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Great job by the Crazy 88 Childrens BJJ team at the GQ US Nationals event in Morristown, NJ.  The team consisted mostly of competition veterans but we did have Chis Tran and Andre Shiller compete for the very first time (and do awesome)!  Also, of special note is Brendan “Spike-a-Doodle” Bill, Seth Fillers, and Shawn Suser taking the plunge into the Advanced division.

Champions On and Off the Mat!

Rodeo Takes Time Off Coaching to Work on His Upcoming Novel

All the Team Lloyd Irvin Kids Together

We had two first time competitors going this weekend, Chris Tran and Andre Shiller.

First up was Chris Tran and he got right to business. His first match was the longest match of the day. Chris worked early for the takedown,for his efforts he got caught in an anaconda choke but was able to fight through it and secure side mount. Chris applied all his knowledge that he’s learned in his time training and quickly moved to mount and then back mount. His opponent was able to reverse the position but Chris quickly transitioned to a fight ending triangle choke! Chris’s next two matches followed the same script, his second match Chris’s foe tried to pull guard but Chris did a good job in controlling the knee and setting up the knee cut. This time he finished his opponent with a kimura from cross body. Big congrats to Chris for his double gold performance!!

Madeline Donnelly

With no one in her division, Madeline was awarded a gold medal and offered to either; move up to the advanced division or; bump a weight class. After the coaches talked and talked to Madeline we decided to make the weight class jump. Despite being outweighed by more than 20+ pounds Madeline fought like a champ. She took her opponents back twice but the weight difference was too much to overcome and Madeline ended up losing on points…great effort!! In gi, Madeline was looking to redeem herself and she did in a big way!! She dominated her opponent standing and on the ground enroute to a 30-0 win!! It looked more like the Pittsburgh Steelers beating the Baltimore Ravens than a Jiu Jitsu match!! Double gold for Madeline!!

Shawn Suser

This was Shawn’s first try at the Advanced Division and he got a firsthand look into why it’s a difficult division to win. Shawn fought hard all day and was able to use some of the techniques he’s learned in the Juniors classes and was able to find areas that needs work. Like a true Crazy 88 kids competitor, you will see him back in class working to improve on his two 4th place finishes!

Andre Shiller

This was Andres’ first competition and didn’t disappoint! For the day Andre went 1-2 but gained a lot of experience and knowledge for future tournaments. His first match was hard fought and he showed the skills that he’s been working on in the Black Belt Club. His guard opening was spot on! In the end Andre lost a tough battle on points. His second match was against his own teammate Tyler Neal. It was an epic battle, both had takedowns and sweeps with Andre coming out on top of this slobber knocker 11-9! His last match of the day had him squaring off against another Team Lloyd Irvin competitor; even without the coaching , Andre stuck to his game plan but fell short on points again but learning valuable lessons to take back to the training room! Andre finished the day with 1 Silver and 1 bronze…not bad for first time out!

Vanessa Fillers

This was Vanessa’s fist dip back into the competition scene since the mix up at the Baltimore BJJ championships earlier this year. In her first match Vanessa was able to jump guard and defend the pass very well. She displayed very good guard control, but at the end of the day she lost two tough matches but was able to finish with 1 bronze medal!

Tyler Neal

Tyler’s first match in no-gi went like the last few have gone. Tyler shot in for a double leg takedown perfectly but landed in closed guard and left his neck out a little too far and found himself locked in a tight guillotine. Tyler tried to fight it and escape but was forced to tap. His second match was the slobber knocker against teammate Andre Shiller (see his highlights). In Tyler’s only gi match he fought hard again and what could only be described by Coach Danny as “the best osto gari” of the tournament but again wound up on the losing end of a points decision. Tyler ended the day with a 4th place finish in no gi and a bronze medal in gi!

Mason Hollis

Mason has been on the medal stand before and this one was no different. In Mason’s no-gi match he had to face a much bigger kid. Mason tried to shoot for the takedown but was stuffed by the larger kid. After an intense struggle Mason’s opponent was able to lock in a fight ending anaconda choke. Mason’s second match was with the gi on this time, and all the hard work on grip fighting paid off. Mason was able to dominate the grips and force the takedown. Once is was on the ground it was a matter of time before Mason got the armbar and won via submission. Two Silver medals for Mason!!

Brendan “Spike” Bill

Spike was another one of our kids that took the dive into the advanced division, and he let them know he was there by winning a bronze medal! His first no-gi match was a tough 9-0 loss but is closed guard is showing marked improvement! Spike’s second match went more according to plan. The kid shot in for a takedown and landed in Spike’s closed guard. Spike was able to secure his opponent in a guillotine choke after breaking his posture. It was only a matter of time until he got the tap. Spikes final match in gi was tough. His opponent was very aggressive. Spike spent the entire match in trying to get back to closed guard from cross body. In the end Spike drew the short straw in a points loss. Great job though….bronze in both no-gi and gi!!

Seth Fillers

Just like Spike and Shawn, this was Seth’s first try at the advanced division. Seth went 1-1 in no gi. Losing his first match by points but was able to rebound in his second match to take the bronze! In gi, it was much of the same, in his first match Seth handled his opponent with relative ease winning 10-2. His second match in gi was a points loss to his teammate from Camp Springs, Romeo. Two bronze medals for his effort!

The OFFICIAL Top Ten Teams of the Decade (1999-2009) at Grapplers Quest are:

TIE-10. Royler Gracie/Dave Adiv/Lou Vintaloro/Mike Mrkulic/Chris Savarese

TIE-10. Saulo & Alexandre Ribeiro/Rafael Lovato, Jr.

