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Ilia Topuria: from wrestling to two belts, and the grappling behind his boxing

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Most people know Ilia Topuria for his knockouts: Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway, Charles Oliveira. Fewer know that before any of that he was a grappler, and that in 2018 he and his brother Aleksandre became the first Georgians to earn black belts in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

Merab Dvalishvili: who he is, how he fights, and what his pace means on the mat

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Merab Dvalishvili was born in 1991, in Vani according to most biographies (his UFC profile says Tbilisi), and grew up in Tbilisi. At 21 he moved to the United States to fight professionally, and he has trained with Team Serra/Longo in New York ever since. In September 2024 he beat Sean O’Malley to become UFC bantamweight champion: the second Georgian UFC champion after Ilia Topuria, and the first born in Georgia. His record stands at 21 wins and 5 losses.

Aleksandre Topuria: the older brother, his own career and a shared grappling base

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Aleksandre Topuria was born on 28 January 1996 in Halle, Germany, into a Georgian family. He is Ilia Topuria’s older brother, his long-time training partner, and a UFC fighter himself: 7 wins and 1 loss as a professional, and 2–0 in the UFC.

Roman Dolidze: an ADCC competitor in the UFC

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Roman Dolidze was born on 15 July 1988 in Batumi. Before fighting he was a professional football goalkeeper in Turkey. At twenty he moved to Odesa in Ukraine to study shipbuilding, and that is where he started sambo, jiu-jitsu and grappling. Today he fights in the UFC, and his record is 15 wins and 6 losses.

Giga Chikadze: the karate fighter facing a wrestling test

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Giga Chikadze was born on 25 August 1988 in Tbilisi. Known as “Ninja”, he started Gōjū-ryū karate at four or five and holds a third-dan black belt. Before MMA he was a kickboxer, reaching two GLORY featherweight contender tournament finals. In the UFC he fights at featherweight, and his record is 15 wins and 7 losses.

Liana Jojua: a Muay Thai base and four wins by armbar

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Liana Jojua was born on 22 March 1995 in Tbilisi. Her nickname is “She Wolf”, მგელი in Georgian. Her MMA record is 8 wins and 6 losses, and she is one of the few Georgian women to have fought in the UFC.

Guram Kutateladze: the Georgian Viking who beat Gamrot

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Guram Kutateladze was born on 8 January 1992 in Tbilisi. Known as the “Georgian Viking”, he built his career in Sweden, where he is based in Malmö and trains with the Allstars team in Stockholm. His professional MMA record is 14 wins and 6 losses, and he is 2–0 under Karate Combat rules.

Ruslan Bolkvadze: the Integra FC champion who wins on pace

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Ruslan Bolkvadze was born on 19 December 1999. He fights out of Batumi Fight Academy and has a professional record of 11 wins and 5 losses (some databases list 12–5, counting a 2022 GFC exhibition bout). At 26 he has already fought in more than ten promotions, in Georgia, the UK, Kazakhstan, the UAE and China.

Islam Makhachev: sambo, top pressure and the longest win streak in UFC history

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Islam Makhachev was born on 27 October 1991 in Makhachkala, Dagestan. He is the UFC welterweight champion, a former lightweight champion, and number one on the UFC pound-for-pound list. His record is 29 wins and 1 loss, and in August 2026 he won his 17th UFC fight in a row, the longest streak in the promotion’s history.

Alex Pereira: a striker's grappling, built on defence

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Alex Pereira was born on 7 July 1987 in São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil. Before MMA he was one of the best kickboxers in the world: GLORY champion at middleweight and light heavyweight, and the only man to beat Israel Adesanya twice in kickboxing. In the UFC he became middleweight champion and then light heavyweight champion twice. His MMA record is 13 wins and 4 losses, with 11 of the wins by knockout and none by submission.

Jon Jones: the wrestler who used his whole body as a weapon

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Jon Jones was born on 19 July 1987 in Rochester, New York. He is often named in discussions of the greatest fighter in UFC history: he spent a cumulative 1,743 days at number one in the UFC pound-for-pound rankings, a record, and was champion at light heavyweight and later at heavyweight. His record is 28 wins and 1 loss, with one fight overturned to a no contest. His only official loss is a 2009 disqualification for 12-to-6 elbows. Those strikes later became legal under revised rules, but the result was never changed.

