John Danaher

New Zealand
Born 1967-04-02, Washington, D.C.
19.3

Description

New Zealand Brazilian jiu-jitsu and mixed martial arts instructor and coach, widely regarded as one of the best BJJ coaches in the world. A 6th-degree black belt under Renzo Gracie, Danaher taught at the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York, coached Georges St-Pierre through his UFC championship run, and developed an influential leg-lock system through his Danaher Death Squad team. He later founded New Wave Jiu Jitsu in Austin, Texas.

Teachers (1)

  • Renzo Gracie
    sports_martial_artsBrazilian jiu-jitsu Confirmed
    Confirmed
    Wikipedia, BJJ Heroes, and Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu all confirm Danaher trained under Renzo Gracie at the Renzo Gracie Academy in Manhattan; black belt date confirmed by BJJ Heroes
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    location_onRenzo Gracie Academy badge (1991–2002)
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    Wikipedia, BJJ Heroes, and Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu all confirm Danaher trained under Renzo Gracie at the Renzo Gracie Academy in Manhattan; black belt date confirmed by BJJ Heroes
    “After arriving in New York, Danaher was introduced to Brazilian jiu-jitsu by a friend at the university, and began taking classes at the Renzo Gracie Academy in Manhattan.”
    — Wikipedia contributors. (2026). John Danaher (martial artist) - Wikipedia (EN). Wikipedia (English)link history info
    “John Danaher is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) black belt under Renzo Gracie”
    — BJJ Heroes. John Danaher - BJJ Heroes. BJJ Heroes link history info

Lineage

Ranks (1)

  • sports_martial_artsBrazilian jiu-jitsu
    receipt_longBlack belt, degree 6 Confirmed
    Confirmed
    BJJ Heroes confirms Danaher received his black belt on April 2, 2002 from Renzo Gracie; Wikipedia corroborates the 6th-degree rank under Renzo Gracie
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    BJJ Ranking System (2002-04-02)
    granted by Renzo Gracie
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    BJJ Heroes confirms Danaher received his black belt on April 2, 2002 from Renzo Gracie; Wikipedia corroborates the 6th-degree rank under Renzo Gracie
    “Danaher holds a 6th-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Renzo Gracie”
    — Wikipedia contributors. (2026). John Danaher (martial artist) - Wikipedia (EN). Wikipedia (English)link history info
    “His hard work paid off as Danaher received his black belt on April 2nd, 2002 together with his friend and training partner Shawn Williams.”
    — BJJ Heroes. John Danaher - BJJ Heroes. BJJ Heroes link history info

Students (3)

  • Travis Stevens
    sports_martial_artsBrazilian jiu-jitsu Confirmed
    Confirmed
    Wikipedia states Travis Stevens holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under John Danaher and Renzo Gracie, which Danaher awarded on November 19, 2013; BJJEE reproduces Danaher's own Facebook post calling Stevens "my friend and student"
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    location_onRenzo Gracie Academy badge
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    Wikipedia states Travis Stevens holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under John Danaher and Renzo Gracie, which Danaher awarded on November 19, 2013; BJJEE reproduces Danaher's own Facebook post calling Stevens "my friend and student"
    “Stevens also holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under John Danaher and Renzo Gracie, which Danaher awarded on November 19, 2013.”
    — Wikipedia contributors. (2026). Travis Stevens. Wikipedia (English)link history info
    “It is with considerable pride and happiness that I learned this memorial weekend of the outstanding success of my friend and student, Travis Stevens.”
    — BJJEE. (2016). John Danaher On The Heart & Work Ethic of Travis Stevens. BJJ Eastern Europe (BJJEE)link history info
  • Georges St-Pierre
    sports_martial_artsBrazilian jiu-jitsu Probable
    Probable
    Wikipedia infobox lists John Danaher as one of GSP's BJJ trainers; Danaher was also a coach on The Ultimate Fighter 12 for GSP's team
    The evidence favours the claim and nothing credible contradicts it, but it falls short of establishing it.
    location_onRenzo Gracie Academy badge (2008–2013)
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    1 source expand_more
    fact_check
    Wikipedia infobox lists John Danaher as one of GSP's BJJ trainers; Danaher was also a coach on The Ultimate Fighter 12 for GSP's team
    “Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: John Danaher, Bruno Fernandes, Renzo Gracie”
    — Wikipedia contributors. (2026). Georges St-Pierre - Wikipedia (EN). Wikipedia (English)link history info
  • Firas Zahabi
    sports_martial_artsBrazilian jiu-jitsu Confirmed
    Confirmed
    BJJ Heroes confirms Zahabi holds a black belt under John Danaher and was promoted at the Renzo Gracie Academy in 2011; corroborated by Zahabi's own public statements and Wikipedia's list of Danaher's notable students
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    location_onRenzo Gracie Academy badge (2006–2011)
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    4 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    BJJ Heroes confirms Zahabi holds a black belt under John Danaher and was promoted at the Renzo Gracie Academy in 2011; corroborated by Zahabi's own public statements and Wikipedia's list of Danaher's notable students
    “Pierre, arguably MMA's greatest fighter of all time, would frequently visit jiu-jitsu coach extraordinaire, Mr. John Danaher in New York City, at the Renzo Gracie Academy, a trip Firas started taking as well from around the mid-2000s.”
    — BJJ Heroes. Firas Zahabi - BJJ Heroes. BJJ Heroes link history info
    “Firas Zahabi's hard work on the mats would lead to his black belt promotion, an endorsement by John Danaher in an event that took place in 2011.”
    — BJJ Heroes. Firas Zahabi - BJJ Heroes. BJJ Heroes link history info
    “I'm a black belt under John Danaher. He is the greatest jiu-jitsu coach of all time and arguably the greatest MMA coach of all time.”
    — Firas Zahabi: John Danaher Is The Greatest Jiu Jitsu Coach Of All Time (BJJDOC)link
    “Firas Zahabi”
    — John Danaher - Wikipedia (EN)link history

Sources

Wikipedia contributors. (2026). John Danaher (martial artist) - Wikipedia (EN). Wikipedia (English)link history info
BJJ Heroes. John Danaher - BJJ Heroes. BJJ Heroeslink history info
Kingsway Jiu-Jitsu. John Danaher - Kingsway Jiu-Jitsulink info

Identifiers

https://martial.is/entity/01KYSNKBS820Y33CQFDDFKQ3EZ
Wikidata

Cite and reuse

CC BY-SA 4.0expand_more
Plain text
Muñoz, Frederico (YEAR_PLACEHOLDER). John Danaher. In Martialis: Martial Arts Lineage Database. https://martial.is/entity/01KYSNKBS820Y33CQFDDFKQ3EZ - CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed ACCESSED_DATE_PLACEHOLDER.
BibTeX
@incollection{martialis_01KYSNKBS820Y33CQFDDFKQ3EZ, author = {Muñoz, Frederico}, title = {John Danaher}, booktitle = {Martialis: Martial Arts Lineage Database}, year = {YEAR_PLACEHOLDER}, url = {https://martial.is/entity/01KYSNKBS820Y33CQFDDFKQ3EZ}, urldate = {ACCESSED_DATE_PLACEHOLDER}, note = {CC BY-SA 4.0} }
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