Bruno Bastos. Kasai

[Based on a press release.]

A black-belt since 2001, Bruno Bastos is one of Jiu-Jitsu’s most dedicated employees. With a career full of important titles, such as the IBJJF World Masters Gi and No-Gi, Bruno nowadays runs Lead BJJ in Midland, Texas — a top-20 team in the IBJJF rankings — and does not think about hanging up his competition gi anytime soon.

In 2018 he won his 5th no-gi world title, as well as multiple superfights. One of them earned him a trophy from the United Grapplers Association (UGA). Now in the 2019 season, Texas’s “Highlander” shone again by beating, for the third time, former UFC fighter Tom DeBlass. The win came by points at Kasai Pro earlier this month.

“I trained a lot of wrestling for this fight,” Bruno said. “I did not show everything I trained, but I controlled the standing game. The technique that gave me the winning points comes from judo: De-ashi-barai. A sweep technique (Ashi-Wasa). I have been practicing judo since I was a kid and I have the ability to mix some techniques into my no-gi game. This combination of wrestling/judo was key.

“Unfortunately for him, our games don’t match up very well. I feel very comfortable fighting him. With each fight I evolve more. Proof of this is that each win was more decisive than the previous one. I knew I would frustrate him, and that would lead the way for the expected outcome: victory!”

For this fight, Bruno hired Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal, a Bellator athlete and former Strikeforce champion. “I brought King Mo to push not only my wrestling but to coordinate the technical and strategic part of my camp,” Bruno said. “He’s an excellent coach. I believe he had a important part in my victory. We know each other well and we know how to work together.”

A frequent competitor, Bruno still plans to fight at ADCC 2019 in California. For this, he must pack his bags and come to Brazil to participate in the ADCC Trials or wait for an invitation based on his history in the sport. “There’s always the expectation. I’ll be 39, but I think I’m still a good competitor under those rules. The main event being here in America motivates me, because I would have a chance to compete in front of my students and especially my children, João and Maria. It would be special to close out my competitive history in the ADCC this way.”

Bruno Bastos vibra com o troféu do Kasai. Foto: Divulgação

Faixa-preta desde 2001, Bruno Bastos é um funcionário dedicado do Jiu-Jitsu. Com uma carreira recheada de títulos importantes como o Mundial Master com e sem kimono pela IBJJF, Bruno lidera a respeitada Lead BJJ, em Midland, no Texas, e não pensa em pendurar seu kimono de competição tão cedo.

Aos 38 anos, Bruno está em alta na sua divisão. Em 2018, por exemplo, ele conquistou o quinto título mundial sem kimono e diversas vitórias em superlutas, em uma delas, recebeu o troféu no United Grapplers Association (UGA). Agora, na temporada atua em 2019, o “Highlander” do Texas brilhou novamente, ao vencer, pela terceira vez, o ex-UFC Tom De Blass, um dos principais faixas-pretas nos Estados Unidos. A vitória veio por pontos, no Kasai Pro, no início do mês.

“Acredito que o fato de eu ter vencido em um evento grande, com bastante visibilidade, contra um adversário que passa da casa dos 100 mil seguidores nas redes sociais, ajuda a crescer a minha marca, sim. Mas não acho que minha vitória demonstra o fato da minha equipe ser uma potencia no Texas. Minha equipe é uma potencia no Texas devido aos resultados nas competições individuais e coletivas. Estamos no Top 20 da IBJJF por equipe e temos atletas atuais campeões do Pan Kids, Kids International, Pan Americano, Mundial, Mundial Master, Mundial Sem Kimono, cinturão no Fight to Win e por aí vai… Isso falando somente de Midland-TX. Não estou contando as filiais. Acredito que hoje se alguém quiser um lugar para ter resultado competitivo, Midland, no Texas, pode ser o destino, pois a Bruno Bastos Jiu-Jitsu Academy está pronta para isso”, conta Bruno, antes de analisa a vitória.

“Treinei bastante wrestling para essa luta. Não demonstrei tudo que treinei, mas dominei ele no alto. A técnica que me deu os pontos da vitória vem do judô: De-ashi-barai, que é uma técnica de varredura (Ashi-Wasa). Treino judô desde criança e tenho facilidade em mixar algumas técnicas no jogo sem kimono. Essa combinação de judo mais wrestling foi fundamental. Infelizmente, para ele, nossos jogos não casam. Me sinto muito confortável lutando com ele. A cada luta eu evolui mais. Prova disso é que cada vitoria foi mais decisiva do que a anterior. Eu sabia que eu frustaria ele, e isso abriria o caminho para o resultado esperado: a vitoria.”

