Romero “Jacaré” Cavalcanti

Romero Cavalcanti, known as Jacaré, was born in Recife, in northeastern Brazil, on October 17, 1952, and moved to Rio de Janeiro as a small child. He started Jiu-Jitsu in his teens with Jaildo Gomes, and at 18 switched to an affiliate of Carlson Gracie’s academy. In 1972 he went to study in New York and stayed away from training until he returned to Rio in late 1974, when he began training with Rolls Gracie.

He got his black belt from Rolls in 1982. He was the last black belt Rolls promoted. After his master died, he trained with Rickson Gracie and then opened his own school, Jacaré Jiu-Jitsu, which produced names such as Fabio Gurgel and Roberto Traven.

In 1993 he joined forces with students who already ran their own academies to create Alliance. Two years later he moved to the United States, first to Miami and then to Atlanta, to grow the team. He has been in the IBJJF Hall of Fame since 2016.