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In South Philadelphia, social status is not measured so much by the car you drive or even by the house you live in,but rather by which door you use to enter a restaurant. Normal people, including Hollywood actors, Nobel Prize win-ners and heads of state, enter through the front door.The people on the inside, the most trusted inner circle, thefamily, the loved ones – they enter through the kitchen.Whenever I walked into a restaurant with Phil Migliarese III,we always entered through the kitchen.

I first met Phil in the winter of 1997. He struck me as a streetwise young man, brimming with confidence and pos-sessing the stereotypical swagger commonly associated with Italian-American youths from South Philly. I thought I hadPhil figured out from the start: white, middle-class kid, who probably never had a hard day in his life. Over the years,I learned just how far off my first impression was, and that Phil indeed was no stranger to adversity.

by Joji Montelibano

Photo: Phil, Marko, Rick and Joe in Brazil after the worlds.

Phil and I were brought together by ashared interest in yoga. Both he and Ibegan our yoga study at an early age,Phil at 8, myself at 12. I happened to beteaching ashtanga yoga (This methodinvolves synchronizing the breath withprogressive series of postures—aprocess producing intense internal heatand a profuse sweat that detoxifies mus-cles and organs.) on Walnut Street at thetime. Phil showed up to one of my firstclasses. I was impressed by the extraor-dinary strength and flexibility he had,especially for a tall man of his physique.Phil enjoyed my class so much that hefelt he had to repay me in more than justmoney. He invited me to take an intro-ductory class of Brazilian jiu-jitsu thatcoming Saturday. I went and I loved it.However, Phil didn’t quite feel that wasenough. So he offered to show me moreof Philadelphia.

I am eternally indebted to the Migliaresefamily for introducing me to the beautyof Philadelphia. Without them, I wouldhave lived out my tenure there as justanother working stiff, an outsider bliss-fully unaware of the wonders surround-ing him. Phil and his brother, Ricardo,truly gave me an inside look into Philly,and in the process, I learned how close-ly intertwined the Migliarese brotherswere with the heartbeat of the city.Walking down the streets ofPhiladelphia with Phil or Ricardo waslike hanging out with the mayor. Everyshopkeeper, police officer, postal work-er, street cleaner and dog walker knewthem.

There are many prominent Italian-American families in the South Phillyneighborhood where Phil and Ricardogrew up, many of whom have been castin a rather sinister light. It was notuncommon for young men of their ageto become associated with unsavorycharacters in their community. Suchcharacters gained notoriety for theirinvolvement in, among other things,street fights. Indeed, Phil would eventu-ally succumb to the allure of a familythat had carved a niche for itself in theworld of fighting. It may have started inthe streets, but it ended in the dojos ofthe martial arts world. The family'sname was Gracie.

THE GRACIES

Before the Ultimate FightingChampionship, before every other mar-tial artist in the USA knew what theguard was, and before "mounting"somebody was universally accepted as alegitimate fighting strategy, PhilMigliarese began training with theGracie family. He met Rorion, Royceand Relson Gracie at a Philadelphiaseminar in 1990, and was immediatelyattracted to their brand of fighting.

Relson took the young, penniless youthunder his wing, and in exchange forsweeping mats, cleaning toilets andother odd jobs, Relson taught Phil thebasics of Brazilian jiu-jitsu. With natu-

ral talent and a strong work ethic, Philquickly took to the Gracie method andwon the confidence of his teachers, somuch so that Royce singled him out as amere 14-year-old white belt to representthe Gracies in a challenge match againsta much older, stronger karate black belt.Although no stranger to fist fights (hegrew up in South Philly after all), Philwas intimidated by the sight of a blackbelt in front of him. Nonetheless, heapplied the basic maneuvers – takedown, control and submission. Thirtyseconds is what it took for a 14-year-oldwhite belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu to defeat akarate black belt. Phil needed no furtherconvincing that he was in the rightplace.

Rolling with Royce in 1992.

