Marlon Tajik: From Sweden to ADCC, Passing & Leg Locks

Marlon Tajik took silver at -88 kg and finished fourth in the absolute at ADCC 2026. A month later he sat down with Bernardo to explain how a kid from Sweden got there with no blueprint, and why his whole game is built to make you tired.In this episode:- Starting jiu-jitsu at 11 in Stockholm, training next to his dad, who is also a black belt- No roadmap: saving money, flying to the US and finding the room where he was not the best- Training like a professional from purple belt: diet, strength and conditioning, 80% light and 20% hard- "Hard work is never in vain, it only compounds"- Half the year in the US, half in Sweden, and why each half has a different job- How he tests a new move: first on juveniles and blue belts, then up the ladder until it works 8 out of 10 times- The energy bar idea behind his passing: "No technique works when you're tired"- The sneaky leg locks, and why he looked for entries nobody else was using- You don't need the best gym in the world anymore to learn from the best in the worldMarlon Tajik is a no-gi grappler from Sweden. At the 2026 ADCC World Championship in Kraków he won silver in the -88 kg division and finished fourth in the absolute, where he submitted Pouya Rahmani (+99 kg) with an inside heel hook. This week he recorded his first instructionals with BJJ Fanatics: his guard passing system, and half butterfly to leg locks.Chapters00:00 Intro00:31 ADCC 2026: silver at -88 kg and fourth in the absolute01:17 Starting at 11 in Stockholm, with a black belt dad02:33 No blueprint: making it from a country where nobody had04:27 Training like a pro from purple belt: 80% light, 20% hard06:27 Jiu-jitsu as a job in Scandinavia: "I'm living the dream"08:25 Half the year in the US, half in Sweden09:45 How he tests a new move: from juveniles to the best guy in the gym11:24 His guard passing system, built from fights and instructionals13:53 The energy bar: "No technique works when you're tired"15:42 The sneaky leg locks and the side control escape everyone saw17:53 You don't need the best gym anymore19:15 His first BJJ Fanatics instructionalsMarlon's first instructionals (guard passing, and half butterfly to leg locks) are coming soon to BJJ Fanatics: https://bjjfanatics.comConnect with Bernardo FariaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bernardofariabjjYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtXtqlLdZYZm3060qVExXkABJJ Fanatics, the largest online jiu-jitsu library: https://bjjfanatics.comKojo Fightwear, Bernardo's gear brand: https://kojofightwear.com/?rfsn=9277274.6e01c5New episodes every week. If this one helped you, follow the show and leave a rating: it is the best way to help the podcast reach more people.