San Diego Jiu Jitsu Champ Fights MMA in Japan

PR Log (Press Release) – Apr 28, 2009 – San Diego Jiu Jitsu World Champion Alexandre “Xande” Ribeiro will be fighting in Japan again on May 2nd in his 2nd professional MMA fight in the Japanese MMA organization known as Sengoku. Alongside brother Saulo Ribeiro, Xande is the co-owner of the world famous University of Jiu Jitsu. However, he has been training for his MMA fights at The Arena (http://www.thearenamma.com), a MMA school and fight training gym in San Diego.

Ribeiro, the 2008 Absolute and Heavyweight World Jiu Jitsu Champion, has an unprecedented 7 World Championships, the greatest record of any Jiu Jitsu competitor in history. Although he will compete in the 2009 World Jiu Jitsu championships, as well as the 2009 ADCC World Submission Grappling Championships, Ribeiro has also set his sights on achieving success in the MMA arena. With only one MMA fight under his belt to date, he will be facing Kei Yamamiya, former Light Heavyweight King Of Pancrase. Yamamiya is an extremely seasoned competitor, with 66 fights including 34 wins.

Facing such an experienced fighter, Ribeiro has had to train MMA in San Diego daily at The Arena gym. He has had the benefit of working with experienced teammates, including UFC star Diego Sanchez, WEC contender Rani Yahya, Strikeforce fighters Fabricio “Morango” Camoes and Waylon Kennel, Bellator fighter Diego Garijo, Affliction fighter Pat Speight, and Joe Duarte, former contestant of The Ultimate Fighter.

The Sengoku VIII fight can be seen in the U.S. on HDNet, airing on Saturday May 2nd from 12am to 5am.