Rominho at the 2007 Worlds against Xande Ribeiro

Five-time world champion Romulo Barral is celebrating another birthday this Tuesday, May 3.

We take the opportunity to look back into his amazing record at the World Jiu-Jitsu championship.

The best analogy to describe Barral’s history at the most important event of the gentle art calendar is a roller coaster.

He had his ups, downs, spins, loops, stops and go again.

2007 – The rise

We begin in 2007, the first year the Worlds moved from Rio de Janeiro to California.

At the medium-heavy division, Rominho went all the way to the final against another living legend, Saulo Ribeiro.

The triangle attack and Saulo’s cool to defend it immediately created a classic moment in Jiu-Jitsu’s history.

And Barral did more that year, as he became the intruder in the open class final.

Everyone in the Long Beach Pyramid was expecting a second encounter between reigning champion Xande Ribeiro and four-time runner up Roger Gracie, still looking for his first absolute gold.

The thing is the semifinal on one side of the bracket put Xande against Rominho and two advantages were enough to put Rominho in his first ever open class final.

In fact, the only defeat that year came in the absolute final, against teammate Roger, through a choke from the mount.

Rominho was upset, but beating Roger that year seemed impossible.

2009 – The confirmation

We jump two years ahead in time to 2009, again at the Long Beach Pyramid.

Rominho was coming back from a severe shoulder injury followed by a complicated surgery that left him out of commission for over a year.

He even thought his career was finished, but after a lot of work and commitment to his recovery, he made it back to the big leagues.

In the medium-heavy division, he finished three out of five opponents on his way to the second world title.

The final was against well-known rival Tarsis Humphreys and it was a tough one.

Humphreys had his top game on point and was able to stand firmly against Barral’s spider guard game.

Even so, at the end the referees saw Barral as the more active and awarded him the title.

In the open class, Rominho once again made his way to the final.

He finished all four of his opponents before the final, including a beautiful triangle on Gabriel Vella in the semifinal.

Unfortunately, the gold medal match was once more against the irresistible Roger Gracie.

The only man to finish all his opponents in a world championship edition passed Rominho’s guard, got to mount and finished with a choke for his second open class title.

Barral knew he was in hot waters even before the match: “If I only had a good judo game to be on top…” said Rominho.

2010 – The drama

One year later, Rominho was back to try his third world title in his division and maybe finally nab that open class gold medal.

Unfortunately, the 2010 Worlds was the starting point of another sad moment for Barral.

He did great both in his weight division and the open class, reaching the final on both.

First, in the open class, he beat Leoanrdo Neves and Murilo Santana to make it to the quarterfinals against then upcoming talent Bernardo Faria.

A sneaky no-arm triangle granted Rominho the spot in the semifinal, once again against Xande Ribeiro.

Three advantages for near-guard passes against two by Xande for a takedown and a sweep meant Rominho’s third appearance on Jiu-Jitsu’s most important match of the year.

Roger Gracie would be the opponent once again, but then fate got in the way.

After another brilliant run at the medium-heavy division, Rominho met Tarsis Humphreys in the final once again.

Near the mid-point of the match, Humphreys got a leg lock in place and as Rominho tried to escape, he twisted his knee and had to give up.

The injury was pretty severe and Rominho could not compete in the oen class final one day later.

For the first time since 1996, the black belt absolute had no final match and Roger became the first ever three-time champion.

2011 – The goodbye

In Barral’s roller coaster ride at the Worlds, 2011 was the lowest point.

After a ligament surgery to fix the injury sustained the year before, he went back in the game, but something was not right.

First, in the open class, the three-time finalist, suffered an unexpected early round defeat to much lighter Rodrigo Caporal.

Then, in his weight class, the third title was once again postponed by a 2-0 defeat to Sergio Moraes via a sweep in the final moments of the match.

After the final, Rominho took off his belt and top of the gi in the middle of the arena and announced he was done with competitions.

The crowd roared and an internet campaign kicked off immediately asking Barral to reconsider.

We’re all glad he did.

