Alex Negão with star of Abu Dhabi Hassan. Photo: Regis Rodrigues.

He was a fixture at the grueling MMA training sessions at Brazilian Top Team, where he was a top-notch sparring partner for Minotauro & Co. He was a student of the late Carlson Gracie, with whom he lived while still a blue belt. And he always figured on the winners’ stand at the ADCC. A Jiu-Jitsu champion at nearly all belt levels. A former volleyball player for Brazil’s juvenile national team.

Yes, the giant Alex “Negão” Paz was a great exponent of Jiu-Jitsu early in the decade, but he went beyond that: he was a witness to all the behind-the-scenes action in world MMA. But what has he been up to, this figure who sticks out like a sore thumb for his 115 kg (253 lbs) spread over a 1.92-meter frame?

Living in Abu Dhabi for the last year, Alex oversees MMA training at Emirates Team and supervises Marcos Oliveira, Hassan Rumaiti, Michel Maia, Maiky Reiter among others. Considered the foremost authority of MMA in the Middle East, he tells what he’s been up to and breaks down the stage at which the sport finds itself in the region.

How did you end up taking up MMA again, here in the Emirates?
I met Maiki here, who came in from Holland, and when I laid eyes on him in training I knew he had enormous potential in MMA. Then we started training together, but with no set plan. That was when Hassan Rumaiti (Sheikh Tahnoon’s adoptive son), who was watching the training session, asked to start his training, as he was planning to make his debut in the style. After a few months he debuted victoriously in Holland. Sheikh Mohamad Bin Zayed was really happy and supported our training.

What is the make-up of the team in this style?
Besides the Brazilian fighters, we started with the second generation of Sheikh Tahnoon’s kids. There are about twenty youths between the ages of sixteen and eighteen. We also have fighters from other countries.

Is the MMA market in Abu Dhabi growing?
Not just in Abu Dhabi. Here we have a very well-structured event, the ADFC. In November we’ll hold one in Jordan where two or three of our fighters will be on the card. In January we’ll probably have another one in Egypt, where we’ll try and get our fighters in there, as well.

How is the team’s training going?
It’s been great to see. It’s been going off. Hassan, in particular, has made a lot of progress. And to work with guys like Marcão, Michel, Maiki and Luciano “Mutante”, who just arrived, has been a real pleasure. The kids are responding well to what’s demanded of them.

Aside from Hassan, are there any others from the region you feel are promising?
Khalid Walid of Syria and Gabriel Tayeh of Palestine should make their debuts in Jordan. A lot will be said about those two. Khalid is an excellent striker and Gabriel has really slick Jiu-Jitsu. We also have an excellent boxer, Ali Salem, who is Hassan’s brother, and there’s the heavyweight Yahya Mansoor, who is a local Jiu-Jitsu hero. Not to mention the pleasant surprises from the new generation Sheikh Tahnoon provided. There will be a lot of talk about them.

Anything else you’d like to mention?
I’d just like to give thanks to the people who taught me so much, like masters Carlson, Murilo (Bustamante), Ricardo Libório, Zé Mario, Bebeo, Cláudio Coelho and friends like Marcelo Palermo, Ovidio de Abreu and Felipe Bronze. And two the group at Emirates Team, mainly Jonver Bonini, Bruno Lopes, Orley “Tartaruga”, Oscar Junior and Marcelo “Guardinha” Motta, who always help out in training. And I’d like to thank the unconditional support and vote of confidence of Sheikh Mohamad and Sheikh Tahnoon for making it possible for us to carry out our work here in Abu Dhabi.

The Arab world has embraced Jiu-Jitsu once and for all, and on the 24^th and 25^th of September it will be the kids’ turn in the spotlight, at the Arab Cup for Kids event. The tournament will take place in Amman, Jordan, with kids between four and fourteen years of age competing. And there’s much more than mere medals on the line.

“For the first time, we’re rewarding the first-place winners with Playstation III’s and Keiko gis to the runners-up, as well as medals,” remarks brown belt Mohammed Bilbeisi, the event’s organizer.

Another piece of news is the Arab world’s participation en masse.

