The Berimbolo Kid's Match of the Week - Week 40 - Leo Vieira vs. Mark Kerr - ADCC 2000

(The previous edition can be found HERE)

Welcome to the 40th edition of Match of the Week! This week's match is Leo Vieira vs. Mark Kerr from absolute division of ADCC 2000. 

Leonardo Vieira (commonly known as simply Leo Vieira) is a true legend in the world of Jiu-Jitsu. He is a black belt under Romero "Jacare" Cavalcanti, and is the co-founder of both Brasa and Checkmat BJJ. He is also the instructor to some of today's finest talents such as Marcus "Bucheca" Almeida, Joao Assis, and Lucas Leite.

Over is long competition career, Leo has formed an impressive competition record. He is a two time ADCC (2005, 2003) and Pan American Champion (2004, 2002), and a one time World (1999) and Brazilian National Champion (1998). He is also a two time ADCC silver medalist (2011, 2007), and a one time World silver (1997) and bronze (2000) medalist.

Leo is well known for his guard passing and back takes. For his time, Leo had quite a unique and flamboyant style of grappling. Often executing cartwheel style guard passes and taking his opponents back by initiating a forward roll whilst in the turtle position, this has since become known as simply the Leo Vieira back take. 

Leo Vieira

Mark Kerr is probably best known for his MMA career and is commonly recognised by his nickname, 'The Smashing Machine'. He is a former NCAA Division I wrestler and has competed in MMA organisations such as the UFC and PRIDE FC. Throughout his grappling career, Mark has had victories over the likes of Rigan Machado, Mario Sperry, and Ricardo Almeida.

Despite not holding a rank in Jiu-Jitsu, Mark has done very well in submission grappling. He is a three time ADCC Champion (1999, 2000 weight & absolute) and a one-time ADCC Superfight Champion (2001 - defeating Mario Sperry). Besides this, he is also a two time UFC tournament winner (UFC 14 & 15) and a one-time NCAA Division I Collegiate Champion (1992).

Unsurprisingly, Mark isn't a guard player. I don't actually think he knows the meaning of the word. He is a top player through and through. Double and single legs are his specialty, and he flawlessly executes them even against some of the best grapplers in the world at the time. In terms of submissions, looking at both his grappling and MMA career, Mark seems to have a preference for the kimura in particular.

Mark Kerr

The size difference in this match is incredible! Leo Vieira weighs 74kg and Mark Kerr weighs 115kg! Damn! It is a David vs. Goliath type match, but sometimes Goliath does win. The strength of Mark Kerr is undoubtable, but his technique is also solid. On multiple occasions, Kerr scores takedowns on Vieira. However, Leo really does a great job of defending throughout the entire match. 

The videos of the match can be found below! I hope you guys enjoy!

See you next week!

(If you are viewing on a mobile device, please click HERE)

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Update (16/07/15) - Tim Spriggs Interview, Future Articles & DVD Reviews

What's up, people? I haven't done one of these update posts in a while, so I thought I would quickly throw one together. 

Since I last did one of these, I have got myself a job, and juggling that with training and everything else has been a little difficult from a blogging perspective. That is why I haven't been as active over the last two months. 

However, I have recently made a conscious effort to turn that around and I have been hard at work writing lots of things and planning them for future posts. Here are a few of them:

• Heel Hooks in BJJ
• Whipping in BJJ
• Is the Berimbolo Ruining Jiu-Jitsu?
• Gui Mendes Tribute (due to his retirement)
• A series on BJJ rivalries (a few examples below) 
• Keenan vs. Miyao
• Roger vs. Jacare
• Roger vs. Xande

Some of them you may recognise, as I have brought them up previously, and they have been in the can for a while now. The Gui Mendes one may be a little out of date, but I still think it would be a cool idea to do a little tribute to him and feature some of my favourite matches from his career. 

The article titled, 'Is the Berimbolo Ruining Jiu-Jitsu?' is basically a follow up on an article I did back in March of 2014 about the 50/50. It would feature a similar concept, but obviously would be about the berimbolo, a technique which most people let’s just say are not happy with in the BJJ community. 

The BJJ rivalries are actually something I have been considering doing since I started blogging. I will cover all the matches from their rivalries and provide videos from each of them. That's actually a pretty cool idea because I can make it a weekly thing and not just simply a one off thing. 

Lately, I've also been watching a few instructional DVD's, so I might possibly do a few reviews on some of them. The new DVD from Michael Liera Jr. about the de la riva guard I must say I was very impressed by, so I may cover that in the up and coming weeks.

It has been confirmed that my next interview will be Team Lloyd Irvin beast, Tim Spriggs. So shortly, I will be writing questions so I can send them off to him. I'm really looking forward to this one because I have a lot of question which I am dying to ask him, so I think it's going to be very interesting. 

Also, I think I will start writing these update posts more regular because the more I write, regardless of what it is, the more I feel encouraged to write. So, expect some more update posts in the near future. 

That is really everything I have to say this time around. Before we draw to a close, I just want to say thank you for busybodies continued support with this blog, and especially for all the support on Mondays Match of the Week. It had over 2000 view in 18 hours, making it the second most popular match to date. Thanks!

Catch you later,

Giordano 

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The Berimbolo Kid's Match of the Week - Week 39 - Jason 'Mayhem' Miller vs. Saulo Ribeiro - 2005 Grapplers Quest North American Championships

(The previous edition can be found HERE)

Hello, and welcome to another edition of Match of the Week. This week is Jason 'Mayhem' Miller vs. Saulo Ribeiro from the 2005 Grapplers Quest North American Championships.

