Carlos Gracie Jr.

Carlos Gracie Junior, known as Carlinhos, was born in Rio de Janeiro on January 17, 1956. A son of Carlos Gracie, he was raised in part by his uncle Helio, who trained him from early childhood, and he closely followed his older brother Rolls into sambo and wrestling competitions. He got his black belt from Helio around 1977, although he spent most of his training time with Rolls, serving as his assistant coach.

When Rolls died, in 1982, he took over classes at the Copacabana academy at the students’ request. In 1986 he opened his own school in Barra da Tijuca, then a neighborhood far from the center of Rio, and named it Gracie Barra. In a little over a year the group grew from 20 students to 200.

In the 1990s he set up the federations that organized sport Jiu-Jitsu, the CBJJ and the IBJJF, and created the World Championship, held since 1996. He produced black belts such as Roger Gracie, Kyra Gracie and Roberto “Roleta” Magalhães. He has been in the IBJJF Hall of Fame since 2016.

On April 25, 2026, at the congress that marked Gracie Barra’s 40th anniversary, in Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, he received his red belt, the ninth degree and the highest active rank in Jiu-Jitsu. The belt was presented by fellow red belt Mauricio Robbe.