UFC BJJ in Las Vegas: The Events, the Apex, and Where to Actually Train

The UFC's grappling shows, the Apex, the missing UFC Gym, and the difference between watching jiu jitsu and doing it.

6 min read · Fight For Us Jiu Jitsu · Northwest Las Vegas

UFC BJJ in Las Vegas: The Events, the Apex, and Where to Actually Train

People searching "UFC BJJ Las Vegas" are usually looking for one of three different things: the UFC's jiu jitsu event series, a UFC-branded gym to train at, or simply a place in this city to learn the grappling they saw on a broadcast. Those have three different answers, so here are all of them.

What UFC BJJ is

UFC BJJ is the UFC's submission grappling promotion: professional jiu jitsu matches under the UFC banner, run as its own event series rather than as part of MMA cards. The matches are no-gi submission grappling between elite competitors, and because the UFC is headquartered in Las Vegas, its events have been staged here at the UFC Apex. Cards, dates and how to watch change too often for a page like this to stay current, so for tickets and schedules go directly to the UFC's official site and channels rather than trusting anything a search result or this page tells you about specific dates.

The Apex and the Performance Institute are not gyms you can join

Two UFC buildings in the southwest valley cause regular confusion. The UFC Apex is an event and production venue: you might attend a show there, but you cannot train there. The UFC Performance Institute is the training and sports-science center for UFC athletes, and it is not open to the public. There is no desk to walk up to and no membership to buy at either. If your goal is to get on a mat, neither building is the door.

Is there a UFC Gym in Las Vegas?

This is the part people genuinely do not believe: as of this writing, the UFC GYM fitness franchise has no location in the Las Vegas valley. The fight capital of the world, home of the UFC itself, and the branded gym chain is elsewhere. People search variations of "there is no UFC gym in Las Vegas?" often enough that we can confirm: you read the map correctly. Franchise footprints change, so check the chain's own site if it matters to you, but if you were searching for one as a place to learn jiu jitsu, what you were actually looking for exists all over this city without the branding.

Where you actually learn this

The grappling on a UFC BJJ card is the sport of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at its highest level, and it is taught, from absolute zero, at academies across Las Vegas. This valley has one of the deepest jiu jitsu talent pools anywhere: the athletes on those cards train in rooms here, and several of the coaches behind them teach here. You do not need to be an athlete to start; every academy teaches beginners, and the first months are the same whether your ambition is a hobby or a cage.

We are Fight For Us Jiu Jitsu, a Team Zenith academy in northwest Las Vegas, headed by a third degree black belt under Robert Drysdale, one of the most decorated grapplers this city has produced. Adult classes run five nights a week plus Saturday, kids train four nights, and we also run MMA sessions midweek and Saturday morning; the full schedule is here. The broadcasts are no-gi; we build fundamentals in the gi, and the skills transfer almost entirely, a trade-off we cover honestly in gi versus no-gi.

Watching versus doing

Watching elite grappling is a legitimately good way to fall in love with the sport, and a slightly misleading way to understand it. What you cannot see on a broadcast is that jiu jitsu is the rare spectator sport a regular adult can simply start doing this week, badly, safely, and with people who will be glad you showed up. If a UFC BJJ card is what put this in your head, that is as good an origin story as any. The first two classes are free, and here is exactly what the first one is like.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I train at the UFC Performance Institute?

No. The Performance Institute is a facility for UFC athletes and invited competitors, not a membership gym. The Apex likewise is an event venue. If you want to train, you are looking for a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu academy, and Las Vegas has excellent ones in nearly every part of the valley.

Is there a UFC Gym location in Las Vegas?

As of this writing, no. The UFC GYM franchise operates in many cities, but not in the Las Vegas valley, despite the UFC being headquartered here. Franchise maps change, so verify on the chain's official site, but you were not misreading the search results.

Do I need to train no-gi to do what UFC BJJ athletes do?

UFC BJJ matches are no-gi, but the athletes on those cards almost all built their foundations across both. For a beginner the honest answer is that it barely matters: fundamentals transfer almost entirely, so train at the good academy near you in whatever format it runs, and specialize later if you compete.

The best way to answer this is on the mat

Your first two classes at Fight For Us Jiu Jitsu are free. No contract, no deposit.