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Rafael Lovato Sr.: Record, Net Worth, Weight, Age & More!

By Benjamin Strusnik, March 06, 2023

Who is Rafael Lovato Sr.?

Rafael Lovato Sr is an American black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu and the owner of a successful martial arts academy, Lovato School of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, in Oklahoma City..Lovato's school is an affiliate of the internationally respected Saulo Ribeiro Jiu Jitsu Association. Both Saulo and his brother Xande are personal friends of the Lovatos. Lovato Sr. is one half of the first American father-son black belt duo to be officially recognized within the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu community. His son Rafael Lovato jr, is one of the most decorated black belt competitors of his generation, and will go down as one of the greatest of all time.

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Who is Rafael Lovato Sr.?

What this article covers:

Who is Rafael Lovato Sr.?
How Old is Rafael Lovato Sr.?
How Much is Rafael Lovato Sr. Worth?

Although Lovato senior eventually built a life worthy of envy, and was able to send his son around the world to train in the sport that he loves, his path to success was never obvious. Lovato Sr was raised on the south side of chicago, in one of the most violent neighborhoods in the entire United States. He was from a low income minority family of immigrants, and grew up around intense violence and gang related crime.

Timeless Pressure Passing by Rafael Lovato Sr. is available now from BJJFanatics.com!

Among all of that chaos, two Idols stood out to the young Lovato senior colon Bruce lee, and Muhammad ali. These two inspirational figures of athletic talent gave the young Lovato the example he needed to outrun those around him, escape his circumstances, and make something for himself. As a spanish and italian minority, Lovato says he resonated with the success stories of these athletes.

Lovato senior was a well-known Jeet Kune Do instructor In Ohio before the birth of his son, also named Rafael. When Rafael Jr. was young, the family moved to Oklahoma city, Oklahoma and converted the academy into a multidisciplinary one that was more focused on grappling.

While Lovato's School of Brazilian jiu-jitsu has churned out multiple world championships, including Lovato Junior himself who is one of the best of all time, it's not just a place for hardcore athletes. Ever the family man, Lovato Sr is careful to point out that only about 5 or 10% of his school is made up of hardcore, competition Jiu Jitsu students. The rest range from Young kids, to high school students, to college kids and doctors and lawyers, they even had a priest training at the Lovato School of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for a period of time.

The point is, Rafael senior says, jiu jitsu is for everybody. The family is careful not to send the message that they've created a place where only professionals can train. Instead, they strive to welcome everyone on to the mat and create a family environment that's now led, in true family fashion, by Lovato jr.

Check out Timeless Classic Self-Defense by Rafael Lovato Sr. available at BJJFanatics.com!

How Old is Rafael Lovato Sr.?

Rafael Lovato Sr.’s age is unknown, but he is likely into his sixties by now, having had his son Rafael Jr. in 1983.

Rafael Lovato Sr. Family

Rafael Lovato Sr.Has always been a true family man. After having children, he moved his family to a safer location in Oklahoma to raise them. Around the time that his son turned 13, he introduced Rafael Jr to Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He didn't know then that he would be raising an eight-time world champion and one of the greatest Grapplers to ever compete at middleweight. in fact, Lovato has said in interviews, he raised his son to be a World Championship human being first and foremost - the fact that he achieved such high heights and grappling is just a bonus. Lovato Senior has now completed the handoff ofrom father to son, and given over operational responsibilities of Lovato's School of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to Rafael jr.

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How Much is Rafael Lovato Sr. Worth?

Rafael Lovato Sr.’s net worth is not public information. He has been a successful owner and operator of martial arts schools, beginning with Jeet Kune Do in the 1980s, for over 40 years now. In addition, the success of his son likely rubbed off on him as well.

How Tall is Rafael Lovato Sr.?

Rafael Lovato Sr. It's not known as a competitor, but is an early American Pioneer of the style, and a coach who inspired many to achieve greatness. Due to his lack of competition, his height is unknown.

How Much Does Rafael Lovato Sr. Weigh?

As mentioned above, Rafael Lovato Sr. never competed heavily. His contribution to the sport is as an early ambassador of Brazilian jiu jitsu, and as the man who raised one of the greatest middleweights of all time to be an amazing competitor and coach. we're not sure how much he weighs

Rafael Lovato Sr. Fight List

Rafael Lovato Sr. doesn't have a competition record to speak of, although he’s attended more matches to corner his son than most men will attend in a lifetime.

Rafael Lovato Sr.'s Best Fight of All Time

Rafael Lovato Sr. Didn't compete for himself, but we're pretty sure that his son's first world championship as a Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitor would be his favorite match of all time.

Who Did Rafael Lovato Sr. Lose To?

Rafael Lovato Sr has the distinction of being undefeated in Brazilian jiu-jitsu competition, even if it is only for the fact that he never entered competitions as a professional.

Rafael Lovato Sr. Record

Rafael Lovato Sr. doesn't have a competition record.

Rafael Lovato Sr. Injuries

Rafael Lovato Sr. was not a competitor, but with over 40 Years of coaching and training experience he's certain to have faced physical setbacks in his time. Despite this, Lovato senior remains healthy in his Advanced years, and has surely coached many athletes through a similar period of injury in their own career.

Is Rafael Lovato Sr. Retired?

It depends on what you mean by retired. Rafael Lovato senior never competed, so there's no retirement to speak of in that sense. However, he recently turned over control of his highly established 40-year business now known as Lovato's School of Brazilian jiu-jitsu to his son, Rafael jr. in a sense this is retirement for a teacher and coach. It also completes an awesome success story of a son surpassing his father's dreams and carrying on his name.

Now that he's freed up some time in his schedule Lovato has also taken the time to start recording some of his technique for others to learn from. His "Timeless” series of instructionals, filmed in coordination with BJJ fanatics, offer some tips for practitioners of all ages. “Timeless Classic Self Defense”, “Timeless Pressure Passing”, and “The Timeless Closed Guard” are all focused on leveraging technique and knowledge over explosiveness and strength, and effort to help people of all ages and readiness levels sharpen their skills.

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