Vale Tudo
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Vale Tudo (; en, Everything Goes/Everything Allowed), also known No Holds Barred (NHB) in the United States, is an unarmed, full-contact
combat sport A combat sport, or fighting sport, is a competitive contact sport that usually involves one-on-one combat. In many combat sports, a contestant wins by scoring more points than the opponent, submitting the opponent with a hold, disabling the opp ...
with relatively few
rules Rule or ruling may refer to: Education * Royal University of Law and Economics (RULE), a university in Cambodia Human activity * The exercise of political or personal control by someone with authority or power * Business rule, a rule pert ...
. It became popular in Brazil during the 20th century and would eventually evolve into modern
Mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...
(MMA). For years "Vale Tudo" was used as a synonym for MMA in Brazil, but the term fell into disuse due to the emergence of stricter rules and the influence of the media to have a more "civilized" name. It is now used to refer to an early, more rules-free stage of the modern sport. Vale Tudo initially started as an informal ruleset for fighters from different
martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...
to fight each other. The
Gracie family The Gracie Family () are a prominent martial arts family originally from Belém, state of Pará, Brazil whose ancestors came from Paisley, Scotland. They are known for creating the self-defense martial arts system of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, also kno ...
was known to organize their famous "
Gracie Challenge The Gracie Challenge was an open invitation challenge match issued by members of the Gracie family, representing their self-defense system of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu against challengers of other martial art systems in a vale tudo match, or "anything goes" ...
", where they would fight other martial artists in Vale Tudo bouts to prove the efficiency and superiority of their own Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.T.P. Grant, April 12, 201
History of Jiu-Jitsu: Coming to America and the Birth of the UFC
Bleacher Report. Retrieved on 2012-01-08.
Many fighters eventually started to train specifically for Vale Tudo events, mixing striking and grappling, eventually advertising "Vale Tudo" as its own standalone style. For example,
Marco Ruas Marco Antônio de Lima Ruas (; born 23 January 1961) is a Brazilian former mixed martial arts fighter, Submission Wrestler, Kickboxer and instructor. Ruas was the UFC 7 Tournament Champion, and also competed for the World Vale Tudo Champions ...
referred to his hybrid style of
Luta Livre Luta Livre (, lit. ''freestyle fighting''), known in Brazil as Luta Livre Brasileira (lit. ''Brazilian freestyle fighting'') or Luta Livre Submission, and also Brazilian Submission Wrestling, is a Brazilian martial arts and combat sport created ...
submission grappling and
Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...
striking simply as "Vale Tudo".


