE OF OUR DEAR STUDENTS, RONNIE STEVEN, RECIEVED THE BEST GIFT OF HIS LIFE....STRAIGHT FROM GOD AND HIS WIFE, TO A BEAUTIFUL BABY . RONNIE IS OF COURSE  HAPPY AND KEEPING IN SHAPE CARRING FOR HIS BABY AND CHANGING DIAPPERS!

THEN THERE IS LITTLE EDUARDO, SON OF STEPHEN FABIAN WHO IS PROFESSOR DRACULINO'S BROWN BELT FROM GBBH, WAS BORN BIG AND STRONG , ON SEPTEMBER 8TH, JUST LIKE HIS DAD! YOU SHOULD SEE HIS STRONG LEGS!!!

AND LAST, BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST.... SURYA TRAN, THE BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER OF VU TRAN WAS BORN ON SEPTEMBER 6TH 2009 AND HAS ALREADY SEEN THE BEACH AND THE MOUNTAINS! 

 ALL THE BEST FOR ALL OUR DEAR STUDENTS AND GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU. WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THESE FUTURE CHAMPIONS ROLLING ON THE MAT!

Due to the Carlos Gracie seminar next Saturday the 19th, we will have no adult classes. Kids classes will remain on schedule however. On a side note, the Carlos Gracie seminar is completely booked. Those of you on the waiting list, we will call you as slots become available. If it is possible, you can secure your spot on the Thrusday, the 17^th seminar at the GB The Woodlands location.

No spectators will be allowed during the Saturday seminar. If you want, after the seminar you can get a picture but only after 1:30 pm.

Thanks.

We have the video section fixed and updated. We will continue to update as more videos are created. And Don't forget to subscribe, rate and leave your comments to support your team at....

http://www.youtube.com/user/DraculinoTeamTx

and

We had a wonderful turnout for the Free Womens Self Defense Class. Everyone had a lot of fun and did  an amazing job learning the techniques. We are excited about the possibility of putting together a woman's only class a couple nights of week. Be sure to check out the site for upcoming news about this class.

Visit draculino's myspace to see pictures from class

(http://www.myspace.com/draculinoteam)

No class on labor day, September 07, 2009