Bruno, que é empresário fora dos tatames, também gosta e sabe como investir para ter resultados importantes nos torneios. Para a luta contra DeBlass, Bruno contratou Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal, atleta do Bellator e ex-campeão do Strikeforce, para coordenar seu treino e sua parte de wrestling. A combinação foi perfeita e deu certo. A seguir, ele conta essa experiência.

“Trouxe o King Mo para puxar não somente o meu wrestling, mas coordenar a parte técnica e estratégica do meu camp. Ele é um excelente coach. Acredito que ele tenha tido uma grande parcela na minha vitoria. Nos conhecemos bastante e sabemos como trabalhar juntos. Confiança e respeito mútuos”.

Competidor assíduo, Bruno ainda pretende lutar o ADCC 2019, na Califórnia. Para isto, ele deve arrumar as malas para vir até o Brasil participar da seletiva ou receber um convite, por conta de sua história dentro do esporte.

“Sempre tem a expectativa. Terei 39 anos, mas acredito que seja competitivo ainda dentro dessas regras. O evento principal sendo aqui na América me motiva, pois seria uma chance de competir na frente dos meus alunos e principalmente dos meus filhos, João e Maria. Seria especial fechar minha história competitiva no ADCC dessa maneira. Tenho essa motivação com certeza”, encerra Bruno.

(Fonte: Assessoria de imprensa)

Tom DeBlass stood out by beating the field above 99kg, whereas Mansher Khera bagged a spot under 77kg. Notable absentees included Garry Tonon and Gordon Ryan — both injured. Find below the athletes who have guaranteed their right to fight in the world’s biggest grappling show next year.

66kg: Justin Rader defeated Jason Hayden by points (2-0).
77kg: Mansher Khera defeated Oliver Taza by points (3-0).
88kg: James Brasco defeated Mathew Tesla by points (2-0).
99kg: Elliot Kelly defeated Daniel O’Brien by points (2-0).
+99kg: Tom DeBlass defeated Jimmy Friedrich by penalty point.

Com passagens pelo UFC e Bellator, DeBlass conheceu todas as emoções da luta, mas foi como professor de Jiu-Jitsu que o competidor de realizou por completo. Ele explica:

“O fato de poder tocar tanta vidas através do Jiu-Jitsu, através de algo que eu amo de verdade, é o que me faz amar isto. Não é só sobre armlocks e estrangulamentos que se trata uma aula de Jiu-Jitsu, é muito mais que isso. Tento inspirar todos a minha volta o tempo todo”, disse a fera.

Confira abaixo o mini-documentário de Tom DeBlass e a satisfação do mesmo em ter encontrado no Jiu-Jitsu sua maneira de viver melhor a vida.

(Clique no vídeo para ativar as legendas em português)

DeBlass at the Master 1 open class podium. Photos: Kenny Jewel/IBJJF

The 2015 Worlds No-Gi also had a lot of great matches and thrilling outcomes in the master division.

Athletes over the 30 years old mark gave all they got to win the desired gold medals this weekend.

In the master 1 black belt division, GMA member and leader of Ocean County BJJ, in New Jersey, Tom DeBlass came back from a 2nd place in his weight division to win the open class without allowing a single point to be scored against him in four matches.

The master 1 black belt had some very well known names making the top of their divisions, like Milton Bastos (light-feather), Ed Ramos (light), Marcus Antelante (middle), Alan Nascimento (medium-heavy), Bruno Bastos (ultra-heavy).

Telles at the top of the master 2 open class podium.

The master 2 black belt division saw Eduardo Telles repeat DeBlass and come back after a 2nd place in his weight division to win the open class. Telles, a 2013 medium-heavyweight world champion in the adult division, beat John Piper in the absolute final.

Scherner at the master 3 open class podium

The master 3 black belt division saw a double gold champion in Fabiano Scherner, who won the ultra-heavy division and the open class. The absolute final put Scherner against no other than Roberto Godoi.

In the master 4 black belt division Robert Martinez also came back from a 2nd place in his weight division to win the open class in great fashion.

The master 5 black belt division saw Eugenio Estrada win double gold in the heavyweight and the open class.

Finally, in the master 6 division, Stephen Kamphuis also won double gold in the superheavy division and the open class.

Click here for the complete results of the master division.

Teams getting ready for the 2015 ADCC

Scheduled August 29-30 in São Paulo, the 2015 ADCC is less than 10 days away.

Many athletes already made their way to Brazil, as their training camp wrap up around the world.

We did a round up to see how the competitors prepared for the most important submission grappling event of the season.

Here’s what we found out.

