Maria Ruffato

Maria Ruffatto was born in May 2000 in Juíz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil — a city with a strong martial arts culture that played a defining role in her early athletic development. Drawn to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in her early teens by the sport's technical demands and competitive opportunities, she took her first steps on the mats with ambition but quickly found that her initial training environment was not the right fit. Rather than settling, she made the pivotal decision to find a new home on the mats — one that would allow her to grow.

In 2016, Ruffatto joined Gamonal Fighters, a BTT (Brazilian Top Team) affiliate led by Diego Gamonal. The move proved transformative. Under the guidance of coaches Guto Netto and Wagner Augusto, she built the technical foundations and competitive mentality that would define her career. It was within this environment that she earned her blue belt, taking her first meaningful steps toward becoming an elite-level competitor.

Ruffatto's path through the belt ranks reflects a career shaped by multiple influential coaches and an unwavering willingness to pursue competition at the highest level, regardless of geography. Her purple belt was awarded jointly by Linus Pauling and Wagner Augusto, with both instructors contributing meaningfully to her technical and competitive development at that stage.

In 2019, Ruffatto traveled to the United States to train with Guto Netto and compete on the major IBJJF circuit. The trip produced an immediate breakthrough: she won gold at both the IBJJF World No-Gi Championship and the IBJJF Pan American No-Gi Championship at purple belt, announcing herself as one of the most dangerous no-gi competitors in her division. Following that campaign, she made the decision to relocate permanently to the United States, settling in Happy Valley, Oregon in late 2020 to train under Ighor Horta.

The move ushered in the next phase of her development. Promoted to brown belt in early 2021, Ruffatto continued competing at elite levels while deepening her training relationship with the coaching staff in Oregon. In December 2022, she received her black belt — promoted jointly by Gustavo Bessa and Ighor Horta — a recognition that reflected the collaborative coaching environment that had shaped her growth since arriving in the United States.

Across every belt level, Ruffatto has established herself as one of the most consistent and dangerous no-gi competitors in the heavier weight divisions, building a résumé defined by deep runs in both weight class and absolute categories.

At brown belt in 2021, she showcased the full range of her competitive ability on one of the sport's biggest stages. She won gold at the IBJJF Pan American No-Gi Championship and pushed all the way to the final of the female open weight division at the IBJJF World No-Gi Championship, where she was edged out by Akeela Al-Hameed — earning silver in what was nonetheless a landmark performance. Through 2022, she continued adding hardware at the Pan Championship across both weight class and absolute divisions at brown belt, cementing her reputation as a durable and versatile competitor.

The transition to black belt brought no slowdown. In 2023, Ruffatto won gold at the IBJJF Pan Championship No-Gi and the IBJJF American Nationals No-Gi, confirming her standing among the top black belt no-gi competitors in the heavier divisions. She also placed third in the absolute division at the 2023 IBJJF Pan Championship No-Gi, demonstrating the cross-weight threat she poses at the sport's highest level. At the 2024 IBJJF World No-Gi Championship, she earned a bronze medal — a result that underscored her continued elite-level presence as she matured at black belt.

The 2024 ADCC South American Trials delivered perhaps the most emphatic statement of Ruffatto's standing in the global no-gi landscape. Competing under the United States flag — a reflection of her relocation to Oregon and her integration into the North American competitive scene — she won the ADCC South American Trials 1 in 2024, securing a coveted qualification for the ADCC World Championship. Rather than treating that victory as the conclusion of her trials campaign, she returned and won the ADCC South American Trials 2 later that same year, completing a rare back-to-back sweep of the regional qualifying circuit.

The double victory affirmed what her results across multiple years had consistently suggested: that Ruffatto, representing BTT (Brazilian Top Team) on the international stage, has developed into one of the premier heavier-division no-gi grapplers in South America and a legitimate threat at the ADCC World Championship level. Her career arc — from a teenage competitor navigating gym changes in Minas Gerais to a black belt ADCC qualifier — speaks to both the depth of her technical preparation and the competitive ambition that has driven every step of her journey.