Elite Edge MMA and Jiu Jitsu - Ankeny

Elite Edge MMA and Jiu Jitsu is Ankeny's largest mixed martial arts academy, located at 116 SE Lorenz Drive in the southeast Ankeny commercial corridor and serving the broader Des Moines metro from three Iowa locations (Ankeny, South Des Moines, Waukee). The Ankeny gym was founded by Josh Neer, a former professional MMA fighter (Iowa MMA Hall of Fame), and the instructor staff includes Joe Brammer, Gavin Urias, Keegan Virchow, Brandon Lloyd, and Wes Sloan - a deep roster of black-and-brown-belt level coaches with active competition experience. The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu program runs alongside MMA, kickboxing, and No-Gi tracks, and the kids program serves children as young as 7 with a beginner-friendly Jiu-Jitsu curriculum that builds the foundational positions and techniques: takedowns scaled to bodyweight, guard play, side control retention, mount escapes, and the early submission chains drilled with strict safety controls. The room culture emphasizes mat respect, the resilience of losing a roll and coming back, and the focused attention required to chain technical sequences together. Adult and advanced students share the same room across the schedule so kids see real adult-level training in progress, which helps them understand what continued practice looks like over years. The Ankeny location is convenient for Ankeny proper, Saylorville, NW Polk County, and the north Des Moines metro. Free intro classes are the standard entry point, with gi rentals available for first visits.