2012 – The comeback 

The champion was back, confidence restored and guard game on point.

The 2012 Worlds saw a renovated Barral on the mats of the Long Beach pyramid.

“Last year I was going through a rough patch with my knee injury and my confidence low. This time I tested the waters in events before the Worlds and got my game back on,” said Rominho after winning his third medium-heavy gold medal.

Diego Herzog was the victim in the final, choked from the mount.

Rominho event tried his luck in the open class once again, stopping only at Antônio Cara de Sapato, in the quarterfinals.

About the public retirement one year before, he clarified what happened: “I was caught in the heat of the moment. Later on, I thought things through and realized I still have what it takes to compete in the highest of levels.”

2013 – Hall of fame

Two guard passes over new rival Guto Campos secured the 6-0 lead and his spot in the final of the medium-heavy division once again.

Even better, after teammate Braulio Estima beat Andre Galvão 6-2, the gold medal match became a friendly affair.

There was no fight and Braulio conceded the title to his friend, making Barral a four-time world champion and eligible for the IBJJF Hall of Fame, award he would receive one year later in a ceremony one day bfore the 2014 Worlds.

Barral vs. Guto at the 2013 Worlds

This time, he did not venture into the troubled waters of the open class, leaving it to the younger generation.

Smiling again, Rominho told GRACIEMAG what had changed since the low point of 2011: “A serious injury and a long recovery disheartened me. When I came back I was fighting without hunger. That changed in 2012 and now I am fighting without fear or pressure and results started appearing again.”

2014 – The icing on the cake 

Rominho’s final appearance at the world championship ended with a second place finish, closing out with his teammate and friend Braulio Estima.

Another semifinal against Guto Campos was the pathway to the gold medal match.

This time, Campos was DQed after crossing his leg over Rominho’s knee from the outside to the inside.

There was no final once again, as the teammates closed out the medium-heavy division.

Rominho at the 2014 Worlds

Months later, Braulio’s anti-doping test came back positive for Methylhexaneamine and he had to forfeit the title.

Rominho inherited the gold medal, becoming a five-time world champion.

The 2016 World Jiu-Jitsu championship is scheduled June 1*-5, once again at the Long beach pyramid.

The final deadline to register for the event is May 24.

Click here for more info and to register now.

Braulio Estima. Photo: Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG

After Copa Pódio, where he lost an invitational bout to Xande Ribeiro by having his guard passed, many thought Bráulio Estima, 33, had lost his rhythm.

He suspected so himself, but he signed up for the Worlds on the last day to find out for sure.

The results were a silver medal on June 2nd, after he closed out his division with friend Romulo Barral, and an impressive showing versus André Galvão, whom he defeated, 6-2, by taking Galvão’s back.

And the following week he had enough gas left in the tank to hold Rodolfo Vieira back at Metamoris by using his new guard with foot on lapel. Rodolfo wound up with a decision win.

“I’ve been developing that guard for years, I call it guard of the galaxies,” Estima says in the following chat:

GRACIEMAG: After a long stretch of MMA-focused training, how do you evaluate your return to Jiu-Jitsu?

BRÁULIO ESTIMA: Man, I think I came back very well. If you count the hurdles I had to overcome, like the flu, an infection and an injured right hand soon before the fights, I’m quite happy with the result. I’m glad to be back and be able to compete among the strongest athletes of today.

Before you closed out the medium heavyweight class with Barral at the Mundials, you had to go through André Galvão in the semi. What’s your take on that match?

The André fight was very well crafted; I was able to impose my game and manage the ending nicely. I was able to surprise him in a few spots and thus dominate at the crucial moments. A little after the halfway mark of the match I tore my right hand ligament, which forced me to slow down and play off of his errors. I thought it was a fun fight to watch, pretty balanced. I’m happy to be back and already able to do so well against someone of his stature.

And what do you think of the Rodolfo Vieira bout, one week later?

It was very tough. I was able to keep the plan I had, though I was quite limited by my still-swollen right hand. I played the right game to hold him off, but I was lacking a bit of variety.