History


1920s–1980s

Fighting sideshows called ''vale tudo'' became popular in Brazilian
circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclist ...
es during the 1920s. Examples of such bouts were described in the ''Japanese-American Courier'' on October 4, 1928: However, this circus term did not enter popular use until 1959–1960, when it was used to describe the style-versus-style bouts featured in a Rio television show called ''Heróis do Ringue'' ("Heroes of the Ring"). The matchmakers and hosts of the show included members of the
Gracie family The Gracie Family () are a prominent martial arts family originally from Belém, state of Pará, Brazil whose ancestors came from Paisley, Scotland. They are known for creating the self-defense martial arts system of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, also kno ...
, including
Carlson Gracie Carlson Gracie (August 13, 1932 – February 1, 2006) was a practitioner of Brazilian jiu-jitsu. A member of the Gracie family, he was the eldest son of Carlos Gracie, and nephew to Hélio Gracie, founders of Gracie jiu-jitsu. Carlson Gr ...
and
Carley Gracie Carley Gracie (born January 10, 1952) is a Brazilian-born American martial artist, a prominent member of the Gracie family, and a jiu-jitsu grandmaster. His father is Carlos Gracie. Carley Gracie is one of an elite group to have been awarde ...
. The participants were all legitimate practitioners of their styles. The
Gracie family The Gracie Family () are a prominent martial arts family originally from Belém, state of Pará, Brazil whose ancestors came from Paisley, Scotland. They are known for creating the self-defense martial arts system of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, also kno ...
, which had origins in the circus business, devised the "
Gracie Challenge The Gracie Challenge was an open invitation challenge match issued by members of the Gracie family, representing their self-defense system of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu against challengers of other martial art systems in a vale tudo match, or "anything goes" ...
", where they would invite or be challenged by opponents from other martial arts to a Vale Tudo match prove the effectiveness of their Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. The Gracies would hold their challenges behind closed doors at their gyms, but in some cases they realised public events too. One night during the show, João Alberto Barreto (later a referee for
UFC 1 ''The Ultimate Fighting Championship'' (later renamed ''UFC 1: The Beginning'') was the first mixed martial arts event by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), held at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado, United States, on November ...
) was competing against a man trained in
Luta Livre Luta Livre (, lit. ''freestyle fighting''), known in Brazil as Luta Livre Brasileira (lit. ''Brazilian freestyle fighting'') or Luta Livre Submission, and also Brazilian Submission Wrestling, is a Brazilian martial arts and combat sport created ...
. Barreto caught his opponent in an
armbar An armlock in grappling is a single or double joint lock that hyperextends, hyperflexes or hyperrotates the elbow joint or shoulder joint. An armlock that hyper-extends the arm is known as an armbar, and it includes the traditional armbar, pr ...
and the man refused to submit. Barreto broke the man's arm. Consequently, the show was canceled and soon replaced by a
professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...
show called
Telecatch ''Telecatch'' was a Brazilian professional wrestling TV program originally called ''Telecatch Montilla''. It was broadcast by TV Globo from 1967 to 1969. The name of the program would later be changed to ''Os Reis do Ringue in the 1970s by RecordTV ...
. From 1960 onwards, Vale Tudo remained mostly an underground
subculture A subculture is a group of people within a culture that differentiates itself from the parent culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values regarding cultural, poli ...
, with most fights taking place in martial arts dojos or small gymnasiums. The Vale Tudo subculture was based in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, but many fights took place in the northern region, the southern region and the
Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (sta ...
state, where
Capoeira Capoeira () is an Afro-Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics, music and spirituality. Born of the melting pot of enslaved Africans, Indigenous Brazilians and Portuguese influences at the beginning of the 16th century ...
is prevalent. The scene in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
focused mainly on the intense rivalry between
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 ...
and
Luta Livre Luta Livre (, lit. ''freestyle fighting''), known in Brazil as Luta Livre Brasileira (lit. ''Brazilian freestyle fighting'') or Luta Livre Submission, and also Brazilian Submission Wrestling, is a Brazilian martial arts and combat sport created ...
. Fights in the other regions featured more diverse martial arts competing in the events. In 1980 and 1984