Cyborg’s army in Miami

Roberto Cyborg shocked the world two years ago when he beat Marcus Buchecha for the open class gold medal in Beijing. In 2015, his mission is to stop André Galvão in the superfight and add another title to his career. To be ready for his extremely difficult mission, Cyborg put together one of the strongest camps for the 2015 ADCC. João Gabriel Rocha, Rodolfo Vieira, Abraham Marte, Vagner Rocha, among others, are some of the beasts training in Miami. Rocha summed the feeling of getting ready in such a strong camp: “The wrestling training here is awesome and Cyborg is the best in the world in no-gi. I wouldn’t have a camp like this one in Brazil.” Here’s a video with Cyborg talking about the camp itself, by Stuart Cooper.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yVLAk6RHb4

Galvão leads Atos JJ troops in San Diego

André Galvão wants to join a very select group of champions after the 2015 ADCC. If he beats Cyborg in São Paulo, he’ll be one of two athletes to have a weight class gold medal, an open class title and two superfight wins at the ADCC. Zé Mário Sperry is the only fighter to have that in his record. To get ready for such a great accomplishment, Galvão is taking his preparation very serious. Alongside his impressive team of black belts, he has one of the strongest camps for the 2015 ADCC. Keenan Cornelius, JT Torres, Mike Perez, Dean Lister are some of the names training together in San Diego to compete in Brazil. Here’s a video with some images of the camp, by Patrick Flores.

No teams, just grind at Calvary Chapel

Wrestling coach Jacob Harman made a name for himself recently with awesome results from athletes that trained with him. Two years ago, he had three 2011 ADCC champions and a second place finisher training with him: Marcus Buchecha, João Assis, Romulo Barral and Otavio Sousa. For 2015, the list grew and his classes at the high school in Costa Mesa are packed. Gabi Garcia, Barral, Lucas Rocha, Edwin Najmi, AJ Agazarm, among others go there weekly to improve on their wrestling techniques and also take advantage of the insane physical conditioning included in each session with coach Harman. Gabi talks about how hard it is to train at Calvary Chapel: “It’s certainly one of the hardest session I’ve ever done. I feel like a monster for being the only woman among such strong beasts. It makes my mind even stronger. I’m all bruised up, but I’m sure nothing can be harder than training there.”

Training at Calvary Chapel

Lovato is back and he wants his first gold medal

Rafael Lovato Jr. started competing again last June after more than a year away healing a serious shoulder injury that required surgery to be fixed. With his eyes on the ADCC, he put a strong training camp at his academy in Oklahoma City. The presences of Justin Rader, Jared Dopp, James Puopolo, Xande Ribeiro and even a visit by Braulio Estima made the camp specially hard for the 2015 ADCC. Lovato talks about how prepared he is for going all the way in São Paulo: “I’m feeling awesome. We’ve had Braulio with us and I learned a lot of great technical details from him. Also training with Xande and all the others here. I’m so happy to have this quality of training for my ADCC camp.”

Dopp, Xande, Lovato, Rader

DeBlass, Tonon, Cummings lead the east coast crew 

In New York, Tom DeBlass, Garry Tonon, Ed Cummings, Jason Lees will do their best to keep the legacy of their lineage, which comes from two-time ADCC champion Renzo Gracie. DeBlass talked to Open mat radio about the importance of the ADCC for the grappling community: “It’s our Olympics. It doesn’t get any better. It’s the pinnacle. It’s where everybody wants to be. We want to go there and test ourselves against the absolute top guys in the world. So, our team will be there to prove we are here to stay.”

In Brazil, Burns, Calasans, Cavaca and Frazatto working hard to represent the home team 

Brazil’s supremacy throughout ADCC history is clear, as the country produced the largest number of champions by far. So, as the main event lands in São Paulo for the second time, the home team wants to be ready to represent the tradition once again. Gilbert “Durinho” Burns, Claudio Calasans, Bruno Frazatto and Rodrigo Cavaca joined forces to prepare for the war at the end of august. Durinho talks about the hard work they are putting in to compete: “I’m ready! It’s been a war. I’ve been training with Calasans for the past month and with Cavaca and Frazatto for the past two weeks. We’re going there to win!”

Cavaca, Burns, Calasans and Frazatto

Keeping Marcelo Garcia’s legacy alive

Gianni Grippo, Dillon Danis and Bernardo Faria have some pretty big shoes to fill. Training under Marcelo Garcia, the only 4-time ADCC champion in a single weight division, they have to put on a good performance in the same venue their professor first awed the grappling world, back at the 2003 ADCC. Gianni talks about the camp: “It’s only Danis, Bernardo and myself. The training has been great. Marcelo helps a lot with this one. More than anything he tells us that the best way to approach this event is to play our game and look to attack throughout. I’ve asked him what he thinks about the rules and how it’s best to approach it but he always keeps it simple saying just to look to finish the match- don’t worry about the points and time.”

