RONNIE MANN GETS HIS BLACK BELT FROM BRAULIO

Seasoned mixed martial artist, Ronnie Mann, received his black belt from Braulio Estima at Gracie Barra Birmingham this afternoon. Ronnie has been training jiu jitsu under the guidance of Braulio for around 8 years, as well as fighting MMA all over the world.



"I'm shocked," says Mann on receiving his black belt. "I always thought that I'd be a brown belt forever, so even though I'm shocked I'm also really pleased."

Upon being promoted, the 26 year-old was quick to address the importance of training in the gi: "There was a stage early in my MMA career when I stopped training in the gi thinking it would be beneficial for me, but I actually found it worked the other way. As soon as I started training in the gi again I noticed a difference and I got back to normal. All the top fighters train in the gi, so that's good enough for me."



Mann is set to fight for the Cage Warriors promotion later in the year, but he has also expressed a desire to compete in sport jiu jitsu more regularly as well. "I have always intended to do it more actually," says Mann on competing in jiu jitsu. "It's a case of finding the time to fit everything in, but I hope that I'll be able to give it a go a little bit more regularly one day."