Brazilian Top Team

MMA Training Associations|teamname=Brazilian Top Team


imagesize = 250px
founder=Murilo Bustamante
Ricardo Libório
Mário Sperry
Luis Roberto Duarte
owners=
trainers=
dateestablished=2000
titleholders=
fmrtitleholders=Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira heavyweight Champion (PrideFC 2001-2003) convert|205|lb|kg st|abbr=on|lk=on+
Murilo Bustamante middleweight Champion (UFC 2002) convert|185|lb|kg st|abbr=on|lk=on
Vitor Belfort light-heavyweight Champion (UFC 2004) convert|205|lb|kg st|abbr=on|lk=on
topfighters=Ricardo Arona (PrideFC)
Murilo Bustamante (PrideFC) Rousimar Palhares (UFC)
schoollocations=flagicon|BRA Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (headquarters)

website= [http://www.braziliantopteam.com/ www.braziliantopteam.com] |

The Brazilian Top Team (BTT) is a mixed martial arts academy specializing in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and boxing.The academy was 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 wrestling and mixed martial arts. [http://www.braziliantopteam.com BTT Official Site] ]

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 teams success in PRIDE FC. Chute Boxe which was comprised, at the time, of such fighters as Wanderlei Silva, Murilo and Shogun Rua, and current UFC Middleweight Champion and Yahoo Sports number one pound-for-pound fighter Anderson Silva.

While BTT consisted at the time of top fighters such as, Ricardo Arona, Murilo Bustamante, The Nogueira Brothers, Vitor Belfort, Allan Goes, Mario Sperry, and current WEC Middleweight Champion and Sherdog.com/MMAWeekly.com world number two ranked Middleweight Fighter Paulo Filho.

Competition between the two teams was hardly limited to the Pride scene however. Matches between fighters of the two organizations had taken place in Brazil, Portugal, the U.S., and other parts of the world before, but perhaps the most interesting chapter of the rivalry took place on August 28 2005 at the 2005 PRIDE FC middle weight Grand Prix.

The 2005 PRIDE FC middleweight Grand Prix would be the first such competition for newcomers Mauricio Rua of Chute Boxe, and BTT’s Ricardo Arona. Both scored impressive victories over highly regarded veterans Alistair Overeem and PRIDE Middleweight Champ Wanderlei Silva respectively. It was Arona’s victory over the latter that would stoke the flames of the rivalry, because until then Silva had been the torch-bearer for Chute Boxe. Later that night, however, “Shogun” would compensate for that loss with a thoroughly dominating first round victory, ultimately finishing Arona by KO due to strikes.

Another noticeable aspect of this period is that it shortly followed the departure of promising prospect Anderson Silva. Silva had noted several disputes with Chute Boxe's management as reasons for leaving the team and shortly began training with some of Brazilian Top Team's best in the Noguiera brothers. He was quoted in an ESPN article as stating that friendships formed with his former rivals helped to save his career upon his departure from Chute Boxe.cite web
url=http://sports.espn.go.com/extra/mma/news/story?id=3070271
title=Silva not fazed by fighting in Franklin's home town
year=2007
accessdate=2007-12-16
publisher=ESPN/Sherdog]

Locations

In April 2002 BTT inaugurated a new center in Brazil for training professional fighters in mixed martial arts. In the new center, the athletes are able to count on teachers of: Muay Thai, boxing, wrestling and the already recognized skills of its teachers of mixed martial arts and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Other locations are:
*Montreal, Canada - Fabio Holanda opened Brazilian Top Team Canada upon his arrival in Montreal, which has since become the training ground for prominent UFC Fighters Patrick Cote (fighter) and UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre. [ [http://www.fabioholanda.com Fabio Holanda/BTT Canada Official Site] ]
*Long Beach, California - Marcelo Perdomo (a black belt in BJJ under BTT co-founder Murilo Bustamante and the legendary Carlson Gracie) opened Brazilian Top Team Long Beach in mid-2006 with the help of Murilo Bustamante, and is the only BTT affiliate on the West Coast and the second officially recognized BTT dojo in the United States.
*Boston, Massachusetts- In 2003 João C. Amaral and Daniel Gazoni opened Brazilian Top Team Boston, the first recognized BTT dojo in the United States. [ [http://www.bttboston.com Combined Martial Arts Academy - CMAA - Mixed Martial Arts School - New England] ]
*London, England
*Milton Keynes, England - Ze Marcello (BJJ black belt under BTT co-founder Murilo Bustamante) http://www.btteurope.co.uk/
*HongKong - Alexander "Xandinho" Izidro (BJJ black belt) is teaching BJJ and MMA at BTT HK http://www.jabmma.com
*Adelaide, Australia - Gustavo "Bomba" Toledo (BJJ black belt) BTT Australia http://braziliantopteam.com/australia/
*Brussels, Belgium - Juan Grizzo (BJJ black belt) BTT Belgium http://www.jiujitsubresilien.be/

Future

Like Chute Boxe, BTT had fallen on hard times since the selling of PRIDE to Zuffa in 2007. Beginning with the departure of the Noguiera brothers, the team has lost much of their roster including co-founder Mario Sperry, The Nogueira Brothers, and Paulo Filho. Most of this is considered to be due to the fact that with the fall of PRIDE FC and the lower pay scale in the U.S., fighters cannot afford to pay the high dues charged by the team.

