With some very exciting matches Joey Ruggerio wins NAGA purple belt division!

Team Third Law heads out to yet another NAGA, this time in Tampa Fl.

We had competitors including Joey Ruggiero, Katy Torralbas, and Crystal Bradley.

Crystal Bradley hits a bumpsweep in the No-Gi division. She ended up placing first in both her divisions.

They had a lot of support from students including Miranda Garrett, Lourdes Serrano and Harvy Barrios who watched and cheered on their fellow teamates. Also Coach Morales who couldn’t compete due to a hurt back but helped on the side lines as well.

The competitors definitely put on a show.

Joey Ruggerio has done well in previous NAGA tournaments so to add a little challenge they bumped him up to the purple belt division. He ended up placing first and bringing home the champion belt.

With experience at blue belt level competiton it was Crystal Bradley’s first time winning gold.

Katy Torralbas also did very good winning gold in both her Gi and No-Gi divisions.

A special thanks to those who supported and helped with everything and congrats on the victories of those who competed.

Katy Torralbas wins gold in both her Gi and No-Gi division.

Brothers Lucas and Nicholas Rodriguez showing their hard earned medals.

This time Team Third Law kids showed their skills at the NAGA tournament this weekend in Tampa Fl.

The kids were very impressive and definitely showed just how much technique they really know.

We had a total of ten kids who competed, bringing home a total of twelve medals.

For many this was a major step in going forward and facing challenges. Competing is nerve racking, it’s normal to be nervous. Although this is one of the best ways to teach the kids to face their fears head on.

All the kids had a blast and of course that’s what it’s really about as well as getting the experience. Team Third Law is really proud of the kids who competed. They all gave it 110% and did really great. Team Third Law kids are definitely champions on and off the mats. Congratulations to all who competed!

Team Third Law kid competitor Isabella Mandello goes for a very technical bumpsweep

Master Roberto gets bronze in Abu Dhabi after competing in the brown and black division

Team Third Law set out to compete in another major tournament which was Abu Dhabi Pro Trials. In these major tournaments the competition is very high and is always a great learning experience as a competitor. Master Roberto Torralbas, Coach Joe Formica, Katy Torralbas, and Joey Ruggiero challenged themselves and got an experience of yet another great competition. The world’s most renowned Jiu Jitsu fighters compete here. It is a very good opportunity to compete in the trials as explained before, the competition is very high. The Abu Dhabi is also set up different than the International or Local tournaments Third Law competes at. Master Roberto got to compete in the brown and black belt division going against some tough competitors and ended up getting bronze. It really was a great competition in which Team Third Law competitors had great competition experience.

Team Third Law travels out of Naples Florida and competes in New York for the Abu Dhabi World Pro Trials

My mentor , teacher and very good friend Julius Park made this video and is one of the most important and funniest I have seen. Now and days many martial arts, mma, and bjj schools forget about the importance of etiquette and maintain a respectful and family atmosphere..

Learn Proper Gym Etiquette With This Video!

Third Law becomes the first Southwest Florida school to send multiple competitors to the European Open Championships in Lisbon, Portugal. The four Naples BJJ competitors went to represent Team Lloyd Irvin and brought home four medals. Here, they're pictured with members of the team from fellow Lloyd Irvin schools Crazy 88 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Paramont BJJ and Evolve Academy.

In three days of competition at the European Open Championships in Portugal, Third Law brought home four medals for Team Lloyd Irvin and Team USA: Master Roberto won bronze at brown middle heavy as well as bronze in the brown belt absolute, and Katy Torralbas won silver at blue pena.

Meanwhile, in the Blue Belt Heavyweight Teams Match, which pits teams of 5 competitors from different countries against each other, Joey Ruggiero and four other Americans took the Gold for Team USA. Team USA was stacked with four Lloyd Irvin competitors, with blue belts from Crazy 88, Third Law and Paramont BJJ representing the USA.

This was the first time traveling to the European Open for Coach Joseph Formica, Katy Torralbas and Joey Ruggiero, and the first time Third Law sent multiple competitors to the first of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments: Europeans, Pan Ams, Brasileros and the Worlds.

Cold Toronto, Canada was the Naples BJJ Competition Team's first stop on their way to Lisbon

Airport weight check

The blue belts left on Tuesday morning, flying from Fort Myers to Toronto, and then on to London and finally Lisbon.

A passenger almost had a heart attack on the plane and so there was an an unplanned stop in Montreal, but Katy, Joey and Joe finally arrived in Lisbon on Wednesday afternoon.

They got their bearings, found the venue – Complexo Municipal Esportivo do Castal Vistoso – and settled in to get a good night’s sleep.

Bright and early Thursday morning, the blue belt guys were up. Joey Ruggiero won three matches in his division at Blue Medio, winning his first by bow and arrow choke after racking up points and his second by 6-0 with an over-the-top sweep to mount. In his third match he and his opponent went sweep for sweep for 2-2, but Joey scored an advantage for a triangle attempt and took the win. He lost his fourth match 6-4 in another sweep for sweep battle. Coach Formica also fought hard in his division at Blue Leve, but his bid for European Champ was stopped as well.

Joey Ruggiero wins his third match at the European Open

Katy Torralbas takes Silver at Blue Belt Pena, winning three matches on her way to the medal podium

The next day, Katy Torralbas was up first in her division at Blue Pena.

She won her first two matches by kimura from the closed guard and her third by referee decision.

