News and Information

Lovato Video Interview About Becoming Absolute Champion in Brazil!

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:36:00 GMT

Check out this video of Rafael Lovato Jr. talking about his journey to becoming the 2013 Brasileiro Absolute Champion! This is a powerful story, you have to hear!

Make sure to sign up to receive all 5 of Lovato's Brasileiro Absolute matches, broken down by Lovato himself at www.lovatojrbjj.com! You will get to go inside his head and hear all about his strategy and game plan as he made history in Brazil!

Watch All of Rafael Lovato Jr.'s Brasileiro Absolute Matches!

Mon, 20 May 2013 05:00:00 GMT

Check out this clip of Professor Rafael Lovato Jr. training hard for the 2013 Worlds and Metamoris II! At the end he tells you how you can watch his entire journey to becoming the 2013 Brasileiro Black Belt Absolute Champion, match by match, at www.lovatojrbjj.com. Each match is broken down by Lovato! He will tell you about his mindset, strategy, game, grips, techniques, etc... Don't miss out!

Lovato "I Make History" Highlight Video

Fri, 17 May 2013 05:00:00 GMT

Here it is! The new Rafael Lovato Jr. "I Make History" Highlight Video! The first part of the highlight video contains clips of Rafael competing as a teenager from yellow belt through to brown belt. Starting at around 2:15 all of the footage is of Rafael competing at the Black Belt level.

Enjoy and Please Share!

Here is a list of some of Rafael's history making achievements:

2nd American to win the World Championships as a Black Belt
Only American Gi & No-Gi Black Belt World Champion
Only American to win multiple World Black Belt Medals
First American to win the Europeans as a Black Belt Adult
Only American to win the Brasileiro as a Black Belt Adult
Only American to win the Pan as a Black Belt Adult
First non-Brazilian to win a major Black Belt Absolute title
6x World Black Belt Medalist in 4 different weight divisions
2x No-Gi Black Belt World Champion in 2 different weight divisions
3x Black Belt Pan Champion in 2 different weight divisions
First person to ever win the Europeans, Pan, Brasileiro, and Worlds as a Black Belt in the same year
First American to produce a Black Belt World Champion (Justin Rader - 2010 No-Gi)

Lovato Jr. Interview on BJPenn.com Fistacuff Radio Show

Wed, 15 May 2013 06:24:00 GMT

Click the logo to hear the full Lovato Jr. Interview

The art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu started to climb to new-found heights when Royce Gracie starting beating guys twice as big as him by choking them out at UFC 1. People became perplexed by this new fighting style that actually has been around since 1914. Rafael Lovato Jr is one of those people who became fascinated with the sport and started training. His training took him to the title at the 2007 Brazilian World Jiu-Jitsu championship as a black belt. Lovato Jr is slated to appear on Metamoris 2 against Andre Galvao. He took some time to talk with the guys over at FIST-TA-CUFF Radio about the sport of BJJ, his own future, and his upcoming fight.

The sport of BJJ does have several tournaments and competitions for athletes to enter across the country. The sport of MMA though is where the real money is made. Professional BJJ athletes just can’t make the same kind of money at those tournaments and competitions.

“There still in this position of stressing out and making ends meet and jiu-jitsu you’re not making a lot of money at the competitions,” said Lovato Jr. “Hopefully we’ll get there soon.”

The sport is obviously most popular in the country of Brazil. It’s where the legendary Gracie’s first started to fine tune the art of fighting, but its popularity has started to blossom up all over. It’s a good sign in Lovato’s eyes.

“The sport is definitely blowing up all across the world,” stated Lovato Jr. “It’s a really exciting time.”

The Olympics have dropped wrestling as a core sport starting as of 2020. The wrestling community is pushing back trying to reverse the decision, but some see this as an opportunity for BJJ to make its name as an Olympic sport. Lovato Jr made it clear he is all for BJJ in the Olympics.

“That would be like a dream,” said Lovato Jr. “It’s really dominated by one country at its highest level.”

Lovato Jr knows that his days of competing are starting to dwindle down. He has not thought about retirement too much as he is still excited and motivated for competition.

“That’s something I haven’t really figured out yet,” continued Lovato Jr. “I’m only getting better right now, I’m still so excited and motivated.” “I definitely can’t do a full season of tournaments like I used too,” said Lovato Jr.

Multiple world titles are what keep Lovato Jr from retiring.

“Coming into the black belt I wanted to win multiple world titles,” continued Lovato Jr. “That’s my biggest motivation right now is to get my second world title and become the first non-Brazilian to win multiple world titles at black belt.”
“I’m definitely not stopping anytime soon,” stated Lovato Jr.

You can catch Rafael Lovato Jr take on Andre Gavlao at Metamoris 2 on June 9th at the Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, CA. “It was a match I have been wanting, and after Metamoris 1 I thought how cool would it be to fight Galvao,” said Lovato Jr. “Two guys going for the kill, fans are going to love it.”

Listen to the full interview by clicking the link.

Lovato Documentary Trailer!

Tue, 14 May 2013 05:00:00 GMT

Check out the trailer for the Lovato: Building a Legacy documentary set to release later this summer! The documentary will show the beginnings of how Rafael Lovato Jr. and his father became the first American father & son Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belts and it will follow Rafael as he trains and competes in the greatest BJJ events of 2012. Stay tuned!

