Gabriel Almeida- A High Profile BJJ Competitor

Gabriel Almeida (known by the nickname Todd) is a renowned BJJ practitioner, an ADCC veteran, and the 2020 IBJJF American Nationals No-Gi Champion.

Almeida is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Ricardo and Leondro Vieira and a representative of the Checkmat Team. He has also worked with Eduardo Flexa while representing the Checkmat team on the international circuit.

Gabriel became famous in the grappling world with his tenacious and aggressive competitive jiu-jitsu style. Almeida established himself as one of the best competitors of his generation by winning many World Championship and Abu Dhabi Pro competitions as a colored belt as well as the ADCC Trials, No-Gi American Nationals, IBJJF, SJJIF World Championship, and UAEJJF Grand Slam as a black belt.

Gabriel Almeida was born on June 4, 1992, in Niteroi, a well-known city in southeast Brazil.

When he was a teenager, Almeida’s interest in jiu-jitsu prompted him to join a small grappling gym to start his BJJ training under his first instructor Eduardo Flexa, the guy who also awarded Gabriel his blue belt.

Almeida was a brilliant student from the very beginning and Eduardo knew that his gym was not suited to fully explore Almeida’s talents as an athlete. Recognizing Almeida’s immense potential for grappling, Coach Eduardo Flexa assisted him in finding a more suitable training establishment i.e. the Checkmat Academy in Rio de Janeiro. Here, Gabriel met Thiago Sa, and Ricardo and Leonardo Vieira.

The three world-class black belts, Leonardo, Thiago, and Ricardo, mentored Almeida at Checkmat and guided him towards greatness.

Almeida’s journey to success began when he won gold medals in the two most prestigious competitions in this sport: the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) and the United Arab Emirates Jiu-Jitsu Federation (UAEJJF).

Winning Golds at IBJJF & UAEJJF 

• As a blue belt at Checkmat, Almeida won the IBJJF World Championship and UAEJJF Abu Dhabi World Pro in 2014.

IBJJF Pan Championship

• Almeida also secured second and third position in his own weight class and in the absolute division respectively at the 2014 IBJJF Pans Championships.

Almeida quickly got promoted in the ranks of BJJ and earned his brown belt in 2017. He went on to compete and win multiple competitions as a brown belt in 2017 and 2018.

• He won the ACBBJ European Open and IBJJF American Nationals along with the AC BJJ European Open No-Gi and CBJJ No-Gi Brazilian Nationals.

Rising Star BJJ Scholarship

Due to his remarkable competitive achievements, Gabriel was awarded the Rising Stars BJJ Scholarship in May 2018 by his coaches.

The aim of the scholarship was to assist five BJJ rising stars in the colored belt divisions by providing them with high-level instruction, food, a place to live, and the opportunity to compete for a job. Almeida was chosen from a pool of over 1000 applicants and quickly became one of the show's most recognizable faces.

Gabriel Almeida was promoted to black belt by his long-time trainers Rico and Leo Vieira on October 13, 2018.

• As a black belt in 2019, Gabriel won both the SJJIF World Championships and ADCC Sao Paulo Trials .

Gabriel’s best event as a black belt was the 2019 ADCC Sao Paulo Trials where he made a historic win by defeating all of his opponents in a row.

Almeida secured four heel hooks in his first four battles against high-caliber opponents such as Alexandre Jesus, Anderson Ferreira, and Absolao Perez.

Gabriel defeated Elias Silverio (6 - 0) in the semifinals to get to the finals against Valdir Araujo. At the bell, Gabriel Almeida was granted the decision victory over Valdir Araujo in a tense contest where nothing could separate them.

• In 2020, he won double gold medals at the IBJJF American Nationals for the second time and also won UAEJJF Grand Slam in Miami in both his own weight class and the absolute weight division.

• In 2021, Almeida won the IBJJF World No-Gi Championship and Nashville International Opens.

• The champion did not stop there and entered the IBJJF New Orleans Open Championship in 2022, winning three gold medals in the No-Gi Ultra Heavyweight division, No-Gi Absolute division, and Gi Heavyweight divisions.

Apart from competing in tournaments, Almeida also built his reputation as a world-class BJJ coach by teaching at Checkmat Academy and hosting various seminars.

The young BJJ champion has created multiple instructional videos, explaining his techniques and the art of grappling for the next generation. These series are available online on the platform, BJJ Fanatics.

Some of the titles include:

• No-Gi Choke Mastery
• Lasso Guard Attacks and Omoplata Mastery
• Bullet Proof Back Escapes: The Deep Turtle Position

Gabriel Almeida, who is 29 years old, is at the peak of his career and is aiming for more World Championships in the future. Gabriel is a powerful competitor with a strong mindset who will continue to light up the world stage for many years to come.

Gabriel Almeida faced Rafael Paganini (a BJJ Black Belt) at the 2019 IBJJF World No-Gi Championship and achieved a historic win via points.

Rafael dominated the match in the beginning and managed to pin Almeida to the ground. But Almeida was able to hold Paganini in a closed guard, making it difficult for him to escape and stand.

Paganini tried to free himself, but Almeida quickly attacked him with a heel hook followed by a guillotine choke. At last, Almeida got on top and successfully defeated Paganini.

Gabriel Almeida competed against Andrew Wiltse (Ranked 7 in Middleweight) at the 2021 WNO Tournament. Previously, both fighters had a record of 1-1 against each other, making this match a tie-breaker.

Gabriel had a strong start by attacking with a guillotine choke, but Andrew quickly escaped his hold. Almeida kept on trying for leg control, but Andrew was able to defend himself and finally won the match via decision in the end.

Although Gabriel lost the match, he displayed one of the most remarkable performances of his career, showcasing his spectacular defense skills till the end.

Gabriel competed against Dominique Bell at the F2W 183 2021. The match was tough but Gabriel managed to take over Dom Bell in the end and won by a split decision.

Gabriel Almeida VS Andrew Wiltse

Gabriel Almeida VS Rafael Paganini

Gabriel Almeida VS Estevan Martinez

Andrew Wiltse vs. Gabriel Almeida

Photo credit: @tapology , @gabrielalmeidabjj