Rickson Gracie Rickson Gracie (; born November 21, 1958) is a Brazilian 9th-degree red belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and a retired mixed martial artist. He is a member of the Gracie family: the third oldest son of Hélio Gracie, brother to Rorion and Relson Grac ...
fought two events against Casimiro de Nascimento Martins ("Rei Zulu"), father of
Zuluzinho Wágner da Conceição Martins (born May 19, 1978), better known as Zuluzinho (), is a Brazilian vale tudo fighter and mixed martial artist. He is the son of Vale Tudo legend Casemiro Nascimento Martins ("Rei Zulu"). Wagner was raised by his gran ...
. Both events were proceeded with public interest and they filled the Maracanãzinho stadium in Rio de Janeiro. They brought public mediatic attention back to Vale Tudo, which had been dormant since the 1960s. In 1984 at the Maracanãzinho it was held the ''Noite das Artes Marciais'' ("Night of the Martial Arts") also known as ' ("Jiu-Jitsu vs Martial Arts"), fought by representatives of BJJ against representatives of
Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...
,
Kung Fu Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (), are multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common ...
,
Kickboxing Kickboxing is a combat sports, combat sport focused on kicking and punch (strike), punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is pract ...
and
Luta Livre Luta Livre (, lit. ''freestyle fighting''), known in Brazil as Luta Livre Brasileira (lit. ''Brazilian freestyle fighting'') or Luta Livre Submission, and also Brazilian Submission Wrestling, is a Brazilian martial arts and combat sport created ...
. Future
UFC 7 ''UFC 7: The Brawl in Buffalo'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 8, 1995, at the Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York. The event was seen live on pay per view in the United States, and l ...
champion
Marco Ruas Marco Antônio de Lima Ruas (; born 23 January 1961) is a Brazilian former mixed martial arts fighter, Submission Wrestler, Kickboxer and instructor. Ruas was the UFC 7 Tournament Champion, and also competed for the World Vale Tudo Champions ...
participated, with a draw against BJJ representative Fernando Pinduka. There was also a match between Rei Zulu versus Kickboxing world champion, and future promoter of the
International Vale Tudo Championship The International Vale Tudo Championship (IVC) was a Vale Tudo and mixed martial arts (MMA) fighting promotion based in Brazil starting in 1997. The IVC was a fundamentally important platform in the promotion of Brazilian MMA in the late 1990s an ...
and manager of multiple Brazilians in MMA and K-1, Sérgio Batarelli. And in 1991 the most famous event happened: ' between representatives of both martial arts. The event was organized after BJJ practitioners almost got into a brawl with Luta Livre fighters, after they invaded a BJJ tournament in order to fight
Wallid Ismail Wallid Farid Ismail ( ar, وليد فريد إسماعيل, born February 23, 1968) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and promoter. Ismail holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) under Carlson Gracie, and is an IVC mixed martial art ...
, as he had issued an insult and a challenge at a local newspaper against Luta Livre. The Luta Livre fighters were convinced to stand down and instead fight in a public challenge.
Robson Gracie Carlos Robson Gracie Sr. (; born August 13, 1935) is the second son of Carlos Gracie. Gracie is a 9th degree red belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, affording him the title of Grandmaster. Biography Robson Gracie learned martial arts from his father, ...
, organizer of the event, convinced
TV Globo TV Globo (, "Globe TV", or simply Globo), formerly known as Rede Globo, is a Brazilian free-to-air Television broadcasting, television network, launched by media proprietor Roberto Marinho on 26 April 1965. It is owned by media conglomerate Gr ...
, Brazil's largest network, to broadcast the event live under the assumption it was a pure grappling event, the rules were later changed to Vale Tudo but Globo kept the program. The actual event would see 3 matches, all with victories by Jiu-Jitsu representatives. August 29, 1993—a few months before the first UFC event—also saw the event ' in
Curitiba Curitiba () is the capital and largest city in the state of Paraná (state), Paraná in Brazil. The city's population was 1,948,626 , making it the List of cities in Brazil by population, eighth most populous city in Brazil and the largest in ...
, fought between c''apoeiristas'' against Thai boxers from the Chute Boxe Academy. It was the introduction of several future MMA fighters such as
Rafael Cordeiro Rafael Cordeiro (born June 1, 1973) is a Brazilian mixed martial arts (MMA) coach and founder of MMA Gym, Kings MMA. He is best known for training multiple MMA world champions. History Cordeiro was a fighter affiliated with the Chute Boxe Acad ...
, Jose 'Pelé' Landi-Jons and Nilson de Castro, and was the first Vale Tudo/MMA event in Curitiba, a future MMA center.


