Carlson Gracie, one of the most important coaches in jiu-jitsu and MMA history, will be honored with a statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in August.
The idea to honor Gracie began after he died in 2006. The original plan was to try to get the Silva Castro Street, where his iconic gym is still located to this day, re-named to Carlson Gracie Street. However, a city law doesn’t allow it to re-name streets that are named after people.
With that in mind, a group of ex-students came together and decided to try to get a bronze statue of Gracie built and installed next to the gym.