Photo: IBJJF/Facebook

Yago Souza, 27, is back on the competition scene. After a long hiatus where he had to overcome injuries and make personal decisions, the black-belt started competing masterfully again in 2021, and has already racked up four gold medals, won at the Orleans Open, Orlando Open, Memphis Open and Houston Open – and, just this month, the IBJJF’s Orlando Summer Open.

“I was absent because of my period of adaptation to the U.S. and also the various injuries suffered, which was very difficult for me to adapt to,” he explained in a recent interview. “I also had a period of adaptation to the food and routine from here, which is all very different from what I used to have in Brazil. But now it’s all normal, and I know the path to achieving great titles again. I’m very happy about having won four straight opens, and now my goal is to sign up for the absolutes to test myself more, just like I did at the Memphis Open.”

A Pan and European champion in the black belt, Yago is thirsty to repeat the feats he accomplished in big events in 2016 and 2017, when he won most of the tournaments he took part in, notching wins against Otávio Sousa, Vitor Oliveira, Josh Hinger, Marcos Tinoco and AJ, for example.

“My biggest goal in 2021 is to keep myself competing and 100% healthy to reach the greatest version of myself in the big competitions and get a good result,” he said. “I’m practicing plenty of jiu-jitsu and lifting weights to strengthen my body, all done truly with great care. I train five times a week. I’m happy with the moment I’m living.”

Yago likes fighting on top and on the bottom, which often greatly hinders the strategies of opponents, who don’t know where to attack during the fight.

“I’ve always liked being versatile,” he said. “I’ve always tried to learn about everything and never limit myself to just one type of technique. My biggest goal in jiu-jitsu is to reach a high technical level. I really like working with the basics, because I see that the basics are getting lost as the years go by. People want to skip the basics and learn complicated things; that’s why I insist on the basics. The basics are the base for everything.”

Yago has gold medals from the World Championship and Brazilian Nationals, events also held by the IBJJF.

Mahamed Aly at the 2015 Worlds

Every year the black belt division gets a boost of talent as brown belts get promoted and add even more hardship to the game.

The 2016 world championship will be no exception, as a bunch of the best brown belts in 2015 will be registered for the black belt division.

We have highlighted 8 of these newcomers, but there are many more out there.

Here we go.

Michael Musumeci Jr. 

Mike Musumeci

The 2015 brown belt light-featherweight world champion has already debuted in the black belt division in great fashion. Looking incredibly thin, he signed up for the roosterweight division at the 2016 Pan and made it to the top of the podium. For the 2016 Worlds, Mikey and his sister Tammi have moved to California to train with Gui and Rafa Mendes at AOJ Academy, which should generate some great results. Mikey is signed up for the roosterweight once again, but maybe going up to light-feather is his best chance to win another gold medal for Team USA, which doesn’t happen in the male division since 2007.

Edwin Najmi

Edwin Najmi

Just like Musumeci, Najmi won his division (lightweight) at the 2015 Worlds. After getting his black belt, he struck gold for the first time at the 2016 Pan, with a beautiful Estima lock on Francisco Iturralde. The 2016 Worlds black belt lightweight division will be a true mine field, with Lucas Lepri, Michael Langhi, AJ Agazarm, JT Torres, etc. Najmi is another big talent to make things even more complicated.

Yago Souza

Yago Souza

Another PSLPB Cicero Costha talent, Yago Souza closed out the brown belt middleweight division in 2015 with his teammate Manuel Ribamar Filho. Then, he got his black belt and already did great at the 2016 European and the 2016 Pan, wining the middleweight division both in Lisbon and Irvine. It should interesting to see Yago going against the likes of Otavio Sousa, Claudio Calasans Jr, Victor Estima and Vitor Oliveira, just to name a few.

Guilherme Soares

Guilherme Soares

The 2015 brown belt open class runner-up also transitioned to the black belt and has already made his presence felt. He finished third in the heavyweight division at the 2016 Pan and won the same division at the recent 2016 Brazilian Nationals. The heavyweight division with the likes of Tim Spriggs, André Galvão, Erberth Santos, Jackson Souza, among others should be a great challenge for the newcomer.

Mahamed Aly

Mahamed Aly

The double gold campaign at the 2015 Worlds puts some pressure on Aly for his first Worlds as a black belt. Already registered in the ultra-heavy division, Mahamed should encounter some big competition, including Alex Trans, Marcus Buchecha, Gabriel Lucas, João Gabriel Rocha, among others.

