Instructors
At Carlos Machado Jiu Jitsu in Lake Highlands, we are a family, and our school is bound to become our students’ second home. We are a judgment-free zone, where mistakes are viewed as growth opportunities and your instructors and fellow students are your #1 supporters. You’ll learn a lot of impressive skills and gain many new abilities at Carlos Machado Jiu Jitsu in Lake Highlands, but the most important thing you’ll acquire during your time here? Our community.
Instructors
Carlos Machado Jiu Jitsu
In Lake Highlands
Our staff is the secret to our student success. Each instructor has a rich background in martial arts and is eager to train the next generation of martial artists. Meet the team below!
Owner and Head Instructor
Marcio Santos
Welcome to the family!
Professor Marcio Santos is the owner of RCJ Machado Jiu-Jitsu- Lake Highlands and has been teaching for over 30 years.
Hailing from Terespolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Marcio Santos is a Sixth-degree black belt who has been practicing BJJ for almost 30 years earning his rank first under Pitbull Academy’s Master Adilson Jorge de Lima, second under Master Rigan Machado, and third through sixth under Master Carlos Machado. Prof. Marcio has studied with some of the best personages in the martial arts world, including the Machado Brothers, Helio Gracie, and Danny Inosanto. He has been an instructor of both Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Capoeira for over 20 years.
Although Marcio, aka “the humble professor”, is renowned for his quiet teaching style, if you get him laughing hard enough, you might be able to get him to eventually tap!
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Professor
Michael Craycraft
I started training Jiu Jitsu in 2009 when I moved to TX from Indiana. Before that, my grappling experience came in the form of Pankration, in which I started training in 2001. Overall my grappling training has spanned over the past 20 years. I began teaching and competing in grappling and mixed martial arts competitions approximately 15 years ago.
I always approach my training and teaching with a mindset open to learning, getting better every time, and passing along any and all experiences I have
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Professor
Tony Pesina
Hey! I’m Tony Pesina, I am from Garland Texas. I have been training Brazilian jiu jitsu since 2009. I earned my black belt in 2020 from Professor Michael Craycraft. I continue my education of Brazilian jiu jitsu at CMJJ Lake Highlands under Michael’s instruction as well as professor Marcio Santos
I have competed against & trained with the best in the world! I have had the opportunity to train with many elite top-level Jiu-Jitsu competitors & professional fighters
My initial love for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu came from the pairing of physical and mental challenges involved in rolling. I learned the mental chess match was the key to winning the physical match, and that began a never-ending quest to learn as much about Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as possible. In the process of getting comfortable on the mats, I had a great teacher and mentor that shared their knowledge and love of the sport with me. Their time, dedication, and patience allowed me to grow in this sport, and my love for teaching stems from the desire to pay this forward. I hope to create the same sense of joy, excitement, and technical wonderment in my students, as was instilled in me.
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Coach
Karina Luna
Hey! My name is Karina but everyone here calls me by my last name, Luna. I was born and raised in Mexico and I moved to Dallas in 2003, and I’ve lived here ever since.
I started Jiu Jitsu back in August of 2014 without previous experience in any martial arts, I was actually not even looking to start training myself, but I signed up both of my kiddos and they told me I could train for free, and I thought why not? And the rest is history!
I love jiu jitsu! And I feel so fortunate to have found this school that is super welcoming, and where I’ve met amazing friends that have become family.
My favorite thing about it is that Jiu Jitsu is for everybody! No matter if you are a kid or an adult, old, young, man or woman, in shape or never worked out before. It does not matter!
I help teach the Ladies classes and also the Teens classes. My hope for our students is that they find all the amazing benefits that Jiu Jitsu can bring you, that they grow in confidence and skill and that their journey with us is a Happy one.
I also help take care of the administration of the school, so you will ALWAYS see me there, on the mats or behind the desk!
CMJJ Lake Highlands is my second home and I work hard to make sure that when you come in you feel at home yourself too… See you on the mat!
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Coach
Jazmine Rivas
Assistant Coach for Kids & Cubs Program
Hello! My name is Jazmine Rivas, I started doing Jiu Jitsu in the summer of 2017!
My son was part of the kid’s class and I would sit on the side and observe class very often.
I found out that sometimes drills were easier to understand for me during kids class than when I was doing the Adults classes, so that made the kids class super interesting for me.
I joined Professor Santos as an assistant coach for the kid’s class a couple of months after I got my Blue Belt in March of 2019.
I firmly believe everyone has their own way of learning! Because of my own experience, I feel I’m able to relate to the kids and therefore explain also in simple terms so they can easily understand.
My goal is for the kids to view Jiu Jitsu as a positive experience. I don’t want to highlight their errors and make them feel inadequate but rather highlight when they do drills correctly and understand everyone learns at a different pace and in different manners.
One thing I admire about Professor Santos, and also why I wanted to be part of the Kids Program is that he not only teaches jiu jitsu or capoeira, but he also wants to teach them life skills, broad topics from hygiene to patience, tolerance, gratitude, communication skills, and emotional intelligence… I am all in for that!!
Fun fact about me, I was born with 12 fingers!! But my mom decided it was for the best for me not to have them, so they got amputated when I was a baby. Thanks mom for taking away from me the chance of having killer grips!! 😑💀🤪
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Coach
Paul Armengol
Nací en Mexicali. Baja California norte México, crecí en San Luis Potosí México donde comenzó mi viaje por el Jiu Jitsu en el año 2010 en Renzo Gracie S.L.P obteniendo mi cinturón azul por el profesor Mario Delgado en Renzo Gracie México.
Después formé parte del equipo Top Brother con el Prof. Casio Lisboa y Anderson Sousa recibiendo mi cinturón morado, en este trayecto siendo un competidor activo en el deporte de Gi y No Gi obteniendo varias victorias.
En el año 2016 me mudé a la ciudad de Dallas Texas y me uni a la academia de Carlos Machado Jiu Jitsu con el Profesor Marcio Santos, de quien obtuve mi cinturón café, y años mas tarde en el mes Abril de 2021 el cinturón negro con una trayectoria de 11 años en este hermoso vicio que es el Jiu Jitsu .
“I was born in Mexicali, Baja California Mexico but grew up in San Luis Potosi where I started my Jiu Jitsu journey in 2010 at Renzo Gracie SLP, where I received my Blue Belt from Prof. Mario Delgado. I later joined Top Brother with Prof. Casio Lisboa and Anderson Sousa and receiving from them my Purple Belt. Around this time I was an active competitor in Gi and No Gi with many victories under my belt.
In 2016 I moved to Dallas Tx, and joined Carlos Machado Jiu Jitsu Lake Highlands and started my training under Prof. Santos, it is here that I received my Brown Belt and later in April 2021 my Black Belt after 11 years in this beautiful journey that is Jiu Jitsu.”
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Professor
Isaac Feldhaus
I started jiu jitsu in 2009 under Carlos Machado. Prior to that, I had seven years of training in wrestling and six years of experience in the military. After leaving the military, I was looking for something to get back into grappling. On my 27th birthday, my wife enrolled me into one month of BJJ and I never looked back! Professor Santos has built a fantastic school of teachers and students and I am honored to have the privilege of sharing my knowledge with students to continue to grow together.
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