The event has been around for seven years and this time, we decided to open it up to the other Arab nations. We have athletes from Jordan, Syria, Egypt and Palestine all confirmed. We already count 120 participants,” adds Bilbeisi.

Photo: Publicity.

An MMA organization promising to shake up the Middle East, more specifically Jordan, has come to be and has a date for its maiden event. Desert Force Championship (DFC) is set for November 19 with five international bouts and another five between local athletes. Athletes from Jordan, the UAE, USA, Holland, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon and Palestine are expected on the card.

“We already did Capital Challenge, which is greatly identified with Jiu-Jitsu. We will use this identity in future gentle art events,” explains Zaid Mirza about the MMA organization’s name change.

“Desert Force is the name we decided on for this MMA event, inspired by the vast majority of the Middle East. The people of the desert are known for bearing difficult conditions and sacrifices, as are MMA fighters. We want to show the world the power of the people of this region,” adds Mirza, who is also launching Midde East Fight League (MEFL).

The aim is to, in the future, hold events once a month and launch talent from the region into major organizations like the UFC, Dream, Strikeforce and the DFC itself.

“The first show will take place in Cairo, Egypt, in January 2011. The MEFL cage will go around all the Arab countries of the Middle East,” reveals Mirza.

Despite the scathing temperatures in the region, Jiu-Jitsu practitioners in the Middle East are having a lively summer. Professor Sylvio Behring just took off from Kuwait, where he spent a week conducting seminars at the country’s Gracie Barra academy. At almost the same time Sylvio was in Kuwait, Royce Gracie and José Mario Sperry arrived in the United Arab Emirates, both with seminars scheduled in the city of Dubai.

Speaking of Kuwait, an event promising to set a new baseline is the tournament promote in d by Ahmed Alhouli, a Vinicius “Draculino” student, and the man responsible for Gracie Barra promises worthy prizes for the championship to take place August 6 in the country’s capital.

Meanwhile in Jordan, Zaid Mirza is organizing a tournament for kids in the region up to the age of 15. “We’ll receive youths from Lebanon, Syria and perhaps the Emirates.” Among the prizes, there will even be playstations for the young ones. Zaid further points out that Pedro Galiza will oversee a summer Jiu-Jitsu camp in Syria at the end of the month: “Galiza should spur the sport further ahead in Syria, but he also has projects in Egypt and Lebanon in the works for this year.”

And, in the consecrated capital of professional Jiu-Jitsu, Abu Dhabi, a group of local schoolboys are in the dependencies of the ADCC during their summer break getting ready for a Jiu-Jitsu presentation in China at the end of August.

It’s Jiu-Jitsu that’s revving up Arabia.

“Mazhar has a vast experience in Martial Arts.  He is a Judo and Aikido black belt with 20 years of experience.  Now he has decided to take up BJJ as his
new art.  He is doing a great work expanding the sport in Syria.  He drives 4 hours every weekend along with his students where they come and trains
at our academy in Jordan,” says the proud Zaid Mirza.

Syria, is to have two new gyms opening this year under the umbrella of Team Mirza.  New Brazilian black belts are to arrive in the Syrian capital to assist
Mr. Dardari in his hard work spreading the art.  New affiliations for Team Mirza are also opening in Lebanon, Egypt, and other neighboring countries.  For more information regarding affiliations contact Team Mirza at zmirza9@hotmail.com

“Mazhar has a martial arts experience. He is a black belt in both Judo and Aikido with 20 years of experience. Now he has decided to take up Jiu-Jitsu as his new art. He is doing great work spreading the sport in Syria. He drives four hours every weekend along with his students to come and train at our academy in Jordan,” says the proud Zaid Mirza.

Syria is to open two new gyms this year under the umbrella of Team Mirza. New Brazilian black belts are to arrive in the Syrian capital to assist Mr. Dardari in his labors to spread the art. New affiliations for Team Mirza are also opening in Lebanon, Egypt, and other neighboring countries. For further information regarding affiliation contact Team Mirza @ zmirza9@hotmail.com

Check out this highlight video of the seminar in Syria:

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