Gabriel Arges

Gabriel Arges

Another talent coming out of Romulo Barral’s lineage, Arges finished third at the brown belt middleweight division of the 2015 Worlds. As a black belt, he did great at the 2015 Irvine Open and then travelled to Lisbon for another great showing at the 2016 European, closing out the medium-heavy division with his Professor Barral.

Mansher Khera

Mansher Khera

Fresh out of Marcelo Garcia’s talent factory, Khera (and his teammate Jon Satava) will be making his first appearance at the Worlds as a black belt. They could have done it last year, but they did not have time to add up the 50pts necessary to qualify after being promoted. Khera is signed up for the lightweight division while Satava is registered for the middleweight.

Lucas Barbosa

Lucas Barbosa at the 2015 Worlds NoGi

The Hulk won the brown belt medium-heavy division at the 2016 Worlds. After getting his black belt, he jumped right into the mix and managed some big results. most importantly the medium-heavy division at the 2015 Worlds No-Gi. Just recently, he won the medium-heavy division at the 2016 Las Vegas Open. Lucas should be another big hurdle at the medium-heavy in Long Beach.

Don’t forget to register for the 2016 world championship before May 24.

Click here to sign up now.

Yago irá testar sua faixa-preta na complicada divisão de médios do Europeu. Foto: Divulgação

O atleta da Brotherhood está empolgado com os últimos resultados obtidos na faixa-marrom, mas garante atenção redobrada na nova etapa de sua carreira, agora entre os pretas.

“Fiquei feliz com os títulos que tive na faixa-marrom ano passado, como o Mundial da IBJJF. Em 2016, vou dar meu máximo para me superar na faixa-preta. Não vai ser fácil, mas estou trabalhando duro para isto acontecer”, conta Yago, que briga pelo ouro na divisão dos pesos médios, ao lado de Alan Finfou, Lucas Hulk, Yan Cabral, lutador do UFC, e outros talentos.

“A categoria de médios é bem difícil e equilibrada. Os atletas têm um nível técnico elevado e uma condição física bem forte. Meus treinos para o Europeu foram intensos, tenho sorte de ter muitos parceiros de treino do meu peso e isso me dá boa vantagem. Ter um material humano de qualidade, como Leandro Lo, Wellington Alemão e meu primo Manuel Ribamar, para mim, é um luxo. Eles me ajudaram muito e corrigiram meus erros. Fiz muitos treinos específicos para ajustar as posições também”, diz.

Faixa-preta de Leandro Lo, Yago relembrou a lição mais valiosa que recebeu do tetracampeão mundial nos treinos de Jiu-Jitsu.

“Lo sempre falou para eu ser um cara completo, saber fazer guarda, passar, finalizar e procurar treinar com os caras mais duros da equipe. Alertou também para ser ousado na hora das competições e arriscar posições novas”, encerra Yago.

(Fonte: Assessoria de imprensa)

Paulo Miyao arrocha o estrangulamento. Foto: GRACIEMAG

De São Paulo para o mundo. Ao lado de Murilo Santana, os jovens João e Paulo Miyao (Cícero Costha) vão embarcar para uma nova jornada em suas carreiras no Jiu-Jitsu. O destino é a cosmopolita Nova York.

Os manos faixas-pretas agora vão morar e treinar na Unity, academia localizada no lado leste de Manhattan.

“Eles (os Miyao) só vão treinar e eu vou dar as aulas. João e Paulo vão morar em Nova York como atletas da academia e treinar o dia inteiro, além de seguir as aulas ministradas por mim. A Luiza Monteiro também vai morar em Nova York para treinar para os torneios. Para a disputa do Pan da IBJJF, Leandro Lo já quer fazer o camp dele em NY também. Vai ser da hora o treino; o Yago Souza, faixa-marrom da Cícero Costha, também vai morar na academia”, diz Murilo Santana.

“É importante reforçar que ninguém está trocando de equipe. Os Miyao vão lutar pelo Cícero (Costha) e eu pelo Barbosa, só que com o patch da Unity Jiu-Jitsu também”, ressalta Murilo.

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Aluno de Cícero Costha em São Paulo, o jovem Yago Souza mostra como surpreender o adversário a partir da guarda-X e finalizar com uma justa chave de joelho. Repare como Yago não solta as pegadas na hora do giro e teste a posição!