Day 1 Live Blogging from the BJJ World Championships
June 7, 2008
This will be pretty fast and furious (forgive the reference to the movie!), but we’re here in Los Angeles at the Pyramid reporting live from the 2008 BJJ Mundials! As with last year, perhaps the best way to find out how your favorite grappler is doing will be to do a CTRL+F to Find their name.
Feel free to post your thoughts in the comments below!
- Caleb
Miscellaneous:
- The black belt open division is being decided by committee. At the moment as there are no official rankings a discussion of the largest BJJ camps ensures fair and balanced brackets. Present were Saulo Ribeiro, Fabio Gurgel, Marcio Feitosa, Demian Maia, Mauricio Motta Gomes, and others.
- Relson Gracie’s son Rhalan yesterday was disqualified after applying a kneebar to an opponent. Rhalan claims that he was told kneebars were allowed by an official. It turns out that the “official” was the person responsible for checking gis, and also flat mistaken.
- Big names in attendance who are not competing: Josh Barnett, Royler Gracie, Demian Maia, Robert Drysdale, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza.
Purple Belt Mens
Neiman Gracie is taking on Omar Santiago. He is being coached by Renzo Gracie and Kayron Gracie.
Santiago was working some x-guard on Neiman but he is now defending an armbar attempt in Neiman’s guard.
Neiman wins by armbar.
Ryan Hall just stepped on the mats against a very large opponent from Team Megaton.
Several minutes into the match, the score is still 0-0 across the board in Ryan Hall’s match.
When the timer sounds, it’s still 0-0 for Ryan Hall’s match, and the judges award the match to his opponent.
Purple Belt Womens
Nyjah Easton was holding Jasmin Sewgobind in her guard when I last checked but I am unsure of the outcome of their match.
Brown Belt Mens
Kayron Gracie choked Nic Gregoriades
Kayron Gracie takes first place, fellow Gracie Barra member Bruno Alves takes second by gentleman’s decision.
Leo Santos (UNIJJ) is in action.
Leo Santos wins on points.
Leo Santos is getting ready to take the mats again.
Leo Santos is still standing against his opponent who is wearing a BYJJ patch many minutes later.
Leo Santos eventually won. Slow, uneventful match.
Leo Santos (UNIJJ) is involved in a very physical match against an opponent from Chute Boxe Jiu-Jitsu.
Leo Santos wins on points and takes the gold medal for the division.
Womens Brown / Black
Luka Dias (Humaita) lost her first match to Sayaka Shioda (AACC) by armbar
Hanette Quadros Staack defeats Gabrielle Garcia
Sayaka Shioda defeats Monica Fonseca Da Silva by footlock.
Kyra Gracie is up next…
Kyra Gracie will take on McDermott (brown belt).
Kyra is up 2-0 by takedown.
Sophia McDermott is now down 0-5 against Kyra.
Kyra in McDermott’s kalf guard, attacking.
Kyra defeats McDermott, who did not score any points but fought a tough fight.
Christie Thomas (Relson Gracie) is now up against Sayaka Shioda, who is already looking for foot attacks.
Shioda is up on Thomas by points, and is now in Thomas’ guard.
Shioda catches Christy Thomas in an ankle lock.
Laurence Cousin (Behring), the 2007 featherweight world champion from France is getting ready to take the mat.
Cousin’s opponent: Hanette Staack.
Michele Nicolini is up against a brown belt from Gracie Humaita.
Cousin has Staack in her guard.
Nicolini quickly wins her first match.
Staack is still in Cousin’s guard, many minutes later.
Cousin wins!
Michele Nicolini is stuck in a flying triangle, which she eventually escapes!
Nicolini is down on points 6-4.
Nicolini loses 10-4.
Laurence Cousin steps on the mat against Kyra Gracie!
Cousin is underneath Kyra in half guard. Kyra is attempting a head - arm triangle choke.
After nearly having the head arm triangle for many minutes, Kyra spins into an armbar and taps Cousin.
Michele Nicolini is tied against Ana Laura Cordeiro (Gracie Barra) 2-2.
Nicolini is now down on points against her much larger opponent. She suddenly succumbs to an armbar from the mount from Cordeiro.
Shioda has her back taken quickly by Kyra Gracie.
Kyra’s been going for a gi choke against Shioda from the back… Shioda is defending.
Renzo Gracie is imploring Kyra to maintain the position. Josh Barnett is coaching Shioda.
After defending valiantly for many minutes, Shioda taps to Kyra’s choke.