Video: Rafael Lovato Jr. Special from Brazil SporTV Channel

Fri, 10 May 2013 17:45:00 GMT

Check out this awesome show the Brazilian Channel, Sensei SporTV, did with Rafael Lovato Jr. just days before he made history becoming the 2013 Brazilian National Absolute Black Belt Champion!

Video: Brasileiro Absolute Semi-Final Match Rafael Lovato Jr vs Alexandro Ceconi

Tue, 07 May 2013 05:00:00 GMT

Check out Rafael Lovato Jr.'s semifinal match en route to winning the 2013 Brasileiro Black Belt Absolute division! Rafael faces 2x Brasileiro Champion and World's Absolute medalist, Alexandro Ceconi. Watch how Rafael uses his pressure passing to pass to mount and eventually finish with his famous Kimura!

Rafael submitted 3 of his 5 matches to win the absolute and become the first non-Brazilian to win a major IBJJF Black Belt Absolute title!

Rafael Lovato Jr. Makes History in Brazil, Again! Video of Finals Match!

Thu, 02 May 2013 21:30:00 GMT

Rafael Lovato Jr. after submitting Ricardo Evangelista! Pic from BJJPix.

In 2007, Rafael became the first non-Brazilian to win an adult male black belt division at the IBJJF Brazilian National tournament. This past weekend Rafael achieved history once more by winning the Black Belt Absolute division at the Brazilian Nationals, with a submission in his semi final and final matches! Rafael achieved a huge milestone for Americans in BJJ by becoming the first non-Brazilian to win a Black Belt Absolute division at a major IBJJF event! He also became the first non-Brazilian to win the Brazilian Nationals twice!

Rafael was in the zone as he put on one of his greatest performances ever! In a division with nearly 50 people and many champions, Lovato won 5 matches to capture the Absolute Gold, with 3 submissions on the way! In his weight class, Rafael submitted his first opponent before losing to eventual champion, Dimitrius Souza, of Alliance in the 2nd round. Rafael lost the match by two points, but he never received points for his sweep, putting him back on top. Rafael spent the majority of his match on Dimitrius' back, but he never secured the hooks for points. Fueled by the loss and extremely motivated to make history, Rafael came back to win the Absolute finals with a beautiful Kimura finish against the Ultra Heavyweight Champion, Ricardo Evangelista!

Rafael's famous Kimura! Pic by BJJPix.

Check out the video of the finals match below! Stay tuned for a complete highlight video of Rafael's campaign.

Rafael Lovato Jr. vs Andre Galvao Confirmed for Metamoris 2!

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 20:52:00 GMT

As many of you have probably already seen, Rafael will competing in the next Metamoris show against Andre Galvao in Los Angeles! It will be on Sunday, June 9th, just a week after the World Championships. This card features many of the best in the world, including: Kron Gracie, Shinya Aoki, Rodolfo Viera, Braulio Estima, and Roberto Abreu among others.

Here is the official highlight from the first tournament

Rafael Lovato Jr. Looking to Make History in Brazil Once Again!

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 05:00:00 GMT

The Brazilian National Championship will be in Barueri, São Paulo, Brazil the 25th-28th of this month, and Rafael Lovato Jr. will be competing! In 2007 Rafael became the first non-Brazilian to win the Brazilian Nationals, and is still the only American black belt to do so. He also made it to the finals of the absolute in 2010 and is looking to become the only non-Brazilian to win the tournament twice as a Black Belt!

New Podcast Interview with Rafael Lovato Jr.!

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 05:00:00 GMT

Check out this new interview Professor Rafael Lovato Jr. recently did with the BishopBJJ Podcast! Professor Rafael drops some serious knowledge about his story, his game, competition, how to train properly, mindset etc... Also on the show is Budo Jake from www.budovideos.com, make sure to check it out!

Rafael's interview starts at 1:12:00 into the show.

Also, be sure to check out the BishopBJJ breakdown of Rafael Lovato Jr.'s game they did a while back! The results were very interesting, as they discovered Rafael had the most versatile game they had scene! It is a topic discussed in the interview.

New Rafael Lovato Jr. Lucky Gi Just Released!

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 23:48:00 GMT

The new Rafael Lovato Jr. signature Lucky Gi has just been released! It's one of the sickest gis around, get yours while supplies last!

You can buy it online here - Lucky Gi

Last Chance for Free No-Gi Videos Before Rafael Lovato Jr. Releases No-Gi Pressure Passing!

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 23:46:00 GMT

It's your last chance to receive free no-gi instructional videos before Rafael releases his No-Gi Pressure Passing System on April 3rd at 1:00 pm eastern time. Three videos have been released over the past nine days and have received amazing reviews! Don't miss out on this opportunity!

Get the videos here - No-Gi Pressure Passing

Open Mat Radio Podcast with Rafael Lovato Jr.!

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 21:12:00 GMT

Last week our friends at Open Mat Radio hosted podcast with Rafael Lovato Jr. and special guest Sim Go of Cobra Kai Jiu Jitsu!

Check out the podcast by clicking here

Watch Online Rafael Lovato Jr. Pressure Passing Seminar Hosted by GracieMag!

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 05:00:00 GMT

Professor Rafael Lovato Jr. taught a free online seminar (webinar) yesterday that was open to anyone interested. It was hosted by GracieMag and streamed live on Google+ as a hangout. If you missed it don't worry! It's available to everyone on YouTube. Check out the video below!

Be sure to sign up to receive more free videos from Professor Lovato!