Translated from Portuguese from Erik Engelhart’s article in Tatame

2 times Absolute world champion black belt, Xande Ribeiro spent some time without competing because of a series of injuries but when he returned to Jiu-Jitsu the good results started coming back.The black belt qualified for Abu Dhabi World Pro defeating Andre Galvao in the final of the San Diego trials and was brilliant in the World Pro, beating Bernardo Faria in the finals at weight. The legend of the gentle art promised to take his simple and efficient Jiu-Jitsu  to California for the Worlds, and search for a third absolute title, a feat that only Roger Gracie accomplished so far. But for this, he will have to defeat the greatest icon of the gentle art today: Rodolfo Vieira. For Ribeiro, the favorite is the athlete of GFTeam , but in the interview that you see below, the fighter pointed out the “formula” to stop him.

You defeated Bernardo Faria World Pro in weight and returned to his defeat that he had imposed in 2010. What did you think of this fight?

It was a pretty cool fight, this time rolled fight, Ipulled the half guard and forced him to fight, I  also got him in guillotine but he was waiting for me to get tired, but in the end I got a reversal and a victory.

You come back to the mats and got the same good results as you were getting before. Do you intend to pursue this momentum for the Worlds?

For sure I’ve re-acquired the passion to train Jiu-Jitsu and compete. I’m back and I’ll force the younger guys to go for it.

Do you dream of winning the third absolute title and against Roger Gracie?

I dream every day to train well and be healthy to train and compete in the best of my performance. I do not think about Roger or some title I want to achieve, I think of being there and going for it, looking for the submission. The result you see on the day and numbers are just numbers. I’m going to take what belongs to me and me only.

What can we expect from you at the Worlds?

You can expect the same as always, a simple Jiu-Jitsu and efficient strategy, but always looking for a submission, not a result by points.

What do you think can be the key to defeating Rodolfo Vieira? Is he the favorite for the Worlds?

The key to defeating Rodolfo and any other opponent is to be well trained and not  to make mistakes, not to be put in uncomfortable situations. Rodolfo is the champion and certainly is a favorite, but alot can happen until the next time.