Rodolfo Vieira
Address
Rio de Janeiro, State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Phone
About Us
Rodolfo Vieira was born on the 25th of September, 1989 in Rio de Janeiro – Brazil.
Grappling appeared in Rodolfo’s life as a way to lose weight when he was 13 years old. His first instructors were Arlans Maia and Bruno Souza for whom Rodolfo competed during his first early days in the amateur circuit of jiu-jitsu.
As a blue belt, Rodolfo decided to switch training camps, looking for a more competitive gym atmosphere. He chose to join Universidade Gama Filho, led by Julio Cesar Pereira – a team that later became Grappling Fight Team (more on the history of GFT here).Rising through the ranks of the sport, Rodolfo Vieira was seen as a good prospect for the future of BJJ, though not many counted on him break out as early as he did. Vieira’s first major win on an international level took place in 2009 as a brown belt, when Rodolfo won the Abu Dhabi World Pro Championship, defeating 2x black belt world champion Braulio Estima in the process. Upon his arrival, Master Julio César awarded Vieira his black belt right there at the airport.
Rodolfo Vieira repeated the deed in January 2011, this time as an established black belt winning his weight and the open weight division in the Abu Dhabi World Pro. That same year Rodolfo also conquered the Pan American and the World Championships in his weight and the open weight divisions, cementing his name as the strongest 94kg/207kg gi specialist in the world.
Midway through the 2010s decade, Rodolfo’s passion for jiu-jitsu was replaced by the desire to become a professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter. Vieira relocated to the United States in search of the best conditions to make the transition, training with American Top Team and Team Nogueira. Vieira made his successful MMA debut in 2017, a successful win over Zarylbek Daniyar, via RNC, at the ADGC promotion.
On June 2019 Rodolfo Vieira signed to the biggest MMA event in the sport, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (2019).
