If you trained here in 2024, you rolled with some of these people. Always drilling with a tournament date in mind, always a little more locked in than everybody else.
In August 2024, that work turned into six podiums at the Submission Grapplers Tournament. Two firsts. Two seconds. Two thirds. One weekend.
If you've ever wondered what actually goes into a result like that, or whether you could do it yourself, read on. Every name below started exactly where you are.
Short version: At the Submission Grapplers Tournament in August 2024, six RGLA grapplers made the podium. Jon and Sheryl took first, Sergio and Genesis took second, Erick and Vianet took third. Coach Walt ran the preparation. Not every match went our way, and those matches taught us as much as the wins did.
Who took first at the Submission Grapplers Tournament?
Jon and Sheryl. Each of them won their division.
Jon had the kind of day that looks like a drilling session from the outside: clean technique, no wasted movement, a plan for every position and the patience to stick to it. Dominant is the word people used afterward, and it fit. That's what months of showing up for the hard rounds buys you. It's not luck. It's the work ethic showing.
Sheryl won hers differently. Precision first, then stubbornness. She drew tough opponents and kept her technique tidy under people who were trying very hard to make it messy. Ever watched someone stay calm and exact while an opponent grinds on them? It's one of the best things you'll see at a tournament. She has grown a lot as a grappler, and this was the weekend it showed.
Second place: Sergio and Genesis
Sergio and Genesis each took second in their divisions, and they got there in opposite ways.
Sergio's matches were grinds. When the first plan didn't work, he adjusted mid-match and found a second one. That's harder than it sounds. Under adrenaline, most people either freeze or keep forcing the thing that isn't working. He did neither. Grit and a clear head in the same match. That's rare.
Genesis went fast. Speed, agility, and a pace her opponents didn't want to keep. She pushed from the start and put people on the back foot, which is exactly what we've been asking her to do in the room. Both of them fought hard for their spot on that podium, and both of them earned it.
Who took third?
Erick and Vianet, each with a third-place finish.
Erick is the guy you see at the front desk. At the tournament he was the guy making every opponent work for every single point. Tenacious, strategic, no freebies. If you've rolled with him, you already know what that feels like from the other side.
Vianet fought the way she always fights: relentless. Forward, fierce, never off the gas. Third place doesn't tell you how much she's grown as a competitor, but everyone in her corner could see it.
What does Coach Walt actually do for this team?
He prepares each athlete individually. Not one generic tournament camp for everybody. He looks at each person's game and builds the plan around it.
What that looks like in practice: personalized coaching, technique over muscle, and a lot of work on the mental side. The nerves in the bullpen. The moment your first plan fails. The third match of the day when your forearms are gone. Coach Walt's preparation was visible in every one of those moments over the weekend, and so was the mental toughness he asks for.
And it doesn't stay on the mat. The composure he drills into them for a bad position shows up in how they handle a bad week. Ask any of the six.
What about the matches we lost?
We lost some. Every academy that shows up loses some. What matters is what you do with it.
A loss at a tournament is the most honest feedback you'll ever get in jiu jitsu. Your training partners are kind to you. A stranger from another academy isn't. So every match that didn't go our way gets pulled apart in the room afterward: where it turned, and which decision we'd take back. That's the fuel for the next one.
What are we proudest of? Not the placings. The sportsmanship, the way everyone kept going when it got hard, and a commitment to getting better that doesn't depend on the result.
Want your name in the next one?
Every person in this post was a nervous first-timer once. Nobody is born knowing how to compete. You learn it the same way you learned to shrimp: badly at first, then a little better each week.
If you've never set foot on our mats at all, start where everyone starts: book a free first class. No contract, no pressure.
Questions people ask
What is the Submission Grapplers Tournament?
A grappling competition our team entered in August 2024. For us it meant six podium finishes in one weekend: two first places, two seconds and two thirds, with Coach Walt handling the preparation. A real test against people from other academies, which is the whole point of competing.
Who is Coach Walt?
The coach who prepared our athletes for this tournament. His approach is individual: he looks at each person's game, coaches to it, and puts a heavy emphasis on technique and mental toughness. Every one of the six podium finishes came out of that preparation.
Do I have to compete to train at Renzo Gracie LA?
No. Plenty of our students never compete and never plan to, and they're just as much a part of the room. Competition is one option, not a requirement.
Where can I see more team results?
A few months earlier, in May 2024, the team took 2nd place at JJWL The Worlds, with over 300 team points, 26 wins and 9 submissions. Same academy, same room, and a lot of the same training partners.