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This was Phil’s first opportunityto fight on behalf of the “GracieChallenge,” where the Graciesinvited anyone to fight a repre-sentative of their family in norules, no weight class, no timelimit matches. Although themain purpose of this challengewas to demonstrate thesupremacy of the Gracie tech-nique, a false rumor circulatedalleging a $100,000 prize toanyone who managed to beat aGracie. Needless to say, thisrumor attracted a lot of yahoosand Philadelphia was notspared. From 1992 to 1993, Philrecalls, “Everybody wanted towin the $100k! I ended up fight-ing almost once a week. Was Inuts?” During that period, Philwon every match he fought.Rorion rewarded him with ablue belt. The road to black beltwas free and clear for Phil. Thefuture was bright. And then acar hit him.

THE ACCIDENT

On January 13, 1993, an SUVgoing 60 mph slammed againstthe passenger side of MikeTimmons’ car. Luckily, Mikeescaped with minor injuries, buthis cousin Phil was nearly killedon impact. He spent the nexttwo days in a coma. He brokeall the ribs on the right side ofhis body, his pelvis, his shoul-der, his collarbone, all the fin-gers on his right hand, and hisnose. Needless to say, hisprospects for grappling againremained dim.

For the next six months, Philoccupied himself with the studyof Pranayama, breathing exer-cises taught by the yogis ofIndia to benefit one's health. Healso engaged in visualizationexercises and the study of jiu-jitsu film. Although incapacitat-ed at this time, Phil credits this

1995 at a Gracie tournamentRick, Helio, and Phil.

Phil, Steve Maxwell, Saulo Ribero, and Rick after Saulowon the worlds.

strategic approach to jiu-jitsu. "I was soinvolved with the physical side of jiu-jitsuthat I never really stopped to think about .. . well, I actually never stopped to think.Period."

It takes an individual of exceptionalstrength and spirit to recognize opportuni-ty in the midst of despair, and yet, this isexactly what Phil accomplished during hisconvalescence. Deprived of the ability tophysically train, he focused all his energyon honing his intellect and his spirit. Herefused to surrender to the apparent defeatthe accident had imposed upon him. Heintegrated his study of yoga with hisknowledge of the martial arts. Uponregaining control of his hand, he began towrite:

“Yoga creates familiarity with one’s self:the first opponent. If self-defeatingthoughts arise before a match, one will nat-urally be fighting two opponents instead ofone. Better to defeat the first opponent –the ego – before coming around to face theother one. After the ego, any other adver-sary will be easy.”

He also came to understand that in the fieldof combat, anybody can lose. Furthermore,

he began to see emptiness in victories -even if one wins, everyone will forget in ayear, so what then? These realizationsformed a dramatic departure from Phil’searlier understanding of martial arts. Priorto that, it was all about being number one,about beating anyone who challenged you,and about never losing. As any championcan attest, defeat is a sad yet inevitablereality for everybody.

Phil then had to redefine his purpose forpursuing the martial arts. As he recoveredfrom his injuries, he developed what hecalls a “directed passion” – the type of pas-sion without anything to prove. “Win orlose, you love what you do. Wins and loss-es are both learning experiences andopportunities to improve your art form,your fighting style, your game.”

Next issue, we’ll pick up Phil’s storywhere it left off, following his miraculousrecovery and renewed vigor in training tobetter himself and others.

At UFC 1with Royler Gracie.

January 13, 19931968 Mustang.

For more information on Phil’sgym, log on to

www.teambalance.com.For free videos and updates, go to

www.jiujitsumatrix.com.

60 MMA Worldwide

by Joji Montelibano

Last issue, we learned of Phil Migliarese III who began training in Brazilianjiu-jitsu with the Gracie family long before the debut of the UFC. OnJanuary 13, 1993, a devastating car accident would nearly claim his life, butinstead, put him on an evolutionary path of martial arts self discovery.

