Issue 046
February 2009
Legendary Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Murilo Bustamante isn’t just your average former fighter-turned-trainer. He was the co-founder of the Brazilian Top Team (BTT), which is one of the most well-known and respected teams in the history of MMA, and is a former UFC middleweight champion to boot.
Starting his training in jiu-jitsu as a teenager, Bustamante was part of the jiu-jitsu boom of the late 1980s and early ‘90s. A training partner to such MMA luminaries as Mario Sperry, Wallid Ismael, Allan Goes and more, Bustamante was a member of the powerhouse Carlson Gracie team, which was home to some of Rio de Janeiro’s best jiu-jitsu players.
Bustamante entered the world of bare-knuckle vale tudo in 1991, winning his first fight by way of TKO. Like many representing Gracie jiu-jitsu in the ring, Bustamante was primarily a grappler and relied on his black belt skills on the mat. 1996 saw Bustamante re-enter the ring, this time in the one-off MARS tournament. He won his first two fights in a combined time of a little over two minutes, before facing off with the giant wrestler Tom Erikson in the final. Fighting as a light heavyweight, Bustamante was dwarfed by the 125kg Erikson, yet they incredibly fought to a 40-minute draw.
BTT was founded in 2000 by Bustamante, Ricardo Liborio, Mario Sperry, and Luis Roberto Duarte. All were former members of the Carlson Gracie Academy. A major disagreement with Gracie over how much he could claim from their fight purses had seen them leave under a black cloud, with Ismael the only core member of the Carlson Gracie Fight Team staying behind. In Brazil loyalty to one’s master is extremely important, and when such a high-profile break-up occurred, it set tongues wagging from Rio to Recife.
The breakdown and evolution of relationships are all part of life, and now, eight years later, BTT is going through a metamorphosis of its own. “Outside Brazil there is not so much focus on teams,” Bustamante told us. “In Brazil it is really common. We made a really good job at BTT, we built really good names. Rodrigo ‘Minotauro’ Nogueira, Rogerio ‘Minotoro’ Nogueira, Ricardo Arona, Paulo Filho. They arrived really raw. Fighters became big names after we built them into big names. But it’s hard, you know? Too many big names at the same school and it becomes about vanity and about money.”
Bustamante is now the only founding member left in Rio. Sperry and Duarte have relocated to Las Vegas, Liborio set up the highly successful American Top Team with fellow Brazilian Marcus ‘Conan’ Silveira, and the Nogueira twins now train with Anderson Silva.
This has left Bustamante at the helm of a new generation of BTT fighters, including UFC middleweight Rousimar Palhares, Luis ‘Buscape’ Firmino, Milton Vieira, and David Bielkheden. “Now I am the sole boss, I am building the guys my own way, training the guys my own way, and making my own decisions. When there are three chefs it makes it difficult to cook, you know? We worked well for eight years and did a great job but now is a different time. I’m really happy to work with the new fighters.”
With a storied fight career of his own, Bustamante’s record stands at 14-7-1. During his 17-year career he fought everyone from Chuck Liddell (Bustamante out-boxed ‘The Iceman’ for much of their fight, yet dropped the decision) to Dan Henderson, Quinton Jackson, and Matt Lindland.
Bustamante’s last fight was on 31 December 2007 and, though it has been 12 months since he last stepped in the ring, the Brazilian is still keen to compete, even at the age of 42. “I have no idea what is going to happen. When I was 20 I used to look forward and think I would stop ‘when I turn 30’. When I was 30 I thought I would stop at 40. Nowadays I don’t consider the possibility of stopping fighting. I just want to get into the ring and fight.”
CAREER SNAPSHOT
1991
Makes his debut in bare-knuckle vale tudo beating Marcelo Mendes by TKO.
1996
Fights in the bare-knuckle MARS tournament in Alabama, making it to the finals.
2000
Makes his UFC debut, fighting on UFC Japan. He submits Yoji Anjo with a choke.
2002
Fights and knocks out Dave Menne to win the UFC middleweight title. Bustamante defends it once before contract negotiations see him leave to fight in Japan.
2003
His Pride debut gets off to an inauspicious start. He loses his first three fights for the promotion.
2005
Wins three straight fights in 2005 but runs into Dan Henderson in the ‘welterweight’ tournament final. Henderson wins by split decision.
2008
Bustamante is scheduled to fight in America but it falls through, leaving him to focus on training his fighters at BTT.
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