Ralph Gracie was sentenced to six months in jail for assaulting Flavio Almeida at the 2018 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation World Championships a while back.
Gracie was caught on video elbowing Almeida in the face, knocking him unconscious and kicking him while he was on the ground. Gracie’s student, Lincoln Pereira, also joined the attack.
Almeida suffered a concussion and lost two front teeth as a result of the assault.
Gracie pleaded guilty to a felony assault charge and received 180 days in jail, three years of probation, restitution, and anger management.
Pereira had his assault charge reduced to a misdemeanor and was sentenced to 80 days time-served.
Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer objected to reducing Gracie’s felony charge to a misdemeanor.
Gracie fled to Brazil after an arrest warrant was issued in April 2019 and missed four court appearances before returning to the U.S.
Ralph Gracie recently appeared on the podcast ‘Pura Connection’.
During the interview, he discussed significant moments from his career and reflected on a controversial incident.
During the Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Worlds in California (USA) in 2018, Ralph Gracie was involved in an altercation with Flávio Almeida. Gracie’s actions resulted in his subsequent conviction and arrest, attracting significant attention and controversy.
When asked whether he regretted what he had done, Ralph responded immediately that he would do it again. He expressed his unwavering commitment to his principles, emphasizing that his mindset remains unchanged.
“I would do it all over again, that’s the real truth. I learned that jail is not so bad, but the principles are the same, I’m not going to change my mind, I did it because it was supposed to be done. Even when I did that, like 50 people called me. ‘Face***! You’re my idol, I’ve been wanting to punch him for a while’, but people don’t have the courage, they’re afraid of what might happen.”
The “feud” between the two was allegedly older at the time. According to Gracie Barra, Ralph would have “threatened” Flávio to “not open gyms in his territory” in the United States. Flávio had a seizure during the assault, lost several teeth, and even shared a picture of himself without his incisors.
In addition to being found guilty, Ralph Gracie was prohibited from participating in competitions, serving as a coach, and attending IBJJF events.
His academy still operates to date.