Steve Hall Seminar Hosted by Annex Jiu Jitsu 6/19/2010

Our first official seminar under the FTW SC affiliate was a great success, with more than twenty students in attendance and eager to learn. It is great to see the family continue to grow at an alarming rate, and to see Brian doing such a great job with the guys. Some of the highlights from the seminar included some key concepts in balance and recovery, as well as some well earned promotions to blue belt. The new blue belts carrying the FTW/Royce Gracie flag are Wes Hudson James Hudson Derek McLaughlin Derek Sentell Congratulations guys, and keep up the great work. I hope that you can all make it to our year party so that we can welcome you into the new belts in true Brazilian fashion.

Fight To Win Three Year Party July 17th, 2010

This marks one more year in the books as the Fight To Win team grows increasingly bigger and better. Saturday July 17th we will gather at 9am till noon at the Concord school to learn, train and celebrate the good times that we shared with each other over the past year. All are welcome from each of our FTW schools and affiliates and everyone is highly encouraged to join us. Please feel free to bring along family and friends to share in this fun filled day. There will be a belt ceremony for those of you that have been promoted at recent seminars. You know who you are so attendance is mandatory. We will also have light snacks and drinks at the school that day. The after party will be from 5:30 till ? and will be located at 730 Hawthorne Lane Charlotte, NC 28204. This is at Gil's apartment complex and will have amenities such as a clubhouse, with several flat screen TV's, pool table, kitchen area w/ fridge, salt water pool and outside grill/patio area. Sign up sheets for things to bring for the party will be at the school. I hope to see you all there, so mark your calendars now!!!

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RODRIGO GRACIE Seminar was everything expected and more! This was the first time Fight To Win has hosted a seminar at the Hard Target location, so we were very proud for it to be Rodrigo. With a strong showing from the Concord school and participants from the ever growing Hard Target program, Rodrigo spent more than three hours on the mat, and showed techniques that wowed all that were involved. The first half of the instructional spent with the gi, the second half no-gi and plenty of rolling time at the end. This was a lesson not to be missed. With this seminar the FTW team grows stronger once again. At the end of the evening Rodrigo promoted Ryan Ruiz to blue belt, and Rob Hunter to purple belt. Strongly increasing the army of FTW blue belts by one, and bringing Rob in as the second purple to be promoted under the FTW flag. A huge congrats to both guys! Keep up the great work. Thank you team for coming out and supporting the growth of the school, the sport and one of our top instructors.I can confidently speak for everyone when I say that we all look forward to training with Rodrigo again in the future.

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RODRIGO GRACIE COMING TO HARD TARGET/FTW JUNE 8TH, 2010

This will be the first time Rodrigo Gracie Joins the FTW team at the HARD TARGET location! Rodrigo is a great guy and has some of the best jiu jitsu on the planet. He has faught in several MMA and Jiu Jitsu competitions all over the world. I highly recommend everyone clear their schedule for this one. He will be here Tuesday June 8th, 2010. Time: 6-9pm Cost: $75 member or pre-pay $80 guest or day of Get your money in today to reserve your spot and save $5. Help pass the word to get as many people to this as possible!

