Brazilians out to uphold family martial arts tradition

MANILA, Philippines - Three of the members of the legendary Gracie family, the originators of Gracie jiu-jitsu or modern Brazilian jiu-jitsu, are in the country as they try to preserve the family tradition when they compete in the ONE Fighting Championship 5: Pride of Nation on Aug. 31 at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

The Gracie siblings of Rolles, Igor and Gregor were the first to arrive to prepare early and get themselves acclimatized as they face their toughest fight in the ONE FC, which is only on its second year but now considered as Asia’s largest mixed martial arts organization.

Rolles, coming off a stoppage of Bob Sapp at ONE FC 2 last February to stretch his winning streak to three and improve to 6-1 (win-loss), will take on Tony Bonello, who owns an impressive 16-1-1 (win-loss-draw) record, in one of the featured fights.

“I always go into the ring 100-percent prepared, that’s the family tradition and the Gracie way,” Rolles, who bounced back from a loss to Joey Beltran at UFC 109, told The STAR yesterday when he and his two brothers had a workout at the Elite Fitness Gym in Makati City.

Igor, who owns a 5-2 slate, will battle Jung Hwan Cha, who totes an 8-6 record, while their half brother, Gregor, who has a 6-2 mark, will be pitted against Nicholas Mann, who has a 4-1 card.

The 26-year-old Gregor, who trained alongside his brothers in Renzo Gracie’s New York training facility, said being a Gracie is neither an advantage nor it brings too much pressure.

“A fight is usually decided by hardwork not by your name so the key really is hardwork,” said Gregor.

While the 34-year-old Rolles is on a three-game roll, the 32-year-old Igor is coming off four emphatic victories, all by submissions against Canadian Chris Vorano, Americans John Salgado and Quinton McCottrell and Argentina’s Manuelo Morales.

“It will be a chess match because we have similar styles,” he said.

Although the main bout is between DREAM champions Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki and Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes, focus will be on the match pitting former Ultimate Fighting Championship title-holders Andrei Arlovski and Tim Sylvia.

MMA fans from around the world can witness the action of ONE FC online via live streaming at www.onefc.livesport.tv. The undercard fights are available for viewing free-of-charge while the main card fights will be on purchase on pay-per-view at just $9.99.

Tickets are on sale now through TicketNet at www.ticketnet.com.ph or at all TicketNet outlets located at the SM department store customer service area and at the Big Dome ticket booth. 

For inquiries and reservations, call +63 911 5555. Tickets are priced at P4,770 for VIP experience seating that includes exclusive Red Carpet entrance as well as access to the VIP lounge, followed by P2,120, P1,060, P690, P530 and P215 respectively. All applicable service charges apply.

For updates, log on to www.ONEFC.com.