Daniel Simões, known professionally as Daniel Gracie, is a Brazilian former

mixed martial artist 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, incorp ...

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

and practitioner of

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 ...

. He is cousin to

Renzo Gracie Renzo Gracie (; born March 11, 1967) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner. A member of the Gracie family of Brazil, Renzo is a 7th Degree Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Carlos Gracie Jr. He is the so ...

Ralph Gracie Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms ...

, Charles Gracie and

Ryan Gracie Ryan Gracie (August 13, 1974 – December 15, 2007) was a Brazilian mixed martial artist with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He was a member of the Gracie family, and a grandson of Carlos Gracie. Career Ryan trained with his ...

Biography

Daniel “Gracie” Simoes was born June 28, 1972 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Being very close to his cousins; Charles, Renzo, Ralph and Ryan Gracie, jiu-jitsu was always present in Daniel's life growing up. He started taking training more serious around 1982, training under

Carlos Gracie, Jr. Carlos "Carlinhos" Gracie Jr. is a Brazilian 8th-degree coral belt Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and instructor. A member of the Gracie family, he is the son of Carlos Gracie, and first cousin to the Machado family brothers. Career ...

Gracie Barra Gracie Barra is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu association with over 800 schools on six continents. The organization was founded by Carlos Gracie, Jr. History Carlos Gracie Jr., who was born in 1956, grew up heavily influenced by his family, especiall ...

. He received his black belt in 1996 after winning at the

World Jiu-Jitsu Championship The World IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship (commonly known as the Worlds or Mundials) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament held once every year by the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation. It is widely considered to be the most important and ...

in the absolute division as a brown belt.

Mixed martial arts

Gracie has competed both in sport BJJ and

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 ...

events such as the

PRIDE Fighting Championships PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...

, the

International Fight League The International Fight League was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion billed as the world's first MMA league. It was founded on January 7, 2006, and closed on July 31, 2008.

, and the prestigious

ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship The ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship, is an international submission wrestling, submission grappling competition, organised by the Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC). The inaugural tournament was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE in 1998. It has been ...

. He fought for Team Gracie in the IFL, where he submitted former UFC fighter Wes Sims. After a TKO loss in 2006, Daniel decided to walk away from MMA for a while to concentrate on teaching BJJ at Renzo Gracie's Academy.

Return

Gracie made his return to MMA after a 4-year hiatus from fighting. He fought at Israel FC: Genesis and earned a quick 1st round submission victory.

Bellator Fighting Championships

Gracie participated in the Bellator Season 4 light heavyweight tournament that began in March 2011 on MTV2. He was eliminated in the opening round at Bellator 38 by

Tim Carpenter Timothy W. Carpenter (born February 24, 1960) is an American politician and Democratic member of the Wisconsin State Senate, representing the 3rd Senate district since 2003. He previously served 18 years in the Wisconsin State Assembly (1985&n ...

via split decision.

Professional wrestling

On October 14, 2013, Daniel, along with Rolles Gracie, Jr., made an appearance for

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

promotion

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority shares ...

(NJPW) at the

King of Pro-Wrestling King of Pro-Wrestling is an annual professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event has been held every October since 2012 and aired domestically as a pay-per-view (PPV). The event also aired internationally as ...

pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...

, issuing an open challenge for the January 4, 2014,

Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion, which took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on January 4, 2014. It was the 23rd January 4 Tokyo ...

event, which was later answered by

Yuji Nagata is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). A two-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, World Heavyweight Champion and a GHC Heavyweight Champion, making him a four-time world champion in major professional ...

and

Kazushi Sakuraba is a Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and submission wrestler, currently signed to Rizin Fighting Federation and Pro Wrestling Noah, where he was formerly one-half of the former GHC Tag Team Champions with Takashi Sugiura. ...

