This past Saturday was a special day for Ian Matuszak at the Longo & Weidman MMA gym in Garden City. Over 200 people including MMA legend Renzo Gracie, UFC Middleweight Champion Chris Weidman, former UFC Welterweight Champion Matt Serra and UFC fighters Al Iaquinta, Eddie Gordin, and Aljamain Sterling showed up at a benefit seminar to support Ian. The 20-year old BJJ practitioner, who trains at Serra BJJ and has cerebral palsy, was recently diagnosed with with stage three esophageal cancer. The Renzo Gracie and Serra-Longo family rallied together to put on the seminar to help Ian’s family with their mounting medical bills.

Despite having cerebral palsy, which has impacted Ian’s ability to move, Ian has trained hard and competed in BJJ tournaments under the Serra BJJ banner. His hard work paid off as he was promoted to Blue Belt by his instructors Pete Sell and Dave Patton during the seminar. In addition to the benefit seminar, there is also a GoFundMe account set up to help his family out as he battles cancer.

Watch Ian get promoted!