Rubens Cobrinha against Augusto Tanquinho at 2013 European Open (photo by Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG.com)

One of the highlights of the last European Jiu-Jitsu Championship, which wrapped up last weekend, was the final between two of the most technical athletes around at the moment, featherweights Rubens Cobrinha and Augusto Tanquinho.

Cobrinha, our GMA in Los Angeles, made two attempts before sweeping Tanquinho in style (check out minute 11:12 of the video).

But how did the sweep happen? In a conversation with GRACIEMAG.com, Augusto Tanquinho gave his account:

“I was on top and the score was 0-0. And as the match was coming to an end, I decided to go for a figure-four footlock on him. The initial position was in place, but I ended up losing hold and he ended up on top, scoring two points. I still had a chance to draw even with a sweep, but I didn’t get to stabilize it and he ended up winning by 2-0. Props to him for making fewer mistakes. He deserves the win,” said the professor for team Soul Fighters.

Paulo Miyao against Gianni Grippo at 2013 European Open (photo by Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG.com)

Paulo Miyao and Gianni Grippo are two of the toughest brown belts in world Jiu-Jitsu. And fate would have it that their paths crossed in the featherweight division of the 2013 European Open, where they had a back-and-forth battle in 50/50 guard. In the end the scoreboard read one advantage apiece.

Watch the match and join the debate: is the 50/50 guard hindering Jiu-Jitsu, like a lot of people are saying, or is it just another stage in the art’s evolution? Watch and comment!

Dimitrius Souza sinks an omoplata at the 2013 European Open. (Photo by Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG.com)

Dmitrius Souza won the heavyweight division of the 2013 European Championship, which wrapped up last Sunday. In the grand finale, the Alliance black belt defeated another revelation: GFTeam’s Leonardo Maciel.

“It was a marvelous feeling. It’s my first major title since getting my black belt. I hope it’s the first of many to come. I’d like to dedicate the win to my father, who passed away late last year while I was teaching some seminars. It was a hard knock because I didn’t get to say goodbye, but I know he’s there to see this title, which is for him,” said Dimitrius.

“It was a relief to win, because I’d faced Leonardo before, when I lost to him on my debut as a black belt. I knew it would be a tough match. Fortunately, everything worked out and I came out victorious,” he said.

Léo Nogueira and Bernardo Faria: closing out in Lisbon was reminiscent of the 2012 Worlds superheavyweight division. (Photo by Dan Rod/GRACIEMAG.com)

The word “companion”, it is said, comes from the latin roots “com” and “panis”, meaning “with the bread”. A companion is someone with whom we break bread. In the case of buddies Bernardo Faria and Léo Nogueira, two of the biggest winners at the 2013 European Open Jiu-Jitsu Championship, the word fits like a glove.

Absolute-winning black belt Léo Nogueira put runner-up Bernardo Faria up at his place during leaner days. That is why when the two Alliance teammates make it to a final together, as with the absolute in Lisbon, they aren’t likely to fight.

We had a chat with Bernardo Faria, today’s 26-year-old birthday boy, about his conquests in Jiu-Jitsu, the value of friendship, and of course, his campaign at the IBJJF European Open, which wrapped up last Sunday. Check out what the number one in the world Jiu-Jitsu ranking has to say, and let us know if you agree with his perspective on shutting out brackets.

GRACIEMAG: With gold in the superheavyweight division at the European Open and silver in the absolute, you are now the Jiu-Jitsu world number one. How does that feel?

BERNARDO FARIA: I’m overjoyed with everything that is happening in my life, and I hope to carry on coming up with good results and pursuing the ones I’m missing. It’s sensational to be able to participate in Jiu-Jitsu’s growth, and fighting in a packed gymnasium in Europe was awesome. After the championship, I rushed to check the IBJJF Ranking and saw that I was in first [Léo Nogueira is in second, Rodolfo in third, Bochecha in fourth and Rômulo Barral in fifth]. My place in the ranking is cool but didn’t affect our decision to close out the absolute. We’d already agreed that if one of us should lose at weight, he’d be the one to take the gold in the absolute. It was a way of having both of us be champions in Lisbon.

The crowd always wants to see action, especially when it’s an absolute final. Yet there’s no chance of you fighting Nogueira?

