Emily Fernandez

Emily Elizabeth Fernandez was born on February 7, 2002, in Midland, Texas, where she was raised. From an early age, sports served a purpose in her life that extended well beyond recreation. Diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Fernandez discovered that physical activity provided the focus and structure she needed to thrive. She cycled through a variety of sports during childhood and junior high school, searching for an outlet that could genuinely hold her attention.

Her first encounter with grappling came through judo — a brief but formative experience that ended when the hosting gym shut down. Short-lived as it was, that introduction planted the seed for what would become a defining athletic identity. In October 2013, at 11 years old, Fernandez stepped onto a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu mat for the first time. It was the turning point her athletic life had been building toward.

From her very first class, Fernandez trained under Bruno Bastos, a well-regarded instructor based in Texas. That coach-athlete relationship would span her entire belt progression — an uncommon display of loyalty and continuity in a sport where academy changes are frequent. She represented the Bruno Bastos Association and Team LEAD — an acronym for Live Everyday to Achieve your Dreams — from white belt through black belt without interruption.

Rising Through the Ranks

Fernandez's ascent through the colored belt divisions was rapid by any measure. She established herself as one of the premier juvenile competitors in the world during the 2018 and 2019 seasons, and that dominance carried seamlessly into the adult colored belt divisions. Her performances at IBJJF events at purple and brown belt continued to place her on podiums at the sport's most competitive tournaments, demonstrating that her juvenile success was a foundation for sustained elite-level competition rather than a temporary peak.

Black Belt Promotion

The culmination of her colored belt career arrived at the IBJJF World Championship in June 2022, where Fernandez reached the final in the brown belt division. Following that silver medal performance, Bruno Bastos promoted her to black belt — a recognition of nearly a decade of development, unwavering loyalty to a single competitive team, and a record of achievement that placed her among the most decorated grapplers of her generation entering the sport's top division. Fernandez competes at 64 kg, the Peso Leve division.

Dominance on the Juvenile Circuit

Emily Fernandez built her reputation first and most emphatically on the juvenile circuit, where she became one of the most accomplished competitors in IBJJF history at that level. In 2018 and 2019, she claimed IBJJF World Championship gold in both the gi and no-gi formats — four world titles across two seasons that established her as the benchmark for juvenile female grapplers in her weight class. She added the IBJJF Pan Championship No-Gi juvenile title in 2019 to that collection, cementing her dominance across multiple premier events within the same calendar year.

Adult Colored Belt Career

The transition into adult competition brought no decline in output. At purple belt in 2021, Fernandez won the IBJJF Pan Championship No-Gi title, affirming that her game had continued to evolve beyond the juvenile divisions. She also placed second at the IBJJF Pan Championship No-Gi at purple belt that same year and earned a third-place finish at the IBJJF American Nationals No-Gi in 2020, building a consistent podium record across the division.

The 2022 Season: A Pre-Black Belt Peak

The 2022 competitive season represented a high-water mark for her pre-black belt career. At the 2022 IBJJF Pan Jiu-Jitsu Championship, Fernandez placed third in the brown belt division before advancing to the final of the IBJJF World Championship in June — the performance that directly preceded her black belt promotion. That same year, she reached the final of the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro, a result that demonstrated her adaptability across different rule sets and formats beyond the IBJJF circuit. Her podium record across gi, no-gi, and submission-oriented competition signals a well-rounded profile as she enters the black belt division.