The Berimbolo Kid's Match of the Week - Week 7 - Rener Gracie vs. Eduardo Telles - 2004 Pan Ams

(Last week’s edition can be found HERE)

On this week’s edition of Match of the Week, the match I am sharing with you is Rener Gracie vs. Eduardo Telles from the 2004 Pan Ams. Yes, you did hear that correctly! I did say Rener Gracie. 

If you follow Jiu-Jitsu or even MMA, I'm pretty sure you are familiar with Rener Gracie. He is the son of UFC founder, Rorian Gracie and is a 4th degree black belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. Some of you might know Rener from the popular YouTube series, Gracie Breakdown which he presents with his older brother, Ryron. 

In terms of accomplishments in competition, Rener Gracie has very few. He did compete in the 2003 Pan Ams, and most notably submitted three time world champion, Fabio Leopoldo, but was eventually eliminated from the competition after losing to Roberto "Gordo" Correa on points. Probably Rener's biggest accomplishment in competition came later that year when he took part in the Southern California Pro-Am Invitational. This was a 16-man single elimination tournament with no time limits. Out of all the 16 competitors, Rener was the only one to wear a gi and still managed to submit all four of his opponents. His opponents were Joe "Daddy" Stevenson (UFC Fighter), Cassio Werneck (BJJ World Champion), Jason "Mayhem" Miller (UFC Fighter), and Tyrone Glover. 

Rener retired from Sport Jiu-Jitsu competition in 2004, in order to focus his attention more on the self defense aspect of Jiu-Jitsu.  

Rener Gracie

Eduardo Telles is said to be one of the most creative Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners in the world. He is known for his unique style of grappling, which is referred to as "Esquijitsu" (Weird Jiu-Jitsu). This is due to two types of guard which he created, the turtle guard, and the octopus guard. 

He is also best known for creating the legendary TT Team with his best friend, Fernando "Tererê" Augusto. The team is responsible for producing a few of today's stars such as Rubens "Cobrinha" Charles and André Galvão. 

At the black belt level, Telles is a one-time NoGi world champion (2013) and a one-time Pan American Champion (2007). He has also taken medals at numerous other major IBJJF competitions. He has taken bronze twice at the world championships (2008, 2010), three times at the Pan Ams (2002 - weight and absolute, 2008), and silver twice at the Pan Ams (2005, 2006). 

Eduardo Telles

In this match, since Telles is considered the veteran, you would expect him to make easy work of Gracie. However, this is not the case. Throughout the match, Rener throws a barrage of submissions at Telles and makes it no easy task for the far more experienced Telles. 

The video of this match can be found below. I hope you guys enjoy! 

See you next week!

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