Rodolfo Vieira faces Marcus Buchecha in Abu Dhabi
Rodolfo Vieira is stronger and heavier and his performance last month in Abu Dhabi, at the 2014 WPJJC left no doubt that his Jiu-Jitsu did not suffer with the change in division.
Now a super-heavyweight athlete, Rodolfo added even more pressure to his guard passing game and that worked really well. In the UAE, he distributed submissions back and forth. Leandro Lo, Luiz Panza and Andre Galvão were some of the victims.
Even so, he was still not able to defeat his nemesis Marcus Buchecha, who once again pulled a last-second trick to sweep and get the open class title and the US$30,000 prize.
Already getting ready for the 2014 Worlds, Rodolfo still thinks of Abu Dhabi. So dominant of other fights, is Rodolfo respecting Buchecha too much?
“In no moment I respected him in that fight. I managed to play my game, but the fact is that I can’t give him any space; otherwise, it’s done! When I almost got the mount, he did not expect and nor did I”.
Asked if he would do something different today, he kept the good humor: “I don’t know. Maybe pulling guard right there at the end or I maybe changing that referee. He could have given Buchecha the two points the moment he swept me, but not two seconds after the fight ended.”
So, what should we expect of a possible new face off between the two best competitors of today’s Jiu-Jitsu? Will Rodolfo do something different this time?
“Not really! A lot of things will happen between now and the final, but if we get there again, I’ll try the same game plan. Let’s hope this time it works.”
Don’t forget to register for the 2014 World Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
The final deadline is May 19.
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