Márcio Cruz (born April 24, 1978) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner and

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

. In Jiu-Jitsu, he is a fifth degree black belt under

Carlos Gracie Jr. Carlos "Carlinhos" Gracie Jr. (born January 17, 1956) is a Brazilian 8th-degree coral belt Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) practitioner, instructor, and coach. A member of the Gracie family, he is the son of Carlos Gracie, one of the founders of Br ...

and is a six-time IBJJF Mundials World Champion, five-time IBJJF Brazilian Nationals Champion, eight-time IBJJF Pan-American Champion, 2003 ADCC World Champion, two-time Abu Dhabi World Jiu Jitsu Legends Champion and UFC Veteran Fighter. His nickname "Pé de Pano" was given to him by his friends at the

Gracie Barra Gracie Barra (GB) is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu academy and team co-funded in 1986 by Carlos Gracie Jr., a son of Carlos Gracie, one of the founders of Brazilian jiu-jitsu. History The Gracie Barra academy was established in 1986 by Carlos Grac ...

academy in Rio and it is the Portuguese version of the name of

Woody Woodpecker Woody Woodpecker is a cartoon character that appeared in theatrical short films produced by the Walter Lantz Productions, Walter Lantz Studio and Universal Animation Studios, Universal Animation Studio and distributed by Universal Pictures sinc ...

's horse, SugarFoot. He competed in the

UFC 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 TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...

and also had a one-fight stint as an alternate for the New York Pitbulls of the

International Fight League The International Fight League was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion billed as the world's first MMA league. It was founded on January 7, 2006, and closed on July 31, 2008.

Background

Cruz was born in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

and had a brief stint with

Karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ), also , is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tī'' in Okinawan) un ...

when he was 12 years old before being introduced to Brazilian jiu-jitsu by a friend. Although he had wanted to begin training in the sport immediately, due to the lack of a nearby gym, he began learning

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

. It was not until the age of 17 that Cruz began his official training in

jiu-jitsu Jujutsu ( , or ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu (both ), is a Japanese martial art and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponent ...

and would go on to win his first major title in only three years.

Championships and achievements

Grappling credentials

Cruz is a six-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion, five-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu National Champion, eight-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Pan-American Champion and the 2003 ADCC World Champion, He is undefeated at the Abu Dhabi World Jiu Jitsu Legends, he won the Championship two years in a row (2016 and 2017). Prof. Márcio Cruz won the Black Belt Absolute Division twice, being awarded two unique Champion Ring in a 2018 IBJJF Celebration. People he has defeated include:

Ricco Rodriguez Ricco Rodriguez (born August 19, 1977) is an American former mixed martial artist who competed in the Heavyweight (MMA), heavyweight division. A professional competitor from 1999 to 2019, he competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC, ...

, Mike Van Arsdale,

Roger Gracie Roger Gracie (born Roger Gracie Gomes; 26 September 1981) is a Brazilian former professional mixed martial artist (MMA) and 5th degree Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) practitioner and coach. The son of coral belt Mauricio Gomes and grandson of BJJ ...

Gabriel Gonzaga Gabriel Gonzaga Santos Nogueira (; born 18 May 1979) is a Brazilian former professional Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, Submission grappling, submission grappler and 5th degree Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) Brazilian jiu-jitsu ranking syst ...

Paulo Filho Paulo Filho (; born May 24, 1978), is a Brazilian retired mixed martial artist who last competed in the Middleweight division. A professional competitor from 2000 until 2014, Filho was the last WEC Middleweight Champion, and also comp ...

Fabrício Werdum Fabrício Werdum (; born 30 July 1977) is a Spanish-Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Heavyweight Champion who competes in the Heavyweight division. He is also a 4-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, a two-time Abu Dhabi Comba ...

Xande Ribeiro Alexandre "Xande" Ribeiro (born January 20, 1981) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner, mixed martial artist and submission wrestler. He is a two-time World Black Belt Absolute (open weight) World Jiu-Jitsu Champion, five-time World Black Bel ...

, Marcelo Garcia,

Saulo Ribeiro Saulo Mendonça Ribeiro Filho (born July 2, 1974) is a Brazilian submission grappler and former mixed martial artist. He is a 6th-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) and brother of Xande Ribeiro. After earning a black belt in judo, ...

, Fernando Augusto,

Jeff Monson Oregon State Beavers Jeffrey William Monson (born January 18, 1971) is an American-born Russian mixed martial artist, boxer, and submission grappler who competes primarily in the heavyweight division. A professional com ...

, and Fernado "Margarida" Pontes. Since he started his mixed martial arts career, he has been training MMA with Roberto "Gordo" Correa and he fights under the Marcio Cruz BJJ team and Ring Team. His favorite Technique is Triangle Choke.

Mixed martial arts career

As a professional MMA fighter, Cruz has fought in the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...

, defeating former

UFC Heavyweight Champion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

Frank Mir Francisco Santos Miranda III (; born May 24, 1979), is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the heavyweight division. He competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for sixteen years, and Bellator MMA. A former UFC Heavywe ...

by TKO at ''

UFC 57 ''UFC 57: Liddell vs. Couture 3'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on February 4, 2006. It was held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada, and broadcast live on pay-per-view in ...

