COACH DAVID began his martial arts career in Taekwon Do and established a successful school in Dunedin, New Zealand. After growing tired of the toxic politics that had infected ITFNZ and the ITF he made a change to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

David has always had a passion for exploring Jiu Jitsu with a hands-on approach, always looking for the simplest, most effective techniques. 

His Jiu Jitsu journey began with Gracie Oceania, training in "old school" Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

In 2019, he made the change modern nogi Jiu Jitsu. This required relearning much of his Jiu Jitsu foundation.

On December 31st, 2023, after 13 years of training and teaching, David attained his Defiant Jiu Jitsu Black Belt. 

DEFIANT JIU JITSU was established by Coach David in 2019 as an independent, non-profit organisation focused on Modern NOGI Jiu Jitsu.

During the COVID pandemic it became very clear that Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and its "McDojo" franchises had become as corrupt and greedy as Taekwon-Do had been.

Being independent allows us to make decisions that directly benefit our own students. Our freedom also allowed us to solve the many problems that plagued "old school" Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Our team is small, friendly, and very supportive. We have a very relaxed atmosphere and students are actively encouraged to help one another.