Grippo and Danis

Cobrinha wants to repeat what he did in China

Rubens Cobrinha pursued his first gold medal at the ADCC for four years. He nearly made it in Barcelona (2009) and Nottingham (2011), when he had to settle for two silver medals after being stopped in the final by Rafael Mendes. In 2013, he had his redemption when he made it all the way after another tough final match with his biggest rival. In São Paulo, Cobrinha’s birth state, he wants his second gold medal to tie the count with Mendes and be just one behind the -66kg division titles record-holder, Royler Gracie. Cobrinha decided to have his camp at home in Los Angeles and with the help of Fabio Passos, Lucas Lepri, Gabi Garcia and others, he’s been training hard for the 2015 ADCC. Here’s a video with some of his training routine.

Libório and Sperry sweating bullets to relive old rivalry

One of the biggest attractions of the 2015 ADCC will be the masters super-match between living legends Zé Mário Sperry and Ricardo Libório. As both were bred by the same master, Carlson Gracie, there’s a lot of history in that match. Libório, 48, prepared for the match with the ATT crew in Florida. He tells how hard the sessions were: “My mother asked me to stop rolling with the young guys from ATT. She said I was going to get hurt. Zé Mário may win as he is one of ADCC’s greatest champions, but he’ll have to work hard to beat me.”

De La Riva, Libório, Bustamante and Jaoude. Photo Clever Barbosa

Zé Mário is training in Rio de Janeiro, at X-Gym, and also sharpening his Jiu-Jitsu with Roberto Gordo. He told GRACIEMAG how he is feeling for the super-match: “I love training, so It’s all good. Libório was one of the best training partners I’ve ever had. He’s good in all aspects of the match. It’s going to be a huge challenge.”

José Mário Sperry

The 2015 ADCC kicks off August 29, in São Paulo, Brazil. Don’t miss GRACIEMAG’s full coverage on all our social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Periscope).

Tom DeBlass fighting MMA. Photo by Dan Rod

The most important MMA organization in the USA after the UFC has signed two GMA members to fight in one of their events.

UFC veteran Tom DeBlass, leader of Ocean County BJJ, in New Jersey, will face King Mo Lawal in a light heavyweight fight at Bellator 131, next Nov. 15, in San Diego.

The fight was rescheduled after an injury sustained by DeBlass prevented it from happening in a prior date.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt João Paulo Faria, Professor at Gracie Humaita Del Mar, was also signed to compete in the same event.

His opponent is yet to be defined.

For more info, go to bellator.com.

Here’s how he chose to remove the pin.

Special appearance by Renzo Gracie and Ricardo Almeida.

Tom DeBlass in a prior MMA bout. Photo by Dan Rod

GMA member Tom DeBlass returned to MMA with a win this Friday.

The leader of Ocean County BJJ, in NJ, needed only 1:45 to connect two left hooks and send Jason Lambert to the ground.

Lambert managed to get up, but DeBlass hit him again to end the match.

This was Deblass’ second straight Bellator win.

He now has a 9-2 record in MMA.

Murilo Santana ajusta a guilhotina em AJ. Foto: Ivan Trindada/ GRACIEMAG

A metrópole Nova York recebeu mais um campeonato com o selo da IBJJF, este sábado. No Pan de Jiu-Jitsu sem kimono, o campeão absoluto foi Murilo Santana (Barbosa), que conquistou também o meio-pesado.

Murilo, conhecido também por puxar os treinos sem pano de Leandro Lo, fechou o aberto, com o amigo Luiz Panza.

Ambos os atletas fizeram duas lutas no aberto. Murilo primeiro venceu Erza Leon (ATT) nos pontos. Em seguida, apertou o pescoço de AJ Agazarm (Gracie Barra) na guilhotina. Já Panza finalizou Ronnie Wuest (Balance) no triângulo e depois apertou o pé de Vitor Oliveira (GFTeam) na semifinal. Panza faturou também o peso pesado.

Entre os plumas, Laércio Fernandes (Alliance) pegou as costas de Milton Carlos (Paragon) para sair com o ouro. Nos penas, a festa foi comandada por Samir Chantre, Osvaldo Queixinho e Caio Terra, que fecharam para a equipe.

AJ, da Gracie Barra, levou o peso leve, após vencer duas lutas. Na final, AJ finalizou Nicholas Moraes (SAS) na americana no pé. O jovem equatoriano Francisco “Sinistro” Iturralde (Alliance) estrangulou Vitor Oliveira (GFTeam) pelas costas e garantiu o ouro nos médios.

Nos pesadíssimos, o ex-UFC Tom DeBlass (OCBJJ) venceu Leo D’ Avila (Atos) por três vantagens e foi campeão.

Para ver todos os campeões, acesse o site da IBJJF, aqui.