Issue 102
June 2013
In the second of a two-part special on pre-fight preparation, Brazilian middleweight star Jacare Souza reveals his top tips for readying yourself for combat
After 21 fights across three continents, taking in four nations and featuring in no less than five championship fights, Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza will finally return and compete in Brazil for the first time since 2007 when he makes his highly-anticipated UFC debut on May 18th.
One of the planet’s leading middleweight stars, Jacare will face red-hot Cypriot Costa Philippou on the UFC on FX card, featuring in the co-main event alongside former UFC champion Vitor Belfort and Luke Rockhold, the former fellow Strikeforce fighter and the man who took Jacare’s championship belt in the now-extinct organisation.
Victory over Philippou, who is riding a hugely impressive five-fight winning streak into the matchup, will no doubt secure Jacare’s place inside the world top 10 – and also throw his name into the title contention mix below teammate and frequent sparring partner Anderson Silva at his fight base, X-Gym.
Fighters Only caught up with Jacare at X-Gym in Rio De Janeiro and discovered a fighter surrounded by premier coaching talent. From MMA trainer Josuel Distak, through wrestling coach Adrian Jaoude, jiu-jitsu master Sylvio Behring and strength and conditioning trainer Rogerio ‘Rogerao’ Camoes, Jacare is preparing better than ever before. And he insists it will be his jiu-jitsu game, which gave him so many world titles in the past, that will make the difference against the former pro boxer.
However, all this talent and a strong work ethic would count for nothing without the perfect preparation that’s essential for a great performance in the cage. Preparing to fight is something very specific to each athlete, but as Rogerao says: “Jacare is extremely explosive when he trains, just like when he fights, and he prepares very quickly.” Jacare insists he likes to spend no more than 30 minutes preparing to spar or fight.
Though he is known for his intensity when the cage door is locked shut, Jacare is calm and easy going outside of the ring and says he feels very relaxed on the big day. “I just look forward to getting in the cage and doing what I do best,” he says, with a shrug and a big smile. Rogerao agrees: “He has lots of fun in there.”
No Stretching
This is always a polemical issue. Many coaches and athletes include stretching exercises on their warm-up routine for a big fight, regardless of all the scientific studies that say that stretching is only necessary after the exercise. The truth is that, as said by coach Rogerao, “there is no recipe to warm-up all athletes, as each has specific needs, and feels better with different exercises and movements.”
Explosive Movements
Jacare doesn’t do any stretching before a fight, but makes sure he does a lot of explosive movements, such as drills and padwork, increasing his heart rate and his body temperature. The entire process takes around 30 minutes, until he starts sweating and feeling the connection between body and mind.
“The warm-up helps to prepare the body, but also helps me to stay focused before the fight,” he explains. Performing a series of movements that will actually be reproduced in the fight with speed, strength and power, can help wake the body, the muscles and enhance these physical attributes.
With a great warm-up, the probability of overstretching a muscle and causing injury is far less. Then he takes around 15 minutes to relax before the show.
A Strong Mind
One curious thing about Jacare is that, different to many Brazilians, he doesn’t have any superstitions or special rituals before a big event. Not even a good luck charm? “No,” he laughs. He usually just chills out and sleeps a lot in the few days before the fights.
Jacare reveals that his psychological therapy with names like Joao Alberto Barreto – psychologist, former vale tudo fighter and Grand Master red belt of BJJ – was crucial in teaching him how to control his emotions and feel no anxiety. “I just enjoy some Brazilian rock songs, which I always choose for my entrance,” he adds.
Dealing with Pressure
How about the pressure of his debut in the UFC in front of all the Brazilians fans, known as being very passionate? “Even better. It is always good to feel the loud support of this special public; there is no one like them in the world,” says Jacare.
Jacare WARM-UP DRILLS
Preferring to shadowbox to get warm before sparring, but short rounds of padwork directly before a fight, Jacare also likes to rep out movements from his jiu-jitsu career
Takedowns
Starting with takedowns, Jacare will quickly perform the entries (not the finishes) to judo throws, a practice called ‘uchikomi.’ He will do around 20 on each side before switching to the next. The pace is kept high to work up a sweat.
Arm drag to the Back
Assuming the open guard, Jacare will grab his opponent’s arm and pass it across his body so as to take the back. This is a surprise attack and therefore requires speed and accuracy to perform. Jacare starts off slowly and increases the speed of the attack as part of his warming-up process.
Guard Passing
To prepare his body for moving on the floor, Jacare uses several guard passing drills as a form of dynamic warm-up. Jacare quickly moves from one side to another for a total of 20 reps before switching exercises.
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