‘Buchecha’ on why he went to MMA: “A real fighter is one that wants to test himself”

Though he could have retired from submission grappling as one of the most decorated competitors to ever step foot on a mat, Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida has continued to challenge himself.

Stepping out of his comfort zone and into the fire, the Brazilian submission specialist put time in at the gym before making a transition to MMA in 2021.

With all of his hard work and dedication clearly paying off, he produced four consecutive first round finishes in his first year as a pro before deciding to take some time to work on his overall skill set before taking the next step.

After a year away from the Circle, the next step has finally arrived in the form of Oumar ‘Reug Reug’ Kane at ONE Fight Night 13 on August 4 at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

On top of the success that he has been able to achieve as he moves up the heavyweight rankings, the most important part of his MMA career to Almeida is the constant challenge.

Using his grappling skills as a base to build off, the endless pursuit of knowledge and evolution that made him a world class submission grappling competitor has kept him motivated on becoming a better all-round mixed martial artist.

In an appearance on the JAXXON PODCAST, ‘Buchecha’ spoke about his decision to compete in MMA rather than retiring from submission grappling with nothing left to prove:

“MMA, I always had this at the back of my head. For me, a real fighter is one that really wants and likes to test himself, you know. Like for me, I fought gi, I fought in no-gi, and I want to fight MMA. That’s always [what] I had in my head.”

Watch the full podcast clip below:

ONE Fight Night 13 will air live and free via Prime Video for North American viewers.