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View Full Version : Interview with Rodrigo Comprido (Brock Lesnar's Brazilian jiu jitsu coach)



cholitzu
30-07-2010, 00:44
http://image3.examiner.com/images/blog/replicate/EXID59651/images/resized_IMG_0180.JPG
Rodigo Comprido Medeiros (left) poses with Deon Thompson after the Buckeye Border BJJ Tournament
Brian Hemminger





Rodrigo "Comprido" Medeiros (http://www.compridobjj.com/) has gained quite a bit of notoriety recently when his student Brock Lesnar surprisingly submitted challenger Shane Carwin to retain his heavyweight title at UFC 116 earlier this month. Many expected Lesnar to win, but very few thought Lesnar, a traditional ground and pound wrestler, would give up the dominant mount position to try to end the fight via arm triangle. Comprido is a 7x world champion in jiu jitsu, having won the world open weight championship twice. His nickname, Comprido, means "long and lanky" which he got because of his physique when he first started training in Brazilian jiu jitsu.

Comprido is now semi-retired in the sport but he recently competed in the Buckeye Border International Grappling Championships (http://www.examiner.com/x-59651-Toledo-MMA-Examiner~y2010m7d26-Excitement-Abounds-at-the-2010-Buckeye-Border-International-Grappling-Championships) in Toledo on July 24th in a blackbelt "superfight" against Tyrone Gooden, where he was victorious via decision with a dominant score of 21-2. Comprido not only competed but also offered words of encouragement and advice to all his students who train with Team Brasa at the event. He set aside a little time to talk to me about himself, Brock Lesnar and his gym back in Chicago.

Brian Hemminger: Can you tell me a little bit about that superfight you just had?

Rodrigo Comprido Medeiros: Yeah, Tyrone Gooden stepped in because my other opponent Robin Geisler had to back out yesterday because of family problems. I'm a lot bigger than Tyrone and I thought he did a great job. He had very good defense, kept his elbows tight and avoided all my submissions. I'm always glad to compete, it motivates the students to see high level guys still fighting for them.

BH: Did you have a chance to watch the Mundials (http://thefightworkspodcast.com/2010/06/08/2010-jiu-jitsu-world-championship/) (World Jiu Jitsu Championship) and if so, what were your thoughts?

RCM: Yes, I watched some. They are always tough and they have the best jiu jitsu in the world. I heard about a controversy with the featherweights where someone got a sweep and didn't get the points to give him the win at the end.

BH: How has working with a man of Brock Lesnar's size and wrestling ability helped you with your Brazilian jiu jitsu?

RCM: He's not just bigger and stronger than me, he's also more athletic and faster. He's a huge challenge. I have to be much better on all the details when I train with him, my technique has to be perfect. He's kind of a nightmare.

BH: Not many people expected a submission win for Brock at UFC 116 against Shane Carwin, what were your thoughts?

RCM: Yeah, I expected it, even if he had pulled a sub off from the bottom I would have expected it. He's very talented and learns fast. He's the first person to have ever handled a straight punch from Carwin and survived. He had that illness (Diverticulitis) and he came back even better. I think he could submit Cain in his next fight too, but Cain is also very good on the ground.

BH: You don't just train Brock, you also work with Mike Russow, who had a big comeback win at UFC 114 over Todd Duffee, how proud were you of your students in their last fights?

RCM: Well Russow broke his hand against Duffee in the 1st round. He handled a bad beating and came back and got the knockout. They (Lesnar and Russow) both handled a beating and still got the win. They deserve all the credit for that, not me. They showed to themselves what kind of men they were. They have a lot of heart.

BH: Can you tell me a little bit about your gym back in Chicago?

RCM: Yes, I teach at FloMMA (http://www.flomma.com/instructors.html), it opened 3 years ago. We teach MMA classes, Brazilian jiu jitsu, boxing, Thai boxing, pretty much everything. We have very big mats, a cage, a ring, I love to work there. If I ever have to travel like to Brazil or Minnesota with Lesnar, I always make sure to bring in top BJJ guys in my place like Demian Maia or Robert Drysdale. We actually just added Andrei Arlovski to our gym so he can also help with boxing and Sambo.

BH: Are there any hot prospects at your gym that you think will make an impact in MMA?

RCM: Yes, there's a very nice team in my gym at Chicago. There's about 8 students that have a really bright future, one is Chris Garcia, another is Ash Eshor. He's undefeated in MMA and boxing right now. I think the addition of Arlovski to the gym will really help the students.

BH: Thank you very much for your time Comprido

RCM: It was my pleasure