ADCC Hall of Famer, six-time ADCC Champion, and the athlete who has participated in and won the most super fights in the ADCC’s history, Andre Galvao is undeniably one of the most decorated names in grappling. 

Since 2011, Andre Galvao has appeared in six ADCC title matches. He competed in every edition of ADCC from 2007 until 2022.

Ever the invested coach, Galvao is no stranger to working from the sidelines. This year, however, he has officially made the change from the mats to the sidelines at ADCC. It will mark the first edition of ADCC since 2005 in which Andre Galvao will not take the mat.

“I’ve been a coach all these years. The only time I trained as a full-time athlete was the ADCC 2011. All the other years, I was focused on everyone in training, and that’s why Atos always had great results at high-level events such as ADCC,” Andre Galvao said in an exclusive interview for FloGrappling.

“Since I opened the Atos Academy in San Diego, my dedication has been to build a strong team with solid competitors, and we did that. The secret sauce I had to be able to do all of it was the passion and love for the art.”

This year, Galvao will focus 100% on coaching his students from Atos HQ. 

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Revisit Andre Galvao's legacy at ADCC

ADCC 2007 - New Jersey, USA

After winning the ADCC trials, Galvao debuted on ADCC in the -77kg division in New Jersey. At that time, he captured two bronze medals, losing the absolute semifinal to Robert Drysdale and the weight division to the veteran Pablo Popovitch. 

In 2007, Galvao was already an IBJJF Worlds and Pan champion, both in the gi. At the time, he had little experience in no-gi competition.

“I didn’t know no-gi back then. I was a gi fighter trying to do no-gi, I knew jiu-jitsu, and I was a great competitor, but I was very far from what I became in the sport,” Galvao said.

ADCC 2009 - Barcelona, Spain

Despite a strong showing in 2007, Galvao had to participate in the trials to re-qualify for 2009, which he did effectively.

“I won the 2009 ADCC trials. I was on fire during the trials that year, submitting five out of six fights. A few months later, I wasn’t sure I should fight ADCC because I was focused on my MMA career. I decided to fight the ADCC 2009 at the last minute. I didn’t prepare myself for it at all,” Galvao recalled.

Galvao said that he was training MMA with Ronaldo “Jacare”; they were teammates, and he was the one who convinced him to compete in ADCC. In 2009, Jacare was in the final and defeated Robert Drysdale.

In the -88kg division, Galvao proved he could climb to the top and appeared in his first ADCC final against Braulio Estima, becoming a silver medallist. Estima won a rare ADCC double gold.

“2009 was a year I was struggling a lot in life.” Galvao said. “I was depressed… I passed through so many problems that year. I was way more prepared physically and mentally in 2007 than in 2009. I do not doubt that my experience in competition brought me to the finals that year.”

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ADCC 2011 - Nottingham, England

2011 was challenging for Galvao, who was dealing with major career changes. In San Diego, he opened Atos Jiu-Jitsu HQ and had the challenge of leading and training. With fellow teammates and friends, he did it in the best way possible. 

“It was a huge challenge,” Galvao said. “I was also in the green card process during the camp - I couldn’t leave the country because of my visa status in the USA.”

“I trained like never before; I prepared myself with my students and some teammate friends like (Bruno) Frazatto, David Ramos, Ronaldo (Cândido), and Denilson (Bischiliari). I truly did my very best even though I had all these ‘problems.’ The training camp was super intense. The school, space, and number of students were small. We didn’t have many black belts to train with. It was the beginning of Atos in San Diego”.

Galvao's “problems” were related to UK immigration. Back in 2008, he had his entry to England denied because he didn’t have the proper visa and was deported. 

When he returned in 2011, he was interviewed and allowed him to stay in the country with enough time to compete in ADCC. “I was super concerned about all of it. But I pushed through, and I never lost my faith,” he said.

After that, the rest was easy. In the -88kg division, he rematched Pablo Popovitch in the semifinals for revenge and qualified for the final, defeating the dangerous leg lock specialist Rousimar “Toquinho” Palhares to win his first ADCC gold.

In the absolute, he made his path into the finals to defeat Pablo Popovitch again, this time by submission (toe hold). Galvao won double gold.

The absolute title qualified him for his first ADCC super fight, scheduled for the next edition in 2013. 

 “I had an incredible performance at the event, winning all fights against some of the best in the sport,” he said. 

“I will never ever forget that moment. I was so happy; I was in shape, I was ready, and I felt like a monster before, during, and after the event. It was one of the best feelings I ever had. 

“That year was super special for me. I finished the year as the best grappler on the planet and won the ADCC awards for best fighter and best fight (against Palhares).”

From 2013 to 2022 In The Main Event Superfight

Galvao was the main event in five ADCC events, starting in Beijing, China. He submitted the reigning ADCC absolute champion Braulio Estima via rear-naked choke for his first super fight victory, earning revenge from 2009 when Estima submitted Galvao. This marked the first time that a main event superfight ended in a submission. 

In 2015, the party was in his home country. In São Paulo, Galvao defeated Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu by points.

In 2017, he faced a new super fight, a teammate, and a childhood friend.  Claudio Calasans had been close to Galvao since they were younger, and Calasans was also an Atos representative. 

“It was so hard! I had to train as hard as I could to be ready. Calasans is super tough, and he is an incredible person. I love him! My grappling story started at his father’s judo academy. It's crazy how that happened. From childhood friends to ADCC superfight opponents,” Galvao said. 

It was the first time in history that two teammates faced each other in an ADCC superfight. Galvao ended up winning by points.

“We fought real hard. Fortunately, I won - it was my day…after that, it was all good!”

In 2019, closer to Galvao's home, he faced Felipe “Preguiça” Pena in Anaheim, California. Felipe was in his prime, but Galvao was victorious once again, defeating Pena by points and winning his fourth super fight in a row.

The next super fight against the new absolute champion, Gordon Ryan, was promoted immediately.  

ADCC returned in 2022, and Galvao faced Gordon in the main event in one of the most anticipated matches of all time. 

Between 2019 and 2022, fans were uncertain if Galvao would compete since he was had previously hinted at retirement. Galvao did appear against Ryan despite a knee injury sustained during training camp, but lost the match in his historic fifth superfight appearance. At the end of the match, Galvao announced his retirement. 

A Legacy Built

Despite ending his ADCC career on a loss, Galvao left behind a legacy. He has participated in and won the most ADCC superfights in history. In 2022, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Now, his work is to keep his legacy through his students. 

“I have always loved to build champions, train people, and coach. This is going to be one more year—a great year! The only difference is that I won’t be part of the show as a fighter. I guarantee you I will ensure all my students do great this year again,” he said.

Atos has six representatives on ADCC this year: Jonnatas Gracie (-77kg), Josh Hinger (-88kg), Kaynan Duarte (-99kg), Javier Zaruski (-99kg), Mike Perez (+99kg), and Rafaela Guedes (+65kg).

Davi Ramos (-77kg), who trains at Atos Rio de Janeiro, will be competing, and also JT Torres (-77kg), two-time ADCC champion and leader of Essential Jiu-Jitsu, an Atos affiliate.

In addition, three more athletes are doing their training camp under Atos Jiu-Jitsu HQ: Andre Porfirio (-88kg), Felipe Pena (+99kg and super fight), and Adele Fornarino -55kg.

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