Mon & Tue, 6pm
Fundamentals
The core positions, escapes and submissions that everything else is built on. It assumes you know nothing, which makes it where most beginners start.
Free BJJ Trial for Pakuranga Kids and Adults
Pakuranga families use this page to book a first class. Kids from 4 and adults from 15 train at Botany Town Centre with Spiro Kovac, an SJJIF world champion, and the rest of the black belt coaching team.
Class Timetable. Pick Your First Class.
Use the timetable to pick a first class. Kids groups run after school from 4pm, Monday to Thursday. Adult classes are at 6pm, and open rolling is at 7pm. Saturday morning has competition training and kids classes. Then book the free trial.
Adult BJJ Classes for Pakuranga
Adults and teenagers from 15 train Monday to Thursday evenings, all in the gi, with three black belts. Beginners are expected, not tolerated. Saturday competition training is optional. Kids classes finish first, so a parent from Pakuranga can stay on and train.
Wed & Thu, 6pm
All levels and specific training
One technique taught to the whole room, with black belts adding detail for the experienced belts, and sparring that starts from one set position.
Mon to Thu, 7pm
Rolling
Live rounds with a partner, straight after the 6pm class. You join when you feel ready and choose how hard each round goes. A tap stops everything.
Kids' Jiu-Jitsu for Pakuranga Families
Children from Pakuranga, Highland Park and Half Moon Bay train from age 4 to 15 in four groups, so a four-year-old is not paired with a teenager. There is no punching or kicking. Black belts teach the after-school classes and the Saturday kids classes.
Little Cubs, ages 4 to 6
Mon & Wed, 4:00pm · Sat, 11am
First steps on the mat, through play: rolling, falling safely, balance, and learning to listen and wait their turn.
Cubs, ages 7 to 8
Mon & Wed, 4:30pm · Sat, 11am
Games become techniques. Cubs link moves together and learn the anti-bullying basics, from a strong voice to breaking a grip.
Little Lions, ages 9 to 12
Mon & Wed, 5:15pm · Sat, 10am
Real jiu-jitsu, with real thinking: submissions, sweeps and guard work, and supervised live rounds at a pace set by the coach.
Lions, ages 13 to 15
Tue & Thu, 4:00pm and 4:30pm · Sat, 10am
Teen training with adult-level detail: longer live rounds and deeper technique. It is the bridge into our adult program.
Find Us in Botany Town Centre
We are at 11D Town Centre Drive, inside Botany Town Centre in East Auckland near The Coffee Club. Take the lifts next to Vision Centre and 2degrees.
- Parking
- Free for up to 4 hours in the main Botany Town Centre car parks.
- Bus
- Botany Town Centre is the main East Auckland bus junction.
sorriso
so-HEE-zoo noun, Portuguese
- A smile.
- The nickname of Paulo Oliveira.
- Since 2006, the name above the door.
Paulo Oliveira
Paulo Oliveira is the reason there is a Sorriso BJJ. Originally from Brazil, he founded the academy in Auckland in 2006 and has led it ever since.
Today Paulo is head coach of the whole Sorriso team, across Mount Eden, St Johns and now Botany. Both of the black belts who coach alongside him at Botany, Spiro Kovac and Bruno Maciel, earned their belts from him.
His work reaches well past our own mats. Paulo is President of the Sport Jiu-Jitsu Federation New Zealand, which puts him at the centre of how the sport is organised in this country.
- Rank
- Black belt
- Role
- Founder and head coach, Sorriso BJJ
- Founded Sorriso
- 2006
- From
- Brazil
- Also
- President, Sport Jiu-Jitsu Federation New Zealand
Our Lineage. From Japan to Botany.
In jiu-jitsu a black belt is handed from teacher to student, so it matters who tied yours. Ours runs from Mitsuyo Maeda, who carried the art from Japan to Brazil, through the Gracie family to Paulo. Paulo then promoted both of the black belts who coach beside him at Botany.
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01
Mitsuyo Maeda
A Japanese judoka and prize fighter who settled in Belém, Brazil, and began teaching there.
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02
Carlos Gracie
Learned the art in Belém as a teenager and took it to Rio de Janeiro, where the Gracie family shaped Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
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03
Carlson Gracie
Carlos's son. A champion fighter who became one of the sport's great coaches and founded the Carlson Gracie Team.
