Better Living Through Pain

I've been practicing martial arts since 1995. I hold a Black Belt in Hapkido, 2nd Kyu in Aikido, and a Purple Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Besides those ranks, I've also trained in Kali for about 1.5 years, and Muy Thai for a few years. I've dabbled in about everything at one time or another. Now I'm training Muy Thai\NHB\Jiu-Jitsu, mostly because I love the workouts and the technique. I still wander back to my old traditional schools from time to time though.

Some old accomplishments:

4th Place 2003 NAGA North American Grappling Championships Advanced Light heavy Weight
1st Place 2003 Dragons Lair Challenge 2, Intermediate Light Heavy Weight
4th Place 2003 Dragons Lair Challenge 2, Advanced Light Heavy Weight
3rd Place 2003 Dragons Lair Challenge 1, Intermediate Light Heavy Weight
2nd Place 2003 Amateur Athletic Union Sport Jiu-Jitsu tournament

1st Place 2003 NAKF Spring Tournament, Advanced Team Kumite
3rd Place 2003 NAKF Spring Tournament, Advanced Kumite
1st Place 2003 NAKF Spring Tournament, Boston Battle
2nd Place 2002 NAKF Fall Tournament, Boston Battle
4th Place 2002 NAKF Fall Tournament, Advanced Kumite

Black belt in Hapkido (6 years), Purple Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (4 years), 2nd Kyu in Aikido (6 years), 1.5 Years of Kali

Assistant Hapkido Instructor, Brown University, 2002-2004.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Instructor, Brown University, 2004.

My favorite schools:

Fairtex, one of the biggest names in Muy Thai. They've also got an amazing no gi jiu jitsu coach Leopoldo Serao. Great workouts, great people.

John Conners runs a great school out in Dedham. Best of all it was 3 minutes from my house, so I could run over there and get some good training at the drop of a hat. They do a mix of Gi/no-Gi, and have a bunch of great people working out there. I had to break out the Gi and try to remember how to defend a collar choke (unsuccessfully I might add...).

Boston University's MMA club kicks some serious ass, with top level instructors like Keith Florian and Dave Ginsberg. And best of all , if your a BU student it's FREE. Definitely worth checking out.

I loved training at Sityodtong, with a great crew of people. However school comes first, so I very reluctantly had to stop going. The talent level here is very high, not uncommon to see UFC fighters working out alongside the regulars. If you are anywhere near the Somerville area, and want to train in Muy-Thai/Jiu-Jitsu/NHB, this is a great place to go.

Call it a 'traditional' art if you must, but this is where I learned to fight. Kicks, takedowns, grappling, throws, strikes, and don't forget the falling, Hapkido has got alot of great stuff to offer someone interested in down and dirty fighting, no-rules style. And the head instructor Mark Abbott is one of the best and most open minded people you will ever meet. There is also a Harvard club run by one of his former students, now a 2nd degree black belt. Any place whose slogan is "Better Living Through Pain" is ok in my book.

My first art, trained for over 6 years. Aikido's philosophy is what kept me going for all those years. The head instructor for the RISD-Brown club, Carl Fasano, is top-notch, and worth a look if your interested in the softer side of things. Ask him where Tartar sauce comes from...

Mat Santos is a Brown Belt in Jiu Jitsu, and the owner and head instructor at Mat Santos Fighting Academy, Cranston, RI. One of the better local No-Gi and Vale-Tudo guys in the area. He's now training under Tim Burrill and between the two of them they are the best talents in Rhode Island. I'd link to Santos web page, but in true Santos fashion, it's offline....

Team Santos