João Gabriel Rocha is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ), a rank he earned from Rafael "Formiga" Barbosa and Leandro Escobar. Before reaching the black belt division (on January 2013), João Gabriel Rocha was already regarded as one of the top brown belts in the world, after winning every important competition on the BJJ calendar. Well known for his successful battle with cancer during the start of his black belt career, Rocha has since become one of the top contenders of the ultra-heavyweight division.