Jason 'Mayhem' Miller is a black belt under Rafael Cordeiro and represents Kings MMA. Jason is best known for his MMA career having fought in promotions such as the UFC, WEC, Strikeforce and DREAM. He holds victories over prominent fighters such Robbie Lawler, Tim Kennedy, and even a submission victory over Kazushi Sakuraba.

In terms of competition, Jason has no major victories to his name in the Gi, but in NoGi, he is a three time Grapplers Quest Champion (2004, 2003, 2001). His 2003 championship was the Best in the West Grapplers Quest Championship which is one of their biggest competitions. 

Over half of Jason's wins in MMA have come via submission. He seems to have a preference for both the rear naked and arm-triangle choke as I can tell from watching some of his matches and looking at his MMA record. I don't really like to use the phrase 'MMA style' but in this instance I think it fits perfectly. Jason likes to shoot for singles and doubles, and enjoys the scramble.

Jason 'Mayhem' Miller

Saulo Ribeiro is a true legend in the world of Jiu-Jitsu. He is a 4th degree black belt under Royler Gracie and is also a black belt in Judo. Saulo is the older brother of two time absolute World Champion, Xande Ribeiro. After a long and impressive career in Jiu-Jitsu, Saulo was inducted into the IBJJF Hall of Fame in 2012. 

It’s no surprise to find out that Saulo has won numerous major titles throughout his long career in our sport. He is a five time World Champion (2002, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1997), a four time World Masters and Seniors Champion (2013 weight & absolute, 2012 weight & absolute), a three time Brazilian National Champion (1998 weight & absolute, 1996), a two time ADCC (2003, 2000) and Pan American Champion (1998 weight & absolute), and a one-time World NoGi Champion (2008). 

Having a black belt in Judo, it’s not really a surprise that Saulo is known for his throws and takedowns. One takedown he uses frequently throughout his matches is the Kouchi Gari, but he also uses both single and double leg takedowns, especially in NoGi. For the most part, Saulo is a top player. Obviously, at the level that he is, his guard is very good also, but he seems to prefer the top game. The choke from the mount is a favourite submission of Saulo's.

Saulo Ribeiro

I actually only stumbled across this match a few days ago. I like enough to make it this week’s match. I was honestly surprised on how good Jason did against a veteran such as Saulo. It wasn't even one sided, it back and forth. At the end, Jason is even close to taking Saulo's back.  

There is actually very little footage of this match, and as far as I am aware this is only the recording which exists. It is not the entire match, but instead is an edited version by Grapplers Quest which shows all the action in the match and cuts out all the filler. Also, the link I provide for mobile viewers is not a YouTube link but instead is a link to a Facebook video. 

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

See you next week!

(If you are viewing on a mobile device, please click HERE)

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The Berimbolo Kid's Match of the Week - Week 38 - Fernando 'Tererê' Augusto vs. Fabricio Werdum - Worlds 2004

(The previous edition can be found HERE)

Hello, and welcome to another edition of Match of the Week. This week is Fernando 'Tererê' Augusto vs. Fabricio Werdum from the super heavyweight finals of the 2004 World Championships. 

Fernando Augusto, better known in the BJJ community as 'Tererê', is a black belt under Alexandre Paiva and represents the Alliance team. Tererê is one of the greatest competitors to have ever graced the mats and was once seen by many to be the pound for pound best in the world during the early 2000's. He was also head of the TT team along with Eduardo Telles, and produced many of today's top talent such as André Galvão, Rubens 'Cobrinha' Charles, Lucas Lepri and Michael Langhi.

Tererê is a six time World Champion (2003, 2000 black, 1999 brown, 1998 purple weight & absolute, 1997 blue), a three time Brazilian National Champion (2003, 2001 weight & absolute), a two time World Cup Champion (2003, 2002) and a one-time Pan American Champion (2004). He is also a two time World silver medalist (2004, 2001) and a one-time Pan American silver medalist (2004 absolute). 

It's Tererê's style of Jiu-Jitsu which has made him one of the most exciting fighters to watch. He is known for his flashy, yet super technical style of BJJ. Tererê is become quite synonymous for his guard passing over the years, along with his takedowns. This is not to say Tererê is not a guard player, but his passing is definitely his strength. 

Fernando 'Tererê' Augusto

Fabricio Werdum is a black belt under Sylvio Behring and represents his own team, Werdum Combat Team. Fabricio is best known today for his MMA career, most notably for defeating Fedor Emelianenko back in 2010, breaking his almost 10 year winning streak. As of today, Fabricio is one of the pound for pound best MMA fighters in the world, and is the current UFC Heavyweight Champion. 

Putting his MMA credentials aside, Fabricio has also done very well in BJJ and submission grappling competitions. He is a four time World (2004, 2003 black, 2000 blue weight & absolute) and Pan American Champion (2002 brown, 2001 purple weight & absolute, 2000), and a two time ADCC Champion (2007, 2009). He is also a two time ADCC silver (2011, 2003) and bronze medalist (2005, 2003 absolute). 

Fabricio is well rounded as a grappler, but seems to prefer playing from bottom. In particular, Fabricio uses the butterfly guard to great effect to sweep his opponents, often sweeping straight to the mount. In terms of submissions, Fabricio obtains the majority of his victories by armbar and also by the triangle.

Fabricio Werdum

This match is a classic! The fact that this is the super heavyweight final and Tererê normally competes at middleweight (that's is three weight classes up) makes it even better. I'll shut up now and leave the match do the talking. 

The videos of the match can be found below! I hope you guys enjoy!

See you next week!

(If you are viewing on a mobile device, please click HERE)

(If you are viewing on a mobile device, please click HERE)

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