Teens excel in mixed fighting

BROOKSVILLE –
With a hand slap and occasional verbal jab, one could misconstrue 14-year-olds Brandon Lewis and Austin Oliveira as just two friends horsing around as one tries to grab and push or snag a leg to trip up the other.

But with a quickness and martial arts skill level that bely his age, Lewis takes Oliveira to the ground where the two fight to dominate the other with arm bars and choke holds.

It’s a matchup that Lewis easily wins, given his almost nine years’ training in various forms of karate, grappling and other martial arts. But at barely more than 5 feet tall and 120 pounds, he’s not just a student of mixed martial arts; he’s also an instructor for both children and adults at Ramos Universal Martial Arts.

And despite the quick defeat, Oliveira is eager to go head-to-head for another matchup where Lewis slightly slows down movements and focuses more on instructing him.

“I love it,” Oliveira said. “It all started with watching fights on the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) and I thought, ‘That looks awesome.'”

Having only trained for three months, Oliveira has already won himself a second-place medal in the beginner’s division of the North American Grappling Association tournament in Orlando — his first-ever competition.

Lewis, in turn, won first places in two separate grappling divisions, earning himself a championship belt and sword.

Now as Lewis prepares for a single mixed martial arts fight in New York City later this year, Oliveira is also working on learning from mistakes of his last match, which Lewis said he could have won — had he not made a mistake wearing himself out going for a specific chokehold rather than repositioning and looking for a different opportunity.

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Lewis’ love for martial arts began when his father started teaching him what he knew of kickboxing and other striking techniques at an early age. Soon Lewis wanted to learn more, and began traveling to different karate schools while earning black belts in various fighting forms.

It wasn’t until a couple of years ago when he took time off from karate to focus on his grappling technique and become a better, more well-rounded fighter. That meant spending, at times, five hours a day.

But while going back to training in karate at Ramos Universal Martial Arts, instructor Felix Ramos wanted him to instruct some of his classes. Then Lewis said he was offered the opportunity to teach mixed martial arts on the weekend.

“Some people underestimate my ability, and I think they think, ‘He’s a kid, what can he know?'” Lewis said. “But then they roll with me and I think they’re surprised. But there are some who walk out. They get upset that a 14-year-old can beat them.”

Oliveira, who will soon begin his sophomore year at Nature Coast Technical High School, said while Lewis might be the youngest instructor he will ever have, he’s impressed with how much he’s learned from him and wishes to continue in hopes of becoming a competitive fighter himself.

Both also urge anyone who’s interested to come by the martial arts school and give it a try.

“A lot of people have questions. Some joke, ‘Whoa, don’t mess with him,’ while others want to see what the fighting is like,” Lewis said. “I tell them to just come by the school where we can mess around and they can see for themselves what mixed martial arts is all about, in a safe way.”

For more information, contact Lewis at Ramos Universal Martial Arts at (352) 835-2085. They can also go to brandonsupermanlewis.blogspot.com.

[email protected] (352) 544-5271