ROB SULLIVAN - BLACK BELT - OWNER
Rob Sullivan became a professional Mixed Martial Artist in 2012. His grappling journey started in wrestling at the age of eleven, he turned to BJJ in his mid twenties and eventually found MMA. Rob was undefeated as an amateur and over the years he has traveled the world gaining knowledge from several acclaimed gyms/trainers. He also has experience as an amateur boxer and is a certified personal trainer/strength and conditioning coach.
CHRIS BALINT - BLACK BELT, HEAD INSTRUCTOR
Chris started his martial arts journey in the world of traditional Martial Arts and Goju Ryu Karate as a young teenager in VA. This experience was instrumental in fostering his ongoing desire to pursue martial arts.
In 2008 Chris began training BJJ and found his way to Baltimore BJJ in 2012, where he trained under Lee Synkowski and then Monroe Hall from 2015. In 2021 Chris accepted the position of Head Instructor & was promoted to Black Belt. Chris has enjoyed competition victories especially in the submission only format and is a dedicated member of the community with a hunger to share his knowledge and guide members on their individual path.
Lee Synkowski - BLACK BELT
Lee Synkowski founded Baltimore Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in 2005, and holds a 2nd degree black belt under Phil Migliarese. He holds over 150 combined competition match wins in BJJ, Submission Grappling, Judo, and MMA. Lee has taught martial arts for over 20 years, and he takes great pride in ensuring all Baltimore BJJ students have the chance to reach their highest potential.
SCOTT AUMEN - BLACK BELT
Scott is a physical education teacher in Baltimore County having taught for almost 15 years. He has run several non-profit programs, behavioral groups and children’s BJJ programs.
Scott started his grappling journey at the age of 14 with wrestling. He remains connected to the sport today, coaching alongside owner and fellow coach Rob Sullivan at Eastern Tech.
Scott began training Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai in 2011 under Monroe Hall, and came to Baltimore BJJ in 2015 when the gym welcomed Monroe and the rest of the Combat Spots team. Scott is active with competition, having won several local tournaments and No Gi Pan American games at purple belt before being promoted to brown belt in 2019. Scott received his Black belt in November 2023.
TERRY HUTTON - BLACK BELT
Terry received his black belt in 2021 at the age of 72. His story is an inspirational one to say the least. Starting in kenpo karate as a young boy he would go on to compete PKA-kickboxing, boxing and wrestle in high school. If MMA had been a thing at the time I am sure he would have dabbled in that. Terry would serve in the army during Vietnam and become a local club owner in his adult years. He wouldn’t begin Brazilian Jiu Jitsu until he was 60 years old. He is a shining example of it is never too late to do something great.
ANN RUSSELL - PURPLE BELT
Ann started her training in Massachusetts in 2017 before moving back to MD and joining Baltimore BJJ in the Spring of 2018. She has competed successfully in points-based, sub-only, and super fight events. She loves introducing the sport to new people and being a member of the Baltimore BJJ team!
BRIAN SHEALEY - BLACK BELT
Brian is a Balance Academy 2nd Degree Black Belt under Phil Migliarese and Lee Synkowski. He has been practicing and teaching BJJ for over 15 years. As a competitor he has won various competitions including No Gi Pan Ams multiple times.
While he may be mistaken for Ross from friends from time to time he has - in fact - never had a pet monkey or dated Jennifer Anniston in a TV sitcom. He did date her for a short period of time in the late 80’s in real life though.
ZAK BRODNIK - BLACK BELT
Zak is a black belt under Tim Hart and Rick Macauley with over 15 years of submission grappling experience. Zak began his combat sports training in 2005 under the world-renowned MMA instructor Marcus Marinelli, before shifting his focus from MMA to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. After moving from Cleveland to Philadelphia to earn a PhD Zak began training with Tim Hart and Rick Macauley who awarded Zak his black belt in 2019.
JASON NEWING - BLACK BELT
Jason has been training BJJ and Kickboxing since 2009. His experience includes BJJ competitions, amateur MMA and Boxing matches. He is also trained in lightsaber combat. He holds the Saber Legion Championship Series World Title and is a three time Exotics Division national champion.
STEVE RAWLINGS - BLACK BELT
Born and raised in the Baltimore area, Steven has been training in BJJ since 2010 and instructing children since 2014. He has competed in a multitude of local tournaments but gets the most fulfillment from sharing his passion for BJJ with the youth. Steve is one of our youth coaches and can be found leading our kids classes. Steve received his black belt in November 2023.
JOSHUA WEINSTOCK - BLACK BELT
Josh has been training BJJ since 2006, he is one of the founding members of Baltimore BJJ under Lee Synkowski. Josh has competed and medalled throughout his career, including extensively across the sub only format.
AUSTIN JONES - BLACK BELT
Austin started training for modern combat sports in 2009. He has competed in MMA, BJJ, and US Army Combative tournaments and events successfully.
He is currently a a head combative instructor in the Maryland Army National Guard and A Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Coach