Tom zurita

A lifelong martial artist and fixture of the Academy, Tom has been training Jiu-Jitsu since 2003. He and Ryan first crossed paths in the semi-final of the 2004 Copa Atlantica white belt lightweight division, with Tom coming out victorious by triangle choke on the way to a gold medal. The two went on to become teammates, training partners, and close friends in the years following, with Tom mentoring Ryan in boxing and cornering his first and fourth professional MMA fights. After a break to focus elsewhere in life for a time, Tom returned to the mat and earned his black belt on December 17, 2019.