Leticia Ribeiro (Gracie Humaita) is stepping on to the mat against Sayaka Shioda (AACC).
Christy Thomas (Relson Gracie) is fighting Ana Laura Cordeiro (GB).
Ana Laura Cordeiro has defeated Christy Thomas.
Leticia Ribeiro is beating Shioda 10-0.
Luka Dias is getting ready to face Gabrielle Garcia.
Patricia Lage (Barbosa JJ) armbarred Jennifer Petrina (Gracie Humaita).
Gabrielle Garcia is up 2-0 over Luka Dias after a takedown.
Shioda is still giving Ribeiro a run for her money. Ribeiro’s husband Fabricio Camoes is cheering on Leticia, who ultimately wins on points. Very tough match.
Gabrielle Garcia’s size appears to be too much for Luka this time around. Dias is now down 8-0 on points.
Kyra Gracie is now on the mat against Gabriela Bermudez (Gracie Humaita).
Luka Dias loses to Gabrielle Garcia. The score is 11-0.
Kyra Gracie is winning 4-0 over Gabriela Bermudez.
Hanette Staack is upagainst Sophia McDermott (Machado Australia).
Kyra defeats Gabriela Bermudez 4-0.
A medic has been called out to attend to Sophia McDermott. She may have dislocated her shoulder. Staack is declared the victor.
Penny Thomas and Christy Thomas are one of the last fights of the evening. The score is tied 0-0.
Leticia Ribeiro is about to compete againar Bianca Barreto (Gracie Barra).
Barreto is now up 2-0 over Leticia Ribeiro.
Penny Thomas (Limao) is now up on points over Christy Thomas.
Bianca Barreto has taken Leticia Ribeiro’s back.
Penny Thomas defeats Christy Thomas (Relson Gracie) on points.
Bianca Barreto still has Leticia Ribeiro’s back. Ribeiro is face down on the mat and Barreto is looking for an opening.
Bianca Barreto defeats Leticia Riebiro.
Laurence Cousin wins her final match of the day by armbar.
Men’s Open Weight Black Belt Division
The action on all mats is stopped and a five minute video from Budo Video is shown recapping the open weight division fights since the IBJJF’s Mundials.
Mike Fowler is down 0-2 against an Roberto Abreu.
Mike Fowler is on bottom in half guard.
Fowler is falling behind on points to his much larger opponent, and remains on bottom.
Abreu beats Fowler.
Robin Geiseler (Relson Gracie) lost his first match.
Andre Galvao is about to take the mats against an
unnamed opponent.
Galvao’s opponent is Martins Soares. Galvao is now passing his guard, almost taking the ack as the opponent turtles. They are stood up.
Galvao is having his way with Soares, almost dancing around his defenses. Soares taps to a kimura to loud applause.
Flavio Almeida is in action against an unknown opponent and is in half guard on top.
Cobrinha versus Rafael Lovato JR! Starting now!!!!!
Lovato is on bottom. No points yet.
Cobrinha is having a tough time getting by Lovato’s long legs. Fabio Gurgel is coaching from the sidelines.
Flavio Almeida is being attended to by the medics for a cut on his head.
Roger Gracie is on the sidelines, presumably getting ready for an imminent match.
Lovato is still on bottom, gets a takedown. Points awarded.
Lovato is now in Cobrinha’s guard.
Roger Gracie is now in the half guard of his opponent.
Cobrinnha is going for a omoplata, Lovato stands.
Xande Ribeiro is in action.
Flavio Almeida gets a big slam on his opponent.
Cobrinha sweeps Lovato for two points.
Roger Gracie is mounting his opponent, going for choke.
Roger sinks the choke.
Xande is about to take his opponent’s back.
Flavio Almeida wins his first match on points.
Xande sinks a choke on his opponent and wins his first match.
Lovato Jr. wins AS THE CLOCK EXPIRES WITH A SWEEP against Cobrinha!!!
Cobrinha’s large crowd from Alliance is protesting, of course.
Andre Galvao is up against Roberto Abreu.
Galvao defeats Abreu by kneebar.
Roger Gracie steps on the mat against an unknown opponent in a black Koral gi.
Xande Ribeiro is now on the mat against an unknown opponent.
Roger is on top in half guard in his match.
Roger is already mounted on his opponent, getting ready to set up the choke.
His opponent regains half guard.
Xande wins by submission. (Sorry, I missed it.)
Roger has his opponent’s back.
Roger taps his opponent for the win.
Rafael Lovato Jr. is up against Gracie Florianopolis’ Marcel Fortuna.
Lovato Jr. pulls guard.
