Legendary competitor Marcelo Garcia is popping out of retirement to compete in ONE Championship.
Probably the greatest pound-for-pound rivals within the historical past of BJJ is making ready for a return to competitors.
On Monday, Singapore-based martial arts promotion ONE Championship introduced that it has signed Marcelo Garcia to compete within the group’s submission grappling ranks.
A five-time IBJJF world champion and four-time ADCC champion, the 41-year-old Brazilian is acknowledged by many as the best competitor the game has ever seen. He received his first of 5 IBJJF gi world titles in 2004 and his final in 2011.
Past his accomplishments within the gi, Garcia is greatest identified for his unbelievable ADCC runs. He’s a four-time ADCC gold medalist within the 77kg division, which is usually seen because the occasion’s most talent-packed weight class. What’s extra, he’s a multiple-time ADCC absolute medalist – a very unbelievable feat given his small dimension.
Garcia’s run on the 2007 ADCC World Championships is maybe essentially the most spectacular single-tournament efficiency in submission grappling historical past. Over the course of two days, he submitted seven of his eight opponents, shedding solely to 99kg competitor Robert Drysdale within the ultimate of absolutely the division.
Garcia has additionally performed a pivotal position within the technical evolution of BJJ. His butterfly guard, arm drags, and guillotine chokes have all been studied and replicated by elite rivals over the previous decade, and methods that he popularised stay a serious a part of the modern-day meta.
The Brazilian has not competed since 2011.
In early 2023, he introduced that he had been recognized with abdomen most cancers. In December 2023, following chemotherapy therapy and a hiatus from coaching, Garcia returned to the mats.
No opponent or date has been introduced for Garcia’s debut in ONE Championship.
He joins high black belt rivals Cole Abate, Dante Leon, and Fabricio Andrey in a current slew of signings for ONE Championship’s submission grappling divisions.
