Brazilian Top Team

Brazilian Top Team
Est.	2000
Founded by	Murilo Bustamante ; Ricardo Libório ; Mário Sperry ; Luis Roberto Duarte
Past titleholders	Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Heavyweight Champion (Pride 2001-2002) 240 lb (110 kg; 17 st) ; Murilo Bustamante Middlewieght Champion (UFC 2002) 185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st) ; Vitor Belfort Light Heavyweight Champion (UFC 2004) 205 lb (93 kg; 14.6 st)
Training facilities	; Rio de Janeiro City, Rio de Janeiro (headquarters) ; Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais ; ; Tustin, California ; Long Beach, California ; Austin, Texas ; Dallas, Texas ; San Antonio, Texas ; Humble, Texas ; Norwalk, California ; Fullerton, California; Happy Valley, Oregon; Everett, Massachusetts
Website	https://www.braziliantopteam.net

The Brazilian Top Team (BTT) is an academy specialized in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and mixed martial arts. It established in April 2000 by Murilo Bustamante, Ricardo Libório, Mário Sperry and Luis Roberto Duarte, former members of the Carlson Gracie Academy, to develop and create new training techniques for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, submission grappling and mixed martial arts.^[1]

Rivalry with Chute Boxe[]

BTT maintains an intense rivalry with Brazilian mixed martial arts stable Chute Boxe, which is descended from a Muay Thai lineage. BTT traces its lineage to the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu of Carlson Gracie. The most storied chapter of this rivalry was reached at the apex of each team's success in PRIDE FC. Chute Boxe was comprised, at the time, of such fighters as Wanderlei Silva and Shogun Rua, and former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva.

BTT consisted of top fighters such as Ricardo Arona, former UFC Middleweight Championship holder Murilo Bustamante, the Nogueira Brothers, Vitor Belfort, Allan Goes, Mario Sperry, and former WEC Middleweight Champion Paulo Filho. Competition between the two teams was not limited to Pride FC matches. Bouts between fighters of the two camps took place in Brazil, Portugal, the U.S., and other parts of the world on a regular basis.

Locations[]

In April 2000 BTT inaugurated a new center in Brazil for training professional fighters in mixed martial arts. It provides teachers of Muay Thai, boxing, wrestling, mixed martial arts and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Other locations are:

Montreal, Quebec, Canada - Fábio Holanda opened Brazilian Top Team Canada and has trained prominent UFC Fighters Patrick Côté and UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre.
Long Beach, California - Marcelo Perdomo (BJJ Black Belt under BTT co-founder Murilo Bustamante) opened Brazilian Top Team Long Beach in mid-2004.^[2]
Boston, Massachusetts - In 2003 João C. Amaral and Daniel Gazoni opened Brazilian Top Team Boston, the first recognized BTT dojo in the United States.^[3]
Boca Raton, Florida - João C. Amaral^[4]
West Palm Beach, Florida - João C. Amaral^[5]
Melbourne, Florida - Edgard Dutra (BJJ black belt), BTT Florida^[6]
- Cocoa Beach, Florida - satellite school in cooperation with Force Fitness Gym^[7]
San Antonio, Texas - (BJJ black belt), BTT Texas^[8]^[9]
Happy Valley, Oregon - Gustavo Bessa (BJJ black belt and Professional MMA Fighter),BTT Happy Valley ^[10]
Phuket, Thailand - Tiger Muay Thai, Fernando Maccachero (BJJ black belt)
Austin, Texas - BTT Austin^[11]
Charlotte, North Carolina-BTT Charlotte
Richardson, Texas - BTT North Dallas, Leonardo Machado ^[12]
Tallinn, Estonia - BTT Estonia, Sergio De Andrade Cabral ^[13]
Jacksonville, Florida - Marcello Salazar
Humble, Texas- , 3rd Degree Black Belt
Hamilton, Bermuda- , 3rd Degree Black Belt
Lake Jackson, Texas - Fernando Halfeld
Cambridge, UK - Leonardo Gamarra, 4th Degree Black Belt
Evergreen, CO - David Roberts, 1st Degree Black Belt
Fullerton, CA - Jaysen Jose Baxter, 3rd Degree Black Belt
Wien, Austria - Fernando Paulon 4rd Degree Black Belt

Future[]

BTT have produced some of the best Brazilian MMA fighters of all time. The team was compared to the Real Madrid soccer team around 2003 because of the number of good fighters the team had.

In 2007 the Nogueira Brothers founded their own team taking some BTT fighters with them. It split the power of the team at this time but BTT kept building young fighters. Ricardo Arona and Paulo Filho followed their own way but returned often to visit and train with the team at the BTT headquarters in Rio de Janeiro.

Ricardo Liborio left the team in 2002, moving to the US to found American Top Team with some friends. Bustamante and Liborio kept their friendship since the beginning of the times in Carlson Gracie school until now.