Lovato Jr. eventually secures an armbar over Marcel Fortuna.
Flavio Almeida is now on the mat against an unknown opponent.
Almeida gets the takedown and is up 2-0.
Almeida is still up 2-0 against his opponent many minutes later.
Almeida wins by points, 2-0.
Just as I feel a break in the action and try to take a break, I see Rafael Lovato Jr. and Andre Galvao getting ready to go against each other. I settle back in.
Xande Ribeiro is in action against Antonio Braga Neto (thanks for help with the name Ross!), and is winning 2-0.
Xande has mounted his opponent, is looking for the choke.
Xande sinks the choke on Neto.
Lovato Jr. versus Andre Galvao has begun!
Lovato pulls guard. Galvao is standing.
Lovato is plaing open guard, Galvao is attempting to pass.
More of the same. The two are restarted in the center.
Galvao gets an advantage point for a near-pass. Roger Gracie is watching from the side.
Galvao takes Lovato Jr’s back, and sinks a collar choke!
Roger Gracie takes the mat against and unknown Gracie Florianopolis opponent.
Roger gets a big judo thrown and lands on top. He quickly lands mount.
Roger Gracie is sinking the choke from the mount against his opponent.
Roger Gracie sinks the choke. Match over.
Flavio Almeida is in action again. He is facing Gabriel Vella (Alliance).
Vella defeats Almeida by points in a great match. Almeida’s previously sustained eye injury looks rough! I will post a photo of it sometime soon.
Roger Gracie and Andre Galvao are pacing next to mat number one! Fireworks in a moment!
Galvao and Roger lock up… they’re fighting for grips. Roger looms over Galvao by many inches.
The crowd is nearly silent waiting in tense anticipation.
Roger gets a judo throw and gets big applause!
Galvao slips out from underneath and is nearly on Roger’s back!
Both are standing. Galvao is standing low behind Roger’s back, clamped on.
They come undone near the sidelines and are given a moment to re-tie their gis in the center.
Now reengaging, Galvao attempts to pull guard but Roger passes immediately. Roger gets points for takedown and passing. Roger is now on top in half guard.
Every eye in the Pyramid is on the two, as Roger gets another two points for passing.
Roger nearly gets mount but Galvao escapes. Roger gets an advantage.
Roger now has Galvao in a body triangle from the back. Galvao’s situation worsens.
Roger is sinking the choke from behind on Galvao, but Galvao escapes for the time being back into Roger’s mount.
Roger Gracie is going for the armbar as time runs out and defeats Andre Galvao by points!!!
Xande Ribeiro (UNIJJ) is taking the mat against Gabriel Vella (Alliance).
Controversy erupts as it looked like Vella just tapped to an armbar by Xande, but they are stood back up again.
Xande gets the takedown, now working from half guard.
The action moves out of bounds and they restart in the middle standing.
The score is now 2-0 in Xande’s favor. Xande also has three advantages and Vella has one.
The two have been exchanging takedown attempts, and they are given a quick second to recompose their gis. The action resumes from standing in the center again.
Xande is now on top in half guard and secures mount!
Vella escapes and is now underneath in half guard again.
Vella secures full guard on Xande.
Vella sweeps and gets the takedown. Xande winds up on bottom as time runs out.
Xande Ribeiro defeats Gabriel Vella by points.
Tomorrow’s final in the absolute division will be a rematch between Xande Ribeiro versus Roger Gracie!
Wilson Reis is warming up on the sideline, fresh off his MMA victory last weekend.
Joe Camacho just walked on the mat against Leonardo Soares. His opponent very quickly jumped into a flying triangle that Camacho is fighting off.
Camacho pops out and is attempting to pass.
Soares defeats Camacho (Sorry I missed the submission).
Wilson Reis’ opponent will be Kazumasa Sekiguch.
Wilson Reis defeats Kazumasa Sekiguch on points.
Frederico Sabbatini (Cia Paulista) is in action against Joao Silva (Aloisio Silva).
Sabbatini and Silva have been paused to fix their gis. Sabbatini has spent most of the time in Silva’s guard.
Sabbatini has sped away on points, now up 8-0 on Silva.
Silva has appeared to lock a tight triangle on Sabbatini, who did tap but just as the whistle had begun blowing. Sabbatini is the winner!
Rubens “Cobrinha” Charles just took the mat against Jean Jacques Machado black belt Scott DeWitt.
Cobrinha has taken DeWitt’s back early in the encounter.
Cobrinha sinks the choke against DeWitt in under two minutes.
