“He never would have expected me to carry on with it and stick to it,” says Daniel Quarmby, owner and head coach of United BJJ and Boxing Orange.

See, five years ago, running a martial arts gym wasn’t something Daniel ever dreamed of, that was the dream of his brother, Ben.

A promising mixed martial art fighter, Ben Quarmby was undefeated both as an amateur and professional and looked set for a career in the top ranks of the sport. But, at the age of 29, Ben was diagnosed with a rare skin cancer and sadly he passed away in September 2015.

‘It was called Merkel Cell Carcinoma, it is really aggressive and most commonly found in elderly people who have been in the sun their whole life, so it just didn't make sense how he got it,” said Daniel, who first started learning Brazilian Jiu Jitsu just as a way to spend more time with his brother.

“He was always in the gym since he was 14, even when he was diagnosed with cancer, he still was in the gym every afternoon. So, the only way I could spend time with him was to train with him.”

As Ben grew sicker, Daniel found himself taking on more of the teaching, and when he passed, Daniel decided to keep his brother’s gym going.

“I sort of took over then and people came and went a little bit. I built a shed at home and moved the gym over to my house and slowly more people started coming and we slowly built it up over the years until we got to the stage where we thought we could get a proper business space.”

Eighteen months ago, United relocated to One Strength Gym in Moulder Street, the move to a more visible location attracting new members.

“Slowly. We have been getting more people come and we haven't had that many people drop off. We were able to add more classes and we started kids classes but we sort of grew out of the space,” said Daniel, who had lined up a new, larger premises Peisley Street just prior to the outbreak of COVID-19.

And for those of you unaware, it’s hard to find an activity with less social distancing than Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ). A form of submission wresting originating in Japan and spread to the world via Brazil, the aim of BJJ is to get your opponent to yield through the use of joint locks and strangle holds.

“You can't get a more close contact sport,” said Daniel, who has been unable to train and run classes since March 23.

“It has been hard, we were so busy before this. Six days a week I was in the gym, but all of a sudden, I had all the afternoons and spare time on weekends. So I’ve been doing online seminars and watching videos and stuff like that myself just trying to keep my Jiu Jitsu brain going.”

While running a martial arts gym may have started as his brother’s dream, it is most certainly Daniel’s passion now.

Like so many who give Brazilian Jiu Jitsu a try, he became completely hooked.

“I think it is a beautiful thing that you can learn to control somebody without punches and kicks,” he said.

“I love the physical side of it, and also the mental side of it. It is like trying to solve a puzzle that is constantly changing. And it is such a hard thing to learn, that you never get bored with it because there is always something new.”

Daniel has also discovered that he enjoys teaching the art just as much as his own training.

“I love seeing people come in not knowing anything, and at the end of the class they go away having learned one thing or having learned something about themselves; how they react in a bad situation like when somebody is on top smothering them or things like that. I love seeing the kids learn they get better socially and build more confidence.”

Social distancing restrictions have been easing every week and United BJJ and Boxing will be opening their new Peisley Street gym on July 1.

And you can be sure to find Ben Quarmby’s picture in pride of place on the gym wall.

“He never would have expected me to carry on with it and stick to it,” said Daniel. “And I wish he was here. There's always things I want to ask him, but I really wish that he could see what I'm doing here now.”