Leo Vieira vs. Baret Yoshida: A Tale Of Two Matchups

Jiu-jitsu expert Riccardo Ammendolia takes us back to the early 2000s for one of the period's most intriguing rivalries: Leo Vieira vs. Baret Yoshida.

When looking back at our sport’s greats in the lighter weight divisions, two names always come up. 

As far as influence, style, and accomplishments, both Leo Vieira and Baret Yoshida have competed and won at the highest of international competitions. 

From World Championships to Abu Dhabi, the two have been milestone grapplers who people use not only for style influence but also as references for innovative techniques. Both Leo and Baret faced off twice in the past, once in the gi and the other no-gi. 

Let’s take a look back at both matches:

Their first encounter was at the 2003 ADCC World Championship in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Baret began competing at ADCC in 1999 and exploded onto the scene with his flying armlock upset–heard round the world–against Megaton Dias. Vieira first competed in 2000 when the event was still in Abu Dhabi. 

But in their first-ever encounter, the two faced off in the finals of the -65 kg division. Both men were entered into a stacked division which featured BJJ legends such as Alexandre Soca, Robson Moura, Eddie Bravo, and Royler Gracie.

The two grapplers clashed in a grueling matchup that remained on the feet for the majority of regulation. Once the overtime period began, Vieira opened up with an onslaught of attacks of armdrags, head shucks, and—eventually—takedowns that saw him score on the crafty Yoshida. 

Once on the ground, Leo was unable to pass the guard of Baret, as the San Diego native (known for having one of submission grappling’s most effective offensive guards) was able to constantly make distance and use his leg and hip movement to counter Leo’s passing and eventually get back to his feet. But in the closing seconds, Leo landed a final takedown and was declared the winner and 2003 ADCC champion.

The two would eventually meet again, this time in a new rules format that favored submission attempts over the standard jiu-jitsu rule set. At the 2005 Rickson Budo Challenge, Baret and Leozinho now faced off in the opening round of the lightweight bracket. 

Rickson’s intention with this event was to showcase jiu-jitsu at the highest level by trying to constantly push the fighters to submit rather than fight for points. And although this format was never repeated again, it will be remembered as one of pro jiu-jitsu’s best events ever. The fighters actually did not even know what the score was during their matches, so as to not slow down the pace of the action.

When the two faced off here—this time in the gi—it was a much different match. Baret opened the bout by pulling guard and attempted to attack Leo as often as he could. But the multi-talented Vieira had other plans, passing and mounting Baret several times throughout the three-round match. In the closing seconds of the final round, Leo attacked with a nasty armlock which almost finished Baret, but the time was over and Leo’s attacks were more than enough for him to be declared the winner.