James Rose is March’s Martial Artist of the Month

James Rose has a reputation, in the 6am Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class, for having a great wrestling game and unbelievable top pressure.

James Rose came to Straight Blast Gym in 2017. A division 1 athlete, James wrestled at the Citadel during his collegiate years. After college, he began to set up a life as a father and husband. At age 35, James decided to add some competitive sports and martial arts into his daily routine.

James put on a jiu jitsu gi for the first time and immediately made an impression on his coaches and fellow athletes. Martial Arts Coach Sean Coleman remembers James’ first few times attending his 6am Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class:

“Holy smokes, the top pressure of that guy. He would get on top of people and just completely control them. He had no idea what to do once he got there, but you definitely weren’t getting up from under him, lol.”

With James’ experience as a wrestler and his relentless pursuit to improve, James quickly moved up the martial arts ranks and earned his blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He began attending the 6 am jiu jitsu classes 4­5 times per week, quickly adding to his already strong wrestling game. This increased experience and versatility led him to the International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation Atlanta Open, in the spring of 2018 (one of the largest martial arts tournaments in the Southeast). James looked incredible, winning gold in his division at his very first Atlanta Open martial arts tournament. Very impressive!

James can be found in the 6am Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class just about every weekday morning. In addition, James is a regular at just about every martial arts and social function that involves Straight Blast Gym Buford or one of our athletes. He can often be spotted in the crowd at our mixed martial arts or kickboxing fight nights, and he’ll often times buy you a beverage if he’s in a good mood ;­)

Thanks for all of the hard work, James. See you on the mats!!