 David Ayuso is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu athlete that has made the transition from Judo into our crazy world of grappling. We recently were able to catch up with him and get a quick word. Check it out here:
Jitzilla: What caused you to jump in and start training Jiu-Jitsu? Ayuso: I used to train on and off Judo for at least 4 years in Puerto Rico. After I moved from Puerto Rico, I was off the mats until I started training Judo in March of last year. Judo isn't very popular in the area of Georgia I live, so I started going to BJJ open mats Introducing myself as a Judoka and trying to get people to train stand up with me. Eventually, I wanted to get back to competing, however, there were barely any Judo tournament and I realized there were BJJ tournaments going on almost every weekend.
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 Matt Spendlove is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Purple Belt that trains out of the Detroit area in Michigan at Proving Ground Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai. He is a seasoned Jiu-Jitsu practioner that is looking to compete more in 2024 and to continue to grow his game overall this year. We recently were able to catch up with him. Check out his interview here:
Jitzilla: How long have you trained Jiu-Jitsu and what is it about the sport that attracted you to it? Spendlove: On and off for 15 years. 8 years straight though. I am a lifelong martial artist. Thought I knew how to fight took, an amateur fight because I had wrestled - got the take down and ended up getting my back taken and getting choked. After that I knew I had to learn BJJ.  Jacob Cochenour is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Purple Belt that trains out of Meta MMA in Fayetteville, AR. He's been in the sports for nearly a decade now and is not only a competitor, but is also a NoGi instructor at Meta MMA. We recently were able to catch up with him. Check out the interview here:
Jitzilla: Can you give everyone a little information about yourself and your time in Jiu-Jitsu and what it is that brought you to the sport? Cochenour: Hi, I am Jacob Cochenour. I live in Van Buren, AR. I train at Meta MMA in Fayetteville, AR. I've been there for a little over 2 years. I started at a little gym in downtown Van Buren. That was 7 years ago. I received my Purple Belt 6 months ago or so. I took up coaching No Gi grappling over a year ago. I teach and train using the methods and style of 10th Planet. Every time I travel outside of Arkansas, I try to find a new place to train.  Hannah Smith is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu athlete who trains and competes out of Arsenal Combat Sports in Huntsville, Alabama. She has been training for a few years now and is an accomplished Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Blue Belt. She has also won many competition medals from Fuji BJJ and AGF tournaments to IBJJF tournaments and will be looking to compete in her first superfight this year. We recently were able to catch up with her:
Jitzilla: What is it that attracted you to Jiu-Jitsu? Smith: A friend at work was always talking about how much fun it was and kept begging me to come try it. I eventually caved and was hooked after the first class. It is very rare as an adult to find an atmosphere where you get to play and have fun. It was also crazy to see the scope of the people in the room.. you had PhDs hanging out with fast food workers/etc and NOONE was treated differently based on their background/money. LOL no amount of money/influence could save you on the mats.  Chris McKinney is a long time veteran of both MMA and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competition. He is a BJJ Black Belt and a retired Professional Mixed Martial Artist and the leader of Arte Suave Jiu-Jitsu academy in Beckley, WV. We recently were able to catch up with him for a quick interview. Check it out here:
Jitzilla: You obtained your BJJ Black Belt a couple of year ago. How much did it mean to you to obtain what most see as unattainable? McKinney: Other than my child, my Black Belt's the best thing to ever happen to me. Jiu-Jitsu is my entire life.  Ron Dayley is a long time member of the combat sports and Jiu-Jitsu community in the southeast. He was the head of the World Famous SSF academy in Clarksville, TN and now trains in Nashville after making his return back to the sport. We recently were able to catch up with Ron. Check it out here:
JK: You are a long time staple of the MMA and BJJ community in the area, what was it that got you originally into training all of those years ago? Dayley: My buddies Bill, Pete, and I were in to JKD in the late 80s and early 90s. We heard Larry Hartsell was coming to MD to teach a grappling seminar in 93, so we went and we were hooked on Catch Wrestling. There weren't any Catch gyms around so we found a BJJ gym (which was 1.5 hours away) and we started training.  Jamie Barton is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Purple Belt that trains out of Kuzushi Club in Dalton, GA. He's been training for four plus years and has plans to not stop anytime soon! Jiu-Jitsu is something he is very passionate about and you'll see that in this interview! Please check out what Jamie had to say about his training, his goals, and what Jiu-Jitsu has meant to him here:
JK: Can you tell everyone a little about your training history and what is was that attracted you to Jiu-Jitsu? Barton: I have trained for four plus years, in both Gi and NoGi, primarily at the same location. I have competed several times in several organizations. I have also visited many Jiu-Jitsu schools throughout the USA. What attracts me to Jiu-Jitsu is the game of it. I love that Jiu-Jitsu is this physical problem solving game that is constantly evolving.  With the popularity and growth of Jiu-Jitsu in the last 10 years, we have seen a much larger amount of athletes competing and helping grow the sport compared to years past. There are now many more White Belts and Blue Belts that are both training and competing in Jiu-Jitsu than ever before and they have found success on the mats. One of those Blue Belts is Luke Gentile. Luke is a BJJ Blue Belt out of Tennessee that trains at Maverick Training Center. He has goals to continue training, competing, and improving in Jiu-Jitsu every time he steps on the mats. Check out our interview with him here:
JK: What got you into training Jiu-Jitsu and how long have you been training? Gentile: I watched a lot of action movies growing up and I've always been interested in the grappling aspects. I've been doing jiu-jitsu for almost 2 years now.  We were able to catch up with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt Ricky Pike today and were able to get a short little interview with him! Ricky Pike is not only a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt, but he is also the owner and head instructor of All Heart Jiu-Jitsu in Senatobia, MS. Check out this interview and learn a little bit about one of Mississippi's local BJJ Black Belts:
JK: You are the owner of All Heart Jiu-Jitsu in Mississippi. Can you tell us a little about the school and what makes it different than other academies? Pike: We are a small town school that has some very talented people training in it. Everyone just wants to see each other do well and push themselves to be the best they can be!  Jerry Burns is a Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt under Luiz Palhares and is also the owner and head instructor of the Gracie Foothills Jiu-Jitsu academy in East TN. Not only is he a Professor, but he is also an active competitor and a former mixed martial artist. We recently were able to catch up with him and learn a little bit about him and his jiu-jitsu journey.
JK: Can you tell everyone a little about yourself, your BJJ training, and your background in the sport? Burns: My name is Jerry Burns. I’m originally from KY. I got into BJJ/MMA in 2005 after playing college basketball at Asbury University. I wanted to stay active in a sport and fell in love with martial arts. It gave me an outlet to stay competitive and still compete after college plus it is the most effective self defense martial arts there is. I started training with Luiz Palhares in 2009 and I received my Black Belt from him in 2021. |
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March 2024
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