Royce Gracie moved to Torrance, California at the age of 18 and started teaching with his brother Rorion Gracie. Years later in 1990 they opened the Gracie Academy in Torrance, which the brothers and their father Grandmaster Helio Gracie would teach the classes. Royce left the Gracie Academy in 2002 to do seminars, train elite martial artist and continue his fighting career.



Royce’s reputable career as a fighter began in 1993 after defeating three opponents in the first Ultimate Fighting Championship. This was a historic time in the UFC when there were almost no rules, no time limits, and no weight divisions. Discipline after discipline was defeated by the slight 6’1”, 180 pound Royce Gracie.



His opponents consistently outweighed him by more than 50 pounds. He went on to win 3 UFC titles and today is the only man in the history of no holds barred matches to successfully defeat four opponents in one night.



Royce Gracie had many other memorable fights including the longest MMA match in history (90 min) against Japanese Superstar Kazushi Sakuraba in PRIDE Grand PRIX 2000, and total domination of the Olympic Judo Gold Medalist Hidehiko Yoshida in PRIDE Shockwave 2003.

His largest opponent yet was Sumo Grand Champion Akebono, 6' 8" 486lbs. Royce Gracie vs. Akebono was the main event of K-1 Premium Dynamite New Years Eve show on 12/31/2004. Royce Gracie defeated the giant in just 2min and 13sec with a shoulder lock. Royce’s success has opened the eyes of many disbelievers to the importance of leverage and technique in grappling. In November of 2003, Royce Gracie was the first fighter to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.

His list of students is enormous. Royce Gracie has taught many celebrities including: Chuck Norris, Ed O’Neal, Guy Ritchie and Nicholas Cage. He has also been very active with the CIA, FBI, DEA, Secret Service, Army Rangers, Army Special Forces, Navy Seals and many sheriff and police departments. Royce Gracie teaches here at Marcellini’s Martial Arts Academy on a regular basis. Sam Marcellini trained with Royce for nearly 20 years; Sam was Royce's training and sparring partner for some of his most important fights. Sam Marcellini is one of the very few guys who has spent a lot of time training with Royce Gracie personally.

Since we opened 16 years ago, Royce Gracie has taught classes at this academy at least twice a year & has presented all of our adult Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu students with their belts.

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