''. He also holds a win over Keigo Kunihara at ''

UFC 55 ''UFC 55: Fury'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 7, 2005 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The event was broadcast live on pay-per-view in the United States, and later releas ...

''. He lost a split decision to

, whom he had previously defeated twice in grappling tournaments, at ''

UFC 59 ''UFC 59: Reality Check'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on April 15, 2006 at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California, and broadcast live on pay-per-view in the United States and Canada. This was the ...

''. Cruz' second MMA loss was to

Andrei Arlovski Andrei Arlovski (, born 4 February 1979) is a Belarusian-American professional mixed martial artist and actor. A former UFC Heavyweight Champion, he competed in the heavyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and holds th ...

at '' UFC 66'', in December 2006, by first-round knockout. In June 2007 in the IFL he defeated Rafael Feijao by disqualification when Feijao used an illegal kick 1:18 before the end of the 3rd and final round. In June 2008 Cruz defeated

Mu Bae Choi Choi Mu-bae (, born June 27, 1970), often anglicised to Mu-bae Choi, is a South Korean former Heavyweight Greco-Roman wrestler and professional mixed martial artist. A professional since 2004, he has competed for World Victory Road, the ...

at '' Sengoku 3'' via submission (triangle armbar). In April 2009 he defeated UFC veteran

Dan Christison Daniel Bernard "The Sandman" Christison (born April 26, 1972) is a retired American mixed martial artist. A professional from 2001 until 2010, he fought for the San Jose Razorclaws of the International Fight League, the Ultimate Fighting Champi ...

by unanimous decision. On August 22, 2009, he beat Tom Sauer via TKO in the second round. With this victory he won the World Fighting Organization Heavyweight Championship. He successfully defended his belt by submitting Dave Yost with a

Rear Naked Choke The rear naked choke (RNC), also known as hadaka jime (裸絞) in Judo and "lion killer choke (Mata Leão)" in BJJ, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. The word ''naked'' in this context suggests that, unlike other stra ...

in the first round on April 3, 2010. Cruz had to withdraw from Abu Dhabi Fighting Championship with a spinal injury in May 2010. After 15 months of inactivity, Cruz faced

Glover Teixeira Glover Lucas Teixeira (; born 28 October 1979) is a Brazilian-American former professional mixed martial artist. He competed in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweig ...

at Clube da Luta on July 20, 2011 losing via TKO (punches) at 4:21 in the second round. Cruz weighed in at an out-of-shape 256-pounds. Cruz was scheduled to make his Light heavyweight debut against fellow UFC veteran

Gilbert Yvel Gilbert Yvel (born 30 June 1976) is a Dutch professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. A professional competitor since 1997, Yvel competed in the Pride Fighting Championships, PRIDE Fighting Championships, Affliction Entertainment, A ...

on November 2, 2012, at Resurrection Fighting Alliance 4 in Las Vegas, Nevada. However, Yvel was later forced to pull out of the bout due to an injury. Cruz ended up facing Joe Yager at the event and won the fight by submission.

Personal life

Marcio Cruz is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

, has been married since 2009 to Ariana Cruz and has 4 kids named, Renan, Matthew, Clara and Aaylah. Currently Marcio Cruz runs a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy in

Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

and a Second Location in Carrollwood, Florida.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 8–3 , Joe Yager , Submission (inverted triangle choke) , RFA 4: Griffin vs. Escudero , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:16 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–3 ,

, TKO (punches) , Clube da Luta , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:21 , Rio de Janeiro, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , David Yost , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Art of Fighting 7 - Payday , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:22 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Tommy Sauer , TKO (punches) , Art of Fighting 4 - Damage , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:43 , Tampa, Florida, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , ICF: Breakout , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–2 , Choi Mu-Bae , Submission (triangle armbar) , World Victory Road Presents: Sengoku 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:37 ,

Saitama, Saitama is the capital and largest Cities of Japan, city of Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa, Saitama, Urawa, Ōmiya, Saitama, Ōmiya, Yono, Saitama, Yono and Iwatsuki, Saitama, Iwatsuki. It is a Cities desig ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3–2 ,

Rafael Cavalcante Rafael Cavalcante (born 5 April 1980), often known by his nickname of Feijão, is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who fights in the light heavyweight division. He is currently competing for Bellator MMA. He trains with Anderson Silva and Antôn ...

, DQ (illegal kick) , IFL: Las Vegas , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:42 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–2 ,

, KO (punches) , UFC 66: Liddell vs. Ortiz , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:15 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–1 ,

, Decision (split) , UFC 59: Reality Check , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orang ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 ,

, TKO (punches and elbows) , UFC 57: Liddell vs. Couture 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:15 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Keigo Kunihara , Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:02 ,

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is a village in the town of Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is located in southeastern Montville, at the mouth of the Oxoboxo River where it flows into the Thames River. The name is now applied more generally to all of the ...

, United States ,

References

External links

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Marcio Cruz Brazilian Jiu Jitsu School in Tampa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cruz, Marcio Brazilian Christians Brazilian male mixed martial artists Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing karate Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Martial artists from Rio de Janeiro (city) Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Brazilian male karateka Brazilian male judoka 1978 births Living people People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu People from Lutz, Florida Sportspeople from Hillsborough County, Florida Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters