Marcelo Garcia (born January 17, 1983) is a Brazilian

submission grappler Submission wrestling, also known as Submission grappling, Submission fighting a form of competition and a general term for martial arts and combat sports that focus on clinch and ground fighting with the aim of obtaining a submission through the ...

and a 4th degree black belt

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

practitioner and coach. A highly decorated competitor, Garcia is widely considered to be one of the best grapplers in the world and arguably the best

pound for pound Pound for pound is a ranking used in combat sports, such as boxing, wrestling, or mixed martial arts, of who the better fighters are irrespective of their weight, i.e. adjusted to compensate for weight class. As these fighters do not compete direc ...

submission grappler. Holding 5

World Jiu-Jitsu Championship The World IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship (commonly known as the Worlds or Mundials) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament held once every year by the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation. It is widely considered to be the most important and ...

and 4

ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship The ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship, is an international submission wrestling, submission grappling competition, organised by the Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC). The inaugural tournament was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE in 1998. It has been ...

titles, Garcia is a member of the

IBJJF Hall of Fame List of competitors inducted into the Brazilian jiu-jitsu Hall of Fame by the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF), the sport's governing body. The list consists of athletes who have either achieved incredible results throughout th ...

and the third BJJ athlete to be inducted into the

ADCC Hall of Fame List of competitors inducted into the Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC) Hall of Fame. The list consists of athletes who have made an outstanding contribution to the sport of submission wrestling throughout their participation at the ADCC Submission ...

Biography

Marcelo Garcia was born on 17 January 1983 in Formiga,

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

a small city in southeast Brazil. Garcia won the World Championships at all belt levels (blue, purple, brown) before receiving his black belt from

Fabio Gurgel Fabio is a given name descended from Latin ''Fabius'' and very popular in Italy and Latin America (due to Italian migration). Its English equivalent is Fabian. The name is written without an accent in Italian and Spanish, but is usually accented ...

who he trained with in Sao Paulo, Brazil. At

K-1 HERO'S Hero's was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion operated by Fighting and Entertainment Group, the parent entity behind kickboxing organization K-1. Grown from and branched off of K-1's earlier experiments in MMA, including the ''K-1 Romanex' ...

Korea 2007, Garcia made his MMA debut. He lost this against Dae Won Kim twenty seconds into the second round by doctor's stoppage, due to a cut above his eye. In September 2008, Garcia opened up a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu school in

Pembroke Pines Pembroke Pines is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States. The city is located 22 miles (35 km) north of Miami. The population of Pembroke Pines is 171,178 as of the 2020 census. It is a suburb of and the fourth-most populous c ...

, a city in

South Florida South Florida is the southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the other two are Central Florida and North Florida. South Florida is the southernmost part of th ...

located between

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

and

Fort Lauderdale A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. In September 2009, Garcia opened an academy in Manhattan, New York City. In November 2021, Garcia retired from competition, that same year he became the third person to be inducted into the ADCC Hall of Fame as a result of his record-setting four gold medals in his own weight division and his performances in the absolute division. On January 19, 2023, Garcia revealed that he had been diagnosed with stomach cancer and would undergo chemotherapy and surgery to remove the tumour.

Instructor lineage

Mitsuyo "Count Koma" Maeda →

Carlos Gracie Carlos Gracie (September 14, 1902October 7, 1994) was a Brazilian martial artist who is credited with being one of the primary developers of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Along with his younger brother Hélio Gracie and fellow students Luis França and ...

Sr. →

Helio Gracie Helio may refer to: * Helio AU-24 Stallion * Helio (wireless carrier), a defunct American wireless communications provider (2005–2010); originally a joint venture between SK Telecom and EarthLink, purchased by Virgin Mobile USA in 2008 * ...

→

Rolls Gracie Rolls Gracie (; 1951–1982) was a Brazilian martial artist. He was a prominent member of the Gracie family known for their founding of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and considered by some the family's best ever fighter. He was teacher of Rickson Gracie, ...

→

Romero "Jacare" Cavalcanti Romero Cavalcanti (born October 22, 1952) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu master and the founder of Alliance Jiu Jitsu. He is one of the six men who were promoted to black belt by Rolls Gracie prior to his fatal 1982 hang gliding accident.Fabio Gurgel Fabio is a given name descended from Latin ''Fabius'' and very popular in Italy and Latin America (due to Italian migration). Its English equivalent is Fabian. The name is written without an accent in Italian and Spanish, but is usually accented ...

→ Marcelo Garcia

Championships and accomplishments

Garcia has won five world championship titles in Brazilian jiu-jitsu as a black belt in the middle-weight category. He has many submission grappling titles, including the

ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship The ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship, is an international submission wrestling, submission grappling competition, organised by the Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC). The inaugural tournament was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE in 1998. It has been ...

. At ADCC, Garcia has won the 66–76 kg division four times (2003/2005/2007/2011), been awarded the most technical fighter twice (2003 and 2007) and won the best fight award in 2005. In 2005, he finished in third place in the absolute (open weight) division and in 2007 finished second in the absolute division. In ADCC 2009, Garcia finished second in his weight division, losing by points to

Pablo Popovitch Pablo Popovitch (born September 9, 1979) is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner, mixed martial artist and a 4th degree black belt under Jorge Popovitch. Biography Pablo Popovitch became involved in BJJ as a 4-year-old. Born in Rio de Janeiro, Pop ...

, whom he had defeated in the two previous finals.

Grappling

;2011 * ADCC World Championship (-77 kg) * IBJJF World Championship (-82 kg) ;2010 * IBJJF World Championship (-82 kg) ;2009 * ADCC World Championship (-77 kg) * IBJJF World Championship (-82 kg) * ACBJJ World Cup (Absolute) * ACBJJ World Cup (-75 kg) ;2007 * ADCC World Championship (Absolute) * ADCC World Championship (-77 kg) * Grapplers Quest: Beast of the East (Superfight Tournament) * IBJJF Pan American Championship (-82 kg) ;2006 * PSL: X-Mission Superfight Winner * IBJJF World Championship (Absolute) * IBJJF World Championship (-82 kg) * PSL: LA-Sub Superfight Winner * CBJJ Brazilian National Championship (Absolute) * CBJJ Brazilian National Championship (-82 kg) ;2005 * Arnold Gracie Pro * ADCC World Championship (Absolute) * ADCC World Championship (-77 kg) ;2004 * Arnold Gracie Pro * IBJJF World Championship (Absolute) * IBJJF World Championship (-82 kg) * CBJJ Brazilian National Championship (Absolute) * CBJJ Brazilian National Championship (-82 kg) * Campos Submission Wrestling 3 (Absolute) * Campos Submission Wrestling 3 (-88 kg) ;2003 * ADCC World Championship (-77 kg) * IBJJF World Championship (-82 kg)

Grappling record

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 0-1 , Kim Dae-Won , TKO (cut) , Hero's 2007 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:20 ,

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

, South Korea ,

References

External links

ADCC highlight video

Highlight Video

Marcelo Garcia BJJ/Grappling tournament videos

www.mginaction.com

Marcelo Garcia
BJJ Heroes Page * * * * *
Marcelo Garcia Vespucio
BJJ (GI) career on MARanking , Martial Arts Ranking {{DEFAULTSORT:Garcia, Marcelo Brazilian male mixed martial artists Lightweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian submission wrestlers 1983 births Living people Brazilian jiu-jitsu trainers People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu World Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Championship medalists IBJJF Hall of Fame inductees ADCC Hall of Fame inductees Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners who have competed in MMA (men)