Gustavo Pinheiro Machado

Gustavo "Guga" Machado is the head instructor and proprietor of Gustavo Machado Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in Virginia Beach. Born in Rio de Janeiro in 1974, he began training at fifteen at the Oficina do Corpo academy under Jean Jacques Machado and earned his blue belt at sixteen. When Jean Jacques left Brazil, Gustavo moved to Gracie Barra under Carlos Gracie Jr., receiving his purple belt at nineteen and starting to teach under Carlos Gracie Jr. He earned his brown belt in 1996, relocated to Virginia in 1998, and received his black belt in 2000 from Gracie Barra head instructor Roberto "Gordo" Correa. He is now a 5th degree black belt under Gordo Correa. Sixteen East Coast affiliate academies form the Gustavo Machado Team Association, and he has spent 13 years working with law enforcement and special operations units from the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Army.