Demente / Publicity photo
At once Jiu-Jitsu coach to and a student of Tito Ortiz, Ricardo “Demente” Abreu (Punishment/ENV/Acquaflora) will be going into his second MMA fight, this Friday the 16th at BRFC Desafio dos Imortais in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo state.
On his debut, back in July, Abreu took out Marcos Wilson with an armbar 61 seconds into their fight. This time the opponent will be Léo Rocha, a 29-year-old Jiu-Jitsu black belt from Taquara Team with two fights on his ledger.
On his preparations for the fight, Ricardo relied on the help he’s been getting from Tito Ortiz, “His has so much knowledge and experience in the octagon. He knows everything about wrestling, takedowns and ground and point, not to mention he supports me a lot and believes in my MMA career,” said Abreu.
Queried as to whether he feels any pressure to finish quickly, like he did on his debut, the Jiu-Jitsu champion betrays no doubts: “I don’t feel any pressure because I know I’ll have 15 minutes to finish. But I want to go in there and finish as quickly as possible,” he states, adding, “On the other hand, I can’t let my self get carried away, since keeping calm and collect is key.”
Ricardo Abreu, who considers himself to be a white belt in MMA, guarantees that his chin is all the stronger since training with Tito. “He hits so hard, so I feel confident for training with him and other major names of the sport, like Master Rafael Cordeiro and boxing coach Jason Parillo, not to mention guys like Fabricio Werdum and Wanderlei Silva.”
Living, teaching class and training in California for around a year now, Ricardo says he’s becoming more and more enthralled with MMA every day. “I’m living and breathing it up close, and it’s a fascinating sport because it demands all an athlete’s got. I like that, testing my limits, always refining my technique, my game,” he says.
Check out the card for the event:
CARD BRFC – DESAFIO DOS IMORTAIS
Estádio do Comercial, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
December 16, 2011
Thiago Barbosa (Veras Team) vs Rogério Samurai (Samurai Team)
Robinho (RMNU Team) vs Altinézio Mineiro (Gracie Barra Caveirinha)
Cairo Rocha (Comercial FC / ZFT / ENV) vs Chicão Neves (Veras TK / Gracie Fusion)
Márcio “Monstro” (Memorial Arena) vs Rodrigo “Dragão” (Samurai Team)
Cássio “Jacaré” (Nova União) vs João Paulo “Paco” (Monster Team Combat)
Alexandre Zaneti (Comercial FC / ZFT / ENV) vs Valter Luis (VL Team)
Ricardo Abreu (Punishment / ENV / Acquaflora) vs Leo Rocha (Taquara Team)
Chris Wilson (Nogueira/RMNU/CFC) vs Tom Oliveira (Marcelo Nigue Team/Memorial Arena)