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NAGA CHARLOTTE MAY 08, 2010

This was another great event put on by Kip and the NAGA staff. It was extremely well run with 14 rings going non-stop it was over before 6pm. It was a great day with nearly 700 competitors and Team FTW came home with second place overall! Congratulations to everyone that worked hard to make this possible for the team. Everyone did their part to help the competitors get ready and help out with running the event. Gil N., Casey W. and Dan B. helped by running tables, Jim H. took photos all day and Carl was the Medic for the day. Also A huge Thank You and Congrats to Rob Hunter with Team Hard Target/Fight To Win Charlotte and Brian Wood with Team Annex/Fight To Win South Carolina. Great job guys! Competitor Results Men’s NO-GI Novice Feather Weight   1st Place Tavrean Bennett      2nd Place Donavan Chase Espinosa     Mens NO-GI Novice Middle Weight     1st Place Brian Solly     Mens NO-GI Beginner Light Heavy Weight   3rd Place Andrew Swartwout Mens NO-GI Advanced  Light Heavy Weight   2nd Place Steve Hall Mens NO-GI Intermediate Cruiser Weight 1st Place Geoff Aver   Mens NO-GI Advanced  Cruiser Weight   1st Place Eslam Elgamal   Mens NO-GI Beginner Super Heavy Weight 2nd Place Robert Dixon Mens NO-GI Directors Novice Light Weight 1st Place Joe C Davis   Mens NO-GI Directors Advanced Light Weight 1st Place Alan Lachica   Master's NO-GI Beginner Cruiser Weight   2nd Place    James Hudson     Mens GI White Belt Light Heavy Weight   3rd Place Andrew Swartwout     Mens GI White Belt Cruiser Weight 3rd Place James Hudson Mens GI White Belt Super Heavy Weight   1st Place Robert Dixon     Mens GI Blue Belt Cruiser Weight   2nd Place George Aver     Mens GI Purple Belt Cruiser Weight   2nd Place Eslam Elgamal     Mens GI Brown & Black Belt Cruiser Weight   1st Place Steve Hall     Mens GI Masters White Belt Middle Weight   1st Place Brian Solly     Mens GI Directors White Belt Light Weight    3rd Place Joe C Davis     Teen NO-GI Novice Light Weight 14 & 15 year olds   2nd Place Jakob Davis     Teen NO-GI Beginner Light Weight 14 & 15 year olds   2nd Place Adam Smith     Teen NO-GI Beginner Light Weight 16 & 17 year olds   1st Place Ryan Ruiz     Teen GI Novice Light Weight 14 & 15 year olds   1st Place  Adam Smith     Teen GI Beginner Light Weight 16 & 17 year olds   1st Place  Ryan Ruiz     Teen GI Novice Middle Weight     1st Place Jakob Davis     Teen GI Novice Heavy Weight     1st Place Michael Muse     Teen NO-GI Beginner Super Heavy Weight   1st Place Michael Muse

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Royce Gracie Joins FTW March 29th, 2010 The UFC Hall of Famer, Master Royce Gracie, came to Fight To Win, Concord Monday night for an incredible three hour seminar. With the mat full, nearly 50 students got to spend time with the legend himself. Highlights of the evening included some well deserved promotions from Royce, an autograph session for signatures and photos with the Master and, of course, two hours of solid techniques that will improve everyone’s game. Huge congratulations to those who were promoted that night. We now have six new Blue Belts and our first Purple Belt promoted under the FTW flag! We also had the honor of having Hallie Hair “Snake” and Ranard Brown from the Harrisburg school join us for their promotions to the much respected rank of Brown Belt under Royce. New FTW Blue Belts                 New FTW Purple Belt Dan Baileys                               Eslam Elgamal Nick Spirito Mike Jones Johanna Jones Josh Callahan Izzat Saymeh Overall it was a great night for everyone involved. If you missed this one don’t worry we will have Royce back in the future. We are also planning some other big seminars this year, so check back often.

______________________________________________________________________ 2010 A New Year, A New School and Much More 2009 was an incredible year for the Fight To Win team. We had seminars, tournaments, belt promotions, cook outs, parties and much more! The New Year is bringing with it some exciting new changes that are going to help keep the team growing and succeeding in everything it does. The biggest change to date is the addition of the new school to South Charlotte. Fight To Win has proudly partnered with Hard Target to create the ultimate MMA facility. The new, state-of-the-art MMA gym is the first of its kind in the Charlotte area.  The Training Center boasts 8,000 sq ft of training space complete with top quality mats and wall pads, pro-style hanging bag system, locker and shower rooms, an MMA Pro Shop, a WiFi Observation Lounge for visitors and guests as well as Charlotte’s largest fight cage!  What does this mean for the Concord Location? New classes, new structure and new coaches. This is an excellent opportunity for the team to grow in many ways. At the moment Tuesday and Thursday nights in Concord are geared towards fitness training and drilling for competition. This is an intense class, but don’t be intimidated. It is for the leisurely grappler as well as the high level competitor. It is going to be a great year for Fight To Win. Don’t miss a minute on the mat with the best team in the Charlotte area _______________________________________________________________________________________

