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| Luke Rinehart Owner/Head Instructor Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu 2nd Degree Black Belt |
Luke has dedicated 25 years of his life to the study of martial arts. Having trained in everything from Tang Soo do, Kenpo, Japanese Jiu-Jitsu, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Kick Boxing, Muay Thai and Mixed Martial Arts, Luke brings a plethora of knowledge to his instruction. Although Luke has also been very successful as a competitor, his greatest desire is to teach and inspire others to become true "Martial Artists".
Greatest Accomplishments:
2003 NAGA Battle at the Beach Pro Champion
2004 NAGA Battle at the Beach Pro Champion
2005 Superfight decision loss to Pablo Popavich
2011 New York Open 2nd place Black Belt Masters Lightweight Division
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| Tom Ledwell BJJ Black Belt "BJJ Light" Instructor |
Tom Ledwell has been training at the Clinch Academy for nearly 7 years. Tom also:
* Has been a Clinch Academy BJJ Black Belt since January 2010.
* Has been a Maguilla BJJ Black Belt since September 2009
* Is a Maryland Police and Corrections Training Commission certified Defensive Tactics Instructor
* Is a Maryland Police and Corrections Training Commission certified General Instructor
* Was awarded the Maryland Police and Corrections Training Commission Instructor of the Year Award
* Is a Defensive Tactics Instructor for Police Recruits and Police Veterans
* Attended and completed the Gracie Combatives for Law Enforcement Instructor Training in 2008
* Has BJJ Tournament Competition Experience
* Is a 20 year Police Veteran
One of Tom’s favorite aspects of BJJ is now having the opportunity to pass it on to others. Tom is a great practitioner and instructor of BJJ and is looking forward to sharing his knowledge and experience in the “BJJ Light” class at the Clinch Academy.
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Josh Troy has been training with Luke for over 10 years. Most of his training has been no/gi jiu-jitsu/Submission Grappling. Josh is a very well versed grappler who has alot to share. His interest in teaching sparked in 2010 and he has now become our official Submission Grappling 101 Instructor. Competing hasn't really been a big priority for Josh, however, he recently competed in the 2010 Submision Only Advanced open division and took first place!
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| Jason McDonald MMA 101 Instructor |
Jason McDonald has trained most of his life in some form of Martial Arts. Through the years Jason
* Earned a Brown Belt in Ishin Ryu karate
* Trained in Shotokan Karate for a year
* Has earned a Blue Belt in BJJ at Clinch Academy
* Has over 300 hours of MMA training at the Clinch Academy
* Won 2nd Place NAGA Richmond
* Won 2nd Place Dog Fight in Dover
Jason was also:
* Captain of his High School wresting team Senior year
* Won 3A Regionals and Divisionals and multiple Duals Meets
* Ranked 4th in state
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| Jacob "The Hunter" Kirwan Professional MMA Fighter BJJ Brown Belt Wrestling Coach |
Having been a wrestler since youth, Jacob has earned some considerable titles such as
12x Consecutive Junior State Champ in Deleware
4x Junior All American
3x High School State Place winner
1x High School State Champ
Within 2.5 years of Jiu-Jitsu/submission grappling training at the Clinch Jacob has won
1st place in the 2008 Naga World Championships 2 year Submission Grappling Division
1st place in the 2008 Mission Submission Advanced Division
2nd place in the 2008 Mission Submission Pro Division
1st place at 2008 Grapplers Quest U.S. Nationals Advanced light weight Division
3rd place in the 2008 Dog Fight in Dover Pro Division
Coming to the Clinch Academy in 2007 Jacob had already earned an Amateur MMA record of 4-0 due to his high level of wrestling experience. After training at the Clinch for 2.5 years in Jiu-Jitsu, Thai Kick Boxing and MMA Jacob now has an amateur record of 6-0 and a professional record of 8-2. (As of 3/2011)
In his professional MMA career he has beaten Evan Delong by decision, and submitted both BJJ Black Belt Daniel Morales and Kevin Roddy who was a Kurt Peligrino Brown Belt. Jacob's latest feat was defeating Ryan Vaccaro to become the North American Ring of Combat Featherweight Champion! Further more Jacob has signed a 3 fight deal with Bellator Fighting Championships starting October 2011.
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| Joey "Frontline" Kirwan Professional MMA fighter BJJ Blue Belt Wrestling Coach |
Joey Kirwan grew up in Rock Hall, Maryland and wrestled most of his childhood. He was an accomplished wrestler for Kent County High School as well as their community college. Joey was a:
2x 2nd ranked in state
1x 3 ranked in the state
High School All american
2nd place at High School Nationals
Joey also spent some time boxing before he began training in Mixed Martial Arts. Joey is currently a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blue belt and is also exceling in his kickboxing.
In his MMA Career, Joey has stepped up to fight with some pretty tough talent. He has fought the likes of Marcus Foran, Elijah Harshberger, Drew Puzon and Ultimate Fighter Kris McCray. Joey has been known to step up to fight tough opponents on short notice which has earned him the nickname "Frontline" because he is always on the frontline of battle.
Currently as of (3/2011) Joey is the VFL 185 pd. MMA Champion! Joey Kirwan will be fighting in the Bellator Fighting Championships in October 2011!
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| Nate Pailen BJJ Blue Belt Youth Assistant Instructor |
Nate Pailen started his training as a wrestler. He wrestled JV and Varsity in High School. He later went on to join the US Army and during that time earned a first degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do. Also during his time in the army Nate trained in full contact Karate, Kickboxing, and he trained some BJJ with some of the Rangers who trained under Rorion and Royce Gracie. Nate also became a platoon leader during his 18 years of serving in the army.
Nate has been training at the Clinch Academy since 2007 and holds a Blue Belt in Jiu-Jitsu. He competed in the NAGA one time when he first got his blue belt and earned 2nd place losing to a purple belt. In the future Nate hopes to teach adult classes and possibly even open his own branch of the Clinch Academy.
