Mateus Rodrigues

Mateus Rodrigues was born on May 19, 2000, in Brazil, into a household where combat sports were a way of life rather than an extracurricular pursuit. His father, Silvio Rodrigues, competed professionally in NHB (No Holds Barred) fighting, embedding martial arts into the family's daily rhythm from the start. Growing up alongside his older brother Lucas Rodrigues — himself a prolific jiu-jitsu athlete — Mateus developed his foundation in boxing, Muay Thai, and jiu-jitsu through immersion rather than instruction alone.

While the environment shaped him, a single competitive moment defined his trajectory. A tournament loss at the age of nine ignited a competitive drive that would fuel his career for years to come. Rather than discouraging him, the defeat sharpened his focus and redirected his energy almost entirely toward grappling. The results followed quickly: by 2014 and 2015, Rodrigues was already claiming titles at the CBJJ Brazilian Nationals as a juvenile competitor, signaling that his dedication was producing elite-level returns.

By 2016, Rodrigues had emerged as one of the most compelling juvenile competitors on the international stage. That year, he captured IBJJF World and South American Championship titles while adding a silver medal at the No-Gi Worlds — a combination of results that placed him firmly on the radar of the sport's most discerning observers. Among those paying close attention was Guilherme Mendes, one of the most decorated competitors in jiu-jitsu history and co-founder of Art Of Jiu-Jitsu in Costa Mesa, California.

Mendes personally reached out with an invitation to join the AOJ program — a rare distinction for a teenager still competing at the juvenile level. The offer represented far more than a training opportunity; it was a direct acknowledgment of Rodrigues's potential to compete at the sport's highest levels. He accepted, relocating from Brazil to the United States at approximately age 16 and arriving at Art Of Jiu-Jitsu as a juvenile blue belt. Embedding himself within one of the most technically refined competitive programs in the sport, he trained alongside and under the guidance of the Mendes brothers, absorbing a system built on precision, timing, and positional mastery.

From the moment he arrived at Art Of Jiu-Jitsu, Rodrigues established himself as one of the most formidable colored belt competitors of his generation on the IBJJF circuit. Titles accumulated rapidly across multiple belt levels, weight categories, and rule sets — a record that spoke to both versatility and sustained excellence.

His 2017 juvenile season was particularly commanding. Rodrigues swept through the IBJJF Pan Championship, IBJJF European Open, IBJJF American Nationals, and the AJP Abu Dhabi World Pro in a single calendar year, claiming gold at each. He added juvenile World Championship titles in both 2016 and 2017, along with a No-Gi World title in 2017, confirming that his excellence translated seamlessly between gi and no-gi competition.

The momentum carried forward at every belt level. At blue belt in 2018, he captured both the IBJJF World Championship gi title and the IBJJF Pan Championship, reinforcing his standing as the top competitor in his division. At purple belt in 2019, he claimed the IBJJF World Championship No-Gi title, expanding the scope of his résumé. At brown belt in 2021, he returned to the top of the gi World Championship podium, bookending his colored belt career with the sport's most prestigious title. Third-place Pan Championship finishes at both purple and brown belt added further depth to an already exceptional record. Across nearly every major format and at every rank, Rodrigues proved himself a consistent presence at the top of the podium.

In December 2021, Rodrigues received his black belt promotion directly from Guilherme Mendes, completing a development arc that had begun with his recruitment to Art Of Jiu-Jitsu as a teenage blue belt from Brazil. The promotion formalized what his competitive record had long demonstrated: that he had matured into a complete and polished competitor ready for the sport's highest level.

Representing AOJ in international black belt competition, Rodrigues competes primarily in the Medium Heavyweight division at 88.30 kg / 195.0 lbs on the IBJJF circuit. At the 2024 Pan Jiu-Jitsu IBJJF Championship, he advanced to the Medium Heavyweight final, earning a silver medal in a performance that highlighted his capacity to compete at the top tier of black belt competition. His black belt career reflects the continued evolution of one of the most decorated colored belt competitors of his generation into a tested and serious presence at the sport's highest level.