Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida shares highlights of his “amazing days” in Dubai

13-time jiu jitsu world champion and ONE Championship heavyweight fighter Marcus 'Buchecha' Almeida recently visited the marvelous city of Dubai for a much-deserved vacation. Being a life-long martial artist, for Almeida, a "vacation" means going to places and training with local grapplers.

The BJJ icon recently posted highlights of his visit to the City of Gold. We saw a lot of beautiful sand dunes, desert sceneries, night outs, and high-level Jiujitsu training at Team Nogueira Dubai.

Here's the post:

"Amazing days with great friends in Dubai, thank you all so much for being part of my story, 10 years ago I went to the United Emirates for the first time and 10 years later I look back and see everything I created, I'm not talking about titles, fame or money, but far beyond that, true friendships! Thank you so much @tndubai @tarikalqassimi @thiagosabjj for the invitation and thank you to everyone who is always with me! 🙏🏻🤜🏼🤛🏼"

One of the perks of being a world champion is that you can travel the world and touch the lives of people regardless of nationality, religion, gender, or belief. This is the language of martial arts and 'Buchecha' is one of the most fluent speaking it. Coming back to the city ten years after his previous visit, the undefeated ONE Championship star was welcomed with a warm embrace by the people.

This warmth comes from the strong bonds he's created through camaraderie in combat. Almeida's friends, former BJJ champions Tarik Al Qasimi, Thiago Sa and everyone at Team Nogueria Dubai, are surely grateful for the relationship they have nurtured with him over the years.

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'Buchecha' pays tribute to late friend Leandro Lo with custom-made mouthpiece

Speaking of friendship, one of the strongest friendships Marcus 'Buchecha' Almeida has forged through the years was with fellow BJJ legend Leandro Lo. The two fought each other, competed alongside each other, and trained together many times throughout the years. They were pretty much like brothers.

Back in August last year, Lo was shot and killed in an altercation at a nightclub in Brazil. Almeida was one of the most heartbroken by the loss, crying in his post-fight speech at ONE on Prime Video 1.

Months after his best friend's passing, the 33-year-old grappling icon found a new way to pay tribute to his late friend. Almeida acquired a custom-made mouthpiece with the word "brotherhood" written on it. The undefeated heavyweight posted a photo of it on Instagram:

“You will always be with me, in the battle field and in my life, FOREVER! 🖤🙏🏻🤜🏼🤛🏼Until the day we meet again Jhow Thank you @um2_protetores for it!”

Judging from his time in Dubai and his tribute to Leandro Lo, we can say that 'Buchecha' values his relationships and friendships above all else. In his own words, he values friendships more than world titles and accomplishments in the sport. He is truly a one-of-a-kind fighter.