Rick, (My CousinFrank Ambrifi /brownbelt mma champ) andme (2007)

CROWNING ACHIEVEMENTS

Upon receiving a clean bill of health in1994, Phil approached his training withrenewed vigor. He was eager to apply allthe techniques he had visualized in hishospital room to his training and to actu-al combat situations. The results wereimpressive. In 1994, Phil spent a total ofsix months in Hawaii training intensivelywith Relson Gracie. As he describes it, he"lived and breathed jiu-jitsu," following astrict conditioning regimen, adopting theGracie diet, and rolling on the mat hourson end.

Although having been severely injured,Phil quickly rose to the top of the rankswithin the BJJ circuit. Eager to learnfrom the font of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, in1996, he entered the Gracie Academy inTorrance, which Grandmaster HelioGracie had recently established as theheadquarters of the Gracie family in theUnited States. Phil was so impressedwith the Academy that it served as aninspiration for him to build a school lateron in his career.

In 1999, Phil won the in-house tourna-ment where over 100 participants com-peted. He became a senior instructor atthe prestigious academy and taught everyclass there for a period of four months.He received a Level 10 TeachingCertificate from Relson, the highest suchcertificate awarded by the Gracies.During this time, he also toured theUnited States with Royce, assisting himin several seminars and helping with theestablishment of the Gracie Jiu-jitsuAssociation in San Francisco. In additionto honing his skills in jiu-jitsu, Phil alsolearned valuable teaching and businessskills from Rorion Gracie at the academy,which would later serve him well in thecreation of Balance Studios.

In subsequent years, Phil traveled toBrazil, competing in many tournamentsand beating the best of his class. Phil'smost prominent victory came in 2000, ina grappling match against UFC fighterand then ADCC champion Renato"Babalu" Sobral, whom he submittedwith an armbar four minutes into thematch. Phil's ascension within the world

After Rick won the worlds.

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of BJJ culminated in his receiving a blackbelt from friend and mentor RelsonGracie in 2002.

When asked what the highlight is of hisBJJ career, Phil cites not his numerousvictories, nor his belt promotions, butrather his younger brother, Ricardo. Inhis youth, Ricardo demonstrated agreater proclivity towards mischief thanhis older sibling. The temptations in thestreets of South Philly held more sway onyoung Ricky than they ever did uponPhil.

It was inevitable that Phil's enthusiasmfor BJJ would permeate the Migliaresehousehold. Ricardo soon found himself awilling pupil to the techniques Philwould bring home from the mat. Luckily,the rigorous demands of jiu-jitsu wonover the transient glamour of the street.Ricardo soon found himself as a fixturein the Philadelphia Gracie Jiu-JitsuAssociation, where both Migliaresebrothers honed their skills early in theirBJJ careers. Like Phil, Ricardo enjoyed

many victories in his rise to the ranks ofblack belt, highlighted by his winning asilver medal in the BJJ WorldChampionships in Rio de Janeiro in1999. However, it is not so muchRicardo’s success in the BJJ arena asmuch as his character that is Phil’s greatsource of pride. Ricardo truly has comeinto his own as a competitor and ateacher. Together, he and Phil establishedBalance Studios in Philadelphia, whichoffers students a wide variety of classesin martial arts and yoga.

TEAM BALANCE

It is noteworthy that the primary missionof Balance Studios is not the productionof high-octane killing machines, butrather the development of character.Make no mistake, Team Balance boastsan intimidating roster of home grownblack belts and seasoned fighters, includ-ing Sport Fighting light heavyweightchampion and ADCC competitor TimCarpenter, Grappler’s Quest National andADCC Competitor Rick Macauley,

MMA veteran Lamont Lister, and theMigliarese brothers themselves. In fact,Team Balance is ranked among the topfive teams in the world.

