Ryan Gracie (August 13, 1974 – December 15, 2007) was a Brazilian

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 ...

with a black belt in

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 was a member of the

Gracie family The Gracie Family () are a prominent martial arts family originally from Belém, state of Pará, Brazil whose ancestors came from Paisley, Scotland. They are known for creating the self-defense martial arts system of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, also kn ...

, and a grandson of

Carlos Gracie Carlos Gracie (September 14, 1902October 7, 1994) was a Brazilian martial artist who is credited with being one of the primary developers of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Along with his younger brother Hélio Gracie and fellow students Luis França and ...

Career

Ryan trained with his brothers

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 ...

and

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 ...

, who often served as his

cornerman In combat sports, a cornerman, or second, is a coach or trainer assisting a fighter during a bout. The cornerman is forbidden to instruct and must remain outside the combat area during the round. In the break, they are permitted to enter the ri ...

. He also trained

Pancrase Pancrase Inc. is a mixed martial arts promotion company founded in Japan in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the Ancient Olympic Games. Suzuki and Funaki pr ...

fighter Gabriel Vella and

jiu-jitsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdu ...

world champion

Fabio Leopoldo Fabio is a given name descended from Latin '' Fabius'' and very popular in Italy and Latin America (due to Italian migration). Its English equivalent is Fabian. The name is written without an accent in Italian and Spanish, but is usually accented ...

while in Brazil. Gracie had seven fights in the

PRIDE Pride is defined by Merriam-Webster as "reasonable self-esteem" or "confidence and satisfaction in oneself". A healthy amount of pride is good, however, pride sometimes is used interchangeably with "conceit" or "arrogance" (among other words) wh ...

organization, with his first at PRIDE 10 in 2000 and his most recent at

PRIDE Shockwave 2004 The year 2004 is the 8th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2004 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 27 - Inferno''. Title fights Debut Pride FC fighters The followi ...

. PRIDE billed Ryan as the "bad boy" of the family who reputedly gained experience fighting in the streets of Brazil. In interviews in 2004, Gracie expressed a strong interest in fighting

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. ...

and

Hidehiko Yoshida is a Japanese gold-medalist judoka and retired mixed martial artist. He is a longtime veteran of Japan's PRIDE Fighting Championships, competing in the Middleweight (93kg) and Heavyweight divisions. He won gold at the 1992 Summer ...

. Sakuraba, known as the "Gracie Hunter" for his many victories over the Gracie family, earlier defeated Ryan with a decision win in 2000. Ryan was the leader and head coach of Gracie São Paulo, one of the largest jiu-jitsu associations in Brazil, with affiliated schools spread over the world. Supported by his cousins Carlos Russo, Daniel Simões and Renzo Gracie, the academy is home of several world champions.

Personal life

He was the youngest son of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Master

Robson Gracie Carlos Robson Gracie Sr. (; born August 13, 1935) is the second son of Carlos Gracie. Gracie is a 9th degree red belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, affording him the title of Grandmaster. Biography Robson Gracie learned martial arts from his father, ...

. On December 8, 2001, his only son, Rayron Gracie, was born. Ryan's brothers are Charles Gracie,

, and

. On January 30th, 2021, Ryan's only son Rayron released a short documentary entitled 'Letters to my Father' that reveals his experiences growing up without his father through a series of letters he decided to write to Ryan throughout his teenage years.

Gunshot injury

In October 2005, Gracie suffered an accidental gunshot wound to the leg while reaching into a closet in his sister's house in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, according to a report by GracieMag.com. He was hospitalized and returned to stable condition after receiving a

blood transfusion Blood transfusion is the process of transferring blood products into a person's circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used for various medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood. Early transfusions used whole blood, but mo ...

Death

On December 15, 2007 at 7:00am Ryan Gracie was found dead in a jail cell in

São Paulo, Brazil SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Saco Transportation Center (station code SAO), a train station in Saco, Maine, U.S ...

. At approximately 1:30am, Gracie had been arrested for stealing and crashing a car and attempting to

hijack Hijack may refer to: Films * ''Hijack'' (1973 film), an American made-for-television film * ''Hijack!'', a 1975 British film sponsored by the Children's Film Foundation - see Children's Film Foundation filmography * ''Hijack'' (2008 film), a Bol ...

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

. The owner of the motorcycle hit Gracie on the head, and he was detained by several cyclists until police arrived. A toxicological examination at the Medical Legal Institute was conducted, after which he was transported to the police station. While in jail, Ryan Gracie's wife called

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

Dr. Sabino Ferreira de Faria to attend to him. The psychiatrist was later accused of

medical negligence Medical malpractice is a legal cause of action that occurs when a medical or health care professional, through a negligent act or omission, deviates from standards in their profession, thereby causing injury or death to a patient. The negligen ...

by over prescribing medication and causing the death of Ryan. Ferreira was later sentenced to two years of

community service Community service is unpaid work performed by a person or group of people for the benefit and betterment of their community without any form of compensation. Community service can be distinct from volunteering, since it is not always performed ...

for recklessness. The doctor was with Gracie most of the night, and was notified of Ryan Gracie's death as he was driving home. Gracie was found alone and slumped into a corner when police were doing a routine check of the jail cells.

Mixed martial arts record

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Yoji Anjo (born March 28, 1967) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Professional wrestling career Universal Wrestling Federation and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1985–1988) A former practitioner of judo, sumo and muay th ...

, Submission (armbar) ,

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Ikuhisa Minowa is a Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler currently competing in IGF as . A professional MMA competitor since 1996, he was a longtime veteran of PRIDE and Pancrase and has also competed in other mixed martial arts promotions s ...

, Decision (split) ,

PRIDE Bushido 3 The year 2004 is the 8th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2004 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 27 - Inferno''. Title fights Debut Pride FC fighters The followi ...

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Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

Kanagawa is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

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Kazuhiro Hamanaka is a Japanese mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. He fought for the Tokyo Sabres in the International Fight League. Career Hamanaka began his mixed martial arts career in 2003 with a victory over Nino Schembri, Antonio Schembri at PRIDE 2 ...

, KO (soccer kicks) , PRIDE Bushido 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 7:37 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2–2 ,

Shungo Oyama Shungo Oyama ( 峻護 ''Ōyama Shungo'' ; born April 11, 1974) is a Japanese former professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 2001 to 2014, he competed for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, Pancrase, RINGS, DREAM, K-1, a ...

, Technical Submission (armbar) ,

PRIDE 22 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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Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most pop ...

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Tokimitsu Ishizawa Tokimitsu Ishizawa (''Ishizawa Tokimitsu'', born August 5, 1968), better known by his ring name Kendo Kashin (ケンドー・カシン, ''Kendō Kashin''), is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his time in New Japan Pr ...

, TKO (injury) ,

PRIDE 15 The year 2001 is the 5th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2001 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 13 - Collision Course''. Title fights Debut Pride FC fighters The ...

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Tokorozawa, Saitama is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 344,194 in 163,675 households and a population density of 4800 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Tokorozawa is located in the ce ...

, Japan ,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gracie, Ryan 1974 births 2007 deaths Sportspeople from Rio de Janeiro (city) Brazilian male mixed martial artists Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian people of Scottish descent Ryan Brazilian criminals People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu Deaths in police custody in Brazil Drug-related deaths in Brazil