February 20, 2011 – The ZTS (Zebra Tournament Systems) of Texas sponsored BJJ-team made their first appearance this past February 13 at the IBJJF Houston International Open. Though medals aren’t the primary concern for the sponsor, the ZTS team did well in walking out with two first place medals in between the three of them.
“Our goal is to support our team so they can concentrate on achieving their individual goals through competition,” says Rodrigo Ramirez, founder of ZTS. “We are always going to be happy with their performance because we know that they take this sport seriously and train hard. We don’t measure it by wins and losses. We chose these athletes because of the way they represent their teachers, us, and themselves with class. We just want them to encourage others like the lower belts to stick with the sport and grow. Win or lose, we believe their own growth and performance will help encourage the next generation of kids to do just that.”
According to Ramirez, the ZTS of Texas sponsored-team will be highlighted many times over in 2011. They will be competing at many tournaments throughout Texas and possibly some out of state tournaments. Next up for the team is Dom’s Fight for a Cause in Dallas and The Texas International Grappling Festival in Houston.
Based on what I’m told, there will more exciting news for both these guys and other BJJ’ers in Texas soon. “We are starting a ZTS series of tournaments which we will be releasing a schedule for soon. We are excited about this new series of tournaments because we feel the Jiu-Jitsu competitors here In Texas will be happy with what we will be offering.”
Here’s what the ZTS of Texas team members had to say in the wake of their IBJJF performance along with some thoughts on what they are looking forward to for the rest of the 2011 tournament season.
What were your expectations for the IBJJF tournament going in?
Jason Soliz
I wasn’t putting the win in my mind, I mean I wanted it but I was more concerned with putting on a good showing. The tournament was run very well and that’s what I love about IBJJF/Pre-registration tournaments. They are planned out and run like a finely tuned sports car. – Jason Soliz
My expectations were very high. I like to hold myself accountable and I have a great group of guys to train with at Elite. I felt confident with my training and cardio leading up to the tournament. – Drew Lockwood
For this tournament, I was competing in the 167 division and I usually do the 181.I was expecting smaller guys to be competing against but also expected the field to be very tough. – Julian Vega
How did your matches go? Can you describe generally how things went on tournament day?
My matches were different for me this tournament because I felt like I was changing strategy but still playing my game for each opponent. Going in to the first match with Clay Copeland I was too relaxed and got caught in a triangle at the start. Luckily, we had been training guard passes and escapes for the last 2 months at the academy constantly so it was familiar territory when it happened. – Jason Soliz
Drew Lockwood
I was happy with the way all my matches went. The competition at this year’s IBJJF Houston Open was tough. At the brown belt level you can’t just go out there and roll, you have to have a game plan and execute. I felt like I executed well but not without tough spots. Two minutes into my first match, I popped my rib in my closed guard. I ended up submitting from the closed but I was in pain for the rest of the day. My second match was against a very tough opponent named Israel Reyes from Chicago. It was a tough technical match. I was happy with the outcome. – Drew Lockwood
My match went well considering I lost. I caught a couple submissions on my opponent throughout but he was very good at escaping. Also, the weight cut and having to change gi’s not once but several times to meet the IBJJF guidelines took my legs away from me. I couldn’t finish from some positions because I felt drained. The match lasted 7 minutes and I lost on points this time around but I’ll be back. – Julian Vega
How did you feel leaving the tournament? Learn anything?
Julian Vega
I felt good leaving the tournament because I’m still experiencing the changing sport and my changing game. Getting the chance to have those two aspects meet is one of the many reasons I think a true competitor always comes out to play. I think the biggest thing I took away from this tournament is that one’s mental state plays just as much, if not more, of a role when competing than the physical part. – Jason Soliz
I felt great leaving the tournament except for one thing. I was looking forward to competing in the absolute division but due to the situation of my rib I could not compete. – Drew Lockwood
It was a tough day. The day started out with me not making weight then I had to warm up for about 2 hours before the scheduled start. Then they (IBJJF) wouldn’t pass two of my gi’s. By the time my match started my legs were already shot and I couldn’t seem the move. After my match, I felt like I was going to faint. Can’t dwell on this one though. I’ll just take the experience as a lesson and go on to the next one. – Julian Vega
What’s next for you in the ZTS tournament circuit? Anything specific you’re looking forward to?
I’m honestly really excited about the upcoming competitions. I don’t think it’s possible for me to pick just one because I feel like a kid in a candy store. I just love competing and ZTS has given me the chance to do it as much as possible so I want to thank everyone. My training partners, coaches, friends, family, sponsors… I would like to say bring on the future competitions and competitors. – Jason Soliz
I’m very excited about all of this year’s tournament schedule. Next up is the Dom Fight Gear tournament in Dallas in April. ZTS of Texas does a great job of setting up tournaments. It helps me as a competitor/coach knowing that the tournament is going to be professional. I can’t say that about all BJJ tournaments. – Drew Lockwood
There are a lot of tournaments coming up I’m planning on doing all of them thanks for ZTS of Texas. I really appreciate what these guys are doing for us as competitors so I want to represent them well. Also, I’m really excited about going to California to compete in the Pan Ams. – Julian Vega
