Sensei Tim Santos

UCKA founder and owner Tim Santos has over 20 years of experience practicing martial arts (budoshin). Godan Sensei Santos has trained in Judo, Tae Kwon Do, Muay Thai, Wing Chun Gung Fu, Kenpo Karate, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Dento Teki Jiu Jitsu.

The goal of our training at UCKA is to teach all students to be well rounded in martial arts. This approach encourages students to emboty the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of the arts. UCKA sampais are certified instructors and are closely trained by Godan Sensei Santos.

Royce Gracie

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. He never pushed any of the children to take formal classes until they wanted to do so. However, they often went to the Academy in Rio after school and on weekends.

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 moved to the United States at age 18 to live with his brother, Rorion. They began teaching private classes out of their garage, sometimes for more than ten hours a day. Together they opened the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy twenty years ago in Torrance, California. Although Royce no longer teaches there, it remains one of the largest martial arts schools in the country.

Royce’s reputable 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. After leaving the UFC Royce went on to compete in MMA events in Japan and is a huge icon in this country.

Royce is still active in the fight world and holds the record for the longest MMA match in history: 90 minutes against Japanese superstar Kazushi Sakuraba in PRIDE Grand PRIX 2000. He also showed total domination of the Olympic Judo Gold Medalist Hidehiko Yoshida. His largest opponent was Sumo Grand Champion Akebono, 6' 8" 486lbs. Royce vs. Akebono was the main event of K-1 Premium Dynamite New Years Eve show on New Year's Eve in 2004. Royce defeated the giant in just 2min and 13sec with a shoulder lock. Royce’s continued 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 along with fellow UFC veteran Ken Shamrock. Since then Royce's face has has been seen on countless martial arts magazines such as Black Belt, Inside MMA and Tapout. He has also been featured in Men's Health and Fitness and GQ. His recognition spans the globe to include fans on most every continent.

We have been part of the Royce Gracie network for over 7 years and is the only network school in the city of LA. All our Jiu Jitsu instructors are high level instructors with tournament and pro experience. We are proud to be teaching Gracie Jiu Jitsu.

Rodrigo Gracie - Instructor

Rodrigo Gracie was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to a Jiu-Jitsu master Reylson Gracie. His grandfather Carlos Gracie along with his uncle Helio Gracie are the founders of what today is know as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. As member of the legendary Gracie family its no surprise that Rodrigo was introduced to Jiu-Jitsu from early age.

Rodrigo received his black belt from his father Reylson Gracie at the age of 19. Shortly after Rodrigo moved to California to teach Jiu-Jitsu. He found his way to New York city, were he was training with his cousin Renzo Gracie. The demand for Jiu-Jitsu was high so Rodrigo took advantage of the opportunity and opened his own academy in New York City.

Looking for new challenges and opportunities Rodrigo moved to Los Angeles California where they were welcomed by Rodrigo's cousin Royce Gracie. Rodrigo and Royce have started to train together as well as spend a lot of time as a family. Rodrigo has been in close relationship with Tim and has been teaching at UCKA for over 7 years.

Bobbi Murray - Head of Women's Self-Defense

BIO COMING SOON