John Danaher

Danaher was born in Washington, D.C.; his father was a New Zealand air force pilot and an attaché to the U.S. military during the Vietnam War. When he was young the family returned to Whangaparaoa, near Auckland, where he learned to kickbox.⁠[1]

He completed a bachelor’s and then a master’s degree in philosophy at the University of Auckland; the only real sport he played as a youth was rugby.⁠[2]

In 1991, at 24, he moved to New York to begin doctoral studies in philosophy at Columbia UniversityColumbia UniversityColumbia University, formally Columbia University in the City of New York, is a private research university in New York City and a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1754 by royal charter from King George II as King's College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in New York State and the fifth oldest in the United States. It was renamed Columbia College in 1784 and adopted the university name and moved to Manhattan's Morningside Heights in 1896. It has 17 schools and four affiliated colleges, with 35,978 students enrolled in fall 2025. Legal scholar Jennifer L. Mnookin became president on July 1, 2026.Open the full entry; working nights as a bouncer, he was brought by a classmate to a Brazilian jiu-jitsu class with Renzo Gracie. Saying he loved philosophy but despised academia, he eventually gave up the doctorate.⁠[2]

He began studying under Renzo Gracie, Royce Gracie’s cousin, and later trained his own team in the basement of the Renzo Gracie Academy; it was his work with MMA fighters that first brought him renown.⁠[1]

Human Kinetics published Mastering Jujitsu, a 248-page book he co-wrote with Renzo Gracie, with a 2003 copyright; the publisher described him as an instructor at the Gracie school in New York and Renzo’s longtime training partner, and noted that he had co-written Brazilian Jujitsu: Theory and Technique with Renzo and Royler Gracie.⁠[3]

After B.J. PennUniversity of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania, commonly called Penn, is a private research university and Ivy League member in Philadelphia. It traces its origins to a 1740 charity-school project; Benjamin Franklin proposed his academy in 1749, classes began in 1751, and a 1791 merger established the institution under its present name. Penn has 12 schools, with undergraduate education concentrated in arts and sciences, engineering, nursing and Wharton. Enrollment totaled 29,384 in fall 2025, and the fiscal 2025 endowment was $24.81 billion. As of October 2026, J. Larry Jameson was president, with his term scheduled to end on June 30, 2027.Open the full entry accused Georges St-Pierre of being illegally greased at UFCUFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship)UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Las Vegas, United States. It began in 1993 as a no-holds-barred fighting tournament and gradually entered the mainstream after the Fertitta brothers’ Zuffa bought it for $2 million in 2001; it was sold for about $4 billion in 2016 to a consortium led by WME-IMG, and in 2023 it merged with WWE to form the publicly traded TKO Group Holdings, where as of 2026 it is one of the largest businesses by revenue.Open the full entry 94, St-Pierre’s response to the Nevada State Athletic Commission included a letter from Danaher.⁠[4]

As announced in June 2013, Danaher was set to be in Chris Weidman’s corner for his July 6 middleweight title challenge against Anderson Silva at UFC 162.⁠[5]

He first became widely known as St-Pierre’s jiu-jitsu coach; in 2014 members of the “Danaher Death Squad,” including Gordon RyanGordon RyanGordon Ryan is an American submission grappler and Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt who won multiple ADCC World Championship titles and submitted André Galvão in the 2022 superfight, and is regarded by many as one of the finest no-gi grapplers; he announced the end of his competitive career in February 2026.Open the full entry, Garry Tonon and Eddie Cummings, broke through on the competitive grappling scene and helped revolutionize leg-lock play.⁠[6]

After St-Pierre won the middleweight title at UFC 217, Danaher wrote on Instagram that the move up was a “bold experiment” with a great result but not without problems, revealing that trouble with the weight-gain program had led the coaches to consider calling off the fight.⁠[7]

He announced a series of instructional videos with BJJ Fanatics, beginning with his leg-lock and back-attack systems.⁠[8]

He said his leg-lock instructional became the biggest seller in BJJ Fanatics’ catalogue within hours of release; because of poor audio, he decided to reshoot the entire video and give it free to buyers.⁠[9]

His student Garry Tonon moved from grappling to MMA with ONE Championship; Danaher had earlier asked Tonon to serve as a sparring partner for one of St-Pierre’s training camps.⁠[10]

In November 2020, after Gordon Ryan and Craig JonesCraig JonesCraig Jones is an Australian Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and submission grappler, a two-time ADCC World Championship runner-up, a co-founder of B-Team Jiu Jitsu and, from 2024, the founder of the Craig Jones Invitational with its million-dollar prizes.Open the full entry announced they were moving to Puerto Rico, he decided to leave his longtime home in New York and go with them.⁠[11]

Around the same time he promoted Ethan Crelinsten and Nicky Ryan to black belt.⁠[12]

He appeared on episode 182 of the Lex FridmanLex FridmanLex Fridman is a Soviet-born, US-raised computer scientist and podcast host who works as an MIT research scientist on human-AI interaction and autonomous driving. His Lex Fridman Podcast is known for hours-long conversations with guests including heads of state and technology leaders.Open the full entry Podcast, whose description calls him a coach, scholar and educator of jiu-jitsu, submission grappling, judo and MMA; topics included the seoi nage throw, his leg-lock system, advice to white belts, Gordon Ryan and Georges St-Pierre.⁠[13]

In July 2021 he announced that the Danaher Death Squad was breaking up; the team had already left the basement of Renzo Gracie New York for Puerto Rico.⁠[6]

Gordon Ryan then revealed that Danaher and Garry Tonon would stay with him.⁠[14]

New Wave Jiu-Jitsu, the team he heads in Austin, Texas, began at the end of 2021.⁠[15]

He appeared with Georges St-Pierre and Gordon Ryan on episode 260, whose description says each is considered by many the greatest of all time in his discipline.⁠[16]

He returned for a third time on episode 328 of the Lex Fridman Podcast, discussing the road to ADCC, the Danaher Death Squad, mental preparation, students including Gordon Ryan, Giancarlo Bodoni and Nicholas Meregali, as well as animal combat and knives.⁠[17]

Jitsmagazine named New Wave Jiu-Jitsu its 2022 Gym of the Year, noting Gordon Ryan’s year, Giancarlo Bodoni becoming an ADCC world champion after joining, and Nicholas Meregali’s silver and bronze in his ADCC debut.⁠[15]

He said he would “most likely” have to reappraise his role in jiu-jitsu coaching and might switch his focus to recreational students, while hoping to return to high-level coaching.⁠[18]

The Renzo Gracie Academy’s instructor page describes him as the jiu-jitsu coach to UFC champions Georges St-Pierre and Chris Weidman and a coach of ADCC champion Gordon Ryan.⁠[19]

Instagram: Public account: https://www.instagram.com/danaherjohn/ (opens in a new window)⁠[13]

Renzo Gracie Academy: Official website: https://www.renzogracie.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[19]