Recently however, things have began to turn around for BTT. Despite contrasting rumors, Ricardo Arona has publicly stated he is still a member of BTT. In reference to him leaving BTT, he stated in a Sherdog.com interview, that "I’m still on the team. Nothing has changed. I’m not training there by choice, but I still have a connection with Murilo Bustamante, and I don’t have any quarrels with them. We always made it clear that if our opinions ever changed, we would sit down and talk."

A few rumors have also surfaced that Paulo Filho has trained with BTT for his upcoming re-match title fight on Sept. 10, 2008 against Chael Sonnen, whom he already has a victory over. Potentially meaning Filho could return to BTT sometime in the future, due in large to his close friendship with Ricardo Arona, and Anderson Silva.cite web
url=http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id=3253436&type=story
title=The downfall of BTT and Chute Boxe
year=2008
accessdate=2008-03-09
publisher=ESPN.com] cite web
url=http://sports.espn.go.com/extra/mma/news/story?id=2948970
title=Brazilian MMA expanding, exciting fights are on the way, July 25, 2007
year=2006
accessdate=2008-03-09
publisher=ESPN.com]

Fighters

Current BTT Brazil Members

*Ricardo Arona - Former competitor for PRIDE FC, and PRIDE FC Middleweight Grand Prix Finalist.
*Murilo Bustamante - Former UFC middleweight champion, and PRIDE FC Welterweight Grand Prix Finalist. Former competitor for UFC and PRIDE FC
*David Bielkheden - Competitor for UFC
*Rousimar Palhares - Competitor for UFC
*Carlos "Carlao" Barreto - Former competitor for PRIDE / Rings / M-1
*Luiz "Buscape" Firmino - Competitor for DREAM
*Milton Vieira - Former PRIDE competitor
*Marcello Salazar - Competitor for IFL
*Adriano "Nasal" Pereira - Former competitor for Elite XC
*Hudson Rocha - Competitor for Shooto
*Omar Maron - Former competitor for Shooto
*Alexandre "Cacareco" Ferreira - Former competitor for IFL
*Paulo Boiko - Former competitor for Shooto
*Marcelo "Grilo" Alfaia - Former competitor for M-1 / Shooto
*Alexandre Izidro - Current Cage Warriors Lightweight World Champion

Current BTT Canada Members

*Georges St. Pierre - Current UFC Welterweight Champion
*Patrick Cote (MMA) - Competitor for UFC, current #1 Contender for UFC Middleweight Title
*Fabio Holanda
*Eric Beaulieu
*Nabil Khatib
*Sean Locke
*Nino Bezerra
*Stephane Dube
*Samuel Guillet
*Stephan Potvin
*Nelson Akawui Riquelme
*Ulisses Rocha
*Wade Shanley
*Tim Wadsworth

Former Brazilian Top Team fighters/trained with

*Anderson Silva - Former Shooto Middleweight Champion / Former Cage Rage Middleweight Champion / Current UFC Middleweight Champion
*Vitor Belfort - Former UFC Light-Heavyweight Champion / Former competitor for PRIDE FC / Current competitor for Affliction
*Paulo Filho - Former competitor for PRIDE FC / Current WEC Middleweight Champion
*Allan Goes - Former competitor for PRIDE FC / Former competitor for IFL
*Ikuhisa Minowa - Former competitor for PRIDE FC
*Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira - Former PRIDE FC Heavyweight Champion / Current Heavyweight Champion for UFC
*Antônio Rogério Nogueira - Former competitor for PRIDE FC / Current competitor for Affliction
*Antonio Silva - Current Heavyweight Champion for Elite XC
*Mario Sperry - Former competitor for PRIDE FC
*Ricardo Nogueira - Former Shooto competitor

References

External links

* [http://www.braziliantopteam.com Brazilian Top Team official site]
* [http://www.fabioholanda.com Fabio Holanda / BTT Canada official site]
* [http://sports.espn.go.com/extra/mma/news/story?id=2979369 Bustamante speaks about BTT's new horizons]
* [http://brazilian-top-team-hq.gymdb.com/ BTT on the GymDB]