Francisco “Sinistro” Iturralde at the 2013 IBJJF Chicago Summer Open where he earned his first black belt gold. Photo: Ivan Trindade
Of the athletes to compete in the 2013 BJJ Pro League on Dec. 8, another new black belt has been added to the roster. The Ecuadorian Francisco “Sinistro” Iturralde of Alliance Ecuador was promoted in June but has already earned himself three tournament titles.
Having started Jiu-Jitsu at an early age because of his older brothers, Sinistro found his path right away. He brought his talents to the States often growing up and earned three World titles, three Pan American titles to summarize.
As a purple belt he won the ticket to the Abu Dhabi World Pro and went on to earn two golds in the main event: one in gi, one in no-gi.
After placing third in the brown belt division at the 2013 Worlds earlier this year, Sinistro was promoted to black belt in the same month from the hands of Fernando Soluco.
In August Sinistro won his first black belt gold medal at the 2013 IBJJF Chicago Summer Open and earned a bronze in the absolute. At the Pan Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championship the following month he won the black belt division and earned yet another gold medal at the Abu Dhabi WPJJC East Coast Trial a month after that, solidifying his place in the main event for 2014.
His passion for competition was seen at a young age and the perseverance has brought him to this point. On Dec. 8 we will see Sinistro in the light/middle division against three other black belts at the Long Beach Walter Pyramid so stay tuned.
In the meantime, watch Sinistro’s final of the Chicago Summer Open against Philipe Della Monica:
Learn more about the 2013 BJJ Pro League on Dec. 8 at the Long Beach Walter Pyramid at www.bjjproleague.com
