Renzo Gracie
Brazilian jiu-jitsu master and MMA fighter (born 1967) from the Gracie family, two-time ADCC champion and head of the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York.
Quick Facts
United StatesBiography
Renzo Gracie is a Brazilian master of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and an MMA fighter, born on 11 March 1967 in Rio de Janeiro. He is the son of Robson Gracie and the grandson of Carlos Gracie, one of the founders of Gracie jiu-jitsu.
Like most men in the family, he began training very young. According to BJJ Heroes, he received his black belt from Carlos Gracie Jr., and we have not found the award date. He won the Copa Atlântico Sul tournament in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1994. At the first ADCC in Abu Dhabi in 1998 he won in the weight class up to 77 kg, and he won another ADCC title in 2000.
He began in MMA at the age of twenty-five at the Gracie Vale Tudo Challenge. His opponents included Oleg Taktarov, whom he defeated, and Matt Hughes, to whom he lost in the UFC in 2010 at the age of 43 by technical knockout in the third round. We have not been able to document his full fight record in a verified source.
He runs the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York. According to English Wikipedia, his students include Georges St-Pierre, Matt Serra, Chris Weidman and Frankie Edgar. In 2022 he was inducted into the ADCC Hall of Fame, and on 18 January 2023 Rickson Gracie awarded him the coral belt of the 7th degree.
Early life
Renzo Gracie was born on 11 March 1967 in Rio de Janeiro as the son of Robson Gracie, a holder of the 9th dan. He is the grandson of Carlos Gracie, one of the founders of Gracie jiu-jitsu, and according to English Wikipedia the grandnephew of Hélio Gracie. According to BJJ Heroes he began training as an infant, like most of the men in the family. English Wikipedia states that by the age of twenty he was a multiple champion in Brazil. He contested his first official fight at twenty-five at the Gracie Vale Tudo Challenge, where he defeated Luiz Augusto Alvareda with a rear choke.
Training and teachers
According to BJJ Heroes, his lineage runs from Mitsuyo Maeda through Carlos Gracie Sr., Hélio Gracie and Carlos Gracie Jr., who awarded him the black belt. According to the same source, Rolls Gracie was also a significant influence. We have not found the date the black belt was awarded. He won the Copa Atlântico Sul tournament in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1994. At the first ADCC in Abu Dhabi in 1998 he won in the weight class up to 77 kg, and he won a second title in 2000. On 18 January 2023 Rickson Gracie awarded him the coral belt of the 7th degree in Abu Dhabi.
Contribution and innovations
According to English Wikipedia, he founded the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York in 1996, while the website of the academy speaks only of the nineteen-nineties. With his cousin Royler Gracie he wrote the book Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Theory and Technique (2001) and with John Danaher the book Mastering Jujitsu (2003), the years of publication being given by Wikipedia. According to English Wikipedia, he has taught Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan since 1993. From 2011 to 2020 the team Danaher Death Squad operated in the academy, which then became independent. In 2010, at the age of 43, he signed a contract with the UFC and lost to Matt Hughes by technical knockout in the third round.
Legends and documented facts
The website of his academy describes him as a three-time ADCC champion. The ADCC announcement of the Hall of Fame induction, quoted by BJJEE, speaks of five appearances and two titles, from 1998 and 2000. We have not been able to verify the complete record of his MMA fights, nor the manner and year of the win over Oleg Taktarov, in the sources we have read, and BJJ Heroes states only that he defeated Taktarov.
Legacy
He was inducted into the ADCC Hall of Fame as the fourth member of the Gracie family. English Wikipedia gives 21 February 2022 and the magazine Jits wrote about it on 22 February 2022, whereas FloGrappling gives September 2022. According to English Wikipedia, his students include Georges St-Pierre, Matt Serra, Chris Weidman, Frankie Edgar, Roy Nelson and Ricardo Almeida, while BJJ Heroes names Matt Serra and John Danaher. In 2008 the documentary Renzo Gracie: Legacy was made about his influence on BJJ and MMA over ten years.
Associated Martial Arts
Ranks and titles
- 7th beltCoral belt · Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu · 2023
Achievements and honours
- ADCC World ChampionshipWorld Championships · 1st place · 1998