9. Carlson Gracie/Ricardo Calvacanti

8. Yamasaki Jiu Jitsu/Mario and Fernando Yamasaki/Francisco Neto/David Jacobs

7. Alliance/Paragon Jiu Jitsu/Franjinha Miller/Jeff Glover/Bill Cooper

6. Machado/Amilcar “Mica” Cippili and Walter Vital

5. Relson Gracie/Team Balance Studios/Phil and Ricardo Migliarese

4. American Top Team/Ricardo Liborio/Best Way/Andre Almeida “Dedeco”/Luigi Mondelli

3. Cobra Kai/Marc Laimon

2. Gracie Barra/Renzo Gracie/Ricardo Almeida

1. Team Lloyd Irvin/Leo Dalla/Jared Weiner/Brad Court/Mike Moses

You can read the full writeup here…

http://www.grapplersquest.com/blogs/briancimins/best-grappling-team-decade

Team Lloyd Irvin wins it all! As the promoter put it:

The Best Grappling Superfight Team in the Northeast will be crowned on Sept. 26th in Lancaster, PA.

5-ON-5 Superfight TEAM Weight Classes:
Men’s Featherweight: 150 lbs. and under
Men’s Welterweight: 150-169.9 lbs.
Men’s Cruiserweight: 170-189.9 lbs.
Men’s Heavyweight: 190 lbs. and Over
Women’s: Under 150 lbs.

Some good matches along the way, facing Jungle Gym in the semi-finals and Team Renzo Gracie in the finals but we managed to take the Gold. Great job!

Ron Stallings, DJ Jackson, Wilson Reis, Willie Leonard, Tracey Goodell Clean Up the Grapplers Quest!

It was couples weekend in Vegas as Jon “Devastator” Delbrugge and Tye Ryan Murphy flew out to Las Vegas with significant others in tow.  They had to do some work at the Grapplers Quest before they could relax though.  Devastator started the day off, with 10-0 victory in the Quarterfinals.  He was winning 3-0 in the Semi-finals but lost via Kimura in the final minute of the match, placing him the 3/4 match.  He won dominantly there with another 10-0 annihilation.    A Bronze at the GQ West Advanced as a Blue Belt is a strong accomplishment.

Devastator then had 5 more matches in the Gi division, winning by Brabo, 3-0, 5-0, and 3-2 before coming up 2 points short in the finals.  A long day of competition for our teammate.

Mike Atkin only had one other competitor in his weight division. Mike’s opponent was 32-years old and disrespected his elder from the beginning by throwing him to the mat. Annoyed at his insolence, Mike used his half-guard to get back on top and then methodically began to put the points back on the board. Mike defeated the young whipper-snapper 8-4.

Josh Plaschkes came close to a medal in his first Blue Belt division. Josh’s tapped out his first opponent with a rear naked choke. In the semi-finals, he faced the division winner and lost by a single advantage. There was some terrible refereeing in this bout – Josh came up with a single leg and his opponent jumps guard. No points were awarded. In the consolation round, Josh would again lose on advantages, this time two. Again very questionable refereeing. Video will be posted soon.

Fred Ramie used his great passing ability to secure side-mount twice on an experienced competitor from Alliance NYC. Fred followed up the 6-0 victory with a Bread-Cutter choke in the finals to win his first Adult Purple Belt division – Awesome Job!

Kwami participated in the Executive division and ended up taking 3rd. After losing in the semi-finals, he came back strong to take Bronze! Congrats to Kwami who has placed in every tournament he has competed in!

Kwami Mensah has been working a lot on his positioning despite being known as a finisher. If you’ve been to class, you’ll notice that Kwami has been nursing an injured arm. The damage to his elbow has forced Kwami to develop new aspects of his game, specifically a systematic guard-passing plan. He used it to full-effect, winning 10-0 and 3-0 in his victories!

Josh Plaschkes drove all the way to New Jersey to be matched up with James Chiariello in his first match. James is a purple belt from Balance who had defeated Josh in June. The first match was a war with Josh losing on a single advantage.

The rematch picked up right where the last one left off with James attempting a flying armbar. Josh once again showed his impeccable defense and escaped what looked like an airtight submission. The two rivals traded sweeps, ankle locks, takedowns, until the final bell. The final score was 4-4 (4-3) with Josh losing again by a single advantage.

Dissapointed, Josh decided to enter the No-Gi Absolute despite weighing in at 136 lbs. Josh got the opportunity to compete against Bill Cooper, one of America’s BEST grappers – an awesome learning experience for the new Blue belt.

Fred Ramie had a rough start to the day, missing weight by one pound and then losing in the first round on an advantage. He managed to gather his wits about him and submit his 2nd opponent by armbar to win 3rd place.

After her dual medals in Brazil, Amie Turton finally returned to the mats this weekend. Amie has been extremely busy with school (she is in her 1st year of undergrad) but pulled herself out of the library for a few hours to to win the Womens’s Advanced division at the Grapplers Quest. She had two matches, winning 6-0 and 7-2.

Look for Amie again at the ADCC trials in 2 weeks.

All competitors into the Final Four of their divisions.  Not bad…

Roberto Torralbas and Amie Turton took the long trip to New Jersey this weekend to compete at the Grapplers Quest tournament. This is a HUGE tournament, probably only 2nd to the international events such as the PanAms, and the competition was tough!