Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu is a

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...

and

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

training facility located in

Pleasant Hill, California Pleasant Hill is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States, in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 34,613 at the 2020 census. It was incorporated in 1961. Pleasant Hill is the home of College Park H ...

and is home to numerous highly ranked mixed martial artists who compete in organizations such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

History

The academy was opened by Cesar Gracie. It rose to prominence in the late 2000s based on the success of a close-knit group of Gracie students known as the "Skrap Pack":

Jake Shields Jake Sequoyah Shields (born January 9, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist and submission grappler. He was the last Rumble on the Rock Welterweight Champion, the only Elite XC Welterweight Champion, a former Shooto Welterweight ...

Gilbert Melendez Gilbert Melendez (born April 12, 1982) is an American mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a two-time Strikeforce Lightweight Champion and a former WEC Lightwe ...

, and brothers

Nick Nick may refer to: * Nick (given name) * A cricket term for a slight deviation of the ball off the edge of the bat * British slang for being arrested * British slang for a police station * British slang for stealing * Short for nickname Place ...

and

Nate Diaz Nathan Donald Diaz (born April 16, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist who is currently a free agent. Diaz is most known for his time spent fighting in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he fought for over 15 year ...

. All fought primarily in the Strikeforce promotion at that time and were some of its most popular stars. Prior to Jake Shields' UFC signing in 2010, Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu housed champions in three of five weight classes in the Strikeforce promotion. This success helped Cesar Gracie secure a position among the nominees for "Coach of the Year" at the Fighters Only 2010 World MMA Awards. On April 17, 2010, members of the Cesar Gracie Jiu Jitsu camp were involved in a brawl following the main event at Strikeforce: Nashville in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

. The incident began as Jason Miller, a former opponent of

, interrupted Shields' post-fight interview following his decision victory over

Dan Henderson Daniel Jeffery Henderson (born August 24, 1970) is an American retired mixed martial artist and Olympic wrestler, who last competed as a middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the last Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champi ...

. Shields, Nick Diaz, Nate Diaz, and Gilbert Melendez scuffled with Miller after he asked Shields for a rematch. In response to the brawl, the Tennessee Athletic Commission recommended a range of fines and suspensions for the fighters involved.

Notable fighters

Bret Bergmark Bret Bergmark (born November 24, 1973) is an American professional mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor since 2002, Bergmark has formerly competed for the WEC, Strikeforce, and ...

- Strikeforce welterweight fighter * Cody McKenzie -

The Ultimate Fighter ''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...

Season 12 contestant. * Leslie Smith - Invicta FC Bantamweight Fighter * Gil Castillo - UFC veteran, welterweight fighter *

- UFC lightweight fighter and

Season 5 winner *

Nick Diaz Nickolas Robert Diaz (born August 2, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Diaz is a former Strikeforce, WEC and IFC welterweight champion ...

- UFC welterweight fighter and former Strikeforce and WEC champion. * David Douglas - Strikeforce lightweight fighter *

- Strikeforce lightweight champion *

Dave Bautista David Michael Bautista Jr. (born January 18, 1969) is an American actor and retired professional wrestler. He had several stints in WWE between 2002 and 2019. In his acting career, he is most widely known for his portrayal of Drax the Dest ...

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

professional wrestler, actor, MMA fighter, and purple belt under Cesar Gracie * Daniel Roberts - UFC welterweight *

Yancy Medeiros Yancy Medeiros Jr. (born September 7, 1987) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division of Bellator MMA. A professional competitor since 2007, he has competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Strikefor ...

- UFC welterweight fighter *

- WSOF Strikeforce middleweight champion and

Elite XC Elite Xtreme Combat, also known as EliteXC, was a United States-based mixed martial arts (MMA) organization owned and operated by ProElite. It was founded as a partnership between Showtime Networks and ProElite and officially announced on Decemb ...

welterweight champion, third place finisher in the under 77KG division at the 2005 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship *

Joe Schilling Joseph Francis Schilling (born January 13, 1984) is an American professional Muay Thai kickboxer and mixed martial artist who most recently competed for Bellator Kickboxing in the Middleweight division, and in the Middleweight division for Bell ...

- Glory Middleweight kickboxer, Bellator Middleweight fighter * David Terrell - UFC veteran, middleweight fighter, third place finisher in the under 88KG division at the 2003 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship

References

External links

*
Gym information at FiveKnuckles.com
{{MMA Team List Mixed martial arts training facilities Karate training facilities Brazilian jiu-jitsu training facilities Sports in the San Francisco Bay Area Education in Contra Costa County, California

History

Notable fighters

See also

References

External links