Raquel Canuto

Raquel Canuto was born on October 14, 1990, in Wai'anae, Hawaii, into a family with combat sports running through its DNA. Her father, David Pa'aluhi, stands as one of Hawaii's MMA pioneers, and his influence made martial arts a natural fixture of Raquel's upbringing from the beginning. She began training karate at nine years old, laying the first stones of what would become a lifelong commitment to combat athletics.

As her school years at Wai'anae High School progressed, Raquel transitioned to freestyle wrestling — a discipline that proved formative in shaping both her physical attributes and competitive mindset. She carried that wrestling career into higher education at Jamestown College, where her talent earned her All-American honors with a 4th place finish in the Women's College Wrestling Association (WCWA) and a coveted spot on Hawaii's National Wrestling Team. The discipline and grappling instincts forged through high-level wrestling would later serve as the engine behind her rapid ascent through the ranks of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

In 2009, at 19 years old and fresh from her first year of college, Raquel Pa'aluhi stepped into mixed martial arts training at Hakuilua, her family's gym in Hawaii. Given her wrestling background and family legacy, the transition felt natural — but elite MMA competition quickly exposed the depth of skill required to compete at the sport's highest levels.

Pa'aluhi entered the deep end of women's MMA without hesitation, measuring herself against some of the most formidable opponents in the sport. Among those she faced were future UFC Champion Amanda Nunes and UFC title contenders Sara McMann and Raquel Pennington. Those cage experiences against world-class competition proved invaluable, yet they also revealed a critical gap in her game: her ground work. Deficiencies in jiu-jitsu became increasingly apparent when matched against elite grapplers, and that honest reckoning became the pivotal turning point in her career.

Heeding her coaches' advice, Pa'aluhi made the disciplined decision to step away from MMA competition for a dedicated year to focus exclusively on Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Far from a setback, that choice became the catalyst for one of the most impressive grappling careers in women's BJJ. She also went on to compete for Invicta Fighting Championship, one of the most prominent women's MMA promotions in the world, further cementing her credentials as a serious combat sports competitor on multiple fronts.

A Defining Debut

Raquel Pa'aluhi's entry into competitive jiu-jitsu was immediate and emphatic. Her very first BJJ tournament was the UAEJJF World Pro Trials — a mixed-class event combining white and blue belt competitors — and she won it outright. That debut victory earned her a place at the World Pro finals in Abu Dhabi, an experience that proved transformative. Witnessing the scale and prestige of the sport at that level solidified her ambitions and her commitment to pursuing BJJ as a serious competitive endeavor.

The Move to Las Vegas

With limited competition opportunities and training infrastructure in Hawaii to match her growing ambitions, Raquel made a defining move in 2014. As a purple belt, she traveled to Las Vegas to train under Robert Drysdale at his academy. The environment, the training methodology, and the people she encountered there resonated deeply, and she made the decision to relocate permanently to what she would come to regard as the Fight Capital of the World.

Colored Belt Excellence

Her progression through the colored belt ranks was defined by consistent excellence at the highest levels of IBJJF competition. As a blue belt, she captured the IBJJF World No-Gi Championship in 2014. At purple belt, she became one of the most decorated competitors at that level — claiming the IBJJF World Championship in both gi and no-gi formats, the Pans Championship, the Pans No-Gi, and the AJP Grand Slam in Los Angeles, among numerous other titles. Her brown belt campaign proved equally distinguished, adding another IBJJF World Championship gi title and further Las Vegas Open gold medals to her record.

In August 2017, Robert Drysdale awarded Raquel Pa'aluhi Canuto her black belt during a private dinner held in the aftermath of her Invicta FC title fight — a moment that captured the dual nature of her elite athletic career across both MMA and grappling.

Three-Time World No-Gi Champion

At the black belt level, Raquel Canuto established herself as one of the premier no-gi competitors in the Peso Médio division (69.00 kg / 152.5 lbs). Her most defining achievement at this level is her status as a three-time IBJJF World No-Gi Champion, having claimed gold in 2017, 2019, and 2021 — a record that places her among the elite specialists in the no-gi format.

Sustained Gi Competitiveness

Her competitive edge extended equally to the gi format. In 2018, she reached the final of the IBJJF World Championship, earning a silver medal, and added a European Open runner-up finish the same year. At the 2021 IBJJF World Championship, she returned to the podium with a bronze medal, demonstrating that her game remained razor-sharp across multiple years at the black belt level. Additional podium appearances at events such as the IBJJF Long Beach Open (2017 gold) and the IBJJF Dallas Open (2021 gold) further illustrate her sustained presence atop the Peso Médio division.

In building her competition base from Las Vegas, Canuto maintained a practice of traveling to Long Beach for preparation ahead of major tournaments, ensuring her training environment remained calibrated to the demands of elite international competition.

Partnership On and Off the Mat

Among the most significant developments of Raquel's time at Drysdale Jiu-Jitsu was meeting fellow professional athlete and Zenith BJJ representative Renato Canuto. United by a shared dedication to grappling and professional competition, the two athletes married in 2016, forming one of the more prominent dual-athlete partnerships in contemporary BJJ.

Team Checkmat and Elite Training Circles

Both Raquel and Renato subsequently transitioned their team affiliation from Zenith BJJ to Checkmat BJJ Association, aligning with one of the sport's most internationally recognized organizations. Their training history includes time alongside high-profile figures such as Marcus 'Buchecha' Almeida and Leo Vieira — associations that reflect the elite competitive circles in which the Canutos operate.

Venum Training Camp Las Vegas

Building on their longstanding relationship with Venum — which has sponsored Renato since 2016 — the couple partnered with the brand to open the Venum Training Camp, also known as Checkmat Las Vegas. The facility was conceived as a comprehensive training environment offering Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and other combat sports disciplines to practitioners of all ages, contributing meaningfully to the development of Las Vegas's combat sports community.

In structuring the venture, Raquel made a deliberate choice to remain focused on competition rather than taking on the business management responsibilities of the gym. This intentional division of roles allows both her and Renato to maintain their identities as professional competitors first — ensuring that the demands of running a facility do not dilute their focus on high-level performance. It is a philosophy that reflects the same disciplined prioritization that has defined Raquel Canuto's athletic career from its earliest days on the mats in Wai'anae, Hawaii.