She lost in the finals by referee decision, taking home the Silver in her weight class and earning a chance to fight later in the absolute.

In the absolute, Katy defeated her first opponent 4-0 with a back take from De La Riva, and then lost her second match on points.

Master Roberto Torralbas arrived in Lisbon on Thursday, and on Friday fought in his second European Open Championships at Brown Belt.

He won his first match by racking up pass and mount points, ending it 13-0 with 2 advantages. In his second match, he lost 2-0, taking home the bronze and earning a spot in the Brown Belt Absolute.

Master Roberto takes bronze at Brown Belt Medio Pesado and Bronze in the Brown Belt Absolute

Lloyd Irvin Teammates Roberto Torralbas and Willie Leonard take Bronze in the Brown Belt Absolute at European Open Lisbon, Portugal

Later that day, Master Roberto won his two matches in the Brown belt absolute on points, and lost his third by 2 advantages. He shared the 3rd place podium with fellow Lloyd Irvin teammate Willie Leonard, who also won two matches in the Brown Belt Absolute.

Many other Lloyd Irvin competitors brought home medals, including: Camp Springs black belt JT Torres, silver in the lightweight division; purple belt Keenan Cornelius, double gold (his division and the open); brown belt Nyjah Easton, gold in her division and bronze in the open; Sijara Eubanks, silver in her division and silver in the absolute; purple belt Kenneth Brown from Evolve Academy, bronze in his division and silver in the absolute and Cathy Tran-Zwanetz from Crazy 88, won gold at blue pluma.

Overall, the Lloyd Irvin women placed second with just four female competitors winning 6 medals, earning 28 total points for Team Lloyd Irvin.

Joey Ruggiero defeats an opponent in the Blue Belt Heavyweight Teams Match by triangle

Joey Ruggiero defeats another Teams Match opponent, this time 19-0

Then, in the early evening on Saturday, Four Lloyd Ivrin blue belts including Joey Ruggiero had a chance to represent Team USA in the Blue Belt Heavyweight team contest.

Pitted against other countries, five American blue belts fought four rounds of fights and took gold in the Team Event. The Lloyd Irvin representatives included: Joey Ruggiero from Third Law, Al Washington and Devon Delbrugge from Crazy 88, and Eric Desmaris from Paramont BJJ. They were joined by a grappler from Rafael Lovato’s school named Dallas.

The guys killed it in the Team fights, and Joey Ruggiero represented Third Law well, winning his first match on points, his second by triangle, his third by triangle and fourth 19-0.

On Sunday morning, Joey, Joe and Katy headed home, while Master Roberto went back to the venue with Master Julius to watch the black belt matches.

All in all, it was an amazing experience to travel to Europe and represent Team Lloyd Irvin at one of the biggest, most competitive BJJ events in the world. Now the Third Law competitors are headed home to Naples, and excited to train for the next International tournament!

Team USA wins Blue Belt Heavyweight Team Gold with four Lloyd Irvin Competitors and one Rafael Lovato Competitor

Team Third Law wakes up in Lisbon, Portugal on the first morning of the European Open Championships

After along journey from Fort Myers to Toronto, Canada, across the Atlantic to London and then finally to Portugal, the first three competitors from Third Law arrived in Lisbon on Wednesday morning. Today, Thursday, Coach Joseph Formica and Joey Ruggiero start off the day in their respective blue belt divisions, alongside competitors from fellow Team Lloyd Irvin School Crazy 88 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Here, check out a time-lapse video of the venue begin set up by the International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation:

Today, Master Roberto left bright and early from Fort Myers, traveling to meet up with his teammates. Katy Torralbas will fight on Friday in her blue belt division, and Master Roberto fights with the brown belts on Saturday.

It’s super exciting for Third Law to be sending four competitors to this tournament in Europe — Master Roberto has gone in previous years, but this makes Third Law the first Southwest Florida school to send multiple competitors to the International Brazilian Jiu JItsu Federation’s European Open Championship!

If you’re a current student, don’t forget, that the school will be closed Thursday, January 26 through Sunday, January 29. Classes will resume on Monday, January 30 as usual.

We are super excited and proud to have the opportunity to send competitors to this event to represent Team Lloyd Irvin at the European Open, one of the biggest and most competitive tournaments held each year by the International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation.

View from Hotel Tiara Park Atlantic, Lisbon, Portugal

Stay up to date with us at Team Third Law on Facebook at www.TeamThirdLawFans.com. Best wishes to all competitors!

Your students are the opposite of the stereotype that MMA facilities can (and rightfully so) carry

First and foremost I want to commend you on the great program you have in Third Law. I went to your gym not knowing what to expect. Wow! It by far exceeded my expectations. Your staff (Katy and Joe), your students are the opposite of the stereotype that MMA facilities can (and rightfully so) carry. This is the first time in about a decade I have been able to get on mats again and grapple, it was awesome. I was looking and yearning for that exact type of challenge and workout that simulated my days when I wrestled.

You really have something special unlike anything around here. The way you encourage and inspire reflects how much you are passionate about what you do. When Joe and I sat down after practice to discuss rates and options, he asked me what my goals were not just centered around the gym but in life in general. My response to him was to seek balance in life (time,health, job, God and family). You’re an inspiration not just to MMA, but to humanity. Watching you with the lil ninja group shows your love and passion for what you do. Thank you again for everything. –Abram