Reyson Gracie - 9th Degree Red Belt

Carlos Gracie is the founder of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and earned great reverence as a pioneer of jiu-jitsu around the world. On 28 February 1942 in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, Reyson was born in somewhat difficult circumstances. Right after two days of the marriage of Carlos Gracie and his fiancee, Geni, Reyson was born in the house of his girlfriend named Lina.

Reyson Gracie is the third son of Carlos Gracie. He was awarded the 9th degree of the red belt in 2003 which is the highest active degree of black belt in Gracie Brazilian jiu-jitsu and almost impossible to achieve.

He had devoted his entire life to the teachings of Jiu Jitsu. Reyson Gracie bore the credit for making Jiu Jitsu the most adopted martial art in the Brazilian states of Amazonas, Hives, and Bahia. He left no stone unturned while preparing the most skilled jiu-jitsu fighters, who won World Competitions and earned great reverence for their Master Reyson Gracie.

Carlos Gracie Sr. was deeply invested in mystical knowledge and had great regard for spirituality. His son Gustavo Gracie Filho carried this legacy of spirituality throughout his life and claimed to know the unknown. Gusto Filho was also highly regarded by his brothers. At the time of Reyson’s birth, Carlos was learning Numerology also known as Arithmancy and Kabbalah. (Numerology is the belief in the mystical relationship between numbers and life events) According to the beliefs of Numerology, the letter “R” bears great significance in terms of strength, personality traits, and life success. This is why Carlos named his third child Reyson.

As mentioned earlier, Carlos did not marry the mother of Reyson, Lina. She was not able to raise the baby on her own. She conveyed this situation to Carlos Gracie and he acknowledged the situation. At this time, Carlos Gracie was extremely invested in professional mundane, and business-related occupations which involved continuous traveling to the other states of Brazil. So he rectified the situation by temporarily giving the responsibility of baby Reyson Gracie to his best friend, Oscar Santa. Later Carlos gave the child to his Uncle Helio Gracie. Which Reyson always regarded very highly.

He said in an interview:

“I got my training from Helio and Carlos Gracie at the age of 5. I got most of my training from Master Helio. Helio was like a fatherly figure to me but I was built for teaching the art of Jiu Jitsu.”

At the end of 1976, Reyson Gracie's friend Senator Artur Virgilio invited him to the state of Amazonas aiming to proliferate Jiu-Jitsu across the state. Reyson started his journey from the city of Manaus and spent a year there teaching and training Brazilian martial art, Jiu-jitsu to the students.

In 1977 he created the Amazonas Federation of Jiu-Jitsu, Reyson's famous students include Fernando Façanha, Alfredo Jacauna, Kako Caminha, and many other practitioners.

After working for Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in Amazon, Reyson decided to return to Rio de Janeiro to monitor the progress of his students. Reasons friend Osvaldo Alves assisted him in the development of martial arts in their city Rio de Janeiro.

Reyson Gracie's role in the spread of jiu-jitsu in the state of Bahia was remarkable. Reyson’s nephew Charles Gracie invited him for the instructorship of combat sport in Bahia. In 1977, Reyson was nominated as the President of the Bahia Federation. He chaired the Bahia federation for five years.

Till now, Reyson Gracie is working for Jiu-Jitsu, by engaging and attending martial arts seminars and webinars and teaching beginners and advanced level practitioners.

Despite BJJ gaining popularity all over the world, they were afraid of losing business to the proliferation of aikido, judo, karate, and taekwondo schools. Gracie's only strategy to avoid the spread of other sports is to spread awareness and training of Jiu-Jitsu as much as possible. Thus, Reyson Gracie trained thousands of fighters to fight in different states. Especially in the Rio de Janeiro television show called Heróis do Ringu (Heroes of the Ring, 1959–1960).

Reyson Gracie had two sons. One is Kendra and the other one is Carlos Gracie III, often called “Carlinhos”. Carlos' decision to pursue his career as a ballet dancer devastated Gracie's legacy and the family's reputation built over decades. Osvaldo Alves is his most famous student.

Reyson Gracie opened his academy of martial arts named Reyson Gracie Boca Raton in Florida. The academy aims to teach practical self-defense skills which ultimately develop your muscle strength and keep you in shape.

Moreover, it promises the development of strong values in kids during the teaching and learning process and develops strong relationships and lasting memories.

In January 2018, Reyson commissioned Mario Stapel to build an authentic Jiu-Jitsu Association. After months of planning, the German Reyson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Association was inaugurated. Reyson Gracie also coaches the teams in Neustadt.

From 1997 to 2002, Reyson Gracie was the chief executive of the Bahia Federation of Jiu-Jitsu. Since then, Reyson Gracie worked for the propagation of gentle art by traveling to different countries and states while giving seminars to students and teachers of the Jiu-Jitsu community. Reyson Gracie’s notable students are Osvaldo Alves and Caio Terra.

Reyson Gracie is the father and master trainer of MMA and BJJ fighter Rodrigo Gracie.

At the ripe age of 80, Reyson is still hale and hearty. He teaches all the techniques himself. He is considered an effective ambassador for health demonstrating the importance of Jiu Jitsu training regularly to individuals.

Reyson Gracie taught a variety of defensive techniques against head grabs and Guillotines. Each escape led to a dominant BJJ-style position termed side control or mount.

Gracie vs. Kimura - October 23, 1951

Rolls Gracie v Reyson Gracie

Marcos Bicudo- Reyson Gracie jiujitsu back take!! Must see!!

Photo credit: @reysongracie