Rodolfo applies a truckload of pressure and he just wouldn’t quit for even a second. The guy’s a machine. At the end I tried to set a trap, but he set up an armbar very quickly and I had to struggle to get out. I escaped and attempted a knee attack, but time was up. It was a very difficult fight for the two of us.

What was that guard you used against Rodolfo?

I’ve been developing that guard for years, I call it guard of the galaxies [laughs]. I only use it when necessary, and at Metamoris, where the bout was longer, with a weight difference plus the hand injury, I had to bring it out. I think we’re going to see a lot of people using it from now on.

The goal is to nullify your opponent’s pressure and make room for several types of guard attacks. Anything can come out of there. It’s a way to leave your opponent off base and move below him.

What did you take away from that match?

That 20 minutes is a lot of time [laughs]. In this fight I learned my limitations in several situations and my advantages in others. The biggest lesson was more on a personal level – I saw I’m still fighting well enough to take on the best in the world, and that makes me excited.

I’m anxious to get back to the gym and hone my game even more, and get ready for the next challenges.

Leandro Lo got his second world title at lightweight. Photo: Ivan Trindade

Lightweight Leandro Lo achieved quite a feat in the 2013 Worlds last Sunday, June 2nd.

He was one of the champions praised most by athletes, masters and the audience, even without subbing anyone in the process. The now two-time champ impressed people with his technique, his guard play and his stamina. These traits kept him completely out of danger against black belts as strong as Rafael Rosendo, Vinicius Marinho, Lucas Lepri and runner-up Michael Langhi, whom he swept in the final for a 2-0 score.

Could Leandro have a weakness?

Before the 2013 Worlds, we sent a reporter to the city of Niterói to get the scoop on Lo’s daily routine during his stay in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Upon returning, our detective had the following to say: “Lo trains all day. P.S. He drinks soda by the gallon.” We asked Lo what he loves more than Jiu-Jitsu. “Maybe the beach. If I lived in Rio I’d be at the beach all day every day and probably wouldn’t train.”

So, while opponents might have a hard time putting this to use, there’s the weakness.

Gabriel Moraes (in white) is the light featherweight world champion of 2013. Photo: Ivan Trindade.

Veteran black belt competitor Gabriel Moraes hadn’t won at the BJJ Worlds since 2004. With his 2013 title, he is now the black belt with the furthest apart gold medals in history. (Gabriel Vella had the old record with wins in 2002 and 2009.) However, it was not through this hiatus that the CheckMat fighter proved his persistence. In his fights at the Worlds last weekend, he would never give up until he heard the whistle. On Sunday, Gabriel had to hack away until the very end to sweep Gabriel Willcox and beat him, 6-4.

In the semifinal he came across Daniel Beleza, who had knocked out Gui Mendes in a decision. Once again, victory came only with the last move, and he wasn’t even sure until he left the fighting area. “All I know is I was losing and then I kept pressing and pressing–I have no idea how I won or how I got the advantages,” he smiled.

Ary Farias’ drama

In the final, Gabriel did all he could to stop 2010 champ Ary Farias from scoring. Ary went to the back, Gabriel defended. Ary tried to catch a limb, Gabriel freed himself. And the fight went on tied with no points, Ary leading in advantages. The whistle blew and Ary was the champion for the next couple of seconds. That was when his emotions betrayed him and he took his two fateful steps toward the podium. The rule, although new, is very clear: The athlete that leaves the fighting area to celebrate will be punished with one advantage being given to their opponent.

Referee Muzio de Angelis had no choice but to grant Gabriel an advantage, thus changing the score to a draw in advantages, except Gabriel had one less penalty and had just become the world champion.

Devastated with the turn of events, Ary said of the lost title, “I fight five times against those lions, beat the toughest men in the division, and then this happens.”

Michelle Nicolini gains another world title, this time in the medium-heavy division repeating her performance from 2010. Photo: Erin Herle

On Sunday, June 2 in Long Beach, CA the 2013 World Championship finals of the black belts began with the females at 3 p.m. PST. Each ten minute match ran on a single large mat as the division’s third place winners awaited to greet the two other victors on the podium directly after each match.

