Živjo Miha, prosim če se na kratko predstaviš.
Yo, sem Miha Perhavec, iz Kranja. Profesionalno tekmujem v submission grapplingu na eventih kot je Polaris (na UFC fight pass). Formalno sem rjav pas v brazilskem jiu jitsu in črn pas v judu. Zadnjih nekaj let sem več v tuji, dve leti sem živel in treniral v Dublinu, zadnji 2 leti pa praktično potujem okoli sveta in treniram z najboljšimi tekmovalci na svetu, precej objektivno rečeno.
Kako si prišel do profesionalnega statusa v jiu jitu? Zakaj si se odločil osredotočiti prav za jiu jitsu?
Začelo se je z judom, trenirati sem ga začel, ko sem bil star 10 let. Na tekmovanjih nisem dosegel nič posebnega, bil sem največ drugi na državnem prvenstvu. Vseeno sem treniral s precej od naših znanih judoistov in judoistk in položil izpit za črni pas nekje pri 18ih letih.
V tem obdobju sem že precej spremljal UFC in gledal PRIDE za nazaj in sem si vedno želel pomeriti v borilni veščini z bolj liberalnimi pravili. Začel sem trenirati MMA v Kranju, v klubu, ki spada pod Alliance jiu jitsu. Tako sem imel za en ducat amaterskih borb v Sloveniji in na hrvaškem. Istočasno sem tekmoval s precej uspeha v jiu jitsu, sedaj na evropskem nivoju.
Moral sem se odločiti in specializirati za MMA ali jiu jitsu. Odločil za jiu jitsu, ker mi je ok če ne dobivam rednih udarcev v glavo. Kljub temu, da občasno pogrešam MMA in me mika vsaj ena profesionalna borba, mi submission grappling zadostuje, sploh ker je konkurenca izjemna.
Na kratko bi rekel da sem do svojega nivoja v jiu jitsu prišel s tem ko sem poskrbel, na ključni točki, za trening v najboljših možnih pogojih.
Torej obstaja možnost da te nekoč vidimo tudi v kletki?
Mogoče, če kdaj v prihodnosti potrebujem reset in drugačen fokus. Zaenkrat sem popolnoma zadovoljen v submission grapplingu, počasi se da tudi nekaj zaslužiti. Vseeno tesno spremljam in pogledam praktično vsak UFC. Prav tako izjemno rad wrestlam na zidu v Renzo Gracie Academy v New Yorku z zvermi kot so Jake Shields, Garry Tonon, Joao Zeferino in Neiman Gracie.
Kdo je bil najboljši borec s katerim si treniral?
V nogi jiu jitsu Gordon Ryan, ki je precej nezaustavljiv, ampak vedno za sparring. V jiu jitsu s kimonom bi bil Keenan Cornelius trenutno najboljši, čeprav sem treniral tudi z Xandejem Ribeirom, Andre Galvaom in drugimi.
Najboljši borec na sploh je zagotovo George St. Pierre s katerim sem treniral in vadil tehniko prejšnji mesec. Potem pa v istem tednu še z Damianom Maio.
Zakaj misliš da BJJ ni tako razpoznaven kot ostali športi?
Dobro vprašanje. Verjetno zato, ker trenutno velja dejstvo, da so fani submission grapplinga = ljudje, ki trenirajo submission grappling. Mislim, da je prepoznavnost jiu jitsu odvisna predvsem od tega kako se širi. Lahko potrdim iz izkušenj, da jiu jitsu po svetu raste, trenirati je možno praktično povsod. Tudi v junglah Kostarike. Vse več znanih oseb, predvsem igralcev trenira jiu jitsu, ki se s tem počasi širi v popularno kulturo.
Problem leži tudi v pravilih. Na IBJJF World Championshipu je mogoče, da se 10 minutni finale black beltov odvija izjemno taktično, ali pa z modernimi jiu jitsu tehnikami. Nekatere od teh “casual fanu” nimajo nobenega smisla. Na koncu lahko odloča advantage in to je to. V dobi tolikih zapeljivih športov je to precej neprivlačno za večino ljudi. Zato je zame bolj smiselno pustiti pravila in preprečiti kar se je zgodilo z njimi pri judu. Hkrati pa se posvetiti dobri ponudbi jiu jitsu akademij, da ima več ljudi dostopa do treninga.
Kako tvoj sport sprejemajo domači?
Starša me že od nekdaj precej podpirata. V času, ko še nisem imel kontrole nad svojimi financami sta mi plačala več tekmovanj, ki bi šla drugače mimo. Verjetno ju včasih skrbijo poškodbe, ampak tudi vesta da imam svoje telo kolikor se da pod kontrolo.
Moja novopečena žena me prav tako izjemno podpira in potuje z mano kamor naju povleče trening ali avantura.
Kaj je tvoje vodilo ?
Načeloma, ko sem v dilemi kaj storiti se vprašam “What would a pussy do?” in potem naredim nasprotno stvar od tega. Malo bolj resen odgovor: Skušam maksimalno izkoristi svoj čas in s tem preprečiti razna obžalovanja, ki mučijo ljudi, ko so starejši.
Kaj bi bil tvoj nasvet ljudem, ki začenjajo trenirati jiu jitsu pri nas?
