Who is the Best BJJ Fighter in the World?
Asking yourself who to look for in the next Jiu Jitsu World Championships? Well here is a guideline on some of the “made” guys in the BJJ game. Note that this list will be updated as competitions go by.
Again, here is the BJJ Heroes list of the top pound 4 pound Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters in the World. The list consists of current competitors only, and it was a very, very hard question to crack. I have done this list over and over always ending with different results on this top 10 list, but based on results from the last couple of years, this is my final (I think) list – due to change as competitions go by.
1. Roger Gracie (Gracie Barra): though he was unable to compete at the last World jiu jitsu Championship event (due to injury), Roger Gracie is still very much the Boogie Man when it comes to BJJ. He has been more dedicated to the MMA game, but hopefully he will be back to jiu jitsu in 2012.
2. Rafael Mendes (Atos): one of the toughest picks on this list. Not because he shouldn’t be here (he most definitely should), just a hard dispute for the second place between Rafael and the man below, Rodolfo Vieira. Rafael has had a very minute hick-up this year at the World Pro Cup finals in Abu Dhabi, losing a close decision to “Tanquinho”, but he proved once again at the Mundials that he is the king of the featherweights cruising his way to the final with many spectacular finishes.
3. Rodolfo Vieira (Grappling Fight Team): Rodolfo is one of the fans favourites and should be voted as “Fighter of the Year” by most of the media this year, and rightfully so. Rodolfo’s base is a puzzle that not many have figured out how to crack, and the few that did found out the big man can also play guard. He is only 21, and BJJ Heroes expect him to be at the top of this list in the foreseeable future.
4. Marcelo Garcia (Alliance): a little more conservative on his way to his World title in 2011, fighting more for points then for the kill like in previous years, he still proved he is the man to beat in the middleweights and he was never close to trouble throughout the tournament.
5. Bruno Malfacine (Alliance): Malfacine seems to be the top dog of the “Galos”, and regardless of how much trash talk there is, Bruno at Galo has been unrivalled for quite some time. He has lost this year (Caio Terra and Rafael Mendes), but looked unstoppable at the Mundials.
6. Andre Galvão(Atos) Since returning to Jiu Jitsu from his MMA career, Galvao has been tremendously impressive winning the Pan Americans, but most importantly winning the ADCC in both his weight and the absolute, making him once again one of the top men in the BJJ game.
7. Claudio Calasans (Atos): a disappointing tournament this year, after being injured in the absolute division of the Mundials (against Rodolfo Vieira), Calasans continued in the middleweights finishing his first opponent quickly. Unfortunately he succumbed to the pain and could not continue. He is one of the best in the business and one of the most exciting fighters to watch out there.
8. Leo Nogueira (Alliance): the dominant guard player from the Alliance team is like a silent killer, not many people are aware of him in the main stream of BJJ, but hiding behind the flamboyance of fighters like Marcelinho, Langhi, Lepri and Co. Leonardo has been collecting gold medals (Mundials, Brazilian Nationals and European Open).
9. Marcus Almeida (Checkmat): if you are one of those people that think lightweights are more fun to watch then the heavier guys you have never seen the inimitable “Buchecha” at work. Like a submission machine, this young gun has been an unstoppable force, submitting guys left and right in all divisions he competes at.
10. Bernardo Faria (Alliance): The only times this man has lost in the last important tournaments, it has been to Rodolfo Vieira, and his half guard game is still one of the toughest puzzles to crack in Jiu Jitsu today.
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