I’ve just had another opportunity to train with 8th degree coral belt Mauricio Gomes when he taught a seminar at Origin BJJ N22.
Mauricio is a legend in the UK BJJ scene. He is among the very few people (6 or 10 depending on source) who were promoted to black belt by Rolls Gracie before his untimely death in 1982. Mauricio first visited here in late 1990’s to teach the then little known martial art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and helped to establish Gracie Barra UK. A few years later he helped his son, Roger Gracie, to establish the Roger Gracie Academy in London. Thanks to his efforts at bringing BJJ over to the UK, Mauricio is often referred to endearingly as the Godfather of British BJJ.
The Infamous Knee on Belly
Ask any student or seminar attendee of Mauricio’s what his most requested technique to teach is and undoubtedly it will be his knee on belly. Actually, knee on belly is perhaps a misnomer, more accurately, Mauricio describes it as knee on chest. When done correctly, the pain from the pressure alone is enough to make you tap. But what Mauricio is looking for, is a defensive reaction, which prompts him to attack with a submission.
Legacy
The rest of the seminar covered opening the closed guard and side control attacks. Mauricio’s jiu-jitsu is very precise and also focuses a lot on creating and maintaining heavy pressure.
Mauricio has been a black belt for way longer than most people have been training in total. At 70 years of age he’s still very active and we’re incredibly fortunate to be able to learn from his wealth of experience and knowledge. If you are able to get to one of his seminars, overseas camps or regular classes over at Roger Gracie Academy then I highly recommend it – not just to learn some cool techniques, but to hear Mauricio’s many funny jokes, stories and anecdotes.
More information about Mauricio:
Website: https://www.mauriciogomesbjj.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mauriciogomes.bjj
Thanks to everyone at Origin BJJ N22 in north London who hosted the seminar. It was great to see everyone!
