September 2025 | Episode #17
Pictured: No guard pulls here! Jake Hoatson and Kyle Booth working their takedown games.
Finding Your Rhythm Again
September always feels like a reset. Summer pool parties wind down, the kids head back to school, and suddenly traffic on Industrial Road stretches back to 120th instead of sailing past us on 144th. Routines start to normalize again, and with that comes a chance to refocus on the habits that keep us healthy and progressing on the mats.
For us at LŌKAHI, this season marks a shift from competition mode into a calendar full of events - LŌKAHI Day in October, the Justin Flores Seminar in November, and our Winter Promotions & Holiday Party in December. But just because the competition push slows doesn’t mean we have to stop moving forward.
Commit to jumping into at least one Foundations class per week and sharpen the essentials of guard retention, top pressure, and distance management.
Schedule an appointment with Mr. Lab and finally address that nagging back issue you’ve been ignoring all summer.
Put yourself in bad positions and slow down - you might be surprised how much you improve.
Find your rhythm, treat your mind and bodies right, and reap the rewards.
Mark Your Calendars!
Mark Your Calendars!
1st Annual LŌKAHI Day
Saturday - October 4, 2025
Help us celebrate 1 year in business with an afternoon of games, food, entertainment, and more. Hosted on the Hansen’s beautiful property in Blair, NE, we’ll have something for everyone. Collective members and their families are invited, so sign-up now to RSVP.
Collective Member Spotlight
SONNY DOMENGE
At just 7 years old, Sonny is a silent leader amongst our kids program. Starting with Coach Connor at the age of 5, he was recently promoted to Grey Belt during our Summer ceremonies. And while his competition accolades are quite impressive, his personal development shines even brighter.
We’re proud of you, Sonny D!
“Homies. Learning. Family. Jitsu!!! 🤙🤙🤙🤙”
The Most Exciting Weekend in Grappling?
The last week of August packed 3 events over 4 days in Las Vegas, NV. IBJJF’s World Masters, Jiu-Jitsu CON International, and the much-anticipated sequel of the Craig Jones Invitational.
Kicking off the weekend, Coach Guy Rouelle and his wife Samantha both competed at Brown Belt - Masters 1. Coach Guy had an exciting showing, dominating his opponent in his first match and being close to victory in his second. Despite falling short of the podium, Guy had some sage words to share:
“Regardless, I’m proud of my performance during my matches and thankful I’m in a place in life where I was able to test myself against some of the best brown belts in the world. I can and will continue to pursue not only being one of the best in the world, but more importantly, the best version of myself.”
But don’t feel too bad for him - Guy ended up getting ringside tickets to CJI! For those of you who are unfamiliar, the Craig Jones Invitational hype-train began in 2024 when it became the first event in history to pay two Jiu-Jitsu athletes - Kade Ruotolo and Nicky Rod - $1,000,000 cash prize as a result of winning their respective brackets. This year, CJI changed the format to include team duals, a $100,000 women’s tournament, and - as part of Day 2 - $50,000 for each submission victory.
So was it really the most exciting tournament? Debatable.
The humor was not for everyone, in many cases there were more stalling tactics than submissions, and the event ran waaaaay past most of our bedtimes. With multiple questionable taps and B-Team taking the $1m prize via judges decision (New Wave was also awarded $1,000,000 per day-after correction), it may have been the most controversial event of the year.
That said, there was still a lot of great Jiu-Jitsu! Here are the TOP 7 fan-favorite matches from the event. They’re available for those with a FloGrappling:
Sarah Galvao vs Ana Vieira
Dorian Olivarez vs Felipe Pena
Helena Crevar vs Adele Fornarino
Nicky Rod vs Kenta Iwamoto
Craig Jones vs Chael Sonnen
Giancarlo Bodoni vs Ronaldo Junior
Declan Moody vs Ryan Aitken
Technical Spotlight
Are you struggling to finish the Kimura?
The Tarikoplata is a powerful shoulder lock that blends the mechanics of a Kimura with the added control of your lower body. Developed by Norwegian grappler Tarik Hopstock, this variation allows incredible leverage and breaking power - even against a stronger or larger opponent. Check out this demonstration from Coach Guy and add this into your reps this week!
Mark Your Calendars!
Mark Your Calendars!
Justin ‘J.FLO’ Flores Seminar
Saturday - November 8, 2025
LŌKAHI Jiu-Jitsu Collective is thrilled to announce our very first seminar guest… JUSTIN ‘J.FLO’ FLORES! A world-class coach with a rare blend of Division I wrestling, Olympic-level Judo, and high-level Jiu-Jitsu, J.Flo will be sharing his dynamic, artistic approach to stand-up grappling.
Session #1 - Collective Members
8:30 - 11:00am
Session #2 - Open to the Public
12:00 - 2:30pm
More details coming shortly!
Upcoming Tournaments
November 23rd - Nebraska Jiu-Jitsu Championship
Lincoln, NE
December 7th - Submission Challenge
Omaha, NE
Save the Date!
LŌKAHI Winter Promotions (am) + Holiday Party (pm)
Saturday, December 13th
Upcoming SEPTEMBER Birthdays
Wishing all of our Collective Members a very happy birthday!
1st - Jacob Bird
3rd - Connor Gillen
4th - Stephen Dodds
5th - Silas Pflueger
5th - Elijah Pflueger
8th - Martin Solano
9th - Jacob Godwin
13th - Finn Gourley
15th - Zydrunas Berven
17th - Frank Lesny-Zborek
18th - Julio Martinez
19th - Amir Alisherzoda
23rd - Adoni Faxas
24th - Dayton Petersen
26th - Matthew Ledesma
28th - Nick Koonce
28th - Karter Farrell
30th - Lillian Locklear
Pictured: Coach Nolan’s counter to spazzy guard-passers.
“Awesome place. Extremely friendly community that’s all about improving in Jiu Jitsu and in life. Highly recommend!”