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Greatness was never easy, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Marcus 'Buchecha' Almeida knows that all too well.
Almeida is widely considered the greatest BJJ artist of all time, and his near-immaculate submission grappling run eventually led to a promising MMA career.
The ONE Championship heavyweight star has since embarked on a 4-1 mixed martial arts run, and he believes he could reach the same heights he had in BJJ as he could in MMA.
In a Q&A session with Renzo Gracie Dubai, Almeida said that while he's regarded as one of the all-time greats, there are still losses that he often looks back on with great admiration.
"So, I'm really proud of my victories but I'm also proud of my defeats and losses because everything taught me everything, helping me get to where I am today. Without those setbacks, I never would be here and I would never be the 'Buchecha' that I am today."
Almeida is a 17-time BJJ world champion, with world titles across the IBJJF and the ADCC. He's since left the submission grappling world to carve a promising path in MMA.
'Buchecha' started his dominating run with four straight first-round finishes, including a knockout against Australian veteran Simon Carson.
That perfect march, however, came to a screeching halt when he dropped a unanimous decision loss to Senegalese brawler Oumar 'Reug Reug' Kane at ONE Fight Night 13.
Watch Almeida's entire Q&A below:
'Buchecha' recalls learning from the setbacks in his legendary career
Reaching legendary status is difficult enough for any athlete, but to climb to the coveted GOAT tier is often unthinkable.
'Buchecha', however, knows everything that can put an athlete above everyone else.
In the same interview with Renzo Gracie Dubai, Almeida said he often reflected on the few losses he suffered throughout his career.
Those reflections often steeled his mindset and pushed him through every challenge that stood in his way:
"What you can't do whenever you lose is give up. So, for me, I never gave up. I lost a lot, I won a lot, but I was never afraid to put myself to the test."
