Carlson Gracie, Rudimar Fedrigo to Receive ‘Best of Fight’ Awards in Rio de Janeiro
Renowned coaches Carlson Gracie and Rudimar Fedrigo will receive high honors in Brazil as two legends that generated generations of champions.
Individual talent and the high level of training are fundamental factors in the formation of a champion, but in a complex and increasingly competitive sport like MMA, mental preparation can be the turning point. Concerning that, two masters must be recognized. Not only because of their above-average ability to scout and form talent, but mainly because of the way in which they mentally shielded their athletes. Carlson Gracie and Rudimar Fedrigo were a cut above the rest, and their coaching led to create some of the greatest competitor the sport has ever seen. While the two worked in very different ways, the result was usually the same. The numbers prove it; no other coach in the history of MMA has produced as many champions and trainers of new champs as these two.
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The eldest son of Carlos Gracie, Carlson was the Gracie who defended the family name for almost two decades in the ring. Between 1953 and 1970, Gracie fought the biggest names of his generation and retired with just one defeat, a controversial decision, after 19 vale tudo fights. Some of those took place in cement courts, others in rings and more on soccer fields. When retiring from active competition and leaving uncle Helio’s academy, Gracie turned the corner with his own gym.
Fighters representing this specific Gracie were considered the “mafia” in the jiu-jitsu world. They were the only team in the 80s and 90s where fighters kissed each other, and the master, on the cheek. However, any time Gracie noticed an excess of friendship between students, he often created rumors or “internal gossip” about training partners to spice up training, which in his opinion enhanced the competitive spirit. His team ruled the roost in the sports of jiu-jitsu and MMA, and over the years he brought forth a litany of names that include Vitor Belfort, Murilo Bustamante, Paulo Filho and Wallid Ismail along with famed coaches Marcus Silveira and Andre Pederneiras, to name but a small few.
Unlike Gracie, who was raised in family’s jiu-jitsu background, Fedrigo grew up with taekwondo and learned muay thai from Nelio Naja, the man who brought the style from Thailand to Brazil in the 80s. The leader of the Chute Boxe team from Parana always acted in a similar way to the Gracie clan, but his focus was to make those he commanded have visceral pride in representing the team, instilling a “kill or be killed” mentality.
Fedrigo always finished his classes with long speeches about the proud of defending Chute Boxe team. Years back, Jose Landi-Jons famously declared after his victory over Jorge Patino, “Today the Chute Boxe era begins. We are an army and we are willing to die for our flag. Take note, we will dominate the world of vale tudo. We have one for each division.” This pride and intensity led to the development of the most feared names of the sport, including Wanderlei Silva, Anderson Silva, Mauricio Rua and Cristiane Justino, not to mention trainer Rafael Cordeiro.
With the constant evolution of the sport, creating champions has become an increasingly complex task. A large number of coaches today had the opportunity to train with either of these greats, making the current era of fighter just a generation away from some of the greatest trainers in MMA. The influence from Gracie and Fedrigo can still be felt to this day.