Here are the results of the female black belt finals by division:

Light-Feather: Gezary Matuda Kubis – American Top Team

Gezary faced Team Lloyd Irvin’s Nyjah Easton in a match that went the distance. Nyjah pulled guard and Gezary was able to gain three advantages for guard passing and back-taking attempts. The end score was 3-0 in advantages with no points. This is both competitor’s first year at black belt and Gezary won the brown belt light-feather division at the 2012 World Championship.

Feather: Marina Ribeiro – Checkmat

Marina faced Luiza Monteiro of Cicero Costha which began with a double guard pull. Luiza Monteiro came up right away and maintained her base for most of the match gaining advantages for guard passing attempts. At the last minute Marina swept Luiza and won the match with a two point lead. The end score was 2-0 in points for Marina, 0-2 in advantages.This is her first black belt world title.

Light: Beatriz Mesquita – Gracia Humaita

Beatriz faced Gracie Barra’s Fabiana Borges and was able to submit with an armbar with 7:39 left in the match. Fabiana pulled guard and was able to sweep right away but Bia capitalized and submitted not long after. This is Bia’s second world title and so far she has won both black belt worlds she has entered in the last two years.

Middle: Luanna Alzuguir – Alliance

Luanna faced Vanessa Oliveira of GFTeam in a full ten minute match. Both pulled guard and stayed there long enough to be called for stalling and given one penalty each before Luanna took the initiative to come up and attempt to pass. Vanessa swept Luanna and Luanna was able to sweep back and gain two advantages for passing attempts to win the match. The end score was 2-2 with 2-0 in advantages for Luanna. This is her fifth black belt world title.

Medium-Heavy: Michelle Nicolini – Checkmat

Michelle faced Fernanda Mazzelli of Striker JJ in what could have been the final of the open weight division. Walking at featherweight, Michelle decided to sign up for a heavier division and was able to submit Fernanda in the final to gain her seventh black belt world title. Michelle pulled guard then ended the match with a toehold with 7:18 left in the match.

Heavy: Andresa Correa – Alliance

Andresa closed out the division with her Alliance team member and reigning open weight champion Gabrielle Garcia. This is Andresa’s first year at black belt therefore making this her first black belt world title.

Absolute: Gabrielle Garcia – Alliance

Gabi Garcia faced Beatriz Mesquita in a match we’ve seen many times before. Gabi earned an advantage for a takedown attempt that went out of bounds since Bia chose to stay standing. Gabi gained a takedown earning two points and two more advantages when Bia turtled. After not enough movement while Bia was turtled, Gabi gained one penalty point. Once they reset, Bia recovered to closed guard and Gabi opened and passed. The end score was 5 points, 3 advantages and 1 penalty for Gabi and 0-0-0 for Bia. This is her fourth time winning the open weight division.

To see the full results of the 2013 World Championship click here.

See the full gallery of the finals below:

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The black belt finals will begin in a few moments

See who faces who for the gold.

Watch it at ibjjftv.com

Follow the complete coverage at GRACIEMAG’s Google+ Page

Rooster
Bruno Malfacine vs. Caio Terra

Light-feather
Gabriel Moraes vs. Ary Farias

Feather
Augusto Mendes vs. Rafael Mendes

Light
Leandro Lo vs. Michael Langhi

Middle
Otavio Sousa vs. Claudio Calasans Jr

Medium-Heavy
Braulio Estima vs. Romulo Barral

Heavyweight
Rodolfo Vieira vs. Lucas Leite

Superheavy
Bernardo Faria vs. João Gabriel Rocha

Ultra-heavy
Marcus Almeida vs. Rodrigo Cavaca

Open Class
Rodolfo Vieira vs. Marcus Almeida

Fernanda Mazzelli emotional after defeating Hannette Staack. Photo: Erin Herle

The finals of the 2013 World Championship for the females start Sunday, June 2 at the Long Beach Walter Pyramid. Saturday began the process of narrowing down each division for the two finalists to meet the following day.

Light-feather: Gezary Metuda Kubis vs. Nyjah Easton

Nyjah had one match against Kanako Inaba whom she defeated in order to move into the finals. Gezary defeated Sofia Amarante and moved on to face current Pan American champion Miriam Cardoso who had a bye. She finished the match with an armbar and moved on to the finals.

Feather: Luiza Monteiro vs. Marina Ribeiro

Luiza had a bye then faced Ana Carolina Lebre whom she defeated by points to move to the final. Marina Ribeiro also had a bye and faced Mackenzie Dern whom she defeated by points as well to move into the final.

Light: Fabiana Borges vs. Beatriz Mesquita

Fabiana had a bye and faced Nadia Rodrigues whom she defeated by a choke from the back to secure her place in the final. Beatriz also had a bye and faced Tracey Goodell whom she defeated by points.

Middle: Luanna Alzuguir vs. Vanessa Oliveira

Luanna had a bye then defeated Shanti Abelha by points to advance to the final. Vanessa defeated Sharol de Freitas then Ida Hansson by points to move to the final.

Medium-Heavy: Michelle Nicolini vs. Fernanda Mazzelli

Michelle beat Karen Miller then submitted Talita Nogueira with and armbar to move to the final. Fernanda had a bye since Leticia chose not to fight then defeated Hannette Staack by points to move to the final.

Heavy: Gabi Garca vs. Andresa Correa

Gabi defeated Luzia do Carmo Peixao by armbar and Andresa defeated Luzia Santana to move to the finals as teammates.

Open weight: Gabi Garcia vs. Beatriz Mesquita

You can read the play-by-play of the black belt female open weight division here.

Watch the finals tomorrow on www.ibjjftv.com and follow the live coverage on our Google+ page!

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At his academy in Los Angeles on the corner of La Brea and Melrose, Xande Ribeiro can be found teaching his students, white to black, on the grey mats nearly any day of the week. Today, GRACIEMAG stopped by to see how he was preparing for the most prestigious Jiu-Jitsu tournament in the world.

Most athletes are mentally preparing, housing visitors from other academies, working out to make weight, training the last details, or perhaps being in solitude. But Xande is days away from competing in the heavyweight division for his seventh world title and he’s where he is every Wednesday morning at 10 a.m.: Teaching.

The heavyweight division this year has names like Rodolfo Vieira, Lucas Leite, Roberto Tussa and more. Let Xande himself tell you how he’s prepared and what he expects of his division.

To check out what goes down at the 2013 World Championships regardless of vicinity to the Long Beach Walter Pyramid May 30 – June 2, go to www.ibjjftv.com and purchase the livestream for real-time coverage all four days.

Caio Terra and other black belts in San Jose, CA. Photo: Facebook

Caio Terra’s San Jose gym, Institute of Martial Arts, is booming with hard-working athletes readying for the 2013 World Championship May 30 – June 2. With only days to go, check out how Caio Terra and his team of 15 black belts are getting their strategies together in episode 2 and 3:

Lead by Professor Julio Cesar, Rodolfo Vieira and his teammates are training hard for great results in Long Beach.

Here is what they said.

The 2013 Worlds Pay-per-View is already available. Buy yours at ibjjf.com.

Gabi defends a long unbeaten path. Photo: File GRACIEMAG.

The 18th edition of the World Championship starts next Thursday, May 30 in Long Beach, and the top athletes in the competition can’t wait for the time to come.

Brazilian competitor Gabrielle Garcia, main star of the women’s team from Alliance, wants her fourth world title in the open class. The victory is not new to her, but her game she said may surprise many.

“I’m finding myself better on bottom than on top. I’m comfortable in my guard,” she said in a chat with GRACIEMAG. Check out what we learned from her below.

GRACIEMAG: You usually train with guys like Leo Nogueira, Tarsis Humphreys, Michael Langhi, Antonio Peinado and other feared black belts. How is this reassuring for competition?

