Interview: HnS Middleweight Submission Champion
Mario Roberto

(3-0 in HnS, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu)

This recent conversation with HnS Champ Mario Roberto took place over the internet. Mario will be returning to Indiana from Rio de Janeiro in July to defend his HnS title against the winner of the June Middleweight tourney. HnS is trying to lineup a BJJ seminar for July with Mario as well — check our front page for updates!

Date of Interview: 2/98

Int: Let's start with the basics: Height, weight, age, belt status and where are you living.

Mario: I'm 6'01'' and I currently weight about 180 lbs. I live in Rio de Janeiro — it's on the southeast of Brazil. I turned 20 a couple of weeks ago (January 14th).

I am still a brown belt, and comfortable with it. I'm not in a hurry to get my black belt or anything, it'll show up as a result of my training.

Int: Are you still coming to the Hook -n- Shoot in July? The next show has been pushed back to June — could you make that?

Mario: I will probably be there in July. I'll defend my World Middleweight Hook -n- Shoot title. Since I am a medical student in Rio, my schedule is extremely busy. On July, I'll be on vacations, so it would be easier for me.

Int: Jeff is having a 4 man tournament in June to get you a challenger. Will you do a single match, or enter a tourney?

Mario: I'll probably do a single match, since it's a title defense, but I'm not 100% sure of that.

Int: What rules will you fight under, NHB or Submission?

Mario: If I am to defend my title, I'll fight under the Submission Fighting (Pancrase style) rules. Otherwise I don't know.

Int: You spoke about possibly doing an NHB match in Brasil. Have you done a match, even a closed door challenge, with NHB rules?

Mario: No, nothing interesting has showed up so far. I have never done a closed door challenge, it's not appealing to me. When I was a yellow belt, I used to fight fellow BJJ students under NHB rules, but it was with training purposes. Of course sometimes you got hurt but that was part of the game. There's no point in going out and trying to get into a fight for no reason, I'm a professional and I'm waiting for good offers to fight.

Int: What is your BJJ tournament experience?

Mario: I have participated in BJJ tournaments since I was 13. I have had more than 40 victories throughout those years. I was ranked 1st in my division in 1993 and 1994 by LINJJI. I haven't competed in a while, due to med school, but I 'm starting again this year, hopefully with success.

Int: What is LINJJI? Also, you are Vitor Belfort's age. Did you ever train or spar? Were you ever in the same tournament?

Mario: LINJJI is the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Legue of the city of Niteroi (which is close to Rio, on the other side of Guanabara Bay). It runs a well organized competition circuit, and it's in fact the only federation that has an annual ranking of fighters. As for Belfort, I have never fought him in a tournament, at least that I remember. He used to be one weight division above mine when we were blue belts. I've seen him fight a couple of times, but that is all.

Int: Have you ever trained or sparred with any of the big Brazilian names? Wallid, or Renzo?

Mario: I've had the opportunity to train with some of the very best fighters in BJJ. I'd mention Alexandre Paiva, Roberto Traven, Muzio de Angelis, Leonardo Castello Branco, Cleber Luciano among others..... its always a pleasure to train with skilled people.

Int: What did you think of Belfort vs. Joe Charles in Japan?

Mario: I haven't watched UFC Japan yet.

Int: Have you seen Barretto v. Benetau? Did you think Barretto won?

Mario: I'd say that should be a draw, because both fighters attacked and were in advantage in different moments of the fight, but it was even. Of course, UFC rules do not allow a draw, so it's a tough call for the judges. but I think it was sort of strange that it was a unanimous decision.

Int: Do you get to the Maksoud Palace in Sao Paulo for the shows they have?

Mario: I've never been to Sao Paulo to watch NHB fights. Sao Paulo is not actually that close to Rio, it's a 5-6 hours drive. Also, tickets for the shows at Maksoud are very expensive. I'd rather watch the fights on TV for free later on (laughs).

Int: Are the fights in Brasil on pay per view for you, or is SPORTV actually regular TV?

Mario: SPORTV is cable, they usually show fights one month or more after they've happened. Pay per View is relatively new in Brasil, but there are some NHB events in PPV.

Int: Speak about the recents fights at Vale Tudo events in Brasil.

Mario: Well there's not much to say... I think Brazil could be the world center for NHB fighting, but unfortunately we lack organization and sponsors to be able to achieve that status. We see lots of good fighters with great potential around here, but the sponsors are few; not a lot of people want to support martial arts.

Int: Talk about the skill level of the wrestlers you've seen - ground work, etc. I know they are not BJJ's equals in submission, but have you been training in wrestling since the American wrestlers hit the scene?

Mario: Wrestlers are usually tough fighters. They are always strong, with a very good base, and they are VERY hard to take down. As you said, they don't have great submission skills, but they are really good at putting people on the ground. I respect wrestling a lot. Wrestling is not very popular in Brazil, and it's very hard to find a gym to work out in. So I've been trying to incorporate wrestling skills in my workout, like takedowns, suplexes, and stuff like that.

Int: Do you feel being a medical student helps you with your JJ? What type of medicine do you study?

Mario: Yes, I guess being a medical student helps my JJ. The knowledge of human anatomy helps you developing new techniques and polishing old ones. It helps me a lot with my teaching also. Accidents always happen — like one of my students passing out from a choke, for example — and it's good to know how to deal with situations like that. Maybe my JJ will help me get more patients later on — first you break it, then you fix it!(laughs) As for the type of medicine, I'll choose a specialization later on.

Int: How are your classes and seminars going?

Mario: Great. Actually, I'm opening up a school by myself in Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, in March. I've always wanted to have a school, so I'm very happy with this achievement.

Int: Outline a week's training regimen.

Mario: Of course it changes from week to week, but usually it would be something like this:

Int: How will your mindset be different for an NHB match than a Pancrase style match?

Mario: That's a good question. I'd say standing up, NHB and submission fighting are pretty much the same. Of course, you can't punch, but those who think open hand strikes are not effective have never been hit by one themselves, and should watch some of Bas Rutten's fights in Pancrase. I would probably fight the same way on my feet. As for the ground game, of course I'd change my mentality. Open hand strikes are not effective on the ground, specially to the body, they're only disrupting and rarely result in KO's. So you can work the guard without having to pay so much attention to getting hit in the face by a strong punch. Also, in SF, you can't kick on the ground... I wouldn't be able to use moves like the "pedalada" — the kick Murillo hit Bohlander with.

Int: How did you meet Jeff and how did you begin fighting in HnS?

Mario: I met Jeff when I first came to the US to teach BJJ. Scott Sullivan brought me over to teach in Evansville, Indiana in Bam Bam Gym. Jeff did some Thai boxing and BJJ at the time, but he rarely went to class because his wife was pregnant. When we finally met, we talked a lot, and he asked me if I'd be interested in fighting someday in HnS. I said "sure, no problem" and he contacted me later on to fight on the July show. So I came to the US again and I fought.

Int: I think you'll be impressed next time — we have a new arena, and Jeff is working hard on getting good fights!

Mario: I hope so, HnS really deserves to grow since Jeff works so hard on it.

Int: Thank you very much, and I will see you in July!

Mario: I thank you for the opportunity. I hope to see you in July.