Paulo Guillobel won his match. Sorry, I don’t know his opponent.
Jared Weiner and Gilbert Burns are heading to the mats.
Celso Vinicius is ip on his opponent by one advantage point.
Celso Viniciuus is now up 5-0 on his opponent.
Wellington “Megaton” Dias is now up by one advantage over Toshiyuki Sato.
Megaton has his opponent in the guard.
Frederico Sabbatini is in action again.
Megaton taps Sato by armbar! The crowd reacts with warm applause.
Celso Vinicius defeats his opponent by points.
Jared Weiner is fighting off an omoplata attempt, and escapes. The two are now standing
Sabbatini is way down on points.
Daisuke Sugie is up 7-0 over Andre Maracaba.
Sabbatini loses to an opponent from Alliance.
Jared Weiner wins his match against Gilbert Burns on points.
Daisuke Sugie defeats Andre Maracaba on points.
Johnny Ramirez (BJJ Revolution) is now in his second match of the day. He is facing Gracie Barra’s Samuel Braga.
Celso Vinicius is now in action against his Team Megaton opponent and up 2-0 after a big throw lands him on top.
Michel Maia and Paulo Guillobel are in action. Michele is on bottom in half guard.
Wilson Reis is about to face Gabriel Furley.
Celso “Celsinho” Vinicius (Ryan Gracie) is pounding his opponent on points, 18-0.
Paulo Guillobel has Michel Maia in a deep triangle.
Marcos “Yemaso” Torregosa wins his first match.
Michel Maia escapes the triangle and the is now standing against Guilobel again.
Noah Booth is up 3-0 on his opponent.
Sandro “Batata” Santiago is underneath his opponent in half guard.
Batata is now down on points.
Wilson Reis defeated Gabriel Furley on points.
Megaton is up 2-0 against a Japanese opponent after a judo throw to open the match.
Paulo Guillobel defeated Michel Maia on points.
Bill “The Grill” Cooper is in action against Luis Gutavo Campos. The score is 0-0.
Roger Gracie just landed in the open guard of Luigi Mondelli as their match opens. Roger already passed.
Roger Gracie taps Luigi Mondelli by breadcutter from sidemount for the win.
Tarsis Humphries is handily beating his opponent on points.
Bill Cooper defeated his opponent by footlock.
Thanks to PeshPhoto.com for help with keeping us powered!!!
Mike Fowler and his cheetah-spotted head are on the mat against Kyle Sukehira (Kamole JJ).
Tarsis Humphries wins 19-0.
Tony Passos wins his match.
Marcos “Yemaso” Torregossa is on the mat against a new opponent.
Rafael Ellwanger (Gracie Barra) and Eduardo Telles are getting ready to face one another.
Fowler has full mount on Sukehira.
Fowler finishes Sukehira with a choke from half guard.
Torregossa is winning on points.
Telles defeated Ellwanger.
Asa Fuller is down by five points against an unknown opponent.
Yemaso has won his match.
Asa Fuller has lost on points to Leonardo Leite.
Bill Cooper gets a takedown to open his match against Paulo Procopio, and escapes a subsequent triangle attempt.
Kron Gracie and his opponent Sergio Moraes (Alliance) have begun their match.
Moraes gets a quick 2 points for a takedown.
Kron is now down by a score of 4-2. Moraes is being examined for an eye issue sustained when the two went out of bounds during a Moraes takedown. Now medically cleared, the two have begun again.
Kron continues down on points though attacking from the guard. The Alliance crowd is chanting “Ser-gi-O! Ser-gi-O!”.
Kron gets slammed down and the crowd is demanging takedown points for Moraes, which do not come. Kron is now mounted! The score is now 11-2! Kron taps to a gi choke! Lead by the cheering from the Alliance crew, the Pyramid ERUPTS!!!
Rickson Gracie, Kron’s father, comes to the sidelines and whispers in his son’s ear. As Kron leaves the mat, he is rewarded with warm cheers from the crowd.
Bill Cooper wins 5-0 on points against Procopio.
Otavio Souza and Thiago Alves (Barbosa JJ) are getting ready to begin.
The score continues to be 0-0 between Souza and Alves.
Xande Ribeiro just tapped his opponent by armbar.
The score is now 2-2 between Alves and Souza. Souza is winning on advantages. The two have restarted standing.
Mike Fowler taps to a triangle from Vitor Estima (Gracie Barra).
Otavio Souza defeats Tiago Alves on points.
Braulio Estima (Gracie Barra) is now up…
Bruno Paulista (Gracie Barra) has defeated James Foster (No Limits / Lotus Club).
