Elisabeth Ann Clay - BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU CHAMPION

Elisabeth Ann Clay - Fighters Choice

 

Birth Date: 10th June 2000
Country of Origin: Texas, USA
Jiu Jitsu Lineage: Ares
Weight: 163 lbs.

Elisabeth Clay achieved her black belt at 21 years of age under the mentorship of Osvaldo Moizinho. She rose to fame as a 16-year-old blue belt at the 2017 ADCC West Coast Trials, one of the toughest tournaments in BJJ. The talented grappler competed in both GI and NO GI events.

 Clay was born in Texas, with a passion for athletics since she was a toddler. Her dream was to represent the US at the Olympics.

Unfortunately, her family moved around a lot. When she was 8, they settled in Oklahoma and shortly after, to Alaska. Here, she did not have access to the facilities or coaching that she required; thus, delayed the pursuit of her dream.

It was then that she discovered BJJ. At 11 years of age, she joined a local MMA club where she discovered her passion for grappling. Under the mentorship of Coach Mason Spadafore, Clay practiced Jiu Jitsu for the next 4 years.

In 2015, Clay decided to step it up and join a bigger academy: Jordan Kontra’s Legacy Jiu-Jitsu in Anchorage, Alaska. This was where she became an international BJJ player, winning tournaments like the World Pan and ADCC trials.

Now that Clay was discovered, she moved to California to practice Jiu Jitsu at Ares’s headquarters. Here, she trained under some of the best coaches in the world – including Samir Chantre and Osvaldo Moizinho. In 2019, she made headlines when she won the no-gi Worlds by submitting all her opponents, right after she had reached her brown belt. Just a year later, Clay achieved her black belt.


What makes Clay special is her entry in the pro-grappling circuit prior to her ranked status. Not only was she competing against the upper echelon elite fighters of the sport, Clay was also beating those top-tier athletes on a regular basis with much less training under her belt.

At the 2021 no gi World Pan’s, Clay won six matches in the absolute division at her weight class, displaying record breaking performance. What made her wins more impressive was that she had not been able to train for weeks before the tournament due to a knee injury, but still decided to compete and won.

Clay is known for her aggressive leg attacks, with her favorite technique being the Close Guard. 

Achievements:

2016:

  • 1st Place IBJJF World Championship Juvenile
  • 1st IBJJF Pan Championship Juvenile


2017:

  • 1st Place IBJJF World Championship Juvenile
  • 1st Place ADCC American Trials
  • 2nd Place IBJJF Pan Championship Juvenile

2018 (Blue):

  • 1st Place IBJJF World Championship
  • 1st IBJJF Pan Championship
  • 1st IBJJF Pan Championship NOGI
  • 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship
  • 1st Place IBJJF World Championship NO GI (Purple)

2019 (Purple):

  • 1st IBJJF Pan Championship NOGI
  • 3rd Place IBJJF Pan Championship
  • 3rd Place ADCC American Trials
  • 1st IBJJF Pan Championship NOGI
  • 1st Place IBJJF World Championship NOGI (Brown)

2020 (Black):

  • 1st Place SUBVERSIV Tournament

2021:

  • F2W Heavyweight Champion
  • 1st Place IBJJF World Championship NOGI
  • 1st Place IBJJF Pan Championship NOGI
  • 1st Place IBJJF Dallas Open
  • 1st Place SUBVERSIV Tournament
  • 2nd Place IBJJF World Championship NOGI
  • 2nd Place IBJJF Pan Championship