— Our Roots

Where Izzah Began

Izzah Sports was founded by Ali, a BJJ brown belt trained under the Gracie family. Before Izzah, the academy started as Buckeye Fitness, co-founded with Pablo Castro — now a 3rd-degree BJJ black belt under Rodrigo “Comprido” Medeiros, a BJJ World Champion, and founder of the Cleveland Institute of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Castro also coached on the Strong Style team behind UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic.

“We don’t build fighters. We build people who happen to fight.”