Jiu Jitsu Idiots

Jiu Jitsu Idiots Greg & Russ recorded multiple interviews at Midwest Finishers 12 last weekend. The tournament was hosted by 10th Planet black belt Omar Ocasio at his gym 10th Planet Lombard here in Chicago. You can watch the entire tournament replay on FloGrappling. We interviewed the Champ Champ Andre Porfirio who won the absolute bracket to secure his second belt at MWF. We also talked to Berni...

Jason Bender is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Carlson Gracie. He is the owner and head instructor at Bender Martial Arts here in Chicago. In addition to BJJ they also offer classes in wrestling, Judo, Muay Thai, boxing, and capoeira. Greg and Russ recently dropped in on a gi session that focused on a fun and methodical approach to takedowns from guard. Jason has an energetic and though...

Bernadette "Bernie" Ambubuyog is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Adem Redzovic and she owns Top Level MMA here in Chicago. In addition to jiu jitsu Bernie is a black belt instructor in Krav Maga and also teaches Muay Thai, boxing, and MMA. Her gym is located in Niles offering multiple classes per day in various martial arts. She is also an avid MMA color commentator and has deep roots in...

Chris Wojcik is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Jeff Serafin. He is currently ranked #13 in the world in no-gi at 170 pounds. His most recent instructional titled, "Sloth Style Leglocks" can be found at www.jiujitsux.com  and he just recorded a yet-to-be released intructional focused primarily on wrestling for jiu jitsu. Chris is also an avid writer and consistently delivers jiu jitsu re...

Sali is a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at Fit 2 Defend Academy in Lake Bluff, Illinois under black belt Scott Gave. She is a licensed massage therapist with a focus in sports/injury rehab, movement, structural integration, ashiatsu, craniosacral, cupping, reiki, singing bowls, and yomassage. Sali started her jiu jitsu journey at R-Team Deerfield and used to train with Greg & Russ at 10th Pla...

Jeff Yumul is the owner of Iron Jiu Jitsu and a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Pete The Greek here in Chicago. Jeff's student Victor who instructs beginner classes also joined us on the podcast. Jeff also offers weekly yoga classes and recently hosted Nicky Rod for a no-gi jiu jitsu seminar. If you are in Chicago then you definitely need to stop by his Saturday Open Mat from noon-2pm that...

Omar Ocasio is a 10th Planet black belt under Eddie Bravo and owner of 10th Planet Lombard here in Chicago. He recently opened a second location 10th Planet Naperville as well. Omar also created the Midwest Finishers tournament which has their 12th event coming up on February 11th, 2023 and will be hosted live on FloGrappling. The biggest and best weekly open mat in Chicago can also be found at 10...

Melanie "Mel" Iverson is a purple belt under Jeff Serafin and a very active jiu jitsu competitor. She has competed on the Fight 2 Win stage here in Chicago and travels around the world to compete in tournaments. Mel received her purple belt in December of 2022, but prior to that she was ranked #1 in IBJJF at blue belt. She also teaches a womens-only class at Serafin Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Check her...

Greg is a brown belt in 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu under Josh Passini. Russell is a purple belt in Brazilian Jiujitsu under Jeff Serafin. We recorded this podcast during a blizzard in Chicago a couple days before Christmas. We discuss various pathways from rubber guard as well as some realistic use cases for jiu jitsu as self defense if you find yourself on the ground being attacked by an opponent. Gre...

Blake Klassman is a black belt under Jeff Serafin and an instructor at Fit2Defend in Lake Bluff, IL. Blake trains both gi and no-gi jiu jitsu and competes regularly. We have a ton of laughs and discuss a broad range of jiujitsu topics including wristlocks, Gordon vs. Nicky Rod, and the fiasco with USADA at No-Gi Worlds. 

Juan Orozco is a brown belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu and founder of UpRise where he is empowering coffee bean farmers from his native Colombia to connect directly with coffee roasters throughout the world. Juan "The Mongoose" is back to training at 10th Planet Chicago after life got in the way for a few years. We also discuss a gi drive at the end of the podcast so please reach out to us if you woul...

10th Planet Chicago's Adam Fernandez joined the podcast this week. We discuss his experience competing at Midwest Finishers Sub Only hosted by black belt Omar Ocasio at his gym 10th Planet Lombard. Greg and Russell sponsored a $200 cash prize for the submission of the night chosen by 3rd degree blackbelt and commentator for the event Jeff Serafin. This was an epic tournament that included a 205 po...

Alex Kim is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and our first repeat guest. We discuss Robert Drysdale's book, "Opening the Closed Guard" along with many other jiu jitsu related topics. Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.

Jeff is a 3rd degree black belt and owner of Serafin Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in Skokie, IL.  Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.

Javi is a black belt from 10th Planet Chicago. He also has a black belt in the gi from LCCT. Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.

Mickey is a black belt from 10th Planet Chicago and is Josh Passini's first student.  Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.

Mike Pak is a black belt under Josh Passini from 10th Planet Chicago. He currently trains and teaches at Red Schafer MMA in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was in town for the Jean Jacques Machado seminar so he stopped by the house. We found out his jiu jitsu origin story, learned some 10th Planet Chicago history, detailed multiple techniques, and had a ton of laughs. Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish g...

Dr. Ryan Gavin is a chiropractor and jiu jitsu practitioner. His office is located next door to 10th Planet Chicago. Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.

Drichmond "Drich" Alvarez is a 10th Planet Chicago black belt under Josh Passini.  Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.

It is the middle of ADCC, but we don't really mention that too much. We love Jake and highly recommend buying his dick spats. That's a normal thing to recommend. Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.

Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.

Greg "The Butcher" is a fun Polish guy who loves talking about jiu jitsu and life. His best friend Russell produced this podcast purely to spread Greg's positivity to the world on a weekly basis.