Marcos Martins

Marcos Vinicius de Oliveira Martins was born on February 8, 1997, in São Bernardo do Campo, São Paulo, Brazil — an industrial city in the Greater São Paulo metropolitan area with a strong tradition of producing combat sports athletes. His introduction to organized physical activity came not through a traditional sports academy, but through a community-based non-profit social project in his neighborhood, designed to keep local children constructively engaged while their parents worked. The program offered a rotating menu of activities, and each child selected three to pursue.

For the young Marcos, that selection had nothing to do with martial arts. He gravitated toward skateboarding, parkour, and theatre — a combination that speaks to an early aptitude for body awareness, controlled movement, and creative expression. It was not until age 12, in 2009, that the same social project introduced him to Brazilian jiu-jitsu under coach Anderson de Oliveira. What began as one activity among several quickly became something far more absorbing. The physical and intellectual demands of jiu-jitsu distinguished it from anything else Martins had encountered, and the sport steadily moved to the center of his life.

As Martins' commitment to jiu-jitsu deepened, his training path evolved accordingly. After his foundational years under Anderson de Oliveira, he transitioned to a CIA Paulista affiliated gym and came under the instruction of Fernando Silva — known in the BJJ community as "Costela." Silva recognized Martins' progress and awarded him his blue belt, marking his first formal rank advancement and the beginning of his identity as a serious competitor.

The blue belt stage proved to be a turning point in ambition. Determined to pursue jiu-jitsu as a professional career rather than a recreational pursuit, Martins sought a more competition-focused environment. He found it at a Barbosa Jiu-Jitsu affiliate gym, training under coach Diego Martins — a move that represented a significant escalation in competitive preparation.

The next major step came when Marcos turned 18 and relocated to São Paulo to train directly under Marco Barbosa, head coach of Barbosa Jiu-Jitsu (B9). Training at the heart of the organization sharpened both his technical development and competitive edge. On December 8, 2018, with the blessing of both mentor Diego Martins and head coach Marco Barbosa, Marcos Petcho was promoted to black belt — formally recognizing his journey from community gym newcomer to elite-level competitor.

Purple Belt: Building the Foundation

By the later stages of his colored belt career, Marcos Petcho had established himself as one of the most formidable competitors of his generation across multiple organizations and formats. His results spanned the IBJJF, CBJJ, and UAEJJF circuits in both gi and no-gi competition, signaling exceptional versatility.

At purple belt, Petcho built an imposing record. He claimed gold at the IBJJF Brazilian National in 2016 and swept the no-gi national circuit with victories at the IBJJF Brazilian No-Gi National in both 2016 and 2017. Continental competition yielded similar results, with gold at the IBJJF South American Championship in 2016 rounding out an already dominant purple belt campaign.

Brown Belt: Rising to International Prominence

The brown belt years elevated his profile to an international level. In 2017, he won the UAEJJF Grand Slam Rio de Janeiro and defended his title as IBJJF South American champion. The 2018 brown belt season was his most productive — delivering titles at the IBJJF South American Championship, the IBJJF European No-Gi Open, the UAEJJF Grand Slam Abu Dhabi, the São Paulo No-Gi Open, the IBJJF Pans Championship, and the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals. Podium finishes at the UAEJJF Grand Slam London (bronze, 2018) and the São Paulo Open (bronze, 2018) further underscored the consistency of his performance across multiple competitive theaters.

The culmination of Marcos Petcho's colored belt career arrived on the sport's largest stage. Competing as a brown belt at the 2019 IBJJF World Championship, Petcho navigated the bracket all the way to the final, earning a silver medal that placed him among the very best brown belt competitors in the world at his weight class.

The Worlds silver medal capped an extraordinary 2018–2019 brown belt campaign that had already seen him collect titles across multiple continents and organizations. Reaching the final at the World Championship confirmed that his performances on the national and continental stages were not statistical anomalies but a genuine reflection of his caliber as a competitor. Notably, the result came in the months immediately following his black belt promotion on December 8, 2018 — Petcho continued competing on the brown belt circuit through the conclusion of that season, making the Worlds final a fitting capstone to an elite colored belt career.

Marcos Petcho's transition to black belt competition came with Barbosa Jiu-Jitsu (B9), continuing his affiliation with Marco Barbosa that had shaped his final years as a colored belt. He competes in the meio pesado division, with a weight limit of 88.30 kg (195 lbs).

His early black belt results demonstrated that the step up in competition did not slow him. In 2019, he claimed gold at both the IBJJF South Brazil Championship and the IBJJF Rio Open, while also earning a bronze at the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals and reaching the final of the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals No-Gi — a runner-up finish that reflected the continued competitiveness of his no-gi game. The 2021 season brought additional podium appearances, including silver at both the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals and the Big Deal Pro Grand Prix, as Petcho maintained his standing at the upper levels of the black belt circuit.

Anchored by the coaching relationship with Marco Barbosa that has defined his development since his teenage years in São Paulo, Petcho's black belt career represents the ongoing chapter of a competitive journey built from the ground up through a community sports program in São Bernardo do Campo.