Justin Caruso Brings LUDUS Martial Arts to Palisades Village, Rebuilding a Community He Calls Home

As Pacific Palisades continues to rebuild following the devastating January 2025 wildfire, a new martial arts studio is bringing a familiar piece of the community back to the neighborhood.

LUDUS, a private martial arts gym at Palisades Village, officially opened Aug. 15 as the shopping center reopened following the fire. The studio offers Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, self-defense and youth training.

The gym was co-founded by Justin Caruso, James “Mr. G” Gavsie and Freddy Cerrato.

Gavsie, a sixth-degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt with more than 30 years of martial arts experience, and Cerrato, a second-degree BJJ black belt with more than 20 years of experience, were part of the Max Impact martial arts community, the longtime neighborhood gym destroyed in the fire.

For Justin Caruso, the opening is deeply personal. Caruso, who lived in Pacific Palisades for seven years and lost his home in the wildfire, is the son of billionaire developer Rick Caruso, whose company developed Palisades Village.

“I have the pleasure of working with my dad day-to-day at our family business, Caruso said. "Watching the care and passion he puts into this community has rolled directly into what we’re trying to do at LUDUS. We want this to feel like a home and safe place for people, a center of the community.”

Justin's wife was pregnant when the fires broke out, and their son is now 1 year old.

“To be able to bring him back to LUDUS in the Palisades Village has been incredible,” Caruso said. “Seeing these families fill the place has been a dream come true.”

Justin also had a personal connection to Max Impact. He trained there, walked to the gym from his home and made close friends in the process. “It was more than a gym,” he said.

After the fire, Caruso, Gavsie and Cerrato wanted to bring that community back.

“Right after the fire, we all came together and agreed we had to do something for the community, and we wanted to bring our training area back,” Caruso said. “James and I always talked about how one of the first times I felt normal again after the fires was when we laid out mats at my parents’ house in the backyard and trained together.”

That sense of community is particularly important for children, Justin said.

“There’s really nowhere else for kids to go right now,” he said. “We want to make LUDUS a destination for kids of all ages.”

LUDUS offers Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu classes for children ages 3 to 12, along with adult BJJ, No Gi BJJ, kickboxing, cardio kickboxing and self-defense programs.

For Caruso, martial arts has been a major part of his life since he began training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and kickboxing in 2021.

“I never experienced anything like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,” he said. “It’s a mind game, and there are no shortcuts.”

“No one can fake martial arts,” he added. “You either put the time in or you get tapped out.”

Caruso remembers his first day of training, when he was 24 and in good physical shape. He was paired with a blue belt who was about 40 pounds lighter and in his late 50s.

“The older and lighter partner handled me easily,” he recalled.

The experience taught him that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is about technique, not simply size or strength, and that the sport can be learned at any age.

But the benefits of training go beyond the physical.

"Our goal is for everyone to leave with 100% confidence. Anyone who comes in to learn these skills will raise their confidence and awareness to new heights. I know it did for me. And resilience," Caruso said. "Most of our students are Palisades locals and went through so much loss with the fires. But for them to be able to come back to their community, be together, and train and learn, it's really special."

From Music to Martial Arts

Justin Caruso has also built a career as a DJ, and he sees a connection between music and martial arts.

“Both music and martial arts take patience,” he said. “They’re two different worlds, both creative art.”

He said he loves challenging himself through both pursuits and has made lifelong friends through each.

Music is also part of the LUDUS experience. Caruso said each class has a different playlist, with cardio kickboxing featuring more upbeat music and evening BJJ classes having a calmer, more relaxed sound.

The physical space was designed to be part of that experience.

“LUDUS doesn't feel like a gym. It feels like a high-end facility with a comforting, home-like feel to it. We want people to be happy spending time here. I'm so used to walking into gyms that smell or don't feel kept up and clean. Why? Give people the best experience you can!," Caruso exclaimed.

"Martial Arts really is a hospitality business, and I don't feel many gyms have tapped into that five-star feeling. We're really separating ourselves, combining a premium experience with martial arts, and we're already seeing and hearing how much the customers appreciate it,” Caruso added.

The name LUDUS comes from Latin and can mean “game,” “play,” “school” or “training.”

Memberships include unlimited kids’ classes for $260 per month, unlimited kickboxing for $260, unlimited BJJ for $260 and unlimited classes for $350. LUDUS also offers a free trial class for new students, visiting day passes, five-class packages, women’s self-defense classes and private lessons.

For Caruso, however, the significance of LUDUS goes beyond the classes themselves. It is about creating a place where Palisades residents can reconnect after an experience that changed the community forever.

“Seeing these families fill the place has been a dream come true,” Caruso said.