Za bele pasove, je najbolj pomembno samo to, da pridejo na trening dan za dnem, teden za tednom itd. Nobena druga stvar ni bolj pomembna za uspeh. Jiu jitsu na začetku je izjemno naporen za ego, ki se znova in znova uniči. Zato je pomembno, da se zavedamo kako zabavno je “rolati”, tudi če kdaj ni. To vzdržuje neko ljubezen do športa, ki premaga vse ovire.
PS. Seveda pomaga, če je vzdušje v akademiji primerno in trenerski uči z zgledom.
Hvala za tvoj čas Miha in vse dobro v prihodnosti. Bi našim bralcem še kaj povedal?
Seveda, če trenirate jiu jitsu se prijavite na Yogo for BJJ in Keenan Online In me followajte na Instagramu @mihajj
Hvala, Fight Madness, peace!
ENGLISH
Hey Miha, can you introduce yourself?
Yo, I’m Miha Perhavec, from Kranj Slovenia. I’m a professional submission grappler, I compete at events like Polaris (on UFC Fight Pass). Formally I’m a brown belt in jiu jitsu and a black belt in judo. For the last few years I’ve been spending more time abroad, I lived and trained in Dublin Ireland for two years. Recently I’ve been travelling around the world, training with some of the world’s best competitors.
How did you get to your professional status in jiu jitsu? Why did you decide to go all in on jiu jitsu?
Iz started with judo, which I started training when in was 10 years old. I didn’t get any amazing results in competition, my best was 2nd place at the Nationals in junior and 3rd place in the cadet division. I trained with some of Slovenia’s more famous judokas and achieved my black belt when I was just 18 years old. During this time I was already watching a lot of UFC and catching up on Pride, which sparked my desire to test myself in a martial art with more liberal rules. I started training MMA in Kranj in a club that belongs to Alliance jiu jitsu. That’s how I got a dozen of amateur fights in Slovenia and Croatia. At the same time, I started seeing success in jiu jitsu competitions, but now on the European, rather than regional level. I had to specialize in either MMA or jiu jitsu. I decided for jiu jitsu, since I’m OK with not getting punched in the head hehe. Despite this, I miss MMA sometimes, I feel the itch every now and then to do a pro-MMA fight. That being said at this time, I’m totally fine with submission grappling, because the competition is amazing. In short I’d say I got to my pro status, by ensuring I get the best training available.
So there’s a chance we’ll see you in a MMA cage in the future?
Maybe, if I ever need a reset and a different focus. For now, I am completely satisfied with submission grappling, and there is slowly some money to be made. Still, I closely monitor and watch virtually every UFC. I also love to do “grappling on the wall” at Renzo Gracie Academy in New York with beasts such as Jake Shields, Garry Tonon, Joao Zeferino and Neiman Gracie. Who was the best fighter you trained with? In nogi jiu jitsu Gordon Ryan, who is pretty unstoppable but always game for a sparring round. In jiu jitsu with the kimono, Keenan Cornelius would be the best at the moment, although I also trained with Xande Ribeiro, Andre Galvao and other legends. The best fighter I trained with in general is definitely George St. Pierre with whom I trained and practiced some techniques last month. Then, one week later I had the same chance to train with Damian freaking Maia.
Why do you think BJJ is not as recognizable as other sports?
Good question. Probably because currently it’s a fact that submission grappling fans are also people who train submission grappling. I think the recognition of jiu jitsu depends mainly on how it spreads. I can confirm from my experience that jiu jitsu is growing all over the world, it is possible to train practically everywhere. Even in the jungles of Costa Rica. More and more celebrities, especially actors, are training jiu jitsu, which is slowly expanding into popular culture. The problem also lies in the rules. At the IBJJF World Championship, it is possible for the 10-minute black belt finale to be extremely tactical, or full of modern jiu jitsu techniques. For some of these “casual fans” it probably makes no sense. Ultimately, an advantage (not even a point) can decide the winner and that’s it. In an age of so many seductive sports, this is quite unattractive to most people. So it makes more sense for me to leave the rules of jiu jitsu alone and prevent what happened to them in judo. At the same time, make sure that jiu jitsu academies cultivate great enviroments so that more people have access to training.
How is your sport accepted by your family?
My parents have always been very supportive of me. At a time when I had no control over my finances, they paid for my competition expenses. I wouldn’t be able to compete as much back then if it wasn’t for them. They are probably sometimes worried about the injuries, but they also know that I have my body under control. My newlywed wife is also extremely supportive of me and travels with me wherever training or adventure takes us.
What is your guide to life?
Basically, when I’m in a dilemma of what to do, I ask myself “What would a pussy do?” and then I do the opposite of that. A little more serious answer: I try to make the most of my time, thus preventing all sorts of regrets that annoy people when they are older.
What would be your advice to people want to start training jiu jitsu?
For white belts, the most important thing is that they come to training day after day, week after week, etc. No other thing is more important for success. Jiu jitsu in the beginning is extremely tough on the ego. It needs to get destroyed over and over again. That is why it is important to be aware of how fun it is to roll, even if it is not. This maintains a love of sports that overcomes all obstacles. PS. Of course, it helps if the atmosphere in the academy is appropriate and the coaching teaches by example. Thanks for your time Miha and all good things in the future.
Would you tell our readers anything else?
Sure, if you train jiu jitsu sign up for Yoga for BJJ and Keenan Online: D And follow me on Instagram @mihajj Thank you, Fight Madness, peace!
Hvala in srečno
Milan Krušič