Mendes in one of his wins over Rubens Cobrinha. Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG
At 27 and with many triumphs under his belt, AOJ star Rafael Mendes has announced that his career as a competitor is over. With little more than a week to go until the World Championship, Mendes’s absence from the registration list was causing some curiosity, and now he has explained it.
In a video produced by his sponsor, he remembers his victories in BJJ, including six world championships, two ADCCs and more, and states that his focus from now on will be his gym and his family.
“I have built my legacy with hard work and integrity,” he says. “My career as a competitor ends now, but my legacy will live on forever.”