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04
Carlos "Bagana" Lima
Paulo's teacher, and the link between the Carlson Gracie line and Sorriso.
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05
Paulo "Sorriso" Oliveira
Founded Sorriso BJJ in Auckland in 2006 and Co-founder and head coach at Sorriso BJJ Botany.
Read his story -
06
Spiro Kovac
2025 SJJIF World Black Belt Champion, Co-founder and coach at Sorriso BJJ Botany.
Read his story -
06
Spiro Kovac
Spiro Kovac earned his black belt from Paulo Oliveira, and he still tests it against the best in the world.
In 2025 he won the SJJIF World Jiu-Jitsu Championship. In 2026 he won the New Zealand Gi title and came home from the Worlds in Tokyo with two silver medals in the Master 2 division: one under 100 kg and one in the Absolute, the open-weight bracket where every size meets.
At Botany that experience turns into detail. Students learn what holds up under pressure, how to prepare for a hard round, and how to lose one and come back for the next.
Black Belt Competition Record
| Year | Event | Division | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | SJJIF World Jiu-Jitsu Championship, Tokyo | Master 2 · −100 kg · Gi | Silver |
| 2026 | SJJIF World Jiu-Jitsu Championship, Tokyo | Master 2 · Absolute · Gi | Silver |
| 2026 | SJJFNZ New Zealand Open 2026, Auckland | Master 2 · −100 kg · Gi | Champion |
| 2025 | SJJIF World Jiu-Jitsu Championship, Tokyo | Master 2 · −100 kg · Gi | World champion |
Bruno Maciel
Bruno Maciel leads the kids classes at Sorriso BJJ Botany, and he is widely regarded as one of New Zealand's best kids coaches.
A black belt under Paulo Oliveira, Bruno has the rare skill of holding the attention of a room full of six-year-olds while still teaching real technique. Children in his classes learn to listen, to look after their partner and to keep trying when a move doesn't work the first time.
Bruno also teaches on the adult mats, so parents who start training often find themselves learning from the same coach as their children.
- Rank
- Black belt under Paulo Oliveira
- Leads
- Little Cubs, Cubs, Little Lions and Lions
- Also teaches
- Adult classes
Before Your Free Trial
Frequently asked questions
Something we haven't covered? Call us, or ask the coach at your trial.
027 667 7661Free trials for kids and adults from Pakuranga, Highland Park, Botany, Half Moon Bay, Farm Cove, Burswood, Howick and East Auckland.
Where is Sorriso BJJ Botany?
We're at 11D Town Centre Drive in Botany Town Centre, near The Coffee Club and next to Vision Centre and 2degrees. Take the lifts next to those two shops.
What happens at a free trial class?
Book online and we will call, text or email to confirm your class. Arrive ten minutes early, we lend you a gi and introduce you to the coach, and you join the class. There is no pressure to sign up on the day.
I have never done martial arts. Can I start?
Yes. Most of our members started with no experience. Our Fundamentals classes are on Monday and Tuesday at 6pm, and they assume you know nothing.
What age can kids start jiu-jitsu?
We take kids from age 4 up to age 15, in four age groups: Little Cubs (4 to 6), Cubs (7 to 8), Little Lions (9 to 12) and Lions (13 to 15).
How much does it cost?
Your first class is a free trial. After that, memberships start at $40 per week for children and $60 per week for adults. We also offer sibling and family deals, so ask us at your trial or call 027 667 7661 and we will work out the best option for your family.
Do I need a gi for my first class?
No. Just wear comfortable sports clothes and bring a water bottle. We lend you a gi for your trial class.
Do you offer no-gi classes?
No, we don't offer no-gi classes. Every class at Botany is taught in the gi.
Is BJJ good for self-defence?
Yes. BJJ teaches you to control a bigger, stronger person using leverage, and you practise against a resisting partner from early on.
Come and Try a Class. Your First Class Is Free.
Book a free trial for yourself or your child. We will place you in the kids or adult group that fits, and you can ask the coach anything after class.
Sorriso BJJ Botany, Unit 7, 11D Town Centre Drive, Botany Town Centre. Trials for Pakuranga kids and adults, and for neighbouring East Auckland suburbs.