'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Brazilian jiu-jitsu icon and ONE heavyweight MMA star Marcus 'Buchecha' Almeida is starting the year with intentions to hurt his next opponent.
The 17-time BJJ world champion continues to put the hard yards in with Phuket Fight Club head coach Leo Elias. It seems the grappling legend wants to start 2024 by improving his highly underrated striking game.
Here's a video of 'Buchecha' hitting the mitts with Elias:
For a known grappling specialist, Almeida can surely pack a punch. Coming from his first pro-MMA loss last year, it looks like Almeida is intent on fine-tuning his striking skills more. This will only mean that he will get to explore more avenues to hurt his opponents on top of his already legendary grappling arsenal. That's a scary thought for the entire ONE heavyweight MMA division.
After first MMA loss, 'Buchecha' chooses to push forward to create a legacy in the sport
Almeida recently expressed that his goals in MMA go far beyond merely winning fights and world titles. The former multi+time BJJ world champion wants to leave a legacy in the sport.
So when he lost his all+out war to Oumar 'Reug Reug' Kane at ONE Fight Night 13 last year - his first pro-MMA loss fight after going undefeated for over a year - 'Buchecha' was felt more motivated than dejected.
In an interview with BJPenn.com, the Brazilian fighter said he was motivated more than ever to learn from his mistakes and become a better fighter.
“I’m training, evolving every day, studying a lot of BJJ as it’s my best weapon,” Almeida said. I want to improve and do something good in this sport, so I’m putting 100 percent into this.”
Nothing motivates anyone to level up more than a loss. Experiencing adversity and defeat makes us stronger. We are quite positive that Almeida will be better than ever once he returns to action this year.
