Ricardo Rezende

Ricardo "Ricardinho" Rezende was born on November 6, 1990, in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil—a state nestled in the country's central-western region. From an early age, he gravitated naturally toward combat sports, a passion that would define the trajectory of his life. In 2000, at around ten years old, he began his formal martial arts education through judo, building the foundational movement patterns and grappling instincts that would later translate seamlessly onto the BJJ mats.

Three years later, at the age of 12, Ricardo made the transition to Brazilian jiu-jitsu and stepped into the orbit of Roberto Abreu—known widely in the grappling world as "Cyborg." That early connection proved to be one of the defining relationships of his athletic career. From his first days as a teenager through the receipt of his black belt, Ricardo trained exclusively under Abreu, building a long-term foundation rooted in technical consistency and competitive excellence.

Throughout his progression from white belt to brown belt, Ricardo Rezende trained under Roberto Abreu at Fight Sports, developing his game within a system renowned for producing elite no-gi competitors. His ability to perform on the sport's biggest stages manifested early, with significant results accumulating at each belt level.

At blue belt, Ricardo's potential came into sharp focus at the 2009 World Jiu-Jitsu Championship, where he submitted six consecutive opponents before falling in the final by a single takedown—a performance that showcased both his submission-hunting aggression and his ability to compete at the sport's highest levels at a young age. Moving to purple belt in 2010, he captured the World No Gi Championship title in his weight division and earned a silver medal in the open weight bracket, demonstrating his effectiveness across weight categories. He replicated that championship formula at brown belt in 2011, winning the World No Gi Championship in his weight class while also sweeping both the weight and absolute divisions at the Pan American No Gi Championship.

On September 9, 2012, Roberto Abreu awarded Ricardo his black belt—a recognition not of a single breakthrough moment, but of a sustained record of technical development and competitive achievement accumulated over nearly a decade on the mats.

Ricardo Rezende's competitive identity is defined by no-gi grappling, a discipline in which he built one of the more decorated pre-black belt records of his generation. His aggressive submission hunting, combined with the ability to compete effectively across weight categories, became the hallmarks of a career shaped entirely within the no-gi format.

Building the Foundation: Purple and Brown Belt Success

Ricardo's first significant international statement came at the 2009 World Jiu-Jitsu Championship, where six submission victories in a single bracket—despite a final-match loss by takedown—announced the arrival of a dangerous finisher with clear championship ambitions. The following year, he returned with a focused objective: the No Gi World Championship. He achieved it, winning his weight division at purple belt and pushing deep into the open weight bracket to finish as runner-up. That combination of divisional dominance and absolute-division competitiveness became a recurring theme. In 2011, at brown belt, he reproduced the formula at the Pan American No Gi Championship, sweeping both the weight and absolute titles in a single tournament.

Black Belt Transition and Continued Excellence

After receiving his black belt in September 2012, Ricardo maintained his competitive momentum without interruption. He claimed titles at the Miami Open in both 2012 and 2013—winning both the weight and absolute divisions in 2013—and captured gold at the World Expo GP that same year. At the 2013 IBJJF No Gi World Championship, he added a bronze medal at the sport's highest level under the no-gi ruleset, confirming that his transition to black belt competition was a seamless one. Across every stage of his career, Ricardo's record stands as a testament to the no-gi specialty he cultivated from the earliest days of his training at Fight Sports.