Braulio Estima defeated his opponent.
Luiz Teodoro aka “Big Mac” is now disqualified for not appearing.
Gustavo Campos (Rickson Gracie) just defeated Tokito Akuma (Purebred).
Sergio Moraes, who earlier defeated Kron Gracie, is in a deep triangle from Gracie Barra Augusto “Tio Chico” Vieira opponent.
As time runs out, Sergio does not tap and is declared the winner on points.
Last and final update: 06:57 PM I haven’t eaten anything but a granola bar today. (I also brought a ripe pear in my pocket which quickly exploded the first time I sat down. You’d think I’d know better!) It’s time for some grub and then back to the hotel to begin work on tomorrow’s show!
Reminder: Come back tomorrow for live results of the finals!
Jeff Glover Highlight Video from ADCCs
September 27, 2007
There were a lot of great things to watch at this year’s ADCC’s. A few from that weekend had to do with Jeff Glover, the 145 pound black belt product of Ricardo “Franjinha” Miller, who currently teaches at Marc Laimon’s Cobra Kai in Las Vegas. Here are some that I remember:
- Jeff Glover versus Leo Viera was my favorite match of the event, which is saying a lot given how much there was to see there (yes, even bigger than Robert Drysdale beating Marcelo Garcia). Seeing two agile, quick, creative and clever grapplers like that live at the elite level is really something special. Trying to get my head around watching those two spin all over the mats forced a mental system error and I had to reboot.
- Jeff Glover at the Marines advertising booth where they had a pull up bar for folks to show off how many pull ups they could do. Let’s just say that a small crowd was around and after doing a respectable amount (many more than I can do) Jeff lost his grip and fell off backwards flat on his ass, cracking the crowd up.
- The Jeff Glover highlight video being shown on the jumbotron, which I’ve pasted below from YouTube. I’ve wondered about this vid since seeing it there and it looks like the creator posted it online for us to enjoy. Thx grapplechaun, whoever you are!
#69 Kyra Gracie Interview & Never Submit Writer James Hergott
May 27, 2007
In a sure sign of things to come, this week on The FightWorks Podcast we welcome our first female guest, Kyra Gracie. Growing up in a house with Renzo Gracie, Ralph Gracie, and Ryan Gracie, Kyra, who is now 21, was exposed to Brazilian jiu-jitsu at a young age. No doubt one of the top female grapplers in the world, the very popular Kyra discusses how it’s possible to be a great competitor in combat sports while remaining feminine. We’ll not only get an update on the knee injury she suffered at the 2007 Abu Dhabis in New Jersey, but find out what her plans are and get to know her a little as well.
Our second interview contains a conversation with writer/director James Hergott, who wrote the script for the film Never Submit, a movie about mixed martial arts that had some prominent names from the MMA community involved. Hergott has filed a lawsuit against Ken Eade and Imperia Entertainment and asked for an injunction to stop work on the film, as he claims that he has not been paid in some time. We attempted to contact Mr. Eade for the story but did not hear back.
Kyra Gracie (bottom) against Caoimhe McGill at the 2007 ADCC
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (recommended)
[mp3] Download the show
Get to Know Demian Maia, ADCC Champion & MMA Fighter
May 16, 2007
Folks who’ve been following this site since our reporting of the 2007 Abu Dhabi Combat Club World Submission Grappling Championship should remember the name Demian Maia, the Brazilian grappler from Team Brasa who won the 77 - 87KG weight division at the tournament. Those with their ears firmly to the ground on the MMA scene also know that Maia is fighting in the Gracie Fighting Championships this weekend in Columbus, Ohio.
For American fans it should be a chance to witness an amazing grappler expand his nascent mixed martial arts skills, as they’ll also be able to do at the same event with BJJ star Jacare. Currently Maia is 4-0 in MMA according to Sherdog (note to Sherdog Fight Finder crew: you have what appears to be a duplicate entry for a “Damian Maia”).
Off the mats, Maia gives the impression that he’s got a background in marketing, as he appears to have invested a considerable amount of work into letting fans get to know him over one of the web’s most popular media: online video. You can check out a page he’s built for himself at http://www.youtube.com/DemianMaia. At the moment he’s uploaded six videos of his competition footage, which include a win over the aforementioned Jacare and even Gabriel “Napao” Gonzaga. If fortune is on his side, he’ll be able to include an update after this weekend reflecting a victory over his opponent Bill Vucick.