Khamzat Chimaev: the wrestling nobody saw coming

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Khamzat Chimaev was born on 1 May 1994 in Gvardeyskoye, in Chechnya, and started wrestling at five. At eighteen he moved to Sweden, where he won the national freestyle wrestling championship three times. He only started mixed martial arts at 23. In August 2025 he became UFC middleweight champion, and in May 2026 he lost the title in a close decision. His record is 15 wins and 1 loss.

Armbar from guard: the steps and the common mistakes

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

The armbar from closed guard is one of the first submissions most people learn, and one of the first that stops working against someone who knows it’s coming. The difference between an armbar that works and one that doesn’t is a few small details. In the video above, Alex Smith (BJJ Fanatics) shows them clearly.

Jiu-jitsu belts: how long each one takes, and why people quit at blue

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

“How long until blue belt?” Some people ask before their first class is over. The honest answer from our side of the mat: it took us about two years, training three or four times a week. Nothing dramatic happened at the end of those two years. A few basic techniques simply started to work, mostly against people who had trained for less time than we had. That’s what a blue belt usually means.

Jiu-jitsu for kids: what age can a child start, and what happens at the first class?

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Parents usually ask us two things first: “How young can my child start?” and “Is it safe?” Here are our honest answers, along with what to expect in the first class and over the following months.

Jiu-jitsu, judo, chidaoba or sambo: what's the difference, and which is right for your child?

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Children in Georgia can choose from several strong grappling traditions: jiu-jitsu, judo, chidaoba and sport sambo. What’s available depends on your city and region. Parents often ask us which one is best. Here’s how we explain the differences, and what really decides the choice.

Kimura: the steps, the common mistakes and the defence

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

The kimura is a shoulder lock with a figure-four grip, and one of the most reliable attacks from closed guard. It works in the gi and without it, and even when it doesn’t finish, it often opens a sweep or a back take. In the video above, Nick “Chewy” Albin (Chewjitsu) shows the small details that make it work for beginners.

Rear naked choke: finishing from the back

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

The rear naked choke is one of the most common submissions in grappling and mixed martial arts. Taking the back is the hard part; finishing is about a few details, and most failed chokes miss one of them. In the video above, Stephan Kesting and Richie Yip go through those details.

Triangle choke: how to finish it, and why yours keeps coming loose

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Locking a triangle is only the first part. Finishing it against a training partner who knows how to defend takes more. The triangle usually fails for the same few reasons, and in the video above Elliott Bayev, with Stephan Kesting, shows how to fix them.

What jiu-jitsu costs: membership, gi and entry fees

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

“How much does it cost?” is one of the first questions people ask us. The short answer: the main recurring cost is the monthly membership, everything else comes gradually, and some of it is optional. Here are the main costs to plan for. All prices are as of October 2026.

2026 IMMAF World Championships

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

2026 IMMAF World Championships takes place in Tbilisi on 1–7 November 2026. Rules, divisions and registration are on the organiser’s official page. We add the results here after the event.

Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2026

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2026 takes place in Abu Dhabi on 9–21 November 2026. Rules, divisions and registration are on the organiser’s official page. We add the results here after the event.

ADCC Georgia Nationals Open 2026

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

ADCC Georgia Nationals Open 2026 takes place in Tbilisi on 25 October 2026. Rules, divisions and registration are on the organiser’s official page. The venue is the Gymnastic Venue on Bob Walsh Street in Dighomi. This is the second ADCC-sanctioned event in Georgia, run under the official ADCC rules, with divisions from kids to adults and from beginners to professionals. We add the results here after the event.

Fortis Georgian Open 2026

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Fortis Georgian Open 2026 takes place in Tbilisi on 13 December 2026. Rules, divisions and registration are on the organiser’s official page. We add the results here after the event.

GAMA Grappling Open

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

GAMA Grappling Open takes place in Tbilisi on 15 November 2026. Rules, divisions and registration are on the organiser’s official page. We add the results here after the event.

Grappling Industries Tbilisi

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Grappling Industries Tbilisi takes place in Tbilisi on 10 April 2027. Rules, divisions and registration are on the organiser’s official page. We add the results here after the event.

Gymnasia Submission Only

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0400

Gymnasia Submission Only takes place in Tbilisi on 28 November 2026. Rules, divisions and registration are on the organiser’s official page. We add the results here after the event.

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Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

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Last updated: 15 October 2026

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