Mount Dora BJJ / MMA Academy — Attraction in Eustis

I have been at Mt Dora Eustis BJJ for over a year now, love it. I came from an affiliate school of a very large organization as a blue belt and as I loved my time at that program and have nothing bad to say about them, I feel like I have finally found a home here. I have rolled and competed at many different schools and tournaments, and I can honestly say that I have valued my time with professor David and coach Annie the most. Not only have my mat skills thrived, professor David has a way of teaching and speaking that inspires me to realize my potential as a person and fighter. Unlike some of the larger schools, professor David values his beginners and does not throw them to the wolves to use as training fodder for his higher belts. Helping students grow from novices to polished well rounded fighters is his priority.

His passion for his school and his students is visible daily. He is fully committed to helping both students learn and people grow individually both in self confidence and physical fitness. Professor David is a man of principal, honest and sincere. Not to mention, a wealth of knowledge and one of the best practisioners I have ever had the privilege to grapple with.

The school is one of the largest in the central Florida area, clean, and state of the art. All of the members are great people, approachable and have become an extension of my family. The mats are of the highest quality and all efforts have been made to make the school safe and pleasant. No foul smells, inappropriate language, or bullies. All of which can be found in BJJ gyms worldwide. There is tons of mat space for all, and even a cage and heavy bag area, no fighting on top of each other. This is not someone’s garage or strip mall gym, nor a fly by night operation. Professor David is here to stay, teach and grow within the community.

Professor David and coach Annie are people of faith, and they have faith in people. I feel like I am a better person having known them. The atmosphere is great, the class schedule is awesome with both DAY and night classes, and the facility is superb. Wait, did I mention DAY classes…. This has been an amazing ride. I love this school and will train here until I’m old and cannot train anymore. Then I will probably just hang out and watch. Come check it out for yourself, and prepare to challenge yourself. Come where belt ranks are...

I went here for a one of their trials about 5 years ago, when I was a junior in highschool. I had never done any mma training. I stayed for 2 of their classes, no gi jiu-jitsu and their mma class they were holding after. The no gi jiu-jitsu class was fun, but the mma class was a different story that brought about my 1 star review.

I was facing another student in a sparring match. The instructor said that no hard kicks to the body or head were allowed, but did not include leg kicks in his prohibited strikes. The first round of sparring starts, and I manage to get on top of my opponent. I had previously told the instructor "I know what an arm bar is, but I couldn't put you in one." Well, the instructor starts yelling at me to do an arm bar, and I look at him confused, but I kept getting hit by my opponent so I didn't have time to figure out how to do it.

Second round of sparring starts. I throw a leg kick, and I accidentally hit my opponent with a low blow. It wasn't intentional at all, and accidents happen. I was a full-on bigginer and everyone knew this. After some proper rest and multiple apologies on my part and checking that my opponent was okay, we moved on with the round.

The opponent takes me down, and starts punching me while I'm on my stomach. I start tapping out, and my opponent keeps hitting me. The instructor at this point called out "he's getting you back for bullying him!" I wasnt trying to bully anyone! I just dont know any submissions from the position i was in. I was a bigginer, and they were aware of this.

My opponent then gets me in a rear-naked choke, and I try to tap out then. He still wouldn't let go! He held it for an extra 4 seconds before he let go. This was all while the instructor was watching. My tapping out meant nothing to my opponent, which doesn't speak well to the attitudes they teach at this gym.

My issue is not that I "lost" or anything of that sort, it's that I was being instructed to do things I told them I couldn't do, and my attempts to tap out were repeatedly ignored by everyone around me.

I wouldn't come to learn here again, and I wouldn't recommend it...

I was looking for a school like this for about 3 years since I moved down to Florida from Boston. After a few different places I was discouraged. One place was filthy and I was worried I would pick something that could make me really sick and another School mauled me and I was sore for 6 months and really messed my neck up. Since I found Mount Dora BJJ Academy I haven't had any injuries which is been refreshing to say the least. I've been doing Jiu-Jitsu on and off for about 10 years with no Gi. I was diagnosed with cancer 7 years ago so it's been really hard to be consistent through the injuries and illnesses that have popped up over the years. Mount Dora BJJ Academy has been a godsend though. Jiu-Jitsu is my therapy. Nothing else matters when class is in. It's where my focus is at its best. It clears my mind like a clean slate as soon as I walk in the door. It has hands down saved my life on a couple occasions so far. My lungs recovered from something the doctor said would never get better but because of jujitsu I am once again beating the odds and my lungs have cleared 90% in 13 weeks. When I am absent from the mats I'm not myself and when I'm on the mats I'm at my best. Thank God I found Mount Dora BJJ. I am extremely grateful for finding the needle in a haystack. Mount Dora BJJ is truly a diamond in the rough. Coach David and Coach Annie are amazing people who care about everyone there and want to see everybody grow and expect us to work hard but at the end of the day they treat us like family and I mean that. I've learned so much in the last few months I feel renewed. I can't say enough good things about the coaches and the students. There's kids 3 year olds all the way up to adults 40 +. Everybody's welcome please come...