Southern Elite is built around strong instruction, real discipline, and a culture that helps people grow on and off the mats. Each coach brings a different background, but the mission stays the same: help students improve with purpose.
Coach Javi began his martial arts journey at just 6 years old, training in kung fu for several years before being introduced to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at age 13 by his older brother. After spending several months around the art as a teenager, he returned to Jiu-Jitsu as an adult and has trained consistently since 2007.
Over the years, Coach Javi has built an impressive competition resume, earning titles such as No-Gi American Nationals Champion, No-Gi Pan-American Champion, Houston Open Champion, Dallas Open Champion, and Austin Open Champion, along with several other championships across various organizations.
With a lifelong background in martial arts and nearly two decades of consistent training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Coach Javi brings a wealth of experience, skill, and competitive knowledge to the mats.
Stormy is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt under black belt Justin Renick. With over 20 years immersed in the fight game, he has trained, competed, and contributed at nearly every level of combat sports. He began boxing at age 13 and went on to capture multiple national championships while sharing the ring with world-class fighters in both boxing and MMA.
Five years ago, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu became a transformative, life-saving discipline for him. Stormy embraces the unique blend of uncertainty, discomfort, mental fortitude, and physical challenge that grappling demands—and he credits it with reshaping his approach to life and training.
Combat sports remain a lifelong cornerstone, but his focus has evolved. Today, he finds the greatest fulfillment in training consistently and coaching others, guiding teammates to sharpen their Jiu-Jitsu skills and thrive in competition.
Coach Carson has been training Jiu-Jitsu since 2020 and holds a brown belt under Justin Renick. After years of team sports growing up, he needed a new outlet for his competitive drive—and Jiu-Jitsu quickly became it.
What started as scratching a personal itch has evolved into something deeper: a genuine passion for watching those around him grow, improve, and succeed on and off the mats.
Teaching Jiu-Jitsu is now one of Carson’s greatest joys. He loves breaking down techniques, celebrating those breakthrough moments, and helping students unlock their potential. If you’re looking to challenge yourself, build confidence, or just find a supportive community, Coach Carson would be honored to share the mats with you.
With a lifelong background in strength training, endurance racing, obstacle courses, and high-performance conditioning, Coach Greg built his foundation in discipline and physical resilience long before stepping onto the mats.
After discovering Jiu-Jitsu and catch wrestling in 2022, he committed fully to the craft. As a coach, Greg prioritizes physical and mental growth, teaching athletes to understand why techniques work—not just how to perform them.
He believes consistent attention to the small details creates long-term success on and off the mat.
Ari has 7 years of wrestling experience as well as 2 years in Jiu-Jitsu. Her wrestling background includes a 4-year varsity high school career where she was a 2× District Champion, 2× Regional placer, and 2× State Qualifier, finishing in the top 16 in Texas for two consecutive years. Since then she has stayed involved in the sport through coaching and training.
Through wrestling, she found a strong sense of family, work ethic, and confidence that carried over into Jiu-Jitsu. Since joining, Jiu-Jitsu has become a major part of her life, and she is passionate about continuing to learn, train, and help others grow in the sport.
She is excited to be part of the team at Southern Elite and to help bring a strong wrestling foundation to the program, since wrestling and Jiu-Jitsu complement each other in many ways.