Marcelo Garcia at the 2007 Abu Dhabis
May 14, 2007
Marcelo Garcia (blue trunks) working a takedown on Ricco Rodriguez in ADCC 2005. Photo credit Eric W Zippe
One of the most intriguing and popular personalities to emerge in the grappling world in recent years is that of Marcelo Garcia, a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu from Brazil who is part of Team Alliance and now runs a school in New York City. Fit but unimposing, the 5′7″ and 170 pound expert in jiu-jitsu and submission grappling is dominating. With stout, powerful legs, Garcia, often affectionately referred to as “Marcelinho”, has won the Mundials in Brazilian jiu-jitsu competition in 2004 and 2006 and garners wide fan support for his victories over larger opponents. In the 2005 Abu Dhabi Submission Combat Club Grappling World Championships he won in a match against Ricco Rodriguez, who weighs in at 280 lbs. and is listed at 6′4″. This ability to overtake much more imposing fighters embodies one of the reasons people are attracted to Garcia. In a sport increasingly dominated by tall, thin grapplers like Roger Gracie, Braulio Estima, Robert Drysdale, Rafael Lovato Jr., and Tarsus Humphries, Marcelo Garcia epitomizes one of the fundamental promises of Brazilian jiu-jitsu: that by using technique and leverage, a smaller opponent can overtake a larger, stronger opponent.
Garcia before beating Pablo Popovitch at the 2007 ADCCs
This year at the 2007 ADCCs, Garcia put on another showstopping performance, rarely seeming to even breathe heavily in matches against the world’s elite. Of the dozens of names of elite submission grapplers present at the competition, few names drew the crowd response that Garcia’s did. A vocal group cheered in unison for fighters from Renzo Gracie’s long-established school in nearby New York City, including Rolls Gracie, Kyra Gracie, and Renzo himself. But every time Garcia’s name was mentioned to be fighting on one of the four mats, it seemed as if the tournament stopped while a large portion of those in attendance stood up from their seats and moved to wherever offered the best view to witness Garcia.
In his weight division, Garcia beat Australian George Sotiropoulos, UFC fighter Kurt Pellegrino, American standout Mike Fowler, and finally Florida grappler Pablo Popovitch to take first place in the 66Kg to 76Kg division. In the absolute division, where fighters of any weight may enter, Garcia beat Mario Miranda, Rolles Gracie, and the compact Cacareco, before losing in the finals to Robert Drysdale, who was ecstatic to come out on top over the legendary Garcia. Garcia would have to settle for bringing home one first place trophy and one second place trophy, an achievement few can boast.
After Lloyd Irvin student Mike Fowler’s own streak of beating grappling legends at the tournament ended when he encountered Garcia, Irvin stated, “The key thing is that Marcelo Garcia doesn’t make that many mistakes, if any. His pressure is very constant… Marcelo is Marcelo, you know? Fowler did the best he could.”
When Garcia’s coach Fabio Gurgel was asked in an interview what they concentrated on in preparation for the event, Gurgel replied, “I think that both [the physical and mental preparation ] are important, but of course we try to set up the new weapons for Marcelo, because everybody starts to study his game a lot. So his opponent came with a lot of defense for his old game, so he needs to create new weapons to make him win and keep going… He has a very strong mind, you know, he is very focused.”
Marcelo Garcia just prior to tapping Cacareco
More than a champion
Beating his opponents so soundly and with such regularity make a great competitor, but they do not necessarily endear fans the way Garcia has done. Garcia seems to have a constant, genuine smile on his face. Gracious in defeat and victory, he never complains to the referee. He does not celebrate excessively, even in his victories where by every measure he would be expected to. He simply smiles.
Just as Garcia projects an image distant from the stereotypical heavily muscled, tattooed and angry fighter, his wife Tatiana is a perfect complement. Unassuming and every bit as friendly as Marcelo, Tatiana smiles often and can be heard coaching him on from the side of the mats, shortening the affectionate name “Marcelinho” to an even more diminutive form, “Marcelín”.
Garcia, now becoming become known for his impersonations of Borat, seems to be broadening his appeal as the sport grows. On one occasion during a relatively quiet moment in competition at the 2007 ADCCs, an audience member shouted “Marcelinho for President!” While it’s not likely we’ll see him in the 2008 elections, you can bet he’ll continue to be one of the biggest names in grappling in the coming years.
Marcelo Garcia winning his weight division at the 2007 ADCCs. Photo credit European Fight Network
Rich Franklin’s New Opponent Yushin Okami
May 11, 2007
Earlier this week it was revealed that Martin Kampmann had sustained significant injury to a knee. It’s not clear if the ACL is completely torn or just damaged, but he will not be fighting Rich Franklin in the Belfast show that the UFC is holding on June 16.
