“I would never have known jiu-jitsu” - ‘Buchecha’ credits his sister for introducing him to BJJ

Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida rose to the crest of the Brazilian jiu-jitsu mountain thanks to his dedication and desire to become one of the finest practitioners of the sport. But he has his elder sister, Ana, to thank for getting him started in the discipline.

In an exclusive interview with ONE, he recalled:

“She doesn’t talk much about it, but when she sees me in a nice place or traveling, or when something nice is happening, and I’m happy, she jokes and says that I owe her everything, that if it wasn’t for her, I would never have known jiu-jitsu.”

The BJJ icon, who returns to the circle against Kirill Grishenko at ONE on Prime Video 1 on August 26, was intrigued by his sister’s grappling session at a local dojo in Sao Paulo, Brazil when he was 14.

She then invited her sibling to his first BJJ training, and he soon returned for more classes on a regular basis to learn new transitions, takes, locks, and submissions.

While he was fascinated by what his sister displayed on the mats at the gym, the real reason why the Brazilian returned for more sessions was to try and draw level with Ana, who often submitted him when they rolled.

To this day, his sister still reminds him that she’s the ‘boss’ on the mats, and even he thinks he would have trouble forcing her to tap – despite owning 17 BJJ world titles to his resume.

'Buchecha' added:

“In a way, it’s true. I laugh and agree with her. But if we fought today, she would end up winning. She has that right!”

---

Do ‘Buchecha’ and his sister still train together?

Almeida's sister would eventually hang up her gi while she was still only a white belt to focus on other aspects of life.

For the 32-year-old, however, his grind on the mats continued until he achieved a black belt in the discipline.

With multiple world titles and a slew of other accolades in BJJ, the American Top Team and Evolve standout hopes his bread and butter can help him attain similar rewards in MMA.

Another victory for ‘Buchecha’ this Friday at U.S primetime will see him go up 4-0 and potentially place him clear of the chasing pack in the stacked heavyweight MMA division in ONE.