Not a lot of people know it, but as soon as I moved from Minas Gerais to São Paulo I lived in the same room as him. I’ve known Léo for many years. He’s the one who opened the doors to Fabio Gurgel’s team for me. It was pretty rough back then. There was hardly enough space for two people in that room, and I stayed there for ten days. But that didn’t dampen our spirits. We always said that the day would come when both of us would be Jiu-Jitsu standouts. Today, thank God, we’re the two top ranked athletes in the world!

And you guys train together the whole time, because of your weight…

Yes. We’re the same age, the same weight and practically the same height. I model myself on him a lot, just as I can tell he models himself on me, too. We swap a lot of positions and details. We train together a lot. Because of all that, I can’t see us fighting, and I’m honored to be sharing titles with him.

Which was your toughest match in Lisbon?

I had four matches, two in the absolute and two at weight. On Saturday, in the absolute, I got a by and won my first match by W.O., as my opponent got injured. After that I tapped out Renato Cardoso [CheckMat] with an omoplata and beat Calasans by 8-0 in the semifinals. On Sunday, at weight, I tapped out Mauricio of Cicero Costha team in the first match, and in the final I beat Lucio Lagarto by 2 to 0. The toughest ones were against Calasans, who’s always dangerous, and Lagarto, another really dangerous athlete.

You’d lost to Calasans in 2011, right? What made the difference this time?

Without a doubt he’s one of the best athletes around right now, for the fact that he’s well-rounded: he’s good at judo, passing, guard-playing and submissions. That’s why I feel that match was the highlight for me at the Europeans. I’d lost to him in 2011 because of a refereeing mistake, but this time I managed to take his back and win, thank God.

What’s the trick to pulling off that omoplata of yours?

The omoplata I used to tap out Renato Cardoso is something I do a lot. The difference is that, when I do it, my objective is the submission and not the sweep. I managed to get him in a triangle, and as he was doing a good job of withstanding the hold, I switched to the omoplata, and it worked out.

Where will you be going on your next trip?

Now it’s the IBJJF Pan and maybe some Abu Dhabi WPJJC tryout. I’ll stick around Europe for another two weeks teaching seminars, and at the end of February I’ll head to New York to train with Marcelo Garcia. I’m stoked.

Claudio Calasans and Fernando Tererê on the middleweight podium at the 2013 European Open (photo by Kinya Hashimoto)

A favorite to take gold no matter what tournament he’s in, Atos middleweight Claudio Calasans Jr. returns home from Lisbon with another two medals to hang up on the wall of his bedroom. The first is a bronze for the absolute. The second, a golden one, is special like few in his career. After finishing off two opponents, Calasans took on the illustrious Fernando Tererê, who ended up getting disqualified for crossing a leg over the knee while playing guard. Even so, the match carries special import for Calasans, who is now a two-time champion of Europe.

“I could tell that he [Tererê] had been training hard and had come back to fight with the best in the division. I’m rooting for him to continue pursuing his objectives in Jiu-Jitsu. To me it was a dream to fight him. If training with him is already a dream, imagine competing against him! I never imagined it would be possible, since when I was a blue belt the guy was a black-belt champion,” says Calasans, before explaining the events surrounding the disqualification.

“In the end he was disqualified for crossing his leg inwards over my knee when playing guard. I was winning the match by two points and an advantage point. It happened about six minutes into the match. Neither Tererê nor the ref noticed the mistake, as we went for two minutes in the irregular position.”

Calasans feels his outing in the absolute on Saturday left a bit to be desired.

“Man, I don’t mean to take credit from the guys I face but I had three matches in the absolute and don’t know what happened—I didn’t do well. I trained a lot to win, but I fought a lot different in my weight class. I think it just wasn’t my day. I messed up a lot, even in the matches that I won, and you can’t let that happen at black belt. Now I’m going to make myself stronger because of it, since I’ve got the most important part: a major love for Jiu-Jitsu,” he said in finishing.

Barral applies a basic choke on Rodrigo Pimpolho in the medium-heavyweight final of the 2013 European Championship. (Photo by Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG.com)

Appearing for the first time in the ten-year history of the tournament, Gracie Barra black belt Romulo Barral went to Portugal and didn’t go home empty handed.

On Sunday, the Brazil-California transplant sent himself through to the medium-heavyweight final. The problem was that at the other end of the bracket there was another Gracie Barra professor, the black belt from Curitiba Rodrigo Fajardo, then the European champion of the division. The solution? They locked horns to see who is best between the four lines.

“We’re from Gracie Barra but hail from different cities. We’ve never trained together and both want to be champions, so there’s nothing more fitting than for us to fight,” Romulo told GRACIEMAG.com. “I had a sensation of having accomplished my duty. I had an excellent campaign; I managed to win all my matches with the choke from the mount. Nothing’s more meat-and-potatoes than that.”

To Barral the greatest lesson he derived from the European Championship was precisely that: believe in the traditional and most basic.

“It’s a tip that’s valid for practitioners of all belts. Don’t worry about learning only the modern positions. First you have to get good at the basics,” he said in teaching the lesson.

His only regret was having not entered the absolute.

“I wasn’t sure whether to compete in the absolute, because I caught a nasty flu on the week of the tournament. As I wasn’t feeling quite 100%, I chose not to risk it. But it was hard to decide while watching everything from the sidelines,” remembered Romulo, who will next try his hand at the Feb. 9 and 10 Abu Dhabi WPJJC tryouts in Miami.

For the time being, though, he’ll be celebrating his first gold medal at a European Open:

“It was awesome to be here to enjoy my first European Championship. I feel I did a great job of preparing. I had an attacking game without leaving any openings or making any mistakes my opponents could capitalize on. Hence the result,” said the GB ace in closing.

 Click here for the complete results from the 2013 European Open.

Alexander Trans stabilizes side-control on Léo Nogueira at 2013 European Open. (Photo courtesy of IBJJF)

A beast from team Alliance, Léo Nogueira closed out the black belt absolute at the European Jiu-Jitsu Championship with his teammate Bernardo Faria. In the ultraheavyweight division, however, there was a Danish wrecking machine standing in his way.

In the semifinals of their weight class, Alexander Trans of CheckMat academy exacted revenge for the loss he suffered to Nogueira in the absolute on Saturday.

Trans was trailing 2-0 on points from a sweep until the final 50 seconds. But the giant was stone cold and passed guard for the come-from-behind 5-2 win.

Watch how it went:

Keenan Cornelius defeated two Miyao brothers on his way to winning the absolute division at the 2013 European Open in Lisbon. (Photo by Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG)

At the 2013 European Open, which wrapped up yesterday in Lisbon, another chapter of the saga of Keenan Cornelius and the Miyao brothers was added to the encyclopedia of modern Jiu-Jitsu.

The showdown between the brown belts took place in the absolute division on Sunday. The Lloyd Irvin-trained phenomenon defeated Paulo Miyao by 5 to 2 before tapping João out for the gold.

Rodrigo Pimpolho in his victorious match with Nivaldo Oliveira at the 2012 European Open (photo courtesy of GB Curitiba website)

The current medium-heavyweight champion of Europe, Rodrigo “Pimpolho” Fajardo of Gracie Barra Curitiba will be defending his title in Lisbon this weekend.

“I’ve been preparing for this championship ever since November. Thank God I have plenty of variety in sparring partners at GB Curitiba; these days I don’t need to leave the academy to get good training,” Pimpolho told GRACIEMAG.com recently.

“This year I want to compete at everything. But what I’m dreaming about is the Worlds. It’s the first time I’ll get to be there as a black belt. Last year I finally got my visa, after being turned down three times. Just being able to be in the game to me is awesome,” added the fighter, who revealed who he feels will be his trickiest opponent at the European Open.

“I feel my biggest obstacle will be me, myself: my ego,” he theorized.

“He’s the one holding me back from taking risks. He’s asking me the whole time, ‘What will they think of you if the move doesn’t work?’ He’s the one keeping me from trying my luck with new things. He’s the one that keeps me from doing one last roll when I’m already really tired. ‘And what if you lose the roll, what will they say?’ The ego is also our rival when we win—when you’re all cocky, thinking that moment will last forever. That is being a slave to your ego. Fighters who think they’re better than the rest because they win a Jiu-Jitsu tournament, rather than moving forward in their journey and helping the community around them, they are slaves to their egos. My fight is always with the ego,” philosophized the champion.

Don’t miss Pimpolho’s fight with himself and his opponents. Stay tuned to GRACIEMAG.com for coverage.

The European Open is already underway in Lisbon.

 Click here to check out the brackets.

Michael Langhi on the attack at the 2012 Rickson Cup in Japan (personal archive photo)

A regular on the mats in Lisbon, the lightweight Michael Langhi wants to recapture his throne at the European Open, an IBJJF tournament set to begin this Thursday when the white and blue belts take to the mats in competition.