1993–2000s

In the 1970s,
Rorion Gracie Rorion Gracie (; born January 10, 1952) is a Brazilian-born Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Grand Master, a prominent member of the Gracie family, writer, publisher, producer, lecturer, lawyer and the co-founder of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is the ...
of the famous Gracie family emigrated to the United States and introduced Vale Tudo to a new market when he, together with American entrepreneur
Art Davie Art Davie (born April 5, 1947) is a business executive and entrepreneur formerly active in Southern California advertising circles. In 1993, he created and co-produced the tournament which became the televised Ultimate Fighting Championship. In 19 ...
, helped found the
Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
(UFC) in 1993. The event was advertised as a competition where fighters would each represent different martial arts in a
single-elimination tournament A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
without weight classes and no rules—although there were three rules: no biting, eye-gouging or fish-hooking. To pitch the event for TV executives, Gracie and Davie used the footage of the
Gracie Challenge The Gracie Challenge was an open invitation challenge match issued by members of the Gracie family, representing their self-defense system of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu against challengers of other martial art systems in a vale tudo match, or "anything goes" ...
s and Vale Tudo events in Brazil where the family had participated. The first event was named '' The Ultimate Fighting Championship'' (later retroactively renamed to
UFC 1 ''The Ultimate Fighting Championship'' (later renamed ''UFC 1: The Beginning'') was the first mixed martial arts event by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), held at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado, United States, on November ...
). Rorion's younger brother,
Royce Gracie Royce Gracie (; born 12 December 1966) is a Brazilian retired professional mixed martial artist, a UFC Hall of Famer, and a Gracie Jiu-Jitsu practitioner. A member of the Gracie family, he is considered to be one of the most influential figures ...
represented Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and won the event after submitting three opponents in succession. The event was a success and attracted some attention from the public and the media, and more editions were realized. The UFC also pioneered the "
promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
" model for Vale Tudo/Mixed Martial arts, instead of promoters arranging one-off events like before. Inspired by the format of the UFC, many new promotions of Vale Tudo were created. Some of the noteworthy promotions of this time in Brazil include ''Universal Vale Tudo Fighting,'' ''Brazilian Vale Tudo Fighting, Brazil Open, Super Challenge'' and ''Mo Team League''. Besides the UFC, the United States also saw the introduction of Vale Tudo promotions similar to the UFC, such as the Battlecade Extreme Fighting and World Combat Championship in 1995. Vale Tudo would receive the name No Holds Barred (NHB) in the United States. In Japan, former
professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
Satoru Sayama (born November 27, 1957) is a Japanese professional wrestling, Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, MMA and wrestling promoter and writer, best known as the original Tiger Mask (professional wrestling), Tige ...
had created in 1985 a
hybrid martial arts Hybrid martial arts, also known as hybrid fighting systems or sometimes eclectic martial arts or freestyle martial arts, refer to mixed martial arts or fighting systems that incorporate techniques and theories from several particular martial arts ...
organization named
Shooto Shooto is a combat sport and mixed martial arts organization that is governed by the ''Shooto Association'' and the ''International Shooto Commission''. Shooto was originally formed in 1985, first as a particular fighting system and then in 198 ...
, which featured striking with all limbs, takedowns, groundfighting and submissions. Impressed by the UFC, in 1994 he introduced Vale Tudo to Japan by organizing the
Vale Tudo Japan is an annual mixed martial arts competition held in Japan. Originally arranged by promoter and former professional wrestler Satoru Sayama, he had previously created a hybrid martial art organization named Shooto in 1985. He arranged VTJ in 1994 w ...
tournament, which was more rules-free compared to previous Shooto rules.
Rickson Gracie Rickson Gracie (; born November 21, 1958) is a Brazilian 9th-degree red belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and a retired mixed martial artist. He is a member of the Gracie family: the third oldest son of Hélio Gracie, brother to Rorion and Relson Grac ...
won the 1994 and 1995 editions of the tournament, making him famous in Japan. In 1997 PRIDE Fighting Championships was founded in order to match Rickson Gracie with popular Japanese
shoot-style Shoot wrestling is a combat sport that originated in Japan's professional wrestling circuit of the 1970s. Professional wrestlers of that era attempted to use more realistic or even "full contact" moves in their matches to increase their exciteme ...
professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
Nobuhiko Takada Nobuhiko Takada ( ja, 高田伸彦, ring name: ) (born April 12, 1962) is a Japanese former mixed martial artist, retired professional wrestler, actor, and writer. He competed in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Universal Wrestling Federation (UW ...
. The rules of PRIDE were modelled after the ones from Vale Tudo Japan with some modifications. The first event of the organization had an attendance of 47,000 fans and attracted the attention of Japanese mass media and soon PRIDE became one of the largest and most popular combat sports organization in the world, and it helped to popularize MMA. However, in the United States there was a backlash against the violent nature of the nascent sport. In 1996, Senator