Most reports covering the swap agree that the replacement for Martin Kampmann, Yushin Okami, is probably a tougher opponent for Franklin than Kampmann was going to be. Okami is 20-3-0 and more physically imposing than Kampmann. Further, Okami’s grappling is very good - so good that he was invited to the 2007 ADCCs, which we covered last weekend. While Okami was eliminated from the tournament in the first round, he was eliminated by Demian Maia, who went on to win the 87kg weight class.
It’s accepted by most that this bout was originally meant to be a tune-up fight to build Franklin back up and put him in line for title contention again. With Kampmann out now, and a tougher opponent standing between Franklin and contendership, the UFC’s plans may be foiled, and it will be increasingly hard to keep the tough Okami away from a title fight. Though very friendly, Okami is a harder fighter to market though, as his English is not great (at best) and North American fans will have a harder time identifying with him than Franklin (or Kampmann, for that matter).
Yushin Okami
#66 Interviews from the 2007 ADCCs
May 6, 2007
As you can see from the last two posts on The FightWorks Podcast, cohost of The FightWorks Podcast Dan and I travelled to New Jersey this weekend to cover the 2007 Abu Dhabi Combat Club World Championships of Submission Grappling. What an event.
In this episode of our show, Dan and I give our brief thoughts on the event, and share our conversations with the following personalities with you:
- Mike Fowler just after his win over Renzo Gracie
- Brian Cimins, co-promoter of Grapplers Quest
- Saulo and Xande Ribeiro at the beginning of Day 2, after Saulo’s loss to Fowler and before Xande went on to win his weight class
- Lloyd Irvin, whose students Mike Fowler and Ryan Hall competed in the event
- Braulio Estima, from Gracie Barra London and who recently came in second place in the 10k Classic behind Jeff Monson
- The voice of the octagon, Bruce Buffer
- Romulo Barral, who won the Pan-Ams black belt absolute division this year in Los Angeles
- Fabio Gurgel, coach of Marcelo Garcia, who won his weight division after defeating Pablo Popovitch in the finals
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (recommended)
[mp3] Download the show
Quick Results from ADCC Day Two
May 6, 2007
ADCC 2007 Superfight
Roger Gracie beat Jon Olav Einemo by a score of 5-0. Roger walks away with the $40,000 prize and Einemo receives $10,000 for his efforts. As you can imagine, Roger had a lot of verbal support including the coaching of Renzo Gracie. In this photo below, you can see Roger’s father Mauricio Gomes in the white t-shirt in the foreground, Braulio Estima in the background, Igor Gracie (white t-shirt seated), and Rolls Gracie (black t-shirt and sideburns).
Rani Yahya beating Leo Viera to win the under 65kg weight class.
Marcelo Garcia has his hand raised after beating Pablo Popovitch for the under 76kg division.
Open Weight Class
- Robert Drysdale beats Cacareco
- Mario “Pe de Pano” Cruz beats Darren Andy 11-0
- David Avellan goes to triple overtime to beat Xande Ribeiro
- Rolls Gracie armbars Rick Macauley in under one minute
- Tarsus Humphries beats Braulio Estima
- Andre Galvao beats Baret Yoshida
- Fabricio Werdum beats Mario Rinaldi
- Marcelo Garcia catches Cacareco in a rear naked choke
- Andre Galvao beats Fabricio Werdum
- Robert Drysdale beats David Avellan
- Robert Drysdale beats Andre Galvao
- Andre Galvao beats Cacareco to come in third place in the male absolutes. Cacareco’s pinky finger broke during the action and was pointing in a direction perpendicular to his hand. The medics attended to him after the match ended.
- Robert Drysdale beats Marcelo Garcia by a modified head arm triangle to win the men’s absolutes! Marcelo takes second!
In the women’s open division, Hanette Stack beats Rosangela Conceicaio. Along the way Kyra Gracie appeared to sustain a serious knee injury and was carried away from the mats on a stretcher.
I will be posting the podcast for this week in a few hours!
Excerpt from the audio interview with Saulo Ribeiro and Xande Ribeiro conducted today before the competition got started:
Dan: Okay guys, we are here for day two of the Abu Dhabis, we are standing here with the great Saulo and Xande Ribeiro, the famous Ribeiro brothers. This is The FightWorks Podcast, brought to you by OnTheMat.com. First Saulo, talk to us a little bit about yesterday, what your thoughts were, and what’s going on today.
