Royce Gracie was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and is one of nine children, seven of whom are boys. His training in Jiu-Jitsu began at a very early age as a game with his father Helio. Royce began competing in tournaments at age eight. He received his blue belt at age 16 and was promoted to black belt in less than two years. Royce opened the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy 30 years ago in Torrance, California. Royce’s exciting career as a fighter began in 1993 after defeating three opponents in the first Ultimate Fighting Championship in Denver, Colorado. His brother Rorion came up with this innovative challenge as a way to show Gracie Jiu-Jitsu to the world. Discipline after discipline was defeated by the slight 6’1”, 180 pound Royce Gracie. The viewers were in awe. 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 holds the record for the longest MMA match in history: 90 minutes against Japanese superstar Kazushi Sakuraba. His largest opponent was Sumo Grand Champion Akebono, 6′ 8″ 486 lbs. Royce vs. Akebono was the main event a New Years Eve show on New Year’s Eve in 2004. Royce defeated the giant in just 2 min and 13 sec with a shoulder lock. In November of 2003, Royce Gracie was the first fighter to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. In 2014 Royce was named one of the 50 Greatest Athletes in the World by Sports Illustrated. His list of students is enormous and 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.