, the latter known as the "Gracie Hunter" for his MMA bouts with members of the Gracie family. The Gracies lost the match via disqualification, after Rolles choked Nagata out with his gi. A rematch between the two teams took place on February 11 at

The New Beginning in Osaka The New Beginning is an annual professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event has been held since 2011 as a pay-per-view (PPV). From 2013 to 2014, the event also aired outside Japan as an internet pay-per-view ...

and saw Rolles submit Sakuraba for the win. On April 6 at Invasion Attack 2014, the Gracies defeated

Takashi Iizuka , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his 33-year career in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he was a three-time IWGP Tag Team Champion. He has also worked for Pro Wrestling Noah ...

and

Toru Yano , is a Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, trained by and currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is the KOPW (New Japan Pro-Wrestling), KOPW 2020 and the provisional KOPW (New Japan Pro-Wrestling), KOPW 2 ...

in another tag team match. Later in the event, Daniel entered the

IWGP Intercontinental Championship The was a professional wrestling championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the . The title was officially announced on January 5, 2011 and the Inaugural Champion MVP was cr ...

picture by challenging

Shinsuke Nakamura is a Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown WWE brand extension, brand. Nakamura is known for his time in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where ...

, whom he had defeated in an MMA fight in 2002. The Gracies' win streak continued on May 3 at

Wrestling Dontaku 2014 Wrestling Dontaku 2014 was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on May 3, 2014, in Fukuoka, Fukuoka, at the Fukuoka Kokusai Center. The event featured ten matches (incl ...

, where they defeated Nakamura and Sakuraba. This led to Daniel's first singles match on May 25 at

Back to the Yokohama Arena Back to the Yokohama Arena was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took take place on May 25, 2014, at the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Kanagawa and marked NJPW's first event at th ...

, where he unsuccessfully challenged Nakamura for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.

Personal life

Contrary to popular belief, Daniel is not a Gracie by name but he is blood related. Daniel is the cousin of brothers: Charles, Renzo, Ralph and Ryan Gracie. Daniel's mother is a Gracie sister. Having been raised amongst the Gracie family, Daniel decided to adopt the Gracie surname as his own professionally.

Mixed martial arts record

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Duane Bastress Duane Bastress (born May 30, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist who last competed in Bellator's Middleweight division. Background Born and raised in Pennsylvania, Bastress wrestled for Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania as a freshman ...

, TKO (doctor stoppage) ,

Bellator 54 2011 in Bellator MMA was the fourth installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships. Mixed martial arts tournaments were held in multiple weight classes, including three of the original tournament classes: Welterweight, Lightweight and Feathe ...

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Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

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Tunica, Mississippi Tunica is a town in and the county seat of Tunica County, Mississippi, United States, near the Mississippi River. Until the early 1990s when casino gambling was introduced in the area, Tunica had been one of the most impoverished places in the Uni ...

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Allan Goes Allan may refer to: People * Allan (name), a given name and surname, including list of people and characters with this name * Allan (footballer, born 1984) (Allan Barreto da Silva), Brazilian football striker * Allan (footballer, born 1989) (Al ...

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Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

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Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

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Wataru Sakata is a Japanese professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. Career A former Kyokushin karateka, Sakata trained in professional wrestling at Animal Hamaguchi's gym and joined Akira Maeda's Fighting Network RINGS immediately after. F ...

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Kazuhiro Nakamura Kazuhiro Nakamura ( , born July 16, 1979) is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist who competed as a Middleweight in DREAM, and is a former DEEP Middleweight Champion. He fought out of the Yoshida Dojo and also competed in the Pride Fighting ...

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Takashi Sugiura is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah). Sugiura, an accomplished amateur wrestler, joined Noah's dojo in 2000, making his professional debut on December 23, 2000, and thus becoming the first wrestler ...

, Decision (split) ,

Pride 21 The year 2002 is the 6th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2002 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride FC: The Best, Vol. 1''. Title fights Debut Pride FC fighters The ...

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References

External links

Daniel GracieBJJ Heroes
Profile
Daniel Gracie's New Japan Pro-Wrestling profile

Daniel Gracie's Official Website
*
List of official Renzo Gracie Academy instructors

Renzo Gracie's Stamford Academy
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gracie, Daniel Living people Brazilian male mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Sportspeople from Rio de Janeiro (city) 1972 births

Daniel Daniel is a masculine given name and a surname of Hebrew origin. It means "God is my judge"Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 68. (cf. Gabriel—"God is my strength" ...

Brazilian male professional wrestlers People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu