Image: Haribhagirath, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

John Kavanagh

Ireland
Born 1978-01-18
14.6

Description

Irish mixed martial arts coach; founder of SBG Ireland and the first Irish BJJ black belt.

Teachers (1)

  • Matt Thornton
    swordsBrazilian jiu-jitsu Confirmed
    Confirmed
    Kavanagh's own statement; Thornton's academy names him among Thornton's black belts
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    Kavanagh's own statement; Thornton's academy names him among Thornton's black belts
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “I was VERY lucky to meet Matt Thornton at a strip club in SA at a pivotal point in my life…which led me to where i am.”
    — BJJEE. (2020-01-19). Meet John Kavanagh, Pioneer Of BJJ in Ireland & Conor McGregor’s Coach. BJJ Eastern Europe (BJJEE) link history info
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “As a coach he has awarded fifteen of his own Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belts. That list includes famed UFC coach and the father of MMA in Ireland, John Kavanagh.”
    — (2019-01-26). About Matt Thorntonlink history info

Lineage

Ranks (1)

  • swordsBrazilian jiu-jitsu
    receipt_longBlack belt Confirmed
    Confirmed
    Kavanagh's own statement; SBG Ireland and Thornton's academy agree
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    BJJ Ranking System (2007-03)
    granted by Matt Thornton
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    Kavanagh's own statement; SBG Ireland and Thornton's academy agree
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “Hi guys, I’m John Kavanagh, BJJ black belt since march 2007 from Matt Thornton (straight Blast Gym).”
    — BJJEE. (2020-01-19). Meet John Kavanagh, Pioneer Of BJJ in Ireland & Conor McGregor’s Coach. BJJ Eastern Europe (BJJEE) link history info
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “became Ireland’s first Brazilian Jiu Jitsu blackbelt after being promoted in 2007.”
    — (2019-09-20). SBG Ireland's Storylink history info

Students (2)

  • Gunnar Nelson
    swordsBrazilian jiu-jitsu Confirmed
    Confirmed
    Nelson's own site and Kavanagh's own words agree; Sherdog too
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    4 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    Nelson's own site and Kavanagh's own words agree; Sherdog too
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “Gunnar then got his BJJ brown belt under John Kavanagh (SBG Ireland) in June 2008.”
    — (2009-09-30). Gunnar a black belt under Renzo link history info
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “John also teaches at MJÖLNIR in Iceland and he's Gunnar's main MMA coach.”
    — About Gunnar Nelson link history info
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “It was of course a great honor to have someone like Renzo Gracie recognize his abilities and and award him his black belt.”
    — BJJEE. (2020-01-19). Meet John Kavanagh, Pioneer Of BJJ in Ireland & Conor McGregor’s Coach. BJJ Eastern Europe (BJJEE) link history info
    “The John Kavanagh protégé”
    — (2017-07-12). 5 Things You Might Not Know About Gunnar Nelson. Sherdoglink history info
  • Conor McGregor
    swordsBrazilian jiu-jitsu Confirmed
    Confirmed
    McGregor's own statement; BJJEE and SBG Ireland agree
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    3 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    McGregor's own statement; BJJEE and SBG Ireland agree
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “Received my black belt tonight from my coach, friend, and mentor, John Kavanagh of SBG Ireland!”
    — BJJEE. (2023-09-05). Conor McGregor Promoted To BJJ Black Belt: “20 Years Of Hard Work”. BJJ Eastern Europe (BJJEE)link history info
    “McGregor was also promoted to BJJ brown belt by his instructor John Kavanagh.”
    — BJJEE. (2014-09-28). Conor McGregor Promoted To BJJ Brown Belt After KO Win Over Poirier. BJJ Eastern Europe (BJJEE)link history info
    visibilityFirst-hand
    “SBG Ireland HQ is home to the world’s first UFC featherweight and lightweight champion Conor “The Notorious” McGregor.”
    — (2019-09-20). SBG Ireland's Storylink history info

Sources

John Kavanagh (martial artist). Wikipedia (English)link history info

Identifiers

https://martial.is/entity/01M6ENVCFA112CDK0CM542MARN
Wikidata

Cite and reuse

CC BY-SA 4.0expand_more
Plain text
Muñoz, Frederico (YEAR_PLACEHOLDER). John Kavanagh. In Martialis: Martial Arts Lineage Database. https://martial.is/entity/01M6ENVCFA112CDK0CM542MARN - CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed ACCESSED_DATE_PLACEHOLDER.
BibTeX
@incollection{martialis_01M6ENVCFA112CDK0CM542MARN, author = {Muñoz, Frederico}, title = {John Kavanagh}, booktitle = {Martialis: Martial Arts Lineage Database}, year = {YEAR_PLACEHOLDER}, url = {https://martial.is/entity/01M6ENVCFA112CDK0CM542MARN}, urldate = {ACCESSED_DATE_PLACEHOLDER}, note = {CC BY-SA 4.0} }
data_object JSON-LDdata_object Turtle

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