Mateus Moraes

Born on April 12, 2002, in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil, Mateus Moraes grew up far from the traditional jiu-jitsu hubs of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. As a child, he initially pursued football, competing for one season before a curiosity about the fighting arts drew him to the mats in 2012. That curiosity proved transformative. He began training at Amazonas Top Team under coach Airton Santos, and it quickly became clear he had found his calling.

Moraes took to competition early, and his progression through the juvenile ranks was swift enough to generate attention well beyond the Amazon region. By the time he reached the juvenile blue belt level, he had already established himself as one of the most promising young grapplers in Brazil — a reputation that would open significant doors for the teenager from Manaus.

Moraes validated his early promise on the national stage by claiming back-to-back gold medals at the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals in 2018 and 2019. Those performances caught the eye of Caio Terra, a decorated world champion and head of the Caio Terra Association, who extended an invitation for Moraes to relocate to California and train under his professional team. Visa complications prevented the move from materializing at that time, and Moraes remained in Manaus.

A second opportunity arrived in 2020, when Dream Art — a professional jiu-jitsu squad based in São Paulo — extended their own invitation. Moraes accepted, and in 2021 he made the move to São Paulo as a purple belt, stepping into one of Brazil's most competitive training environments. The transition paid off immediately. As a purple belt, he captured gold at the 2021 AJP Grand Slam Rio de Janeiro and followed that with a national title at the 2022 CBJJ Brazilian Nationals. His brown belt was awarded by Isaque Bahiense, one of Dream Art's most decorated athletes, marking the next stage of his evolution as a competitor.

Mateus Moraes's brown belt years established him as one of the most formidable competitors of his generation across multiple circuits. In 2023, he claimed gold at both the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro and the 2023 AJP Grand Slam London, demonstrating consistent dominance on the AJP stage. On the IBJJF circuit, the results were equally compelling — silver medals at both the 2023 IBJJF World Championship and the 2023 Pan Jiu-Jitsu IBJJF Championship in the middleweight division signaled that a gold medal was only a matter of time.

Joining the Caio Terra Association

Following the 2023 IBJJF World Championship, Caio Terra renewed the invitation he had first extended four years earlier. This time, Moraes accepted. In March 2024, he relocated to San Jose, California, joining the Caio Terra Association headquarters and entering a new chapter of his career.

World Championship Gold and Black Belt Promotion

The move produced immediate results. In June 2024, Moraes captured gold at the 2024 IBJJF World Championship as a brown belt, closing out his colored belt career with the sport's most prestigious title. Shortly after his world championship victory, Caio Terra promoted Moraes to the rank of black belt — a fitting culmination to a journey that had taken him from the banks of the Amazon River to the top of the podium on the world stage.