11/22/2008 Roberto Traven at Black Belt USA

Congratulations Marlon Loor and Fernando Vera for promotion to BROWN BELT!!! Roberto promoted Marlon and Fernando, along with several blue belts that have been training under the brothers for the past two year.

Black Belts in attendance for the promotion where Steve, Aki and Cassio.

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9/20/2008 Jorge Gurgel Seminar

Congratulations Bryan Atterson for promotion to BLACK BELT!!! Jorge promoted Bryan on Saturday making him the first true BJJ black belt out of West Virginia and making him the third black belt at FTW. After nearly a decade of training the belt is very well deserved and we are proud to have him as a driving force behind the team. We had a great turn out from our team with support and promotions from Bryan's old school in West Virginia. Also Promoted from the Beckley JG Affiliate were David Vannest to Brown Belt, and Ernie "The Anchor" Skaggs and George "No Fee" to Purple Belt. On a personal note I would like to thank Jorge for making the trip to Concord. He is as charismatic as he is technical, and the entire experience was a blast.

I have had nothing but positive feed back on everything that was shown at the seminar, and of course Jorge himself. I hope we get a chance to bring him back to the school in the near future.

Once again, THANK YOU for making FTW the best place to train. Pics from the seminar will be up soon.

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9/20/2008 Jorge Gurgel Is Coming To FTW...

Jorge Gurgel is one of the most electrifying and exciting up and coming fighter in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). His rapid ascent into MMA center stage has been spectacular and has left many doubters in disbelief. With extremely fast & heavy hands, a well earned Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) Black Belt and unbelievable conditioning, Jorge has methodically engineered his recent & future success in MMA. With a (12-1-0) record and recent "Fight of the Year" win over Jay Ireland, Jorge is now inline for several major title fights.

As a resident of Middletown and Dayton, OH and owner of Team Jorge Gurgel, Jorge trains and trains with some of MMA's and BJJ's top talent including training partner UFC Fighter Rich Franklin, Ultimate Fighter Josh Rafferty and BJJ Black Belt Jon Stutzman. Jorge's MMA style is built on a steady diet of grappling, kickboxing, boxing and lots cardiovascular conditioning.

Born and raised in Fortaleza, Brazil, Jorge earned his BJJ education on the mat with BJJ's and MMA's American Top Team rising stars and best of friends Hermes Franca and Marcus Aurelio. Since coming to the US, Jorge has made a habit of learning from fighting legends including BJJ legends Ricardo Liborio and the American & Brazilian Top Team, 3-time Muay Thai World Champion Sakasem Kanthawong and many more.

Seminar details:

Date: Saturday, September 20th, 2008
Time: Noon - 2pm(Gi) 2pm - 4pm (NoGi/MMA)
Cost: $40 for 1 session or $60 for both Gi & NoGi sessions
Location: FTW - Concord, NC

For more information about Jorge visit www.JorgeGurgel.com or www.TeamJorgeGurgel.com

For more information regarding seminar feel free to contact Steve.

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6/28/2008 FTW Year Party

Congratulations to Casey F., Alan and Oguz for being FTW’s newest BLUE BELTS! The new belts were broken in Brazilian tradition with a trip through the gauntlet. Josh, Todd and Casey W. who were promoted by Royce a few months earlier, also had their belts made official by the group. We had a great turnout with overwhelming support from the team. Aki and Fernando L. also helped with the festivities, along with a number of the guys from Black Belt USA. Debbie came through once again with an awesome slide show of events and training of FTW. Putting things into perspective of just how far we have come in the past year.