Saulo Ribeiro: I think that the abu Dhabis are a unique tournament that you can not make mistakes, and if you make mistakes on a high level like this sometimes you pay for that, and that’s the price. Today all the effort is for Xande, who took his division, he took the open division… I think that is the man of the day.
Dan: Xande, what are your thoughts for today’s matches? What’s going through your head? Give us your thoughts looking [ahead] to the matches.
Xande Ribeiro: Yesterday was a good day. I could pass through my two fights, [I got] two submissions. I am pretty confident and pretty optimistic about today. I am feeling good, I am not sore. Today I expect a long day. It’s the semifinals today so if i run all the way to the open [division], it’s going to be six fights today. But, you know each fight I gotta face as a final because like Saulo said, one mistake can cost you the fight, so I am going to play smart, I am going to play my best jiu-jitsu. I am feeling good and I hope I can go through six fights and take all of them.
Quick Results from ADCC 2007 Day One
May 5, 2007
Wow, what a day. Probably the story of the day is Mike Fowler, who learned he was invited to the ADCCs only about four days ago when he was drunk in a bar in Guam, and who not only beat Renzo Gracie in a match where Renzo mostly sat in Fowler’s active guard, and then went on to beat Saulo Ribeiro by toe hold.
Crowd favorites today were easily distinguished. When announcer Bruce Buffer called out the names of Renzo Gracie and Marcelo Garcia when they were called for their respective matches, the crowd erupted. Otherwise the audience was more or less calm, with the exception of one fan. An unnamed spectator who was crossing the line with verbal abuse towards fighters during a match became belligerent when asked to leave the building, and he ultimately was maced and forced to leave.
Here are some early results until the official results are released later.
- Flavio Almeida beats Rick Macauley
- Pablo Popovitch beats Eric Dahlberg on points
- Lana Stefanac beats Yoko Takahashi
- Jeff Glover beats Jamie Ballard in under one minute by flying triangle
- Leo Viera beats Sim Go
- Marcio Pe De Pano Cruz beats Jannie Pietlainen after looking like he was going to tear his elbow from his arm
- Mark Bocek beats Drew Fickett
- Kyra Gracie beats Caoimhe McGill after switching from a short armbar to traditional armbar
- Kurt Pelligrino beats Nelson Monteiros
- Chris Moriarty beats Haim Gozali by rear naked choke
- Fabricio Werdum beats Elvis Sinosic by short arm bar
- Baret Yoshida beats Eddie Sanchez
- Braulio Estima beats Ricardo Almeida by head arm triangle
- Damien Maia beats Rafael Lovato Jr.
- Mike Fowler beats Renzo Gracie by points
- Romulo Barral beats Chris Moriarty (Moriarty verbally submits due to a previous leg injury?)
- Andre Galvao beats Mark Bocek by heel hook in a brief match
- Tarsus Humphries beats David Avellan in a long match, ultimately choking Avellan unconscious
- Marcelo Garcia taps Kurt Pellegrino by rear naked choke
- Saulo Ribeiro beats Takefuni Hanai
- Mike Fowler beats Saulo Ribeiro by toe hold after escaping having Saulo applying what appeared to be a sunk rear naked choke
- Leo Viera beats Jeff Glover on points after escaping what appeared to be a very deep brabo choke
Jeff Monson and Marcio Feitosa Among More Last Minute ADCC Changes
May 4, 2007
In an email blast sent out by Scotty from On The Mat this morning, we learn that both Jeff Monson and Marcio Feitosa will not be among those seen competing this weekend in New Jersey at the Abu Dhabi Combat Club World Submission Championships in Trenton, New Jersey.
Jeff Monson’s absence was ascribed to an undisclosed injury. No word on whether that will impact his appearance at the Gracie Fighting Championships May 19th in Columbus Ohio, where he is scheduled to take on Wes Sims in the final fight of the night.
Marcio Feitosa has apparently contracted a staph infection. This adds him to the list of fighters and grapplers also affected by MRSA, including but certainly not limited to Cole Escovedo, Forrest Griffin, and others. Staph is treatable (when correctly identified) but life-threatening if not caught in time. Please, readers, please make sure you take precautions at your gym by cleaning the mats frequently, washing your gis after rolling every time, and showering promptly after training.
Feitosa’s replacement was said to be Mike Fowler. Fowler is a very tough competitor who recently moved to Guam, where he is the only black belt in BJJ on the island. We will have to see if the apparent lack of high-end grapplers to help prepare him and the last minute invite affect him negatively.
This is going to be a great weekend. Looking forward to seeing you there!
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