# Jake Mackenzie

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## Overview

**Name:** Jake Mackenzie


## Bio

Jacob Mackenzie grew up in Truro, Nova Scotia – Canada. It was also in Truro that Jake started training Jiu Jitsu, when he was 14 years old, by his father’s advice who wanted Jake to learn some self-defense.

Chuck Sproule had just opened a BJJ gym at the time which wasn’t too far from where Jake lived, a grappling temple that became Mackenzie’s training ground. His first coach was none other than the 3x World Champion  Márcio Feitosa , who stayed in the gym for approximately 5 months. After Feitosa left Márcio Canário came and trained Mackenzie for the following two years.

While competing all over the globe, Jake found himself traveling to Brazil regularly. He caught up with the language fast, and that helped his travels even further. It was also in Brazil that Jake discovered his love for the half guard. At the time he felt that the half guard was his “Achilles heel”, so he took advantage of the good exchange rate between the “Dollar” and the “Real” (Brazilian Currency) to book himself, several one-on-one classes, with a few half guard experts for a 4 month period while staying in Brazil.

In 2007 purple belt Jake Mackenzie joined Roberto Abreu’s team. Jake and Cyborg had met on many occasions becoming friends, and as Roberto decided to open a gym in Florida he invited Jake to come and train with him. Jake jumped on board immediately and started training almost exclusively with the man from Mato Grosso for a few years which eventually led to his black belt promotion on June 12, 2010. Mackenzie would later move to Brazil where he joined GFT.

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**Last Updated:** March 21, 2026

**Data Source:** BJJ.Space (https://bjj.space/people/jake-mackenzie-44b649e1ae47)