John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...
saw a tape of the first UFC events and immediately found it abhorrent. McCain himself led a campaign to ban the UFC, calling it "human cockfighting", thirty-six states followed his campaign, and the event was blacklisted from television. In response, the UFC started to implement more restrictive rules, weight categories and judges, eventually evolving into the
Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts Most rule sets for mixed martial arts (MMA) competitions have evolved since the early days of Vale Tudo. As a result of health, legal, and moral concerns, many different rulesets were created, which give different countries and promotions very di ...
. The name "Mixed Martial Arts" was also devised at this time as they felt the term NHB was detrimental to the public image of the sport and better represented the new evolution of the sport after the introduction of the new rules. In Brazil, Vale Tudo eventually met similar obstacles in the US. In 1997 there was the creation of a major event named "Pentagon Combat", with a pentagonal cage similar to the UFC's Octagon, counted with veterans
Oleg Taktarov Oleg Nikolaevich Taktarov (russian: Оле́г Никола́евич Такта́ров; born 26 August 1967) is a Russian actor and retired mixed martial artist. He was a practitioner of Sambo and Judo and competed in the Ultimate Fighting Cham ...
and
Murilo Bustamante Murilo Bustamante (; born 30 July 1966, in Rio de Janeiro) is a retired Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Middleweight Champion. He is one of the founders of the ''Brazilian Top Team'' and is the current leader. In addition to compe ...
, and sponsored by Prince Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, later known for his creation of the ADCC and investment in BJJ. The main event continued the Luta Livre-Jiu-Jitsu rivalry by matching LL representative
Eugenio Tadeu Eugenio Tadeu is a Brazilian grappler, Vale Tudo and mixed martial arts fighter. Tadeu was born in 1965. He was famous as a practitioner of Luta Livre, or Brazilian Submission wrestling and was one of the last representatives of this art form. ...
and BJJ representative Renzo Gracie, both who also had a very personal rivalry. The fight went a back-and-forth between both contestants until members of the audience approached the cage and started to shout insults and interfere in the bout by attacking the contestants, Gracie fought back one of his attackers and soon the confusion soon escalated into a full
riot A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targete ...
, as people threw chairs into the ring, supporters of both fighters brawled, warning shots were allegedly fired by security and the lights were turned off by the promoters to control the fight. The event was broadcast live on national television by Rede Globo's
SporTV SporTV is a Brazilian pay television sports network owned by Canais Globo, part of Grupo Globo, launched in 1991. It is the most watched sports network in Brazil. On January 18, 2013, were launched High-definition simulcasts of SporTV and ...
. The confusion resulted in the
state of Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil. It has the second largest economy of Brazil, with the largest being that of the state of São Paulo. The state, which has 8.2% of the Brazilian population, is responsible for 9.2% of ...
banning Vale Tudo events for almost 10 years. Footage of the brawl was used by
CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
in a special report order to condone the sport in the United States. As the UFC and similar promotions started to receive more rules. The premier organizations of the late 1990s became the World Vale Tudo Championship (WVC) and the
International Vale Tudo Championship The International Vale Tudo Championship (IVC) was a Vale Tudo and mixed martial arts (MMA) fighting promotion based in Brazil starting in 1997. The IVC was a fundamentally important platform in the promotion of Brazilian MMA in the late 1990s an ...
(IVC). The WVC was organized in 1996 by
Frederico Lapenda Frederico Lapenda is a movie producer and fight promoter who is one of the founders of the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). Lapenda is credited, along with Ultimate Fighting Championship co-creator Art Davie, as being responsible for the glo ...
and Sérgio Batarelli, the due promoted together four events, including Brazil's first Vale Tudo/MMA
pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...
, but soon a dispute between the two led to Batarelli to leave and create the
IVC IVC can refer to: Places *Invercargill Airport, New Zealand, IATA code * Ivory Coast, UNDP country code *Oflag IV-C, a German World War II prisoner-of-war camp in Colditz Castle Education *Impington Village College *Irvine Valley College *Imperia ...
. The two promotions featured prominently throughout the 1990s as they were also televised on Brazilian TV and
pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...
. The WVC and IVC were based in the Brazilian financial capital of
São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
and launched the careers of many of today's MMA stars. While based in Brazil, they also did international events: WVC did events in
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
,
Aruba Aruba ( , , ), officially the Country of Aruba ( nl, Land Aruba; pap, Pais Aruba) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands physically located in the mid-south of the Caribbean Sea, about north of the Venezuela peninsula of ...
and
Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
, while the IVC had events in
Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
and F.R of Yugoslavia. However, after the state of
São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
prohibited Vale Tudo from being a sanctioned sport, both promotions went into decline and have not staged an event since 2002.


