
Pictured: Renzo Gracie demonstrates how to begin a guard pass at his seminar in Fife, WA last Saturday.
There are a few figures in the MMA world which require no introduction. Fewer still are all but universally admired.
He’s quick to deflect any such praise, instead casting favor to his family and their art which has changed the martial arts world — but Renzo Gracie, who enjoyed his first visit to the Seattle area last Saturday to conduct a jiu-jitsu seminar, may just stand alone to many of us.
After the seminar, the legend smiles his way through requests from area fans — everything from autographs, to questions about technique, to a request for a chokeout. In a brief Total-MMA interview, Renzo laughs as he’s reminded of some of his vintage MMA battles — including a win over the man who helped put the Seattle area on the MMA map, Maurice Smith. In the 1990’s, Bellevue’s Smith had won titles in UFC and Battlecade, and actually released instructional videos marketed as the solution to the Gracie family’s dominance. They eventually met in 1999 in Japan’s RINGS organization.
“He made those videos, ‘How to Beat Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,’ to tell everybody how it’s done!” Renzo laughs. “And, I armlocked him! (laughs) But I love the guy. He’s a great competitor and we were very fortunate to have him in the game.”








