Joel Kerekes

Joel Kerekes grew up as the youngest of three siblings and was homeschooled by his mother until high school.  As a young child, Joel enjoyed traditional sports and found interest in Martial Arts early on, inspired by legends Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris. As a teen in the late 1990's, Joel was impressed while watching Royce Gracie, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, compete in the very first UFC event, witnessing his impressive victories on VHS tapes with his father, a Marine veteran.  At age 17, Joel took the opportunity to join SLO Kickboxing, a Mixed Martial Arts gym in San Luis Obispo, California, founded by local fighter and later world champion Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell.  Attending formal grappling classes, Joel quickly realized how powerful Jiu-Jitsu really was, feeling almost helpless sparring with skilled grapplers for the first time.

Finding excitement with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ), Joel eventually encouraged his friends to train and formed a small group using BJJ and various grappling books he had purchased to study from. Joel later met and trained with Preston Scharf, who at the time, was an up and coming Mixed Martial Artist.  This friendship led Joel to a security job at a local downtown club at the age of 19. Over the course of a year, Joel embraced his responsibilities as a peacekeeper, having experienced a multitude of physical altercations, as well as conflict resolutions.

Seeking more opportunities in a peacekeeper role, at age 21, Joel attended a Police Academy, setting high goals to help the community at an official capacity.  A short time later, Joel began his Law Enforcement career at Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department in California. Over the course of his 14-year career, Joel worked various assignments including Custody Deputy, at Santa Barbara County Main Jail, Patrol Deputy/Coroner, at multiple patrol stations throughout the county, and lastly as a Bailiff in Arraignment Court, at Santa Maria Superior Court.

In 2010, Custody Deputy Joel was faced with a surreal event, a notable jail escape in which he was attacked by an escaped inmate. One night, after attacking, overpowering and donning a battered Deputy's uniform, the escapee made his way back to his isolation housing unit where he used the darkness to wait for his next hostage. As Joel passed by, the inmate attacked Joel without warning, landing several weaponized strikes to his head before Joel was fully aware of the severity of the situation. Using his previous experiences and his Jiu-Jitsu training, Joel quickly fought back, ultimately taking the attacker down to the ground and subdued him while backup responded. The attack was a life-changing event for many involved and remains a pivotal moment in Joel's career as it is believed by many that if it had been anyone else other than Joel, the outcome would have ended even more tragically.

After several years gaining experience as a Custody Deputy, working in various capacities, including as a training officer, Joel started his next chapter as a Patrol Deputy. Over the years, Joel excelled as a Sheriff's Deputy, gaining even more training, knowledge and experience, focusing primarily on officer safety tactics. During this time, Joel prioritized his career, placing less emphasis on training, though his BJJ abilities were an essential part of his regular duties. Over the course of Joel's career, he experienced a vast variety of calls, some of which involved active shooters, vehicle and foot pursuits, riots, armed standoffs, persons with weapons, attacks on Officers, being shot at, multi-causality incidents and everything in-between. Joel's training conditioned him to deal with constant stressful, life or death situations in a confident, yet judicious manner, as staying calm under pressure is a normal part of Jiu-Jitsu training.

In 2017, Joel received a long overdue shoulder surgery, which had been a reoccurring training obstacle for many years. After recovery, Joel continued his journey with his long-time academy, Paragon Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, led by founder, Ricardo "Franjinha" Miller, a fifth degree blackbelt in BJJ. Ricardo Miller is a world class coach, instructor and competitor, facilitating multiple thriving Paragon Jiu-Jitsu academies throughout the United States.

With consistent training, Joel received his BJJ Blue belt and later his Purple belt from his primary coaches, Chris Lovato and John Marine, both Paragon gym owners, head coaches and BJJ Black belts under Ricardo Miller respectively. Seeking new adventure and opportunities, after months researching and visiting several states, Joel and his wife, Heather, made a big decision to move to Arkansas, the beautiful Natural State.

After arriving to the area of Harrison Arkansas in 2023, Joel and Heather met Troy Holton, owner and founder of Troy Holton's Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Troy Holton is a BJJ Black belt, first-degree, under Rolando "Roli" Delgado, UFC veteran, BJJ Black belt, fourth degree and founder of Westside MMA. Joel Immediately found a natural camaraderie with Troy as he also had extensive Law Enforcement experience and many years of serving the community. In April 2025, Joel received his BJJ Brown belt from Troy Holton.

Though Joel's primary uniform has changed, his sense of duty and commitment to public service remains the same. Together, Joel and Heather have a uniquely fun, engaging and passionate approach to teaching, coaching and sharing Jiu-Jitsu. For them, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is not only an amazing Martial Art and sport, but a way of life. Now with a new addition to the family, Joel and Heather are proud and excited to provide Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, to all ages and experience levels. It is their goal to be strong and worthy role models for their son, just as Joel's mother and father were and still are today.  With years of training and real-world experience, Joel & Heather look forward to providing Mountain Home, Arkansas with premier Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with their academy, American Viking Jiu-Jitsu.