After taking bronze in 2012 (the final, a barnburner, was between Roger Satoshi and JT, both of whom are absent this year), Langhi is physically and technically ready to tap out anyone in his way.

“I’m prepared. I’m going to stick to my usual style of going on the attack and seeking the finish, as Rubens Cobrinha taught me to. Of course sometimes that won’t be possible, but anyone who knows who I am knows that I fight for the finish. I am making some changes to my game, though; trying to improve in all the different facets. I’m positive I’ll be showing a Langhi better than before and with plenty of desire to win,” said the teacher for team Alliance who won in 2009 and 2011 and took runner-up after closing out in 2010.

At GRACIEMAG.com’s request, Langhi took a look at his opposition.

“The lightweight division is always stacked. Though not all the big names from the world scene are in it, I did see Vinicius Marinho on the list. He’s a tough athlete who I’ve faced twice in black belt finals at the Brazilian Nationals. And there are always the guys who are coming up the ranks and hungry to win. I’ve got my eye on everybody and worried about all of them but I still expect to close out the division with my teammate Gabriel Goulart,” said Langhi, who offered a glimpse of his plans for the rest of the season.

“My greater objective for 2013 is to be the best I can be, on and off the mat. I feel that’s what all athletes want. I want to improve with every day, be a better athlete and teacher,” he said in finishing. Watch the Sao Paulo native’s finishing style at the 2012 Rickson Cup.

The brave “Lalau” and his master, Givanildo Santana (personal archive photo)

The current world runner-up in the light featherweight division, Laércio Fernandes of team Lotus Club is yet another black belt spicing up next weekend’s European Open Championship.

“I arrived in Portugal yesterday. But I’m going to hook up with Rubens Cobrinha in Vigo, Spain. I’m feeling really good, and my preparations went according to plan. I put in a lot of training with Giva Santana and my students. Now I’ll spend this week doing some final adjustments with Cobrinha,” Lárcio told GRACIEMAG.com.

“I did a lot of specific training and am really excited about fighting. I hope I wake up feeling good and do a good job and return home to California with a medal to show my family. I want everyone to be proud of me this year,” said the masterful guard player who will be in the same division as CheckMat’s Carlos “Esquisito” and Alliance’s Francielio da Costa, among others.

The European Championship will go down from July 24 to 27 in Lisbon, Portugal. To find out who else will try and rain on Laércio and everyone else’s parade, click here to check out the IBJJF website..

Romulo Barral sweeps André Galvão in divisional final at IBJJ Pro League (photo by Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG).

Last December, Romulo Barral pocketed 5,000 dollars by outdoing his friend Otavio Sousa and André Galvão to win his division at the IBJJF Pro League. The Jiu-Jitsu professor from team Gracie Barra didn’t get much time to celebrate, though, as training will not be put on hold. His goal in getting back to the grind? To win his first European Open in Lisbon, Portugal, at the end of this January.

We spoke with the Brazil-California transplant about his training for the IBJJF tournament. Here’s what he had to say:

GRACIEMAG: Are you already in tip-top shape for the European Open in Lisbon?

ROMULO BARRAL: I’m ready and really happy to get to participate in my first European Open. We’re aiming for a first title in Lisbon. I’ve been preparing for it ever since the Pro League. I didn’t stop for Christmas or for New Year’s. I’ve got a strong team at the academy. I managed to set up a really good competition team. I’ve been training with my students and teammates every day. I’ve got a number of Gracie Barra black belts training with me, like Rodrigo Freitas, Bruno Antunes, Lucas Rocha, Otavio Sousa, Rafael Tinoco and Magidinho, as well as my own black belts Cristian Belo, Larry Scot and Ben Saloman. All of them help me, and on top of that there’s my physical conditioning trainer Leo Frincu.

Have you gotten a look at who all is in the medium-heavyweight division? Do you have an idea who will be the biggest obstacle in getting the gold?

I haven’t looked at my division yet to not get nervous. But for sure everyone there is going to be tough.

What’s your big goal for 2013?

As an athlete, to participate in all the main Jiu-Jitsu tournaments. As a coach, to do the best job possible to help my team and students. My main objective in 2013 is to fight for my fourth world title as a black belt as well as to win my first world absolute.

How would you define Romulo Barral’s style of Jiu-Jitsu?

It’s non-stop offense. I like going on the attack, both playing guard and passing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5njOYaFdvw