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Ricardo “Cachorrao” Almeida Interview

Very few people succeed in the MMA World, with the competitive nature of the game and the ever-increasing pool of talent, it is hard to succeed and those few who reach the status of Champion rarely give up their throne voluntarily. But there are those special people that have a mission and choose their own path one such person is Ricardo “Cachorrao” Almeida. “Cachorra”o began his fighting career almost by accident, Almeida was in Japan assisting Renzo for a fight when a fighter dropped out of the event due to an injury and he was asked if he wanted to take his place. Not one to shy away from opportunity “Cachorrao” made his debut as a last minute replacement against the tough Akira Shoji in Pride 12 in December 2000. “Cachorrao” won the fight and a career was launched. After a couple of stumbles in his early fighting days (losses against top fighters Matt Lindland and Andrey Semenov). Ricardo hit stride and went on a 6-fight winning streak taking the King of Pancrase title in the process. Just as soon as he hit Ricardo felt the need to change and abandoned his MMA career to pursue his other vision: expanding his horizons as a BJJ instructor.

Now with that part of his life fulfilled Ricardo comes back to his other love, fighting as he makes his return against Denis Hallman in the Cage Fury Fighting event at the Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey on September 28th.

We caught up with Ricardo recently and got the heads up on him!

You were very successful in fighting, why did you leave MMA?

You know, I began looking at fighters leaving MMA and I started to think that I didn't want to leave MMA having to look at the rest of my life and realize that MMA was all I had.
I guess I felt I had accomplished enough in MMA, but there were other areas of my life much more important to me that I needed to focus on. I wanted to dedicate myself to my family. I wanted to dedicate myself to my Academy and my students. I wanted to dedicate myself to Jiu Jitsu.I wanted to work on my life outside the competitive circuit.

You dedicated yourself to your academy in a new fashion can you explain to us what you did different?

I just love Jiu-Jitsu and I wanted as many people as possible to have access to something I feel can be a life changing experience. To be honest ,I used to feel embarrassed by my school. I felt it could be so much better.
So under the guidance of a fellow Master Renzo Gracie Black Belt, Gene Dunn, myself and my wife began to work on our vision. I think that one of the most important principle is to put students progress and well being first.
It may sound simple but when you think about it, at most Jiu Jitsu schools out there for every one hundred students that join may be one becomes a really tough Black Belt the other ninety-nine end up quitting sooner or later. Our philosophy is if ten people enroll today, how can we have all ten students become Blue Belts within the next year, or all ten as Black Belts within the next six to seven years. We will still have the one really tough guy out of every hundred (most likely a lot more than that), just not at the expense of the other ninety-nine.

How's the academy now?

It is thriving. We have over 400 students and the technical level higher than ever. We continue to move further, I can't wait to celebrate our 500 student mark. But the amazing thing is how diverse our student body is. We have lawyers, doctors, school teachers, cops, moms and even a couple grandpas training at the academy. This year we will graduate 5 more Black Belts, most of them are close to or over 40 years old, one of them being over 50 years old. These guys would not win a UFC match, but they are amazing role models for the school exemplar representatives of what I believe the Black Belt in Jiu Jitsu signifies: perseverance and maturity built on skill an ability. I can only hope that when I am 40 or 50 I can be training as hard as these guys do. Two of them have been driving from Delaware to my school in NJ, a two hour drive each way, for the past 7 years! Now, that's something you don't see everyday. I'm so blessed to have the students I have.

Why return to MMA?

For the past three years I didn't fight because I didn't want to, a couple of years from now I won't fight because I won't be able to.
I have never been able to physically leave MMA. I have been responsible for helping Master Renzo Gracie get ready for his fights, I have a group of students who fight in some of our local MMA show here in the Northeast, and since last year I have been also assisting with the IFL Pitbulls. Even though my mind wasn't in MMA from a fighters perspective, from a coaching perspective I have been extremely active.
I have been pretty consistent in my training since the beginning of 07' just waiting for the right place and the right time. I really liked what I saw at the last CFFC and here we are.

What was the hardest thing or the thing you missed the most about fighting?

I knew something big would have to be sacrificed; you can't always have it all. To take my school to the place I wanted to take, MMA was at the time the one thing I felt would stop me from achieving that goal, so the consequences of that sacrifice didn't come as a surprise to me at all. The first year I wouldn't even watch MMA. That was kind of hard, to know you can do something well and willingly sort of bury it.
I really missed the adrenaline rush, being in an environment that you can't make mistakes. Actually, to replace that, I have been surfing a lot these past couple years, after not being able to do much of it while fighting. I don't know if you are familiar with the fact that I've been surfing since I was 2 years old, and it is together with Jiu Jitsu, my biggest passion in sports. Everyone in my home and family surfs, even little Renzo will begin surfing as soon as he can move in a thick wetsuit.
The waves don't get really big here in NJ but a double overhead winter day with 35 degrees water temperature is scary enough. I took some amazing surf trips to places all over the world that I would never be able to go to while fighting.
Again, in MMA, I just missed being out there, learning hands on. It is all about the learning process. I believe I can help so many people now because of the tough times I have been in the ring.

What can we look forward on this event? Is Ricardo going to be there in full force? What is the new Ricardo like?

Usually in a comeback fighters always say they are better. I wouldn't say I am better, I would say I am different. I think my approach has changed this time around. Technically I can now do things I never dreamt of doing three years ago but physically it will take me some time to get where I need to be. I believe I have gained many skills I did not have before, whether they will translate into winning ability we will see September 28th. The biggest challenge will be getting my body ready for the abuse of training and the fight.

You were courted by many events, why fight for Cage Fury Fighting Championship?

I was definitely flattered by the fact that the organizations I had fought for in the past never really forgot about me. But it was time for me to build another bridge. I chose Cage Fury Fighting for many reasons, all good ones. Felix Martinez, the founder and President of the organization, has a great vision. I like his judgment regarding scouting fighters for his show, furthermore, the way he treats them. A few students of mine have fought for CFFC, and I have had personal experiences that facilitated my decision. It is a very organized, talent packed organization, I'm very happy to participate and watch the growth of this show; I think the sky is the limit for them if things continue to move in the direction they're going now. Besides, I'll be fighting in my own state, for my fans who always wanted an opportunity to see me live in action.

Anyone special you want to fight?

I feel really good about coming back and showcasing my skills. I want to fight the top ranked Middleweight fighters, but I understand it could take some time to earn the right to fight them. I'd hope for a fast transition, though, giving the talent I am coming back to face from fight one. Hopefully I'll continue to be offered top talent to fight against that would be ideal for me. The bigger the challenge, the better I prepare for the occasion. I love pushing myself, getting out of my comfort zone, setting big goals. I guess it will happen sooner than later, can't wait to see how that unfolds.