GABRIELLE GARCIA: The tension pre-Worlds is always great, but the atmosphere at the gym is very good. Every one helps each other and drills are on fire. Fabio Gurgel is demanding a lot from us and I hope this brings results. It’s very tense, I joke that this is a kind of ER. You come out of the coma, open your eyes and see the light every time the training ends (laughs). I see that they train hard with me; they don’t take it easy on me. They train as if I was a man and that sets me apart from other women. My training has always been with men, nothing can be more difficult. No championship is harder than a training session at Alliance. My training is much stronger than it ever was, but with something different: this is more focused on technique. I leave the gym exhausted and still do the physical training with James Heck four times a week.

What else have you been sharpening in training for the competition?

I’m finding myself better on bottom than on top. I’m comfortable in my guard. Before I was terrified and it was a serious mistake. But Fabio was always telling me, giving me tips, controlling me when I was put in these positions in training and now I feel sharp and comfortable. I would like to fight a whole championship in my guard, but I never have time. Girls pull me to their guard before (laughs). Of course I’m not going to put on a show of guard and berimbolo, but I guarantee it won’t be easy to pass my guard nowadays. My back taking was also awful, something I’ve been correcting a lot. I’m not ashamed to talk about my errors, but you can be sure that whatever position I’m in, I’ll be well trained.

You are undefeated for a long time in Jiu-Jitsu. How do you gain valuable lessons when you win?

It’s because I remember very well the taste of defeat. It wasn’t so long ago that I lost, I’m not ashamed of any of my losses, because they were what made me train so much and it makes me not want to lose. And Fabio always makes sure to remind me (laughs). I can learn a lot from the wins, I’m very demanding. I want to grow technically every day, because I have always been strong. I need to always be improving my technique, and even winning, there are fights that don’t satisfy me because I make a lot of mistakes. I know where my mistakes are and I always train to fix those. I’m always working on the positions that still make me uncomfortable. This week I felt very sick during training and Michael Langhi, a great champion and a friend told me: “Let’s go Gabi, train even if you are sick. It’s not long until the championship. It is during these times that we know who the champions are. Everyone is tired, you can’t go wrong.” It was all I needed to hear. Even sick, there is always someone on your side motivating you. Alliance is actually a factory of champions. I am grateful for all that my team does for me, without them I wouldn’t have gotten anywhere.

After every year you become a greater reference for women who practice Jiu-Jitsu. What does this mean to you?

I’m happy with the attention, I get a lot of emails and messages, people who are inspired by me. There are even several girls with my tattoos now! I have seven Facebook profiles, it is difficult to manage everything. I’m moving everything to one, my official Facebook Fan page, because I can’t answer everyone. Today I get to the championships and I can hardly walk, people want to show their affection and admiration. I am very happy; it’s the result of much sweat and training time. People know how much I devote myself to this sport, how much I love what I do. I hope that women look at me and see that it is possible to be serious with Jiu-Jitsu and have it as a lifestyle.

What is your biggest secret, besides your love for Jiu-Jitsu?

I love the moment, I love being with my team during the competition, Jiu-Jitsu unites friends. I think my secret is to not be afraid of defeat, never think about what comes next, I always think about the moment. I have great confidence in my training and I never think: “Oh, I’m Gabi Garcia” … Because when I think about something like that I think I can settle down. I’m not invincible and I’m far from it, but to beat me, it will be ten minutes of a lot of fighting. And if I lose some time, it will be because the girl really deserved it more than me.  Another factor is to have great professionals at my side, like Dr. Paulo Muzy and nutritionist Rodolfo Peres. They also have their part in this secret.

Caio Terra and his training camp in San Jose, CA for the 2013 World Championship in Long Beach, California. /Photo: Caio Terra Facebook

Caio Terra is leading his camp at his academy Institute of Martial Arts in San Jose, CA with a strong dedication. The team of over fifteen black belts including some world champions are working hard to do their best at the 2013 World Championship next week, May 29 – June 2.

See this episode released by the group to see how the training has begun:

The pre-sale of the 2013 Worlds pay-per-view is already available. Get yours at ibjjftv.com