Rivalry · 15 recorded meetings

Rafael Mendes vs Rubens Charles

Head-to-head record

Rafael

Rubens

Rafael

Rubens

2008 → 2015, oldest first

Did you know?

Mendes and Charles met 15 times on record, with Mendes winning 11 and Charles 4.
Only one of their 15 recorded meetings ended by submission, an Armbar by Mendes at the 2012 IBJJF Pan Championship.
Both men favor the same finish, a Gi Choke From Back, with Charles recording 19 such wins and Mendes 13.
Across recorded matches Mendes sits at 98 wins and 9 losses for a 91% win rate, while Charles is at 126 wins and 20 losses for 86%.
Charles took the first meeting of the series at the 2008 Capital Challenge, before Mendes went on to control most of the later finals.

The rivalry

Rafael Mendes and Rubens Charles met 15 times on record, and Mendes holds the edge at 11 wins to 4. These were not scattered matchups. Almost every meeting came in a final, spread across the 2015 IBJJF World Championship, the 2009 ADCC World Championship, the Pan Championship, and more, from 2008 through 2015. Charles took the early one at the 2008 Capital Challenge and picked up wins again in 2009 and at the 2013 ADCC World Championship, but the bulk of the series belongs to Mendes.

The two shared a weight class at featherweight, 70,00 kg, and both built their games around the back. Each lists a Gi Choke From Back as his favorite finish, with Mendes recording 13 such wins and Charles 19. Mendes leaned on the 50-50 guard and the berimbolo, positions he used to work past Charles in their gi finals. Charles is described as the more aggressive, forward-pressure competitor.

What decided most of these meetings was position and scoring rather than the finish. Of the 15 matches, the outcomes ran through points, advantages, penalties, and decisions far more often than submissions. The lone submission in the series was an Armbar from Mendes at the 2012 IBJJF Pan Championship. When the two went the distance, Mendes tended to come out ahead.

Career stats

Stat	Rafael	Rubens
Recorded matches	108	146
Record (W-L-D)	98-9-1	126-20-0
Win rate	91%	86%
Submission rate (of wins)	61%	51%
Favorite finish	Gi Choke From Back (13)	Gi Choke From Back (19)