2000s-present

Beginning in the early 2000s, newer promotions such as
Jungle Fight Jungle Fight is a Brazilian mixed martial arts and kickboxing promotion. It was created in 2003. The name is derived from its origin, the Amazonas state in Brazil. History Jungle Fight was founded by pioneering MMA fighter and long-time Brazi ...
and Bitetti Combat abandoned traditional Vale Tudo rules in favor of the safer
mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...
"Unified" rules. However, some promotions continued the use of traditional rules for a time, most notably Meca World Vale Tudo and Rio Heroes. "Vale Tudo" was still used as a synonym for MMA in Brazil throughout the 2000s, the term started to be dropped as the sport grew and Brazilian media started to cover MMA events, first with
RedeTV! RedeTV! () is a Brazilian television network owned by Amilcare Dallevo and Marcelo de Carvalho. It is the newest television network, among the five major networks in Brazil, being a relaunch of Rede Manchete in 1999. RedeTV! has modern produc ...
covering UFC events in 2009, and in 2011 it was picked by Brazil's largest network
Rede Globo TV Globo (, "Globe TV", or simply Globo), formerly known as Rede Globo, is a Brazilian free-to-air Television broadcasting, television network, launched by media proprietor Roberto Marinho on 26 April 1965. It is owned by media conglomerate Gr ...
. Today, all major events use MMA rules, according to former
IVC IVC can refer to: Places *Invercargill Airport, New Zealand, IATA code * Ivory Coast, UNDP country code *Oflag IV-C, a German World War II prisoner-of-war camp in Colditz Castle Education *Impington Village College *Irvine Valley College *Imperia ...
and WVC promoter Sérgio Batarelli in an interview to Brazilian online news G1 he affirmed: "But fighting with the rules from before is impossible. It's over. ..It's the beginnings. There's no way back. Even because there are very few fighters who would venture into something like this." Vale Tudo events are still taking place in small numbers around Brazil. Due to the violent and bloody nature of the sport, these underground events sometimes cause controversy in the media. Critics of the sport argue that Vale Tudo shows should all adopt the MMA "Unified" ruleset created in the United States by Athletic Commissions, and used by various other countries such as Canada and England. On the other hand, supporters of Vale Tudo criticize the Unified Rules, pointing out that there is no medical proof that the Unified Rules are safer, no contestant has ever been killed or permanently disabled while fighting under traditional rules, the Unified Rules were created not for safety, but to ban techniques that commissioners saw as "uncivilised" (such as the soccer kick and headbutt), that the Unified Rules set is not used in Japanese, Russian, Singaporean and Thai promotions, and so on. Proponents also counter that the style of mixed martial arts fighting created by the Unified Rules is now so different from traditional Vale Tudo that it should be treated as an entirely different sport, just as
kickboxing Kickboxing is a combat sports, combat sport focused on kicking and punch (strike), punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is pract ...
is considered different from
Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...
.


As a fighting style

As Vale Tudo became more popular and common, some fighters started training especifically for Vale Tudo contests rather than fighting with purely one style, taking the most effective techniques from both striking and
grappling Grappling, in hand-to-hand combat, describes sports that consist of gripping or seizing the opponent. Grappling is used at close range to gain a physical advantage over an opponent, either by imposing a position or causing injury. Grappling ...
martial arts and synthesized them for the ruleset of Vale Tudo, eventually billing "Vale Tudo" as its own standalone fighting style.
Marco Ruas Marco Antônio de Lima Ruas (; born 23 January 1961) is a Brazilian former mixed martial arts fighter, Submission Wrestler, Kickboxer and instructor. Ruas was the UFC 7 Tournament Champion, and also competed for the World Vale Tudo Champions ...
is recognized to be one of the first to do so, he was a
Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...
striker and equally skilled in
Luta Livre Luta Livre (, lit. ''freestyle fighting''), known in Brazil as Luta Livre Brasileira (lit. ''Brazilian freestyle fighting'') or Luta Livre Submission, and also Brazilian Submission Wrestling, is a Brazilian martial arts and combat sport created ...
submission grappling, even before the first UFC event he was a public proponent
cross-training Cross-training is athletic training in sports other than the athlete's usual sport. The goal is improving overall performance. It takes advantage of the particular effectiveness of one training method to negate the shortcomings of another. In gen ...
in multiple martial arts and training especialized for Vale Tudo. Eventually he developed "Ruas Vale Tudo", which he advertised as a
martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...
. He and other fighters he coached—such as
Pedro Rizzo Pedro Augusto Rizzo (; born 3 May 1974) is a Brazilian retired mixed martial artist and kickboxer who competed for the UFC, PRIDE, M-1 Global, and Affliction. Although he never captured the UFC Heavyweight Championship, Rizzo competed for i ...
and
Renato Sobral Renato da Cunha Sobral (; born 7 September 1975), also known as "Babalu", is a retired Brazilian Luta Livre submission grappler, mixed martial artist, and was the former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion. Sobral previously fought in the Ult ...
—were billed as "Ruas Vale Tudo" fighters. The Chute Boxe Academy in
Curitiba Curitiba () is the capital and largest city in the state of Paraná (state), Paraná in Brazil. The city's population was 1,948,626 , making it the List of cities in Brazil by population, eighth most populous city in Brazil and the largest in ...
started as a Muay Thai gym expanded their program with BJJ and grappling training in 1991, and eventually branded themselves as a "Vale Tudo" gym.


References


External links

* The influence o
Jiu Jitsu
in Vale Tudo

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vale Tudo Brazilian martial arts Combat sports Hybrid martial arts Sports originating in Brazil Mixed martial arts in Brazil