The absolute brown belt IBJJF World Champion Larissa Martins is ready to shine as a black belt after a brilliant colored belt career. After earning her black belt in September 2022, Dream Art prospect is now swimming with sharks, hoping to showcase her technical jiu-jitsu skills.

In March, Martins competed in her first Grand Slam tournament at the 2023 IBJJF Pans. After winning the first bout, she lost the second match against World Champion Ffion Davies.

Martins is now set for her first black belt entry at the Brazilian Nationals, and said she is excited to display her jiu-jitsu in the arena where she has already achieved many accomplishments: José Correia venue in Barueri, São Paulo, Brazil.

In an exclusive interview with FloGrappling, Martins said, "When I was a colored belt, I used to watch the black belts compete at the Brasileiro. This is something that I really want to do, especially because everybody is going to watch. It's a privilege for me."

"I have worked hard for eight years. I’ve been training jiu-jitsu for moments like this, and I already competed in many Brazilian Nationals and other tournaments at this venue,” she said. 

After winning the Brazilian National title from white belt to purple belt, Larissa suffered her first loss at Brasileiros as a brown belt in her opening match. It was a new experience for her.

“I don’t remember losing in my first match before. After this Brazilian National, I won the IBJJF Worlds as a brown belt. It's amazing: I lost in a very important tournament on the first fight, then won the most important one," she said.

At the 2022 IBJJF Worlds, Larissa redeemed herself after her ambitions seemed to crumple in front of her. During her semifinal, she was submitted in a surprise flying triangle and suffered a serious arm injury, ending up in third place.

Despite the injury, she entered the open class bracket, where she dominated most of her matches, capturing her first-ever gold medal in a World Championships.

"I had long awaited winning the Worlds as a brown belt. It was incredible. I’m ready for the following challenges. After Pans, I evolved a lot, and I hope to evolve after the Brazilian National as well. I’ll give my best.” she said.

Larissa is registered in the lightweight division with 11 other athletes, including the current IBJJF Euros and Pan champ Luiza Monteiro.

"All my opponents are tough, but Luiza Monteiro has the most experience. I respect her history, I have followed her since I was a white belt. This is an exciting opportunity for me to be in the same bracket as her, and to compete against her in the final would be an honor,” the athlete concluded.