Andre Pederneiras Steps Down as Head Coach of Brazilian Camp Nova Uniao

Andre Pederneiras will step down as head trainer at Brazilian camp Nova Uniao after more than two decades in that role.

Pederneiras announced his decision via Instagram on Saturday. During his tenure with Nova Uniao, “Dede” cornered the likes of longtime former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, ex-UFC bantamweight king Renan Barao and former Bellator 135-pound tiltist Eduardo Dantas, among others.

Pederneiras revealed that he will turn his focus to working with Upper Arena, which he say has “worked as a training center for Nova Uniao for two years.”

“My idea is to turn Upper Arena in a neutral place for high-level training for athletes from other teams as well, not only Nova Uniao,” Pederneiras wrote. “I want to build the best and biggest martial arts training center of the country, helping the evolution of the sport, and also work on a social side, passing along my knowledge of 30 years dedicated to the sport, both fighting and administrative sides, to those who want to learn.

“It was 21 years of many accomplishments and achievements at Nova Uniao, now I intend to invest in other dreams,” he continued. “I know it might seems crazy for some, but I think that everything I’ve done since the beginning seemed crazy. So I count on your support so this new phase is a victorious one. Not only for me, but for the sport and for our country that I love so much.”

In his new position, Pederneiras can coach athletes from other gyms in addition to Nova Uniao. He will continue to manage fighters and work as a promoter for Shooto Brazil, as well.

“I'm still here in training, giving the same advice to my athletes, but if for example, Urijah Faber comes here, I'll give him the same training regardless of whether he represents Nova União or not,” Pederneiras told Combate.com.

Amigos, Hoje foi divulgado, oficialmente, o meu desligamento da equipe Nova União e eu queria dizer aqui algumas palavras para vocês. A decisão de sair da liderança da Nova União aconteceu após a abertura da Upper Arena, que vem funcionando como centro de treinamento da Nova União há dois anos. Minha ideia é tornar a Upper Arena um ambiente neutro para treinamento de alto nível de atletas de outras equipes também, e não somente da Nova União. Quero montar o maior e melhor centro de treinamento de artes marciais do país, ajudando a evolução do esporte no Brasil, além de trabalhar o lado social, passar meu conhecimento de 30 anos dedicados ao esporte, tanto à luta quanto à parte administrativa, para aqueles que quiserem aprender. Foram 21 anos de muitas realizações e conquistas na Nova União, agora pretendo investir em novos sonhos! Sei que pode parecer loucura para alguns, mas eu acho que tudo que eu fiz no seu início pareceu loucura! Então eu conto com o apoio e com a torcida de todos vocês para que esta seja uma nova fase vitoriosa! Não somente para mim, mas para o esporte e para o nosso país, que eu tanto amo! Um grande abraço, Dedé Pederneiras

A post shared by André Pederneiras (@dede_pederneiras) on Jun 29, 2018 at 3:56pm PDT