Despite the numerous victories that TeamBalance has enjoyed, they have alsoexperienced their share of loss andtragedy. In the past few years, they havemourned the loss of Joe Priole, a phe-nomenal fighter in his own right and aman whose talent in the ring was onlysurpassed by his generosity towards hiscommunity. Dennis James was thefounder of Zen Spa/James Karate (nowMercer Academy of Martial Arts) whoserved as Phil's mentor and close friend.Dennis imparted upon his students astrong sense of discipline, self-esteem,and perseverance. Sadly, Dennis passedaway in 2001. In 2005, Ron Rosa, a 13-year veteran of the Norristown policeforce, a talented martial artist, and aboveall, a loving husband and father of three,passed away, leaving behind a legacy ofstrength and inspiration.

Phil at 5, Rick at 2, at 3 Bears Park.

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Perhaps the most valuable lesson impart-ed by Joe’s, Ron’s and Dennis's lives is toderive inspiration not only from thoseloved ones who have passed on, but espe-cially from our friends and families whoare still with us. To this end, Phil andRicardo are especially proud to highlightthe achievements of their students,friends and colleagues who have becomemodel citizens in their respective com-munities. John Hassett is a five-time Pan-American jiu-jitsu champion who ownsHassett Jiu-Jitsu in Sewell, New Jersey.Marco Perazzo continues Joe Priole’s tra-dition of excellence by teaching in theschool that Joe founded, New JerseyMartial Arts in Maple Shade. Noah Spearhas won both the Pan American Jiu-jitsutournament and the prestigious"Mundial" Masters World Jiu-jitsu cham-pionships, and he generously shares hisexpertise in his own academy inPhiladelphia. John, Marco, and Noah arethree individuals among many whoexemplify the values put forward byTeam Balance.

It is no surprise that Phil and Ricardopursue the success of Balance Studioswith the same fervor they approached intheir competitive careers. In a span offour years, Balance Studios has openedmore than 20 schools internationally,including locations in Ireland and Aruba.They have over 250 adult students world-wide. Just as he learned valuable teachertraining, business and career develop-ment skills from Rorion at the GracieAcademy, so does Phil offer these cours-

es to his students at Balance. Phil is alsothe founder of JiuJitsuMatrix.com, an on-line community boasting more than55,000 members. The Jiu-Jitsu Matrixserves as an educational resource of freevideos and literature for jiu-jitsu enthusi-asts around the globe. Additionally, theMigliarese brothers have produced theirown “Yoga for Fighters” DVD, whichhas enjoyed wide distribution both local-ly and internationally.

AFTERWORD

Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of Aikidoand himself a jiu-jitsu master, said “Lifeis growth. If we stop growing, technical-ly and spiritually, we are as good asdead.” Phil Migliarese takes these wordsto heart. At the age of 31, he continues totrain religiously. He remains selfless withregards to his techniques. There are nosecret moves or techniques in BalanceStudios. He gives his students everythinghe’s got. Phil continues to strive to inte-grate the disciplines of yoga with jiu-jitsu. He relentlessly pursues the growth

and success of Team Balance. He hasn’tstopped growing.

I visited Philadelphia a few years ago,but Phil was in California at the time,teaching at the Gracie Academy inTorrance. I wandered along South Street,reminiscing about the good times I hadthere with the Migliarese brothers. Istopped in front of one of the restaurantswe used to frequent, glancing at the menuon the window to see if it had changed inthe last four years. A door to my leftopened and a heavy-set Italian gentlemanwalked out and lit a cigarette. He lookedat me momentarily and smiled, “You’re afriend of Rick and Phil, ain’t ya?” I wasflattered that he remembered me. Wechatted idly for a bit and after a few min-utes, he asked if I was hungry. I was.“Why don’t you come on in and have abite?” I accepted and proceeded to thefront door, but he quickly stopped me.“No, not that way. Come in throughhere.” I turned and followed him. Into thekitchen.

For more on Phil’s gym, free videos and updates,log on to www.jiujitsumatrix.com

Phil (Whitebelt) watchingRoyce - 1990.

Phil (12) and Rorion Gracie - 1990.