Site Visit To Crazy88 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Martial Arts Academy

2011
01.24

Site Visit To Crazy88 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Martial Arts Academy

Crazy88 BJJ Owner Julius Park at his dojo in Elkridge, MD

Crazy88 Owner Julius Park

ELKRIDGE, Md. – On a Sunday in January, a large amount of students came to classes to train “>Brazilian jiu-jitsu and muay thai to get a good work out and learn self defense. Fighters sharpened their skills as the sounds of strikes reverberated off the walls. The training occurred at the Team Lloyd Irvin affiliate academy known as Crazy88 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Current owner Julius Park (a BJJ brown belt) originally started Crazy88 as a way for him to get more training in. The Cornell graduate was working two jobs and was looking for more days to train closer to Elkridge and reduce commute times. A suggestion from Master Lloyd Irvin to start his own school resulted in the start of Crazy88 BJJ in 2005.

Cathy Tran-Zwanetz and David Swanetz both train at Crazy88 BJJ.

Fast forward to 2011 and Crazy88 is a bustling academy with programs in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, muay thai, mixed martial arts, and childrens self defense. The 9000 sq. ft facility has 3 large training rooms of similar size and almost fully covered mat spaces. Clean entry ways and rest rooms can be seen by visitors before their entrance into the large mat rooms. One mat room is partially fenced and has heavy bags and thai gear for muay thai and MMA. In a third large room, more training space is available along with barbells and dumb bells for the students. Separate rooms for changing are also available.

The Brazilian jiu-jitsu program consists of regular students looking for a good work out and serious competitors who travel to international tournaments to compete. When asked about his team’s accomplishments, Julius mentioned successes in 2010 such as three world medalists and a silver medal in the Pan-American Championships, all in the adult divisions. Competitors such as John Delbrugge (double bronze, Purple Belt Weight & Open Division in the Mundials) and Evan Gideon (first place, Blue Belt division, Mundials) have made their marks and will look to compete at tournaments outside of the country in 2011. Julius also highlighted his team’s success at the 2010 Chicago International Open and the program’s proven track record for building successful home grown competitors with no prior grappling experience.

Sunday Muay Thai Class at Crazy88 BJJ in Elkridge, MD

Students shadow box at the Sunday muay thai class at Crazy88.

Julius is equally committed to the success of his muay thai program which was started two years ago. The students on Sunday worked with muay thai instructor and pro MMA fighter Aung La N Sang. Sang brings 7 years of muay thai experience and has a 12-5 pro record in MMA. When asked about muay thai at Crazy88, Sang stated that “…we’re dedicated, so just watch out for us.”

The mixed martial arts program also supports regular classes and fight team competitors. Prospective students who are interested in learning MMA can participate in regular classes and fight team competitors can train in rigorous environments. When asked about MMA training, Julius commented that there are some schools that just put guys in without the proper training. He sites requirements for his students who want to fight in MMA to compete heavily in grappling tournaments and muay thai smokers. For fighters like John Delbrugge, the two years of preparation paid off when he won his first MMA bout at Absolute Annihilation (2010) in the first round. “We want you to be prepared,” said Julius.

With all the success that he has experienced with his academy, he wanted to thank Master Lloyd. “That’s because he helped me a lot,” he said. “At the end of the day…we are just trying to have better lives because of (martial arts)…but in order to do that, sometimes we have to put ourselves under stresses and go under training…the end goal was never just fighting.”