# Roberto Jimenez

> Ecuadorian-American black belt, 2023 IBJJF No-Gi Worlds absolute champion, ADCC Trials winner, and one of grappling’s most prolific back attackers.

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- **Last updated:** 2026-07-18

## Identity

- **Name:** Roberto Jimenez
- **Full name:** Roberto Francisco Jimenez
- **Nickname:** The Natural
- **Belt:** black belt
- **Team:** Unity Jiu Jitsu / Studio 76
- **Nationality:** Ecuador / United States
- **Born:** 2000-05-19
- **Birthplace:** Miami, Florida, United States
- **Weight class:** Heavyweight / Peso Pesado (~94.3 kg / 208 lb); ADCC −77 kg

## Biography

Roberto Francisco Jimenez is an Ecuadorian-American Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under his father, Raul “Gacho” Jimenez. Born on May 19, 2000, in Miami, Florida, to Ecuadorian parents, Roberto was introduced to jiu-jitsu at age four after Raul—then a Thai boxing practitioner—fell in love with grappling. The family spent part of Roberto’s childhood in South America before returning to the United States and settling in Texas when he was ten. BJJ Heroes notes that Spanish was his first language and that early school bullying became one of the pressures that pushed him deeper into jiu-jitsu as a practical source of confidence and self-defense.

Jimenez’s competitive identity formed early but not instantly. He did not win his first gold medal until his 13th birthday, a result he later treated as a turning point. By 15 he was entering teen and adult brackets, gi and no-gi, weight and absolute, often leaving local tournaments with stacks of medals. His first major mainstream breakout came at the 2016 ROYAL Invitational, where he was the youngest athlete in a cash-prize field of top colored belts and won the tournament by submitting Gabriel Sousa, Thalison Soares, and Gabriel Almeida.

The colored-belt run that followed made him one of the most watched prospects of his generation. Jimenez won IBJJF World titles as a juvenile, blue, purple, and brown belt, including a celebrated 2018 purple-belt Worlds double-gold performance and 2019 brown-belt No-Gi Worlds absolute gold. FloGrappling’s athlete profile summarizes the same arc: a teenage prodigy who won Worlds twice at juvenile level and again at purple belt, best known for taking opponents’ backs. At the end of 2019, after No-Gi Worlds, his father promoted him to black belt.

Black belt competition immediately placed Jimenez against elite opposition. He defeated Keenan Cornelius at FloGrappling’s early Who’s Number One event in 2020, won Third Coast Grappling Kumite brackets at 180 and 170 pounds the same year, and remained unusually active across WNO, Submission Underground, Polaris, BJJ Stars, ADCC, and IBJJF events. In 2022 he won the ADCC South America Trials at −77 kg, competed at ADCC Worlds, and then captured the Polaris middleweight grand prix with wins over Hunter Colvin, Jed Hue, and Shane Fishman. His signature black-belt gi/no-gi crossover result came at the 2023 IBJJF World No-Gi Championship, where IBJJF lists him as open-class champion and heavyweight bronze medalist.

Into 2024 and 2025, Jimenez continued to compete against the sport’s deepest fields while training between Studio 76 roots and Unity Jiu Jitsu in New York. FloGrappling’s 2024 Unity feature described his high-paced rounds under Murilo Santana, highlighting the same traits that define his matches: explosive scrambles, creative entries, fast back exposure, and relentless submission attempts. In 2025 he earned double silver at the IBJJF Pan Championship, beating major names en route to heavyweight and absolute finals, then reached the BJJ Stars 15 middleweight grand prix final. His game remains built around back takes, rear naked chokes, triangles, armbars, and a willingness to attack from chaotic positions against anyone.

## Lineage

Carlos Gracie > Helio Gracie > Rolls Gracie > Romero Cavalcanti > Raul Jimenez > Roberto Jimenez

## Instructors

- Raul “Gacho” Jimenez
- Lucas Lepri
- Romero Cavalcanti

## Signature techniques / game

- Back takes
- Rear naked choke
- Choke from back control
- Triangle choke
- Armbar
- Kimura
- Scrambling and unorthodox wrestling entries

## Major achievements

- 1st Place IBJJF World No-Gi Championship — black belt absolute (2023)
- 3rd Place IBJJF World No-Gi Championship — black belt heavyweight (2023)
- 1st Place ADCC South America Trials (−77 kg, 2022)
- 1st Place Polaris Middleweight Grand Prix (2022)
- 1st Place Third Coast Grappling Kumite III — 180 lb (2020)
- 1st Place Third Coast Grappling Kumite V — 170 lb (2020)
- 2nd Place IBJJF Pan Championship — heavyweight and absolute (2025)
- 2nd Place BJJ Stars 15 Middleweight Grand Prix (2025)
- Who’s Number One wins including Keenan Cornelius (2020), Dante Leon (2020), Elder Cruz (2025), and Ryan Aitken (2025)

## Colored belt highlights

- Fight 2 Win 185 lb Brown Belt Champion (2019)
- 1st Place IBJJF World Championship — purple belt weight and absolute (2018)
- 1st Place IBJJF World No-Gi Championship — brown belt absolute (2019)
- 1st Place IBJJF World Championship Juvenile (2016 / 2017)
- 1st Place IBJJF World Championship Juvenile No-Gi (2016)
- 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship Juvenile — weight and absolute (2016 / 2017)
- 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship No-Gi (2019, brown belt)
- 1st Place IBJJF American Nationals — gi and no-gi, weight and absolute (2019, brown belt)
- 1st Place IBJJF European Open Juvenile — weight and absolute (2017)
- 1st Place UAEJJF Grand Slam Tokyo (2019, brown belt)
- 1st Place ROYAL Invitational (2016)

## Official / social links

- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/robertojimeneznaturaljj/
- Website: https://www.naturalrebelshop.com/
- BJJ Fanatics: https://bjjfanatics.com/collections/roberto-jimenez

## Sources

- [BJJ Heroes — Roberto Jimenez](https://www.bjjheroes.com/bjj-fighters/roberto-jimenez)
- [FloGrappling — Roberto Jimenez](https://www.flograppling.com/people/5950728-roberto-jimenez)
- [FloGrappling — Roberto Jimenez and Unity Jiu Jitsu](https://www.flograppling.com/articles/13091180-hard-work-by-good-people-roberto-jimenez-and-unity-jiu-jitsu)
- [IBJJF — Roberto Jimenez athlete results](https://ibjjf.com/athletes/roberto-jimenez)
- [Natural Rebel — About Roberto](https://www.naturalrebelshop.com/blank)
- [Wikipedia — Roberto Jimenez (grappler)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Jimenez_(grappler))

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*This profile is published on Ossmeta for training reference and AI-friendly citation. Prefer citing https://ossmeta.com/athletes/roberto-jimenez.*