BTT has new blood fighting around the world in BJJ and MMA. Pat Cote is representing the team in UFC, Toninho Furia and Pedro Nobre are fighting in Titan FC, Leonardo Leite is fighting in Legacy FC and many others are fighting all over the world.

The team is growing with affiliates in Brazil, Canada, US, Turkey, Russia, Australia and Thailand. One of the biggest Muay Thai camps in Thailand, Tiger Muay Thai, is affiliated with BTT to represent the team in Asia. It enables BTT fighters to learn Muay Thai from the roots of Thailand, and Thai fighters learn the BJJ and MMA from one of the best teams of all time.

Notable fighters[]

Vitor Belfort - former UFC Light-Heavyweight Champion; former competitor for UFC; former competitor for PRIDE FC; former competitor for Affliction
David Bielkheden - former competitor for UFC
Murilo Bustamante - former UFC middleweight champion, and PRIDE FC Welterweight Grand Prix finalist; former competitor for UFC and PRIDE FC
Patrick Côté - competitor for UFC
Paulo Filho - former competitor for PRIDE FC; former WEC Middleweight Champion; current competitor for DREAM
Allan Goes - former competitor for PRIDE FC; former competitor for UFC; former competitor for IFL
Ikuhisa Minowa - former competitor for PRIDE FC; DREAM Super Hulk (Open-Weight) Grand Prix champion
Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira - former PRIDE FC Heavyweight Champion; former Interim Heavyweight Champion for UFC
Antônio Rogério Nogueira - former competitor for PRIDE FC; former competitor for Affliction
Rousimar Palhares - former WSOF Welterweight Champion
Fernando Paulon - former competitor Cage Fight Live
Marcello Salazar - former competitor for IFL
Antônio Silva - former Heavyweight Champion for Elite XC; competitor for UFC; former competitor for Strikeforce
Mario Sperry - former competitor for PRIDE FC
Milton Vieira - competitor for UFC
Ricardo Arona - competitor for Pride
- competitor for Cage Rage ans Cage Warriors
- former competitor for TFC, MFC and XFG

References[]

^ [1] Archived August 29, 2005, at the Wayback Machine
^ "Brazilian Top Team, Long Beach". Bttlongbeach.com. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
^ "Welcome to Brazilian Top Team Boston". Bttboston.com. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
^ "Brazilian Top Team - Karate in Boca Raton". Boca Raton, Florida, United States: Bocaraton.braziliantopteamflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-08. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
^ "Welcome to Brazilian Top Team Florida". Florida, United States: Westpalmbeach.braziliantopteamflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
^ "Brazilian Top Team Melbourne". Melbourne, Florida, United States: Melbourne.braziliantopteamflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-08. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
^ "Brazilian Top Team Cocoa Beach". Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States: Cocoabeach.braziliantopteamflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-08. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
^ http://bttsa.com/
^ "alivemma_new". Alivemma.com. Retrieved 2014-02-06.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ http://www.btthappyvalley.com. Missing or empty |title= (help)
^ "Brazilian Top Team Austin". bttaustin.com. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
^ "Brazilian Top Team North Dallas". bttnorthdallas.com. Retrieved 2017-05-27.
^ "Brazilian Top Team Estonia". bttestonia.ee. Retrieved 2020-11-11.

External links[]

[btt-1] [1] Archived August 29, 2005, at the Wayback Machine

[2] "Brazilian Top Team, Long Beach". Bttlongbeach.com. Retrieved 2014-02-06.

[3] "Welcome to Brazilian Top Team Boston". Bttboston.com. Retrieved 2014-02-06.

[4] "Brazilian Top Team - Karate in Boca Raton". Boca Raton, Florida, United States: Bocaraton.braziliantopteamflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-08. Retrieved 2014-02-06.

[5] "Welcome to Brazilian Top Team Florida". Florida, United States: Westpalmbeach.braziliantopteamflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2014-02-06.

[6] "Brazilian Top Team Melbourne". Melbourne, Florida, United States: Melbourne.braziliantopteamflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-08. Retrieved 2014-02-06.

[7] "Brazilian Top Team Cocoa Beach". Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States: Cocoabeach.braziliantopteamflorida.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-08. Retrieved 2014-02-06.

[8] ttp://bttsa.com/

[9] "alivemma_new". Alivemma.com. Retrieved 2014-02-06.^{[permanent dead link]}

[10] ttp://www.btthappyvalley.com. Missing or empty |title= (help)

[11] "Brazilian Top Team Austin". bttaustin.com. Retrieved 2014-07-15.

[12] "Brazilian Top Team North Dallas". bttnorthdallas.com. Retrieved 2017-05-27.

[13] "Brazilian Top Team Estonia". bttestonia.ee. Retrieved 2020-11-11.

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