Royce Gracie's 2010 Philippine Tour

Friday, November 19, 2010

ROYCE Gracie: Up Close & Personal 2 was in Davao City on November 14. It was one of the few stops of his Southeast Asia Tour in the Philippines, conducting seminars with focus on Brazilian Jiu-jitsu no-GI techniques at MetroLifestyle Fitness Center.

Royce Gracie is a living legend among martial artists and fight fans with unrivalled success in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), similar to that of Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao in the world of boxing today.

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This was a "once in a lifetime" opportunity to meet and learn from Royce Gracie (pronounced Hoyce Gracie). For those unfamiliar with the man, Royce's reputable career as a fighter began in 1993 after defeating three opponents in the first Ultimate Fighting Championship.

His opponents consistently outweighed him by more than 50 pounds. He went on to win 3 UFC titles and today is the only man in the history of no holds barred matches to successfully defeat four opponents in one night.

He fought the longest MMA match in history, going over 90 minutes against Japanese superstar Kazushi Sakuraba at the PRIDE Grand PRIX 2000, along with his total domination of the Olympic Judo Gold Medalist Hidehiko Yoshida in Pride Shockwave 2003. Royce is still active in the fight world.

The legend of the Gracie family began in Brazil with Royce's father, Helio Gracie. Today Royce is privileged to spread the techniques perfected by his father all over the world. Throughout his busy fighting career Royce has maintained a rigorous travel schedule of seminars and classes.

On a crowded mat of martial arts enthusiasts, from beginners to muscular and experienced fighters, Royce demonstrated the techniques very well, slowly but in detail, and in a professional and authoritative approach. Next came actual sparring among the participants, and changing sparring partners from time to time, same gender or male vs. Female. Royce was assisted by Evaldo Lima and 7 other Gracie Jiu Jitsu practitioners who came with him for the Southeast Asia Tour seminar.

Evaldo Lima was born in Goiana Goias, Brazil. He was in the Brazilian Air Force and studied Pathology for four years. He has been studying and training the art of Jiu-Jitsu for 15 years and counting.

A Long Beach resident for 20 years, he has always been involved with local events and dreamt of teaching this art to the residents of this city. "Some associate this art with just fighting, but it is way more.

Jiu-Jitsu, meaning "Gentle Art", is self respect, self discipline, respect for others, integrity and even spiritually for the soul."

Evaldo is one of Royce and Rodrigo Gracie's sparring partners and has accompanied them in many arenas, such as Pride Japan 1, K-1 and UFC.

Other events included Law Enforcement and Special Force Training. He has numerous medals in Jiu-Jitsu tournaments, the most notable being 1st Place World No-Gi Tournament, his division in 2007 and a belt from King Of The Lake (San Diego).

Royce explained that in an actual fight, it is important to read the attackers' body language and have an active presence of mind. The seminar was geared more for self defense and situations where the opponent is striking you, either standing or on the ground.

Participants learned basic standup skills as well as take-downs, ground control escaping from bottom to top positions, and submissions.

Royce's style in teaching his technique is mastery by repetition, and by understanding the practical and effective application of the moves simulating an actual street fight. The technical level was basic enough for the beginners but with enough meat for the more experienced martial artists. All throughout the seminar he showed sense of humor, soft on the girls, tough on the guys, and the passion for what he is doing.

Before the seminar ended, the more advanced participants enjoyed a few minutes of actual sparring fights. They partnered with one of Royce Gracie's team while awarding the top Filipino guys with a privilege of sparring with Royce Gracie himself.

Want his autograph? Grab a Royce Gracie shirt with personalized signature at MetroLifestyle Fitness Center & Spa for only P250. Visit F. Torres street corner E. Jacinto Extension, Davao City or call 2286182.