After a day of training and promotions we went out to dinner at Dave and Busters. In true FTW style we ate, drank and played.

This wouldn’t have been such a great day without everyone’s help, THANK YOU ALL for making FTW the best place to train. To see more pics click HERE.

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6/28/2008 FTW Year Party is Coming Up

It has already been a year since we first opened our doors. We have seen many great changes to the school and now it is time to get together and celebrate!

Saturday June 28th we will meet at the school to train at noon. That evening we will all meet for dinner.

It is very important that everyone mark this one on their calenders. This is a great chance for us to update some of the pictures on the web site. We will also have a few of the guys from Florida planing to come up and spend the weekend with us. It will be a big deal, so it is also a good time to bring in some new faces to see what we do. Feel free to have your friends and family join us.

We will have snacks and drinks at the school, and any help with this is appreciated.

It is coming up quick guys, so let's get the word out. Those who were with us for the grand opening last year can tell you that this will be a good time for everyone.

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6/23/2008 FTW Kids Program Begins

We are officially starting our kids program Monday June 23rd. It will primarily be run by Debbie with my guidance.

To schedule will be Mondays and Wednesday from 5pm-5:45pm.
Ages will range between 7years-12years, but will be determined on a case by case basis. This means if your child is out side of this range he or she may still fit in, just ask to find out.

Pricing will be $50 a month for the program plus uniform etc. If you have a child that you would like to enroll in the program you can talk to Steve or Debbie.

If you have friends with kids please help pass the word around.

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5/31/2008 Rodrigo Gracie Visits FTW

This was our first official Fight To Win seminarand we couldn't be more proud than for it to be Rodrigo Gracie. Students of all skill levels from all around the Charlotte area joined us in welcoming him to our school. With an incredible four+ hours of instruction, everyone left this day with plenty of new things to work on.

If you missed Rodrigo this time, don't worry. We hope to have him back in the area some time in August. Any one that was there can tell you it is worth clearing your schedule next time around.

See the pictures from the seminar HERE. More pics from the no gi will be added soon.

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5/15/2008 Class Schedule Change

I know a lot of you work in the city and it is difficult to make it to class at 6pm. I have also been soft on the rest of you about being on time. In order to change this and make it fair for every one starting June 2nd all evening classes will start promptly at 6:30pm.

What this means is that everyone must be on the mat and ready to train ten minutes before class starts. For each minute past 6:30pm anyone who is late will have to do 10 squats up to 100 as payment to get into the class. The only exceptions to this will be if you contact me before class and let me know you will be delayed.

All schedule changes will be updated on the schedule page in June. If you have any questions come see me.

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5/13/2008 Fight To Win Gets Muay Thai!

Instructor Paul Weis has graciously accepted teaching Muay Thai classes for FTW members. We are starting the program slowly and will add on as demand grows. As it stands the class will be held Tuesday and Thursday nights from 8pm-8:30pm. This will be right after the Jiu Jitsu class, so feel free to join us for both.

The more support we get for the program the more time will be allotted for it. This another big step for the school, so come out and support Paul and the rest of the team.

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4/25/2008 Women's Self Defense Seminar.

Tonight we had our first women's self defense seminar at the school. The "Out On The Town" women's event group came out to Fight To Win to see what Gracie Self Defense is all about. It was a huge success with over twenty women. Thank you Debbie, Brendon and Dustin for giving up a Friday night to help out with the group. Scott Zeman helped with organizing the meeting and also assisted with the techniques.

This was the first of many seminars to come. We will be hosting regular groups open to the pubic within the school in the near future. We are also putting together some community work around town. Any one from the school that wants to come out and help is welcome to, just be sure to practice your self defense. The next seminar is in the works. We don't have a date set just yet, but it will be posted here so check back often.

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4/16/2008 Debbie Makes the Mooresville Tribune.

For those of you who don't know, Debbie has been volunteering her time to help with a local women's shelter. After teaching a free self-defense course to several women, she has enthusiastically been asked to continue to help. This time around a reporter from the Mooresville Tribune joined the group and wrote a piece in the paper.

To read the article click HERE and don't forget to check out the VIDEO.

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3/17/2008 Royce Gracie visits the Harrisburg school.

Royce had a great showing tonight of 33 students from the Charlotte area. Two hours of perfect techniques were followed by nearly an hour of sparring.

He also promoted ten new blue belts, including four from FTW. This marks the first belt promotions for the school, ever! Congratulations Josh, Casey, Todd and Kyle, keep up the great work.

It took a lot of people to make this such a success. Big thanks go out to Snake for hosting the seminar. Aki and Steve assisted Royce. Thanks to everyone from FTW that went and represented the school and made Steve proud to be your coach. See the pictures from the seminar HERE.

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3/11/2008 The First Student SpotLight is on the Website.

As you know, the website has been and still is a work in progress. After being open nearly a year we finally have a Student SpotLight.

This page was created to give the students a chance to get to know each other a little off the mat. It will be updated regularly, so check back often.

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3/1/2008 Congratulations, Aki Gets The Black Belt.

After a fantastic weekend of instruction from Royce, Royler and Rodrigo, Aki was awarded the black belt from Royce. A total of eight black belts were given to help spread the Gracie legacy. In addition to great instruction Ralek Gracie, Greg Thompson and our own Steve Hall were on hand to assist with the seminar. Visit the Photo Gallery to see pictures from the weekend.

This makes Fight To Win home to two Royce Gracie Black Belts. Another huge step towards the growth of the school. Congrats again Aki, and keep up the good work.

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02/25/2008 Stan Wentz Joins Fight To Win.

We were fortunate to have Stan come in to FTW this evening and teach the Judo program. He is a very decorated and respected Judo player and coach who's experience spans over four decades. It was an honor to learn some of the paralells and insights from a man who still humbly refers to him self as a student to the art of competition Judo.

For those of you who missed out, don't worry. We are trying to work out a schedule for Stan to be a regular face on the FTW mat. If everything works out, I will be the first to say welcome to the team Stan.

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11/13/2007 Fight To Win is on Fist First Fighting.

Fist First Fighting is a web site based company designed to help educate and promote the growth of Mixed Martial Arts in the US. Here you get a chance to tour gyms in your area and across the country. You can see training tips and fighting techniques from top instructors. You can also get up close and personal interviews with some of the best fighters in the world today.

Check out Fight To Win and some of Steve's favorite techniques at Fist First Fighting.

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11/1/2007 T-shirts and Rashguards are here.

Fight To Win T-shirts and Rashguards are now available. The T-shirts are in white and/or black with the team logo and with or with out "TOUCH ME AND THE FIRST LESSON IS FREE...". All sizes available for only $18.

Fight To Win Rashguards are black with white panels on the sides featuring the team logo on the front and back. They are currently available in sizes small-large for $35.

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8/23/2007 Picture Day

Today we had our first gathering to train and get some good pics for the web site. It was a great time for everyone and you can check out the pictures HERE.

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7/9/2007 Fight To Win is on myspace

Check us out on MySpace and add us as a friend.

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6/2/2007 Fight To Win Grand Opening

We officially had our Grand Opening today and it was a huge success. With students from Florida, Maryland, New York and all around the Charlotte area the amount of talent on the FTW mats was inspiring. Thanks to everyone for coming to train and support the new school. Steve would also like to thank his family for their support, to Dave, Tony, Walker and Don for making the trip from Florida and to Justin and Rob for helping put the website together. Pictures from the Grand Opening are up in the photo gallery.

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4/15/2007 Fight To Win BJJ/MMA opens to the public

Steve Hall is the newest addition to the Jiu Jitsu community in the Charlotte area. Starting classes with a modest 10 students Steve is optimistic about helping the sport grow in and around Charlotte.