John Danaher has added yet another formidable black belt to his terrifying team, having promoted ADCC veteran Oliver Taza earlier today.
Taza has made a name for himself over the years as one of the rising stars of grappling, becoming a regular standout at ADCC Trials events and even bringing home a win at IBJJF No-Gi Worlds in 2017 as a brown belt. Like many of his famous teammates at Renzo Gracie HQ, he’s displayed a highly developed leg lock game, which he’s recently shown off at Subversiv 4 and Jitz King.
The new black belt shared the happy update on social media:
“What an honor to receive my black belt today from @danaherjohn
This team has very high standards and I will do everything in my power to live up to them!
I want to thank all my teammates for pushing me to my limits every day in the basement, I’m very lucky to be surrounded by those guys, a bunch of true killers with a mindset that is so rare to encounter off the mats!
It’s time to double down on everything that will lead me to becoming a world champion and sideline anything that gets in the way!“
With his promotion, Taza joins fellow “Danaher Death Squad” members Nicky Ryan and Ethan Crelinsten as